Human Rights Council holds general debates on situation in Palestine and occupied Arab territories, human rights bodies and Vienna Declaration

Islam and the West

Human Rights Council holds general debates on situation in Palestine and occupied Arab territories, human rights bodies and Vienna Declaration

Human Rights Council

MORNING

30 Sep 2009

In the general debate on the human rights situation in Palestine and other Occupied Arab Territories, speakers said that the report of the Fact-Finding Mission on the Gaza Conflict provided evidence that serious violations of international human rights and humanitarian law, perhaps amounting to war crimes and even crimes against humanity, were committed by both sides during the conflict. This required a full and impartial investigation, and there had to be full accountability for any serious violations of international law. The United Nations Fact-Finding Mission had done its best to execute what was a biased mandate in an even-handed way, and the report held both sides responsible.

The Palestinian conflict was at the heart of the situation in the Middle East, and there had to be a Palestine State. A solution for the Palestinian refugees also had to be found. One speaker said the root cause of the Gaza tragedy was the 1988 Hamas Charter, which was a Charter that called for Jews to be killed and Israel to be eliminated. The High Commissioner for Human Rights, the Gaza Fact-Finding Mission, and the Human Rights Council were urged to unequivocally condemn the Genocidal Hamas Charter which was a defamation of religion as well as a blueprint for murder.

http://newageislam.com/human-rights-council-holds-general-debates-on-situation-in-palestine-and-occupied-arab-territories,-human-rights-bodies-and-vienna-declaration/islam-and-the-west/d/1870

Malaysian Sharia authorities should reconsider the law on consuming alcohol, Islamic World News, NewAgeIslam.com

Islamic World News

Malaysian Sharia authorities should reconsider the law on consuming alcohol, which is described in the Quran in the mildest language of prohibition.

A Muslim consuming a glass of wine with a pork chop commits a more serious offence in eating pork; yet as there is no Quran or Hadith penalty for consuming pork, there is also none for alcohol consumption.

The question then is how did the penalty for alcohol consumption come about?

It occurred during the time of the second Caliph Umar b. al-Khattab. There was a companion of the Prophet (sahabi) who had fought on the Prophet’s side in his battles.

A heavy drinker, he would walk the streets of Madina drunk at night and loudly shout scandalous things about people. The inhabitants of Madina complained, and Umar formed a committee to decide what to do.

Imam Ali, based on the man having committed slander, suggested the penalty for slander, whose maximum penalty is 80 lashes.

Since that time, this has been considered the maximum penalty for alcohol consumption, based on utilising the Sharia concept of ta`zir (deterrence).

I disagree with this being the mandatory sentence for the offence of wine consumption, because it is the maximum sentence for another, separate offence – slander – albeit committed under the influence of alcohol.

Had the man just fallen on the street in a stupor and suffered a terrible hangover without having hurt anyone, no punishment would have been established.

http://newageislam.com/no-penalty-in-islam-for-drinking-alcohol,-eating-pork--islamic-scholar/islamic-world-news/d/1599

AL-QA'IDA'S WORLDVIEW: RECIPROCAL TREATMENT OR RELIGIOUS OBLIGATION?, Radical Islamism and Jihad, NewAgeIslam.com

Radical Islamism and Jihad

AL-QA'IDA'S WORLDVIEW: RECIPROCAL TREATMENT OR RELIGIOUS OBLIGATION?

By Raymond Ibrahim*

Even the September 11 strikes are rationalized as mere acts of reciprocity. After describing the Israeli invasion of Lebanon in 1982, where a massive bombing campaign leveled several high-rise apartment buildings and left thousands of Arabs dead, bin Ladin said, "[A]s I looked upon those crumbling towers in Lebanon, I was struck by the idea of punishing the oppressor in kind by destroying towers in America----giving them a taste of their own medicine and deterring them from murdering our women and children." (p. 215)

After September 11, when several more terrorist acts were committed around the world, targeting mostly Europeans, bin Ladin declared:

The events that have taken place since the attacks on Washington and New York [September 11]----such as the killing of Germans in Tunisia, the French in Karachi, the bombing of the giant French tanker in Yemen, the killing of marines in Failaka, of British and Australians in the Bali explosions, the recent operation in Moscow, and various other sporadic operations[3]--are all reactions of reciprocity, carried out by the zealous sons of Islam in defense of their faith and in response to the order of their Lord and Prophet. [p. 231]

After the bombings in Madrid, where 191 people were killed and 1460 injured, bin Ladin again addressed the Europeans:

http://newageislam.com/al-qa-ida-s-worldview--reciprocal-treatment-or-religious-obligation?-/radical-islamism-and-jihad/d/1057

Syria should forge Arab unity: Shared optimism

Current affairs

Syria should forge Arab unity: Shared optimism

By Duraid Al Baik

The physical presence of the world's superpower, the USA, next to Syria's eastern borders did not help turning down Syrians ambitions of playing a regional role as the Americans hoped.

Damascus has fully exploited the mistakes committed by the US in Iraq and the region and used it to the benefit of the rulers of the country who were extremely patient to improve their bargaining position in their struggle against isolation and marginalisation.

Politically, Syria is more influential now than it was some three years ago, but the level of power injected in Syria is not sufficient for Syrian leaders to achieve their objectives.

http://newageislam.com/syria-should-forge-arab-unity--shared-optimism-/current-affairs/d/141