Kerala’s Muslim girls crave to come out of burqa
Muslim Cleric Calls for Jihad, Coptic Christians Attacked in EgyptHundreds protest over church attacks in Indonesia
11 killed in persistent Iraq violence
Al-Qaeda’s Yemen Wing Threatens To Overthrow Saudi Government
Devastated by floods, Afghan refugees want to return home
New Malaysian party to give voice to Indian community
Saudi poet-politician who praised suicide bombers dies at 70
US Prez faces backlash for backing mosque
Iran wants India at Af meet
Pak sold off ‘enemy property’ long ago
Arabs lobby for IAEA inspection of Israel
Somalia journalist jailed for Islamist interview
Stop killing Muslims, Zawahri tells Turkey
Bahrain arrests four Shia activists as poll nears
Muslim Gay Bar: Why Are the Intolerant Preaching Tolerance?
Workshops for women married to foreigners planned
Musharraf not to come to Pakistan this year
Female Peace Activists In Palestinian Territory Suffer Sexual Harassment
Pak group hacks into Vijay Mallya's website
Quit violence, come for talks: PM
Madani says will surrender before court soon
PM appeals to Maoists, warns Pakistan on terror
Shoe chucker a respected ex- cop but ‘ mentally unsound’
UK Pakistanis Angry With Indian Visa Rules
Hasina vows to bring fugitive Mujibur killers to justice
Zia had hands in killing of Mujib: Razzak
Gitmo trials draw strong criticism
Afghan man, woman ‘stoned to death’ over love affair
Killing sparks 'crime jihad'
Foreign artists, researchers due in Tehran
Osama buried in mountainous regions of Pak: Petraeus
Saudi Sitcom Row Tests Tolerance Toward Christians
33 college-madrassah teachers forced to sign resignation letters
Compiled by New Age Islam News Bureau
Photo: Riyana R Khasi
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Kerala’s Muslim girls crave to come out of burqa
VR Jayaraj
Aug 16, 2010
Even as Islamist forces like PDP of Abdul Nasser Madani and Popular Front of India are allegedly working overtime for Talibanising Kerala by forcing Muslims to adopt strict conservatism, a revolution is taking place within the community against such efforts.
In several places with Muslim concentration in the State, the Islamist outfits are facing stiff resistance, especially from women, to the diktats of the clergy to adopt conservative customs like wearing burqa and hijab. This revolution is proving the Islamists' cries for freedom of Muslim women to wear traditional dresses a farce. Also, the rebellion is no more a silent one.
The latest example of this intra-community revolution is Riyana R Khasi, a young Muslim woman belonging to Kasaragod, known for strict conservatism among Muslims. Riyana, an degree-holder aeronautical engineering, made history last week when she earned an order from the Kerala High Court against Islamists who were determined to make her wear burqa and hijab against her will.
The court ordered the police to give her security from her relatives, neighbours and an Islamist outfit, who threatened her with dire consequences if she did not wear the 'traditional Muslim dress'. The Kasaragod Police, who had refused to look into the girls' complaints till last week, has already registered cases against three persons for threatening her in the name burqa.
Riyana had come back to Kasaragod after completing her degree course in aeronautical engineering at Chennai a year ago and since then she and her family were being harassed by conservative elements among her own relatives and neighbours for her special affinity to modern dresses like jeans and T-shirts. When their efforts failed, an Islamist organisation allegedly took over the job of threatening the family.
But Riyana stood her ground arguing that the Holy Qur'an had not made burqa mandatory for Muslim women. She argued that the women of Arabia were wearing it because of the climatic peculiarities and that it was in no way a symbol of Islam. Her firm stand enraged the conservatives, clergy and the Islamists, and the threats intensified.
Riyana approached the High Court after her complaints to the Kasaragod Police at different levels and the Kerala State Commission for Women proved futile. Last week, the High Court ordered the police to provide security to the girl, her parents and sisters from those who were harassing them with open threats and embarrassing telephone calls.
"India is not a religious State but a democracy. The Popular Front or the conservative clergy has no right to decide how I should dress," says Riyana, who is preparing for civil service examinations. "I am a true believer but I have the right to choose my clothes," she says.
Reports from several other places, where concentration of conservative Muslims is high and where Islamists are successfully enforcing their diktats, also suggest that young girls are in the process of breaking off the fetters of religious rigidity. Firdhouse, a pharmaceutical sciences student from Mattanchery, says she has been resisting the dress code compulsions from the clergy ever since she joined the course in Coimbatore two years ago.
"I don't agree with the burqa ban in France but I don't also agree with our people's campaign for the Muslim girls' freedom to wear hijab in schools," says Firdhouse. "It is true that Muslim girls should have the freedom to wear hijab but the clergy should also agree with their freedom to wear the dress they like. Somehow, our leaders do not want us to live life the way we want to," she says.
Haroon, a Kozhikode-based expert on Islamic culture, said revolts by Gen-Y Muslim girls were not isolated cases but it was fast becoming a trend. He said the new generation Muslims had made great progress in lifestyle and professionalism and this was bound to reflect on their outlook.
"You can't ask a young IT professional to excel in his field and stick to conservatism at the same time. Their professions and the world they interact are sure to have an influence on their perspective and dress. The clergy of any group cannot keep them in the confines of conservative practices," he said.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/276373/Kerala%E2%80%99s-Muslim-girls-crave-to-come-out-of-burqa.html
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Pak fears terror attacks on embassies in Islamabad
Aug 17, 2010
ISLAMABAD: Pakistani intelligence agencies have warned that the local Taliban, the Jandullah group and others banned militant groups have plans to target foreigners, embassies and Shia clerics and worship places in major cities in the country, including capital Islamabad.
The agencies say that the groups are also planning to target places of worship in Rawalpindi, Lahore, Okara and Karachi. They have also warned of attacks on leaders of the Muttahida Qaumi Movement at the party's public meetings, district police lines and offices of Divisional Police Officers, Urdu daily Aaj Kal quoted its sources as saying.
The sources said the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan has tasked one Abu Adil Mujahid to carry out the attacks. Another intelligence report said the militants have trained a suicide bomber, identified as Khayal Shah, to carry out attacks on high-value targets. A vehicle has been rigged with 80kg of explosives for such an attack.
Another report said a group of banned militant organisations have plans to carry out suicide attacks on district police lines and the DPO's office in Okara. It said that extremists might carry out targeted killings in Punjab similar to the recent murder of MQMleaderRaza Haider in Karachi.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Pak-fears-terror-attacks-on-embassies-in-Islamabad/articleshow/6321870.cms#ixzz0wpXNsrk2
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Iran announces new site for processing uranium
Aug 17, 2010
TEHRAN: Iran said on Monday it will begin building a new site to enrich uranium by March, moving ahead with a plan that defies international efforts to curb its nuclear development.
Uranium enrichment factories are used to create fuel for nuclear power plants but can also, if taken to extremes, produce the material for weapons. The planned plant is among 10 new sites Iran approved last year in what would be a dramatic expansion of its controversial enrichment program.
The announcement on state TV said the locations for the sites have been determined but gave no details. "Construction of a new uranium enrichment site will begin by the end of (the Iranian calendar) year (March 2011) or early next year," Salehi said.
Russia will begin loading fuel into the plant on Saturday with a view to it going online by September end.
The US and its allies accuse Iran of using its civilian nuclear program as a cover to develop a nuclear weapons capability.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/middle-east/Iran-announces-new-site-for-processing-uranium/articleshow/6321874.cms#ixzz0wpXSiux5
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'Hardliners gathering in Lahore'
Aug 17, 2010
ISLAMABAD: Over 300 hardliners and their mentors from across Pakistan have gathered in Lahore and are living in Afghan and Pashtun-populated localities, according to a media report on Monday.
The hardliners, including more than 100 members of six terrorist groups, entered Lahore and hired residences in the past few months, intelligence agencies have said.
The Daily Times quoted its sources as saying several high-profile hardliners are hiding in posh localities across the city. Following the unprecedented floods across Pakistan, a large number of hardliners had migrated to Lahore from Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa, Sindh and southern Punjab, the sources said.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/world/pakistan/Hardliners-gathering-in-Lahore/articleshow/6321880.cms#ixzz0wpXWkF4F
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Baha mosques discover errors in Qibla direction
By HAYAT AL-GHAMDI
Aug 16, 2010
ABHA: A senior Ministry of Islamic Affairs official has claimed mosques in Baha province are not aligned correctly with the Qibla.
Nasir Badran, director general of the ministry’s Baha branch, said there was no cause for concern. “These are not major errors. Our department has so far not identified any mosques with serious discrepancies to the point of making prayers invalid,” he said.
Badran told Arab News that the ministry’s branch in his southern city was the first to introduce highly advanced technology in determining the direction of the Qibla, the official alignment with the Holy Kaaba.
“Therefore, there is little chance for errors happening where worshippers are facing the wrong way when praying at mosques. These reported discrepancies might have happened because this technology was not used during the construction of the mosques,” he said.
Badran noted that a fatwa issued by the Senior Scholars’ Council offers much flexibility on this issue, saying slight errors would be forgiven. “If the discrepancies are major, necessary corrections should be made within the errant mosques,” he said.
“This should be resolved by installing a correct indicator of the Qibla inside the mosque or point prayer rugs more precisely in the direction of the Holy Kaaba. And there is no need to demolish such mosques.”
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/saudiarabia/article104147.ece
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Opposing factions break off coalition talks in Iraq
By WALEED IBRAHIM
Aug 17, 2010
BAGHDAD: The Sunni-backed Iraqiya alliance of former Iraqi Premier Iyad Allawi on Monday formally broke off coalition talks with Prime Minister Nuri Al-Maliki, likely delaying even further the formation of a government.
Talks between Iraqiya and Al-Maliki’s Shiite-led State of Law alliance did not begin until three months after the inconclusive March 7 vote, and the chances of a deal were always remote.
But the political impasse has stirred tensions as US troops prepare to end combat operations this month, ahead of a full withdrawal next year, and raised the spectre of a return to widespread violence just as the bloodshed has begun to recede.
A spokeswoman for Iraqiya, Maysoon Al-Damluji, said the bloc stopped negotiations with Al-Maliki's State of Law after he described Allawi's group as Sunni, rather than cross-sectarian.
"We demand that he apologizes, not to Iraqiya but to the supporters of Iraqiya who voted for a national project and not a sectarian one," Damluji said.
Iraqiya official Intisar Allawi said more than 26 of its 91 elected lawmakers were Shiite, as was Iyad Allawi himself.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article104097.ece
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Uzbek Militant Leader Killed - Monitoring Group
16 Aug, 2010
LONDON (Reuters) - Tahir Yuldashev, an al Qaeda-linked Uzbek militant and Central Asia's most wanted Islamist fighter, has been killed, a U.S. monitoring group quoted his fighters as saying on Monday.
The SITE Intelligence Group said the Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan (IMU) had posted a series of photographs showing the dead body of a bearded man whom it described as Yuldashev.
SITE said the IMU also posted Uzbek-language messages from IMU officials, and described Yuldashev as "slain," without giving further details.
Reuters could not independently verify the IMU statement.
Yuldashev has been declared dead several times before, including once in 2009 when Pakistani intelligence officials said he was killed in a U.S. drone attack in the South Waziristan region on the Afghan border.
Full report at:
http://www.nytimes.com/reuters/2010/08/16/world/international-uk-uzbekistan-militant.html
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Gates, Obama's Afghan war aide, to step down in 2011
17 Aug, 2010
WASHINGTON: US Defense Secretary Robert Gates said Monday he would step down in 2011, sayng it would be clear by then whether the US surge strategy in Afghanistan is working.
Gates is the sole Republican holdover in President Barack Obama's cabinet, offering the Democratic president continuity on national security as he took charge of the White House and two wars last year.
Gates, a former CIA director with a 40-year career in government, has long hinted he wants to leave. He was tapped by former president George W. Bush in 2006 to replace the controversial Donald Rumsfeld amid a near debacle in Iraq.
“I think that by next year I'll be in a position where, you know, we're going to know whether the strategy is working in Afghanistan,” Gates said in an interview with Foreign Policy magazine.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/world/06-gates-obamas-afghan-war-aide-to-step-down-in-2011-rs-05
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Muslim Cleric Calls for Jihad, Coptic Christians Attacked in Egypt
Aug 16, 2010
On August 13 Sheikh Tobah, Imam of the village of Shimi 170 KM south of Giza, called during Muslim Friday prayers for Jihad against Christians living there. As a result the Christian Copts living in the village were assaulted over two consecutive days. Eleven Copts were hospitalized and many Coptic youths were arrested.
The assaults begain a couple of hours after the Sheikhs incitement. An argument between Copt Maher Amin, who was washing his taxi, and Mohamed Ali Almstaui, a Muslim extremist from the village, escalated into violence as Mohamad assaulted Maher. The altercation was stopped by bystanders. However, after the evening break of Ramadan fast, Ahmad, the brother of the perpetrator Mohamad, who is reported to belong to an extremist organization, together with twenty other men, went to Maher's family home, breaking down the door and assaulting him and his family with batons, including his old mother and his paralyzed sister, injuring them and breaking their furniture.
Security forces came and took away the Christian victims and kept them at the station in spite of their wounds, to pressuree them into accepting "reconciliation" with their attackers. None of the Muslims were arrested.
Full report at:
http://www.aina.org/news/20100814184359.htm
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Hundreds protest over church attacks in Indonesia
Aug 16 2010
JAKARTA: Hundreds of Indonesians held a prayer vigil in Jakarta on Sunday urging President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to stop attacks by radicals on Christian churches.
Carrying several Indonesian flags at half-mast, the group comprising mostly of Christians prayed and sang hymns. “The president and the government have violated constitutional rights of minority groups to freely practise their religion,” rally coordinator Judianto Simanjuntak told AFP. “They yielded to pressure by the militant groups and allowed churches to be closed and attacks to continue. We ask the president to be responsible and guarantee religious freedom,” he added.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\08\16\story_16-8-2010_pg4_5
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11 killed in persistent Iraq violence
Aug 16, 2010
BAGHDAD: Drive-by shootings and a spate of bombings killed 11 people and wounded dozens more Sunday in fresh reminders of persistent violence across Iraq despite an overall drop in attacks nationwide.
At least 30 people were injured in separate and apparently unrelated attacks, Iraqi police hospitals officials said.
Five of the dead were Iraqi police and security forces.
In the most gruesome example, gunmen opened fire on worshippers as they were leaving dawn prayers in town of Jurf Al-Sakhr just south of the capital, killing three and wounding one, said Maj. Muthana Khalid, the spokesman for Babil province police.The attack occurred at about 4:00 a.m.
Worshippers converge in high numbers to mosques during the holy month of Ramadan — a period devoted to prayer and dawn-to-dusk fasting.
Hours later, rush-hour bombings across Baghdad hit commuters on their way to work, killing four and injuring at least 16.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article103130.ece
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Al-Qaeda’s Yemen Wing Threatens To Overthrow Saudi Government
16 August 2010
SANA’A, (XINHUA) — The No. two figure of Al-Qaeda’s Yemeni wing has threatened to overthrow the Saudi government by issuing instructions to its sympathizers in that country.
The message was delivered by Saeed Ali Al-Shihri, deputy leader of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), in an audio recording posted on the Internet Tuesday. “By the messages that reached us, some members of Saudi government’s army requested us to give them orders on whether to stay in their jobs or to go to Yemen to join Al-Qaeda’s camps,” Al-Shihri said in the message. “In their messages, those members of the Saudi army provided evidence about the links between the Saudi government and the US-led war in the Arabian Peninsula,” he said. “So we ordered them to collect information on everything related to the Saudi royal family and its government, army, security and air force, and get start in dethroning such apostate government for its participation in the US-led crusade war against Islam,” he added.
Full report at:
http://www.yementimes.com/defaultdet.aspx?SUB_ID=34574
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Devastated by floods, Afghan refugees want to return home
16 Aug, 2010
AZA KHEL, Aug 15: Floods ravaged tens of thousands of Afghan refugees who have been living in Pakistan for decades after fleeing Soviet occupation and civil war.
Now as they survey kilometres of flattened mud and brick houses in a refugee camp in northwestern part of the country, some contemplate returning to an Afghanistan still gripped by violence.
Roaring waters have shattered their dreams. “The river swallowed everything. We have no house no business, nothing to eat, nothing to wear,” said Nizam Ali who just passed his 12th grade examinations and was planning to pursue further studies in nearby Peshawar.
“No one is helping us. It now looks as if we have no other choice but to go back to Afghanistan.”
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/front-page/devastated-by-floods,-afghan-refugees-want-to-return-home-680
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New Malaysian party to give voice to Indian community
Mon, Aug 16
Kuala Lumpur, Aug 16 (IANS) A new party seeking to help uplift conditions of the ethnic Indian community in Malaysia plans to contest the next general election in the country.
The Human Rights Party of Malaysia (HRP) aims to be the alternative platform for the Indian community to improve their socio-economic status, Malaysia Nanban, a Tamil daily, reported Monday.
The HRP will field candidates in 15 parliamentary and 38 state assembly constituencies. Fielding candidates will give the party the political power to voice out its concerns of the Indian community, the paper quoted party secretary-general P. Uthayakumar as saying.
Multi-ethnic Malaysia is home to 1.7 million Indians, a bulk of them Tamils who settled here during the British era.
Full report at:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/43/20100816/876/twl-new-malaysian-party-to-give-voice-to_1.html
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Saudi poet-politician who praised suicide bombers dies at 70
Sun, Aug 16
Riyadh, Aug 15 (DPA) Ghazi Abdul Rahman al-Gosaibi, Saudi Arabia's minister of labour, former ambassador, and prolific poet who caused controversy by praising a Palestinian suicide bomber, has died aged 70 from cancer, officials said Sunday.
Gosaibi published more than 20 books, including novels and poetry, many of which were banned in the conservative kingdom until last month due to their themes of materialism, criticism of conservatism and open discussions of romance and love.
Though seen as a liberal by Saudi social standards, his political views led him at times to be perceived as a hardline, Arab nationalist in the West.
Shortly before returning home from his nearly-two-decades as ambassador to Bahrain and then Britain and Ireland, he published a poem in 2002 praising Wafa Idris, the first female Palestinian suicide bomber.
Full report at:
http://in.news.yahoo.com/43/20100815/896/twl-saudi-poet-politician-who-praised-su_1.html
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US Prez faces backlash for backing mosque
Aug 16 2010
US PRESIDENT Barack Obama has been hit by a furious backlash from victims of the 9/ 11 terrorist attacks after he backed plans to build a mosque near Ground Zero.
The proposed site for the 13- storey building is close to where almost 3,000 people died nine years ago after hijackers flew two jet airliners into the World Trade Center. Obama expressed his support for the mosque, which will replace a building damaged by the attacks, at a White House meal celebrating Ramadan.
He said: “ Let me be clear. As a citizen and as President, I believe that Muslims have the same right to practise their religion as everyone else in this country. That includes the right to build a place of worship and a community centre on private property in Lower Manhattan, in accordance with local laws and ordinances. This is America, and our commitment to religious freedom must be unshakeable.” His speech was heavily criticised by a group representing the families of victims of the terrorist attacks, who called the plan a “ deliberately provocative act that will precipitate more bloodshed in the name of Allah”. Full report at: Mail Today
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Iran wants India at Af meet
Sachin Parashar
Aug 16, 2010
NEW DELHI: As India attempts to enlist support from Iran over the issue of political settlement in Afghanistan, Tehran wants India to attend a conference it plans to hold on the situation in the war-ravaged country.
At the same time, however, it has conveyed to New Delhi that Iran attaches importance to Pakistan’s role ensuring stability in the region.
The conference is likely to take place soon and as many as seven countries in the region, including Pakistan, are likely to participate. While the conference will focus on Taliban reconciliation, Iran is likely to again reiterate its demand for immediate withdrawal of US-led forces from the country, a clear impediment in India’s engagement with Iran over Afghanistan.
Tajikistan is another country which has been invited. While engagement with Iran and Russia on Afghanistan is top priority for India, Iran’s blow-hot, blow-cold approach has dampened spirits in South Block somewhat. Iran’s deputy foreign ministerMohammed Ali Fathollahi visited India recently and, while he suggested the idea of trilateral talks involving India, Iran and Afghanistan, he said Iran ‘‘always’’ believed in cooperation with Pakistan and also described the motive behind the Wikileaks disclosure as suspicious.
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Iran-wants-India-at-Af-meet/articleshow/6316779.cms#ixzz0wjzcWc
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Pak sold off ‘enemy property’ long ago
Vishwa Mohan
Aug 16, 2010
NEW DELHI: High profile Muslim MPs may be pitching for individuals’ rights over ‘enemy property’ in India but Pakistan had "unilaterally" sold most such property of Indian nationals long ago. India continues to vest such property in a Custodian, leaving it to the courts to decide its ownership.
The home ministry came across this fact while redrafting the proposed Enemy Property (Amendment and Validation) Bill 2010, which is aimed at weeding out encroachers from such property and restoring the right of genuine legal heirs.
Currently, there are 2,186 ‘enemy properties’ — the properties left by those who migrated to Pakistan and Bangladesh over time — across the country.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pak-sold-off-enemy-property-long-ago/articleshow/6316777.cms#ixzz0wjzh9Ba0
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Arabs lobby for IAEA inspection of Israel
By GEORGE JAHN
Aug 16, 2010
VIENNA: Ignoring a US warning, Arab states are urging Washington and other powers to end support of Israel's nuclear secrecy and to push the Jewish state to allow international inspections of its program, diplomats told The Associated Press Sunday.
Muslim countries have long called for Israel, which is widely believed to have nuclear arms, to open its program.
But the fact that the Arab League has directly approached Washington and other Israeli allies for support at the September meeting of the International Atomic Energy Agency (IAEA) is significant, considering that President Barack Obama last month warned against using that forum to single out Israel.
Obama then suggested that such a move would likely kill hopes of breakthrough talks on a Mideast nuclear-free zone, as proposed by the UN's 189-nation Nuclear Nonproliferation Treaty conference three months ago.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/middleeast/article103378.ece
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Somalia journalist jailed for Islamist interview
Aug 16, 2010
MOGADISHU: Somalia's semi-autonomous region of Puntland has jailed a journalist for interviewing a rebel leader who claims links to Al-Qaeda-inspired Islamist militants, local media and an international watchdog said.
Armed police seized Abdifatah Jama Mire, the deputy director of Horseed FM, and six of his colleagues, late on Friday after the radio station broadcast an interview with insurgent commander Sheikh Mohamed Said Atom.
Local media said his trial on Saturday lasted a matter of minutes, held behind closed doors. Mire's colleagues were released without trial.
"The judge of Bosasso court sentenced the director (Mire) to six years imprisonment and a $500 fine," a local resident called Hussein said. The court could not be reached for comment.
Full report at:
http://arabnews.com/world/article103147.ece
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Stop killing Muslims, Zawahri tells Turkey
Aug 16 2010
Al Qaeda's No 2 has urged Turks to force their Government to stop cooperating with Israel and killing Muslims in Afghanistan.
In a 20 minutes Arabic audio message posted on Sunday on a militant website, Ayman al-Zawahri said the Turkish Government was showing sympathy to Palestinians with aid shipments on one hand, while it cooperated with the Israel military on the other.
He expressed deep regret for the killing of nine Turkish activists by Israeli commandoes when their aid ship tried to break the blockade of Gaza.
http://www.dailypioneer.com/276332/Stop-killing-Muslims-Zawahri-tells-Turkey.html
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Bahrain arrests four Shia activists as poll nears
Aug 16 2010
MANAMA: Bahraini authorities have detained four Shia activists before a parliamentary poll in which Shia’s will be seeking a bigger role in governing the Sunni Muslim-led Arab state, their lawyer said on Sunday.
The arrests could heighten tensions with Bahrain’s Shia majority before the October 23 election that will be the US- allied island state’s third since its king launched a political reform process a decade ago to help quell Shia protests.
Clashes erupted in at least two Shia villages on Saturday night following the Friday arrest of the first of the activists, said Nabeel Rajab, head of the Bahrain Centre for Human Rights.
“Three more were arrested this morning,” lawyer Mohammed al-Tajer told Reuters. Bahrain, where the Sunni al-Khalifa family rules over an often disgruntled Shia majority, regularly sees night-time clashes between security forces and protesters in Shia towns.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\08\16\story_16-8-2010_pg4_4
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Muslim Gay Bar: Why Are the Intolerant Preaching Tolerance?
By Greg Gutfeld
Aug 16, 2010
So the other night I announced plans to build a gay bar catering to Islamic men, near the proposed mosque site near Ground Zero.
The goal? To echo the mosque’s own website, which says it’s trying to promote integration and tolerance. I figured, I could return the favor, by opening a gay bar.
After all, Islam despises homosexuality – and this Muslim-friendly gay bar would help mend fences.
Right now the working name of the bar is Heaven and Halal. It will be two floors – one serving Hallel food, and other other serving cocktails. There will be 72 of them. And they will be virgin.
So here’s an update, since last night.
Now, I’ve scoped out some properties. And, I’ve received countless inquiries regarding investment, folks who have offered up to six figures. But because some of them were drunk, they may have placed the decimal point in the wrong place.
Full report at:
http://bighollywood.breitbart.com/ggutfeld/2010/08/14/muslim-gay-bar-why-are-the-intolerant-preaching-tolerance/
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Workshops for women married to foreigners planned
16 August 2010
MANAMA — A series of workshops will be held to help 450 Bahraini women married to foreigners in coping with difficulties they face for having non-Bahraini husbands and children.
Organised by the Bahrain Women Society, the move is part of a nationality campaign being supervised by the Bahrain Women’s Union.
The campaign has been striving for the past five years to get nationality law amended to allow Bahraini women to pass on their nationality to their children like Bahraini men.
The campaign received a boost last year with the endorsement of a law under which children of Bahraini mothers and foreign fathers are treated as local viz a viz government fees.
The law enables such children to renew their resident permits and get education and health services free.
Full report at:
http://www.khaleejtimes.com/displayarticle.asp?xfile=data/middleeast/2010/August/middleeast_August265.xml§ion=middleeast&col=
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Musharraf not to come to Pakistan this year
By Hussain Kashif
Aug 16 2010
LAHORE: Former president Pervez Musharraf, now residing in England, will not visit Pakistan on the launch of his newly-formed party, the All-Pakistan Muslim League (APML) in September as decided earlier, Daily Times learnt on Sunday.
According to sources close to the former president, Musharraf had decided to steer his party from London as its headquarters and he would not come to Pakistan during the current year because of some formidable challenges and serious risks he would be exposed to here.
The sources said a core team of legal and political experts was busy in finalising the manifesto of his newly-formed party and the party would be launched after Eidul Fitr in London as well as in Pakistan, Dubai and the US.
About the requirement of a party office in Dubai, the sources said Dubai and London were common places as well as political hubs for exiled or self-exiled politicians and other personalities to meet their supporters, adding therefore the party office in Dubai would be a special venue for Musharraf to meet his fans.
Full report at:
http://www.dailytimes.com.pk/default.asp?page=2010\08\16\story_16-8-2010_pg7_27
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Female Peace Activists In Palestinian Territory Suffer Sexual Harassment, Assault
Aug 16, 2010
From the beginning it seemed like an “odd couple” partnership. American, European and Israeli peace activists on the one side who are into multiculturalism, feminism and various alternative lifestyles are rushing to aid Palestinians who in many cases have a patriarchal, tradition bound view of the role of women in society. What happens when the two worlds intersect?
According to Z Street and Haaretz, which is a left wing Israeli newspaper, there is a dark side behind the instructions to western female peace activists who come to Arab villages to support the Palestinians. The official story is that the women should respect Muslim cultural sensitivities. The reality is far more sordid. Haaretz details as follows one incident in which an Arab activist named Aladin asked to stay in a guest house in which female activists had been housed. His ruse was that he was hiding out from the Israelis.
Full report at:
http://indyposted.com/37849/female-peace-activists-in-palestinian-territory-suffer-sexual-harassment-assault/
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Pak group hacks into Vijay Mallya's website
Aug 16, 2010
BANGALORE: Playing spoilsport to I-Day celebrations on Sunday was a cyber threat from Pakistan. The victim http://www.mallyainparliament.com — the official website of Vijay Mallya, Bangalore-based businessman and MP (Rajya Sabha).
According to Mallya’s office in Mumbai, "The website was hacked and the Pakistani flag was placed on the site with a dire message from an organization claiming to be the ‘Pakistan Cyber Army’."
"A police complaint will be filed with the cyber crime cell on Monday," Prakash Mirpuri, spokesperson for Mallya, told TOI. However, he refused to comment on the message details. The website was fixed by Sunday evening and all the remarks removed.
The exact role of Pakistan Cyber Army in this act is yet to be confirmed. But the organization has been known for similar cyber shocks, posting pro-Pakistani messages across various Indian websites in the past. According to details available on the web in 2008, they had also hacked ONGC website, http://www.ongcindia.com. They also have a huge fan base on popular social networking sites like Facebook. A web report said that the Mallya group had registered a complaint with the Karnataka police. However, Dr D V Guruprasad, DG CID, denied it. tnn
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Pak-group-hacks-into-Vijay-Mallyas-website/articleshow/6316663.cms#ixzz0wjzsewqp
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Quit violence, come for talks: PM
Aug 16, 2010
NEW DELHI: In his seventh consecutive speech from the Red Fort as Prime Minister, Manmohan Singh on Sunday outlined UPA-2’s chief challenges, ranging from Naxalism to terrorism and price rise, and renewed his offer for talks as the balm to resolve problems in Jammu and Kashmir, the northeast and in Maoist-affected areas.
In his sparse but direct manner, the PM appealed to Naxalites to “abjure violence” and “join hands with us to accelerate social and economic development”. In J&K, he was ready to talk to any person or group who gave up violence, while in the northeast, he stressed discussion and dialogue as the “only option” to solve complex issues.
But while offering to engage Naxals, the PM saluted security force personnel who lost their lives in attacks by Red ultras and said the government would fully discharge its responsibility to protect citizens. “We will deal firmly with those who resort to violence,” he said. Singh also sought to assure citizens over the conduct of Commonwealth Games and urged them to treat it as a national festival while promising that everything would be done to make the event a success.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Quit-violence-come-for-talks-PM/articleshow/6316679.cms#ixzz0wjzpVnK4
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Madani says will surrender before court soon
Aug 16, 2010
KOLLAM: Facing arrest in the 2008, Bangalore serial blasts case, PDP leader Abdul Nasser Madani on Sunday said he would surrender before the nearest court "in the coming days", the date for which would be announced on Monday.
Addressing a press meet at his camp at Anwarassery near here amid intense speculation and suspense over his arrest, Madani said he "preferred surrendering before the nearest court in the coming days" as he was keen to avoid law and order problems that his arrest could trigger.
Madani also said his health condition was poor and that his arrest in such a state could cause severe difficulties to him. At the same time, he said, if police wanted, they could come and arrest him.
Appearing before the media for the first time after prohibitory orders were imposed in and around his camp, Madani, swearing by his faith, reiterated he had no role whatsoever in the Bangalore blasts claiming he was "falsely implicated" by Karnataka police.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/Madani-says-will-surrender-before-court-soon/articleshow/6315862.cms#ixzz0wk01r0vM
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PM appeals to Maoists, warns Pakistan on terror
Aug 16, 2010
NEW DELHI: India's 64th Independence Day went off peacefully on Sunday, with Prime MinisterManmohan Singh asking Maoists to talk to the government and warning that the peace process with Pakistan could be hit unless it stopped backing terrorism.
Speaking from the 17th century Red Fort, Manmohan Singh also called for an end to violence in Jammu & Kashmir, saying it was achieving no purpose even as the day was celebrated with flag hoisting ceremonies and a burst of patriotic fervour across the country.
The main function in Jammu and Kashmir was marred by a head constable hurling a shoe at Omar Abdullah in Srinagar, but the unfazed chief minister said it was better than throwing stones as a means of protest.
In Chhattisgarh, which is badly affected by Maoist insurgency, chief minister Raman Singh said the state government was working on multiple efforts to contain the rebels.
Full report at:
http://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/india/PM-appeals-to-Maoists-warns-Pakistan-on-terror/articleshow/6315708.cms#ixzz0wk06PocT
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Day after PM steps in, GoM clears Rahman song
Aug 16 2010
New Delhi : A day after Prime Minister Manmohan Singh’s intervention, the Group of Ministers (GoM) headed by Urban Development Minister Jaipal Reddy today held a three-hour marathon meeting on the Commonwealth Games, in which the theme song as well as other aspects related to the sporting event were finalised.
According to sources, the GoM gave its approval to the theme song after a powerpoint presentation by Oscar-winning composer A R Rahman. Rahman turned up an hour late for the meeting but the theme song he had composed more than made up for the delay, sources said. However, they declined to share details of the song.
Others who were present included filmmaker Shyam Benegal and Bharat Bala.
The GoM has been empowered by Prime Minister to take all necessary decisions for the smooth conduct of the Games. The Prime Minister did so yesterday after convening an emergency meeting to review preparations for the Games in the wake of alleged corruption scandals.
Ahead of today’s meeting, Reddy told reporters that the primary focus of the GoM was delivery of the Games and preparations of various items required for the opening ceremony. Organising Committee chairperson Suresh Kalmadi also attended the meeting.
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/day-after-pm-steps-in-gom-clears-rahman-song/660779/
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Shoe chucker a respected ex- cop but ‘ mentally unsound’
Aug 16 2010
ONCE a decorated officer of the Jammu and Kashmir Police, 52- year- old Abdul Ahad Jan earned notoriety on Sunday when he hurled a shoe at chief minister Omar Abdullah.
His peers claimed that the suspended policeman was mentally unstable had started “ going downhill a long time before he snapped on Sunday”. Jan lives with his wife and two children in a small house in the Ajas area of Bandipora district in north Kashmir.
Officials said while Jan earned accolades for his heroics in the ’ 90s, he has since “ lost his mental balance”. Jan’s moment of glory came in January 1992 when he rescued a senior officer when the police headquarters in Srinagar was attacked by militants.
“ His brave act caught the seniors’ eye and Jan was promised promotion,” said an officer of the J& K Police, who was also part of the force at that time.
But red tape ensured Jan was never promoted. The policeman finally approached a local court seeking promotion as was promised to him.
Full report at: Mail Today
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UK Pakistanis Angry With Indian Visa Rules
Aug 16th, 2010
London, Aug. 15: India high commission’s visa policy for Britons of Pakistani origin has come under severe criticism in Britain.
Robert Wintemute, a professor of human rights law at the King’s College, London, writing for the Guardian, described the visa rules racist and called for an immediate change in the Indian visa policy.
The Indian high commission changed its visa policy after the terrorist attacks in Mumbai in 2008 and it takes 2-3 working days for visas to be processed for UK nationals. However, the British activists are objecting to different set of rules for British citizens of Pakistani origin.
“Processing time of applications received from persons of Pakistani origin, including British citizens, will be minimum 7-8 weeks,” according to the Indian high commission website.
Full report at:
http://www.asianage.com/international/uk-pakistanis-angry-indian-visa-rules-049
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Hasina vows to bring fugitive Mujibur killers to justice
Anisur Rahman
Aug 16 2010
Bangladesh on Sunday observed a nationwide mourning to mark the 35th death anniversary of its founding father Sheikh Mujibur Rahman who was assassinated in a military coup, with Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina vowing to bring to justice the absconding killers of her father.
Black flags dominated the skyline as Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, the daughter of Bangabandhu, along with his father’s close associate and current President Zilur Rahman placed wreaths on his portrait at his house, now turned into Bangabandhu Memorial Museum. The day was a public holiday.
A total of 28 people, including Bangabandhu’s wife Begum Fazilattunesa and his three sons were killed in the 1975 putsch that also toppled Bangladesh’s post independence Awami League Government.
Full report at:
http://www.dailypioneer.com/276334/Hasina-vows-to-bring-fugitive-Mujibur-killers-to-justice.html
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Zia had hands in killing of Mujib: Razzak
The food and disaster minister, Abdur Razzak, on Sunday said a section of army officers, including Ziaur Rahman, in connivance with a vested group, which could not accept emergence of Bangladesh, had killed Bangabandhu.
With the killing of Sheikh Mujib, he said, these elements had established fascist and undemocratic governments in the country.
The food minister made the remark while addressing a discussion on the 35th death anniversary of Sheikh Mujibur Rahman and the National Mourning Day on Madhupur upazila playground.
Razzak said the people, who opposed the emergence of independent Bangladesh, had killed Sheikh Mujib to implement their evil design.
Full report at:
http://www.newagebd.com/2010/aug/16/nat.html
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Gitmo trials draw strong criticism
By Lucile Malandain
16 Aug, 2010
US NAVAL BASE AT GUANTANAMO BAY (Cuba): The first Guantanamo trials under President Barack Obama have drawn sharp criticism after disputed evidence was allowed in one and a secret plea-deal was reached in another.
“The government met its burden. The defence motion for suppression is denied,” military judge Patrick Parrish ruled on Monday allowing confessions made under duress by Canadian Omar Khadr, captured in Afghanistan when he was 15.
Charged with throwing a grenade that killed a US sergeant during a 2002 attack in Afghanistan, Khadr was interrogated by a military official who told Parrish he had threatened the teenager with rape and murder to make him talk.
Parrish’s “decision does nothing to help the credibly of the (military) commissions,” Loyola University Los Angeles law professor David Glazier told AFP.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/international/gitmo-trials-draw-strong-criticism-680
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Afghan man, woman ‘stoned to death’ over love affair
16 Aug, 2010
KUNDUZ: A man and woman have been stoned to death in northern Afghanistan after being accused by the Taliban of having an affair, a witness and an official said Monday.
The 23-year-old woman and 28-year-old man were killed because “they had an affair,” said Mohammad Ayob, the governor of Imam Sahib district in Kunduz province.
“Two people were stoned to death by Taliban in Mullah Quli village late yesterday,” he said. The village is under the control of the Taliban.
Mullah Quli resident Abdul Satar said about 100 people, most of them Taliban insurgents, gathered in the village on Sunday evening as a statement was read out saying the pair had confessed to their affair.
He said the man was married to someone else, and the woman was engaged.
“The Taliban convicted both to stoning to death, some from the crowd started throwing stones at the couple until they died,” Satar said.
Full report at:
http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/news/world/04-afghan-man-woman-stoned-to-death-qs-05
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Killing sparks 'crime jihad'
Aug 16, 2010
Two days after forming a neighbourhood patrol to clamp down on crime in Lenasia, Areef Ebrahim Bawa, 28, died in a hail of bullets.
" 'Men jumped out and started firing at us from all angles. Areef was wearing a bullet-proof vest, but two shots fired from an R5 rifle penetrated his vest' " Jacob Zuma
Fed up with growing crime in the area, Bawa and his brother, Shaheen Ismail - who run a security company - met police and residents and decided to establish a street patrol.
Ismail said that, at about 10am on Wednesday, members of their volunteer patrol came under fire from a group of armed men in a vehicle which they believed was linked to an earlier robbery in Extension 2. They were fired at when they tried to block the vehicle.
"Men jumped out and started firing at us from all angles. Areef was wearing a bullet-proof vest, but two shots fired from an R5 rifle penetrated his vest," said Ismail.
Full report at:
http://www.timeslive.co.za/sundaytimes/article601064.ece/Killing-sparks-crime-jihad
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Foreign artists, researchers due in Tehran
By Khalid Amayreh
Aug 16, 2010
IBNA: According to the news head quarters of 18th Quran international fair the manager of the international section, Mehrdad Rakhshandeh said: "For the 13th continuous year and with the support of Islamic Culture and Relations Organization, Quranic artists and researchers have been invited from Islamic and non-Islamic countries."
As the international section is slated to run Ramadan 10-17 he added:" The international section will introduce other countries Quranic arts."
He went on to say that the section varies from the Islamic nations culture part since the culture section is theoretical while the international section is a practical one.
Moreover he said that countries including Azerbaijan, Kyrgyzstan, Bosnia, Germany, Qatar, Kuwait, Turkey, Iraq, Afghanistan and Tunisia will participate.
Full report at:
http://www.ibna.ir/vdcaien0.49nam1gtk4.html
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Osama buried in mountainous regions of Pak: Petraeus
Aug 16 2010
Washington : A top US General has said Al-Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden, is probably hiding in the remote mountainous regions of Pakistan, even though no one knows where he actually is.
"I think he remains an iconic figure, and I think capturing or killing Osama bin Laden is still a very, very important task for all of those who are engaged in counter terrorism around the world," General David Petraeus, Commander of the US-led NATO forces in Afghanistan, told NBC television's "Meet the Press" when asked about the Al Qaeda leader's whereabouts.
The top American General said, "I don't think anyone knows where Osama bin Laden is. The fact that it took him four weeks to get a congratulatory message out, or a message of condolence in, say, in the course of the last year or so when we've seen these, indicates, literally, how far buried he is probably in the very, very most remote and mountainous regions".
Full report at:
http://www.indianexpress.com/news/osama-buried-in-mountainous-regions-of-pak-petraeus/660817/
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Saudi Sitcom Row Tests Tolerance Toward Christians
By Souhail Karam
Aug 16 2010
A popular Saudi holiday sitcom has drawn the ire of conservative clerics over an episode portraying Arab Christians in a positive light after the kingdom sought to sell itself as a leader of dialogue between faiths.
"Tash Ma Tash," which has aired during the Muslim fasting month of Ramadan for 17 years, is no stranger to controversy and its episodes have grown bolder over the years, tackling issues from morals police and polygamy to the heavy influence of religion on education in the deeply conservative society.
U.S. ally Saudi Arabia is ruled by an absolute monarchy in coordination with clerics from the austere Wahhabi school of Islam, who oversee the judiciary and education and run a police service that enforces strict Islamic-behavior guidelines.
Full report at:
Copyright 2010 Reuters News Service.
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33 college-madrassah teachers forced to sign resignation letters
Aug 16 2010
Thirty-three teachers of Sharsha Upazila College and Dakhil Madrassah alleged that Sharsha upazila parishad vice-chairman Asaduzzaman Bablu forced them to sign their resignation letters.
The incident has created panic among all the teachers of Sharsha and Benapole.
The teachers alleged that Asaduzzaman Bablu, a local Awami League leader who is also chairman of the managing bodies of both the college and madrassah, took their resignation letters under duress.
Bablu forced them to resign when 14 out of 19 madrassah teachers went to meet him at his office on August 10 seeking their arrear salary.
The teachers of the madrassah were not paid their salary since June this year as Bablu refused to sign their salary sheet.
Full report at:
http://www.newagebd.com/2010/aug/16/nat.html
10:36 PM
Sultan Shahin
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