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Showing posts with label Muslim countries. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Muslim countries. Show all posts

Wednesday, June 20, 2012

Anti-Semitism widespread in Muslim world, Islamic World News, NewAgeIslam.com

Islamic World News
Anti-Semitism widespread in Muslim world

A Jan. 21 item in the Jakarta Globe from Indonesia reported a speech by Mahathir Mohamad, the former prime minister of Malaysia, at a conference in support of Al-Quds (Jerusalem).

Mahathir was quoted stating that the lack of progress by the Obama administration in ending the war in Afghanistan, or in closing the terrorist detention centre at Guantanamo, was due to the “forces in the United States which prevent the president from doing some things. One of the forces is the Jewish lobby.”

He said Jews “had always been a problem in European countries. They had to be confined to ghettos and periodically massacred. But still they remained, they thrived and they held whole governments to ransom.”

Moreover, he continued, “Even after their massacre by the Nazis of Germany, they survived to continue to be a source of even greater problems for the world.”

These despicable words are not from the tongue of any common run-of-the-mill bigot. Mahathir was the elected head of government from 1981 to 2003 of one the more economically successful Muslim-majority countries.

The former prime minister’s remarks were not some carelessly expressed random thoughts. In October 2003, Mahathir was the chairman of the Tenth Islamic Summit Conference as Malaysia hosted the more than 50-member Organization of Islamic Countries. His opening address to the assembled Muslim leaders was punctuated with bigoted references to Jews and Israel.

http://newageislam.com/anti-semitism-widespread-in-muslim-world/islamic-world-news/d/2458


Jihad against jihadis: Al-Qaeda has already lost in the realm of ideology, Radical Islamism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Radical Islamism and Jihad
Jihad against jihadis: Al-Qaeda has already lost in the realm of ideology
By Fareed Zakaria
February 15, 2010

September 11, 2001, was gruesome enough on its own terms, but for many of us, the real fear was of what might follow. Not only had al-Qaeda shown it was capable of sophisticated and ruthless attacks, but a far greater concern was that the group had or could establish a powerful hold on the hearts and minds of Muslims. And if Muslims sympathised with al-Qaeda’s cause, we were in for a Herculean struggle. There are more than 1.5 billion Muslims living in more than 150 countries across the world. If jihadist ideology became attractive to a significant part of this population, the West faced a clash of civilisations without end, one marked by blood and tears.

More than eight eventful years have passed, but in some ways it still feels like 2001. Republicans have clearly decided that fanning the public’s fears of rampant jihadism continues to be a winning strategy in America. Commentators furnish examples of backwardness and brutality from various parts of the Muslim world — and there are many — to highlight the grave threat we face.

But, in fact, the entire terrain of the war on terror has evolved dramatically. Put simply, the moderates are fighting back and the tide is turning. We no longer fear the possibility of a major country succumbing to jihadist ideology. In most Muslim nations, mainstream rulers have stabilised their regimes and their societies, and extremists have been isolated. This has not led to the flowering of Jeffersonian democracy or liberalism. But modern, somewhat secular forces are clearly in control and widely supported across the Muslim world. Polls, elections, and in-depth studies all confirm this trend.

In 2002, the UNDP published a detailed study of the Arab world. The paper made plain that in an era of globalisation, openness, diversity, and tolerance, the Arabs were the world’s great laggards. Using hard data, the report painted a picture of political, social, and intellectual stagnation in countries from the Maghreb to the Gulf. And it was written by a team of Arab scholars. This was not paternalism or imperialism. It was truth.

http://newageislam.com/jihad-against-jihadis--al-qaeda-has-already-lost-in-the-realm-of-ideology/radical-islamism-and-jihad/d/2467


Wednesday, May 16, 2012

OIC to Revamp Islamic News Agency

OIC to Revamp Islamic News Agency

P.K. Abdul Ghafour, Arab News

The new IINA chief intends to expand cooperation with news agencies in OIC member states. “We will provide a common platform for these agencies to work together to protect the interests of Muslim countries,” he said, adding that IINA will recruit qualified journalists as part of the restructuring plan.