Women at Pakistan’s Red Mosque vow babies for jihad

By Zeeshan Haider

ISLAMABAD (Reuters) – About 2,000 Islamist women gathered at the radical Red Mosque in the Pakistani capital on Wednesday and vowed to raise their children for holy war, days after a suicide bomber killed 18 people after a similar rally.

Chanting slogans of “jihad is our way”, burqa-clad women, some with babies, listened to fiery speeches from the daughter of the mosque’s jailed cleric on the eve of the anniversary of a commando raid on the complex in which more than 100 people died.

“Our mujahideen (fighters) laid down their lives for the enforcement of the Islamic system in Pakistan. We are left behind to carry forward their mission,” the daughter of cleric Abdul Aziz told the tightly guarded rally in the mosque compound.

Several thousand men attended a similar rally on Sunday to mark the anniversary of the July 10 commando raid that ended a week-long siege that began when gunmen from the mosque clashed with police.

Shortly after the Sunday rally ended, a suicide bomber attacked police who had been guarding the gathering killing 18 people, all but three of them policemen.

The attack highlighted the danger posed by militants in nuclear-armed Pakistan, where a new coalition government has been preoccupied with what to do with the unpopular President Pervez Musharraf, a staunch U.S. ally who has been isolated since his allies were defeated in a February election.

The blast in the centre of the capital also compounded gloom on Pakistan’s financial markets, where stocks have been sliding because of economic worries and the rupee has set new lows.

“AL JIHAD”

But there was no trouble on Wednesday as the cleric’s daughter, who did not identify herself, told the crowd to steel their families for holy war.

“We should prepare our children and men for jihad,” she said.

The crowd responded with shrill chants of “we are ready” and “al jihad”.

Aziz was caught during the siege last year trying to slip through a cordon dressed in a woman’s burqa. His brother, Abdul Rashid Ghazi, who was also a mosque cleric, was killed.

Ghazi’s widow, identified as Umm-e-Hassam, said President Pervez Musharraf should be punished for ordering the crackdown: “This man is the enemy … I want this man to be severely punished before I die,” she told the rally.

The Red Mosque and an adjoining women’s madrasa, or religious school, had for years been a bastion of militant support in Islamabad and the clerics and their followers had waged an increasingly defiant campaign to enforce Taliban rule.

They occupied a state library, kidnapped women they accused of prostitution and some policemen, and stormed music and video shops and beauty parlours, much to the dismay of the moderate majority in the capital.

They also accumulated weapons and battled security forces for days, rejecting calls to surrender, before Musharraf ordered the commandos in to end the standoff.

The assault unleashed a wave of suicide bomb attacks across the country in which hundreds of people were killed, including former Prime Minister Benazir Bhutto.

Aziz’s wife, identified as Umm-e-Hassan, said they had nothing to do with the attacks.

“We are not terrorists. Islam does not teach terrorism … America and its stooges are terrorists,” she told reporters at the rally, referring to the Pakistani army.

“We are holding this rally to tell the world we are alive and in high spirits. Islam can never be wiped out. It grows more after martyrs shed their blood.”

Militant violence eased after a government made up of Musharraf’s opponents took power in March, promising to negotiate peace. But the lull seems to be over.

(Editing by Robert Birsel and Alex Richardson)

Source: http://uk.news.yahoo.com/rtrs/20080709/tpl-uk-pakistan-mosque-81f3b62.html

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It may at first appear absurdly humorous that banks in England stopped making piggy banks available to customers, out of fear of offending Muslims.

By Janet Levy
FrontPageMagazine.com | 5/2/2008

http://www.frontpagemag.com/Articles/Read.aspx?GUID=B4D7EA5D-074C-4D34-AB04-71E9354504CB

The practice of political correctness may soon be tallying another casualty: the pig. Increasingly, as America and the rest of the Western world continue accommodating Muslim religious demands, pork food products are being singled out for removal from dining tables and pig-related trinkets banished from the desks of office workers.

If this continues, good ol’ American food, such as barbeque replete with hot dogs and ribs and the typical American breakfast of eggs, bacon and sausage, might be seen as the equivalent of political poison. Could outright censorship of pig depictions in drawings, pig references in literary works and pig portrayals in movies be far behind? Could the well-known, cartoon figure Porky Pig become a cultural embarrassment of our unenlightened past as we fear to utter the “P” word?

Though the notion may seem more appropriate for a comedy routine, an increasing number of pig-related incidents, accommodations and Muslim demands in recent years points to an uncertain future for our porcine friend and its place in our economy, culture and our culinary traditions.

In October of 2005, the United Kingdom, clearly further along on the road to dhimmitude due to its proportionally large and more radical Muslim population, banned piggybanks as promotional gifts from its banks. At about the same time, government social welfare offices called for the removal of all pig paraphernalia, including pig calendars, toys and accessories from employee desks. These new regulations were ostensibly implemented so as not to offend Muslim patrons.

Meanwhile, in the United States in 2007, several school districts removed pork products from their cafeteria offerings. Dearborn, Mich., schools banned pork completely to avoid the possibility that Muslims students might unknowingly eat it. The district later added special halal foods to its menu to cater to the demands of its Muslim population. An elementary school in San Diego that offers Arabic, single-gender classes and Muslim-only organized prayer, no longer offers pork to any of its students. And in Oak Lawn, Ill., where the administration is debating elimination of Christmas holiday celebrations, pork has already been banished from the school lunchroom.

Orthodox Jews, who follow kosher laws that prohibit the consumption of pork, have never demanded such special considerations for their chosen dietary habits nor have Jews feared accidental pork ingestion. They privately moderate their consumption according to their religious observances and often consume food prepared at home according to prescribed regulations.

Contrast this to how Muslims and their dietary habits are treated. In April 2007, a 13-year-old middle school prankster was suspended and his behavior labeled a hate crime for placing a bag with a ham steak on the lunch table of a group of Muslim students. That same month, Muslims started a Facebook group, “Fight Against Pork in Frito-Lay Products.” The more than 1,800 participants sought to pressure the company to remove pork enzymes from its cheese seasonings.

Last year, Somali Muslim employees at a St. Louis Park, Minn. Target store refused to handle pork products, citing religious reasons. Target made special allowances for Muslim employees, who now scrutinize customer purchases and can call for assistance when a pork product appears at their check stand. Presumably, the Muslim employees knew they would be encountering bacon and pepperoni pizza when they signed on for their jobs and have no problem collecting a salary paid out of profits from pork sales.

In 2007, the Year of the Pig, an imam in Taipei complained after receiving a greeting card from Taiwan’s foreign minister depicting celebrating pigs. When “Year of the Pig” postal stamps were issued, the Taiwanese government cautioned citizens about using them on letters and parcels to Muslim friends or to Muslim countries. That year, China banned pig images and the mention of pigs in television advertisement to avoid offending the country’s Muslims.

This year, the popular story, The Three Little Pigs, was banned in a primary school in the United Kingdom as the school’s administration thought references to pigs might offend Muslim pupils. Another school removed all books containing stories about pigs, including the talking pig ‘Babe’ from classrooms following complaints from Muslim parents. In 2007, a UK church school production of The Three Little Pigs was renamed The Three Little Puppies to maintain multi-cultural sensitivities. Ironically, the pig is mentioned often in the Koran as a derogatory reference to Jews.

In further accommodation to Muslims, Fortis Bank in the Netherlands and Belgium dropped its pig mascot. Knorbert the pig was eliminated after seven years with a statement from a bank spokesperson that “Knorbert does not meet the requirements that the multicultural society imposes on us.”

A recent BBC report described how pork butchers are gradually being put out of business as Turkey adopts a more fundamentalist Muslim character. Pork slaughterhouses are being closed in record numbers to accommodate shariah law countrywide.

In 2004, a Muslim-owned investment company, Arcapita (formerly Capital Crescent Investments) acquired the 1,200-unit Church’s Chicken chain. In 2005, Arcapita, with a net income of $70.5 million and assets worth $1.2 billion (2004), enjoined a franchisee from selling pork products. In correspondence with the franchisee, the corporate owners cited violation of shariah law as the reason for prohibiting the sale of bacon, ham and sausages. The restaurant owners were thereby forced to surrender to corporate demands and operate under shariah law.

Where will this end? Will “Animal Farm” be banned at our high schools and university campuses? Will the words “pork barrel spending” and “porker” be eliminated from the vernacular? Will Piggly Wiggly supermarkets be forced to change its name and re-brand its products? This could all be quite amusing if the implications weren’t so grave.

The pig is an icon of American culture, a culinary tradition and an important component of our economy. While high grain prices and competition from Chinese imports are recognized as the two greatest threats to the industry, hog producers could be overlooking a larger threat to their livelihood looming on the horizon.

Pork production is a vital part of the U.S. economy, producing more than 22 billion pounds of meat annually, contributing almost $40 billion to the GNP and employing more than 500,000 workers in pork-industry related jobs. In addition, important pork co-products include heart valves, skin grafts for burn victims, gelatin, plywood, glue, cosmetics and plastics. At 28% of total world production, the U.S. is the second largest pork producer after China, which produces close to 50% of the world total. Pork ranks third in U.S. meat production behind beef and chicken and average yearly per capita consumption is about 50 pounds.

If the momentum to alter America’s dining habits and cultural traditions to suit Muslim religious habits continues, American liberty, freedom and culture could actually be threatened. Laughable though it may seem on the surface, Arab petrodollar profits have the heft to use an economic, backdoor approach to implement shariah law in the United States against the will of the public. As Arab Muslims continue to heavily invest in our economy, they will continue to force submission to shariah law and undermine our democracy, individual rights and religious freedom. We must be vigilant and aware of this threat and act against it vigorously and immediately.

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Undercover Reporter in United Kingdom
Films Islamofascism in Action !!

Over a year ago, a United Kingdom television station dispatched a reporter to go undercover into mosques in the UK.

In a series of blockbuster video reports that have been posted on YouTube, viewers get to see for themselves what Brigitte Gabriel and others have been warning about for years.

In just the first installment, you will see imams proclaiming:

“Allah has created the woman deficient…If she doesn’t wear the hijab, we hit her.”

“You have to live like a state within a state until you take over.”

“The pinnacle, the crest, the summit of Islam, is jihad.”

In that same installment you will see how a large Muslim organization in the UK has a “special” chat room for communication not meant for non-Muslims to see.

You will see how imams despise non-believers and call for jihad against them.

But what is most relevant for us in America, is that the Saudi Arabian religious establishment that provides the materials and the teaching that is going on inside these British mosques also provides the materials and the teaching for many – if not most – mosques here in the United States.

So when you click on the link below to view these undercover videos, remind yourself that this is what is happening in mosques right here in America — perhaps in your community, and even right down the street from you!

http://uk.youtube.com/results?search_query=dispatches+undercover+mosque

If you aren’t able to see these videos on your computer, find someone who can.

Words alone do not do justice to the reality of the threat we are facing. Please click on the link above, view one or more of the videos, and then forward this email to everyone you know.

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Hamas MP/Cleric’s Friday Sermon: We Will Conquer Rome, the Two Americas, and Eastern Europe

In a Friday sermon that aired on Hamas’ Al-Aqsa TV on April 11, 2008, Yunis Al-Astal, Hamas MP and cleric, told worshipers that Rome, “the capital of the Catholics, or the Crusader capital,” would soon be conquered by Islam, just as Constantinople was. It then, he said, would become “an advanced post for the Islamic conquests, which will spread through Europe in its entirety, and then will turn to the two Americas, and even Eastern Europe.”

The following are excerpts from Al-Astal’s sermon:

To view this clip, visit: http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1739.htm .
To view Al-Aqsa’s MEMRI TV page, visit: http://www.memritv.org/content/en/tv_channel_indiv.htm?id=175 .
To view Hamas’ MEMRI TV page, visit: http://www.memritv.org/subject/en/95.htm .

Yunis Al-Astal: “Allah has chosen you for Himself and for His religion, so that you will serve as the engine pulling this nation to the phase of succession, security, and consolidation of power, and even to conquests thorough da’wa and military conquests of the capitals of the entire world.

“Very soon, Allah willing, Rome will be conquered, just like Constantinople was, as was prophesized by our Prophet Muhammad.

“Today, Rome is the capital of the Catholics, or the Crusader capital, which has declared its hostility to Islam, and has planted the brothers of apes and pigs in Palestine in order to prevent the reawakening of Islam. This capital of theirs will be an advanced post for the Islamic conquests, which will spread through Europe in its entirety, and then will turn to the two Americas, and even Eastern Europe.

“I believe that our children, or our grandchildren, will inherit our jihad and our sacrifices, and, Allah willing, the commanders of the conquest will come from among them.

“Today, we instill these good tidings in their souls – and by means of the mosques and the Koran books, and the history of our Prophets, his companions, and the great leaders, we prepare them for the mission of saving humanity from the hellfire at whose brink they stand.”

Source: MEMRI

Source: Act for America

“Wall of silence broken at Minnesota state Muslim public school”: rising concern over possible violation of US law by Cultural Jihadis

April 10, 2008

comment by Jerry Gordon

Katherine Kersten of the Minneapolis Star Tribune has done the citizens of Minnesota and all Americans, a service of inestimable proportions. She has fingered through her writings and investigations evidence that the Inver Heights school district and Minnesota State Department of Education – funded charter school. Tarek ibn Ziyad Academy (TIZA) is essentially an Islamic school that violates Federal Constitutional separation of Church (Mosque in this case) and, some have argued, Freedom of Religion doctrines.

Here is what Kersten encountered and reported on in this latest episode:

TIZA has many characteristics that suggest a religious school. It shares the headquarters building of the Muslim American Society of Minnesota, whose mission is “establishing Islam in Minnesota.” The building also houses a mosque. TIZA’s executive director, Asad Zaman, is a Muslim imam, or religious leader, and its sponsor is an organization called Islamic Relief.

Students pray daily, the cafeteria serves halal food – permissible under Islamic law — and “Islamic Studies” is offered at the end of the school day.

Zaman maintains that TIZA is not a religious school. He declined, however, to allow me to visit the school to see for myself, “due to the hectic schedule for statewide testing.” But after I e-mailed him that the Minnesota Department of Education had told me that testing would not begin for several weeks, Zaman did not respond — even to urgent calls and e-mails seeking comment before my first column on TIZA.

In this latest episode of the TIZA saga, Kersten has uncovered proof of TIZA functioning as an Islamic School from an unlikely source-a substitute teacher.

Here’s what the substitute teacher Ms. Getz found:

Arriving on a Friday, the Muslim holy day, she says she was told that the day’s schedule included a “school assembly” in the gym after lunch.

Before the assembly, she says she was told, her duties would include taking her fifth-grade students to the bathroom, four at a time, to perform “their ritual washing.”

Afterward, Getz said, “teachers led the kids into the gym, where a man dressed in white with a white cap, who had been at the school all day,” was preparing to lead prayer. Beside him, another man “was prostrating himself in prayer on a carpet as the students entered.”

“The prayer I saw was not voluntary,” Getz said. “The kids were corralled by adults and required to go to the assembly where prayer occurred.”

Islamic Studies was also incorporated into the school day. “When I arrived, I was told ‘after school we have Islamic Studies,’ and I might have to stay for hall duty,” Getz said. “The teachers had written assignments on the blackboard for classes like math and social studies. Islamic Studies was the last one — the board said the kids were studying the Qu’ran. The students were told to copy it into their planner, along with everything else. That gave me the impression that Islamic Studies was a subject like any other.”

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