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Iran ‘Definitely’ Closing Strait of Hormuz Over EU Oil Embargo By RT

Sailanmuslim — Tue, 31 Jan 2012 09:37:08 +0000

Tensions in the Gulf could reach a breaking point as a senior Iranian official said Iran would “definitely” close the Strait of Hormuz if an EU oil embargo disrupted the export of crude oil.

Mohammad Kossari, deputy head of parliament's foreign affairs and national security committee, issued the warning in respone to a decision by the European Union on Monday to impose an oil embargo on Iran over the country’s alleged nuclear weapons program.

“The pressure of sanctions is designed to try and make sure that Iran takes seriously our request to come to the table,” EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said.

However, with Washington’s decision to deploy a second carrier strike group in the Gulf, the EU’s attempt to pressure Iran economically could greatly increase the likelihood of all-out war in the region.

The Strait of Hormuz is the vital link between the Persian Gulf and the Gulf of Oman.

It is also one of the most strategic chokepoints in the world when it comes to oil transit.

With world oil output estimated at some 88 million barrels per day in 2011, the US Energy Information Administration estimated that some 17 million of those barrels passed through the Strait.

If economic sanctions sufficiently pressure Iran to retaliate by closing down the Strait, nearly 20 per cent of worldwide oil trade would be impacted, resulting in a massive spike in global energy costs.

With over half a million regular forces and an additional 120,000 personnel in the country’s elite Revolutionary Guard, analysts believe the consequences of a US-led war against Iran would dwarf recent Western-backed military incursions the Middle East.

Thus far, the US decision to maintain two carrier strike groups in the region has been described as “a routine activity” by Iran.

But the vast US military buildup in the region, which was bolstered when the Pentagon dispatched an additional 15,000 troops to the neighboring nation of Kuwait, was only the latest step in an obvious attempt by Washington to strengthen its military capabilities in the region.

However since 1988, when the United States managed to destroy some 25 per cent of Iran’s larger naval capability during Operation Praying Mantis, Iran has spent the last two decades preparing its Revolutionary Guard naval forces to exploit the vulnerabilities of the United States’ larger conventional forces.

According to Revolutionary Guard commander Brigadier General Jafaari, "The enemy is far more advanced technologically than we are, we have been using what is called asymmetric warfare methods… our forces are now well prepared for it," he said, as cited by Global Bearings.

Ultimately, the latest round of brinkmanship between Iran and the West may force Iran to the negotiating table over its uranium enrichment program.

However, the EU strategy of averting "chaos in the Middle East" by tightening the economic noose around Iran could spark the very conflagration it was ostensibly trying to avert.

Bullying Sri Lanka while US/NATO crimes go unpunished By Shenali Waduge

Sailanmuslim — Sat, 14 Jan 2012 06:53:54 +0000

That the US, UK, EU, Canada & similar nations join in tandem to bring allegation after allegation against Sri Lanka is something we as citizens should not be surprised over while politicians need to realize that it is their follies & inactions that allow a continuous barrage of accusations. Yet, if crimes against humanity is the buzz word then investigations must begin in a chronological fashion starting with those committed by US/NATO forces since their occupations have been in violation of international treaties & to date remain without valid proof.

We are all aware why powerful nations of the world championed a drive to depose men they called “tyrants”. Ironically these very men were one time their “friends”. Friends became tyrants in order to take over the wealth of these nations. It is a small group of people who rule the world who will decide who is friend & who is tyrant. Anyhow, we all know that these nations are today suffering far worse consequences of believing in “freedom” chants promised to them. Kosovo is a country flourishing in “prostitutes” where women have no other means of livelihood. Iraq’s children & women are far worse than they were during the reign of Saddam, the same takes place in Afghanistan & now Libya. Lest we forget Egypt is far worse than. These western crusaders of freedom & human rights are not even remotely embarrassed by the continuous footage of US/Nato soldiers humiliating Iraqi’s, Afghans – urinating on them, raping women & children, using uncivilized methods upon these people. It is possibly these acts committed by their own soldiers throughout the nations that western nations today occupy which prompts them to think that our Lankan soldiers conduct themselves in similar fashion. We can proudly say – Sri Lankan soldiers are far more disciplined.

50,082 crimes were committed by 56,904 US soldiers from 1967 to 1998 in South Korea. Based on the statistics, the total number of crimes committed by US soldiers since September 8, 1945 (when they were first stationed in Korea) is estimated to be around 100,000. Unfortunately the south Korean government does not have statistics on US soldiers' crimes committed before 1967, because SOFA (Status of Forces Agreement) went into effect in 1967, allowing the south Korean court jurisdiction over crimes committed by US soldiers with narrow and limited application.

While in Iraq, a Johns Hopkins University study published in the medical journal Lancet in 2004 estimated that 100,000 Iraqi civilians had been killed or died between the invasion in March 2003 and October 2004. Most of victims by coalition forces were children/women. Many of these killings are by mercenary forces clad in military attire. If one looks through the internet to view the number of deformed children born in these countries suffering the after effects or uranium munitions, the West would be exposed as the worst tyrants in modern history. Generations of people in these nations will suffer abnormalities & cancers.

That these war crimes goes on unabated & neither the UN nor its associated entities & NGOs cry foul & realistically do something is clear. Instead it has become an easy past time to divert attention to smaller countries and document reports accusing these nations while totally ignoring the crimes committed by these western nations.

So the latest parrot chants has become the LLRC report. The West is fascinated with definitions & English vocabulary to be applied in reports that to them is supposed to be the answer to good governance & something called reconciliation.

What the west must realize is that Asians have a culture of their own far superior to that of the West and the West cannot dictate how we should live nor force us to follow the Western stereotypes.

An error that needs to be corrected forthwith is that Sri Lanka did not & does not have an ethnic problem. If that were the case scores of Tamils should be marginalized, killed, discriminated on a regular basis similar to that in South Africa & in America where being black was a crime. In so far as the 8m total Tamil population is concerned in Colombo they remain far richer, owning far greater property & businesses than the majority Sinhalese. The Tamil population need to admit that while a handful of poor & low caste Tamils suffered they benefited even while the LTTE prevailed which is why the majority of Tamils are reluctant to openly chastise the LTTE, the TNA or the Tamil Diaspora. If at all there is any marginalization that Tamils suffer from it is as a result of the caste & class that exists among Tamils themselves.

Let us come to a very popular dictum in todays political & social circles – “human rights”. When countries accuse Sri Lanka of human rights abuses, immediately we wonder what wonderful records of human rights must exist in these nations. Ironically, in the US there were 4.3m violent crimes reported in 2009, 15.6m property crimes & 133,000 personal thefts. Some 90m Americans own 200m guns in the US (US population itself is 300m). In 2010 there were 12,000 gun murders in the US. The US often cries foul over freedom of expression & freedom of movement of people. However, in 2010 6600 travelers were subject to electronic device searches. The US Homeland Security has been sued over its policies to search & seize laptops, cellphones & other electronic devises without reasonable suspicion. Even internet freedom is controlled through the “Protecting Cyberspace as a National Asset Act”. There are 1.7m men & women in US prisons. Inspite of US boasting of its “democratic” ways in reality its elections are based on money. A mid-term election cost USD3.98b in 2010. 7.5m people lost their jobs in 2010. The number of unemployed tops 15m. There are 44m Americans in poverty as of 2009. There are 42m Americans using food stamps while on an average 82,000 people are found homeless on any given night! 50.7m do not have health insurance (2010)

The country that is continuously getting its embassy staff to bully smaller nations may like to look at the rate of racial hate crimes taking place in the US. FBI annual report places 6604 hate crimes in 2009 – where 4000 of them were racially motivated & 1600 related to hate for a particular religion. Whites became the perpetrators of these crimes. The US that boasts of gender equality may like to explain why statistics revealed by the National Institute of Justice quotes 60,000 female prisoners as victims of sexual assault. US soldiers are accused of sexually assaulting their own women soldiers where close to 1/3 of female soldiers in the US forces have been raped or sexually assaulted. Domestically too women suffer where 1.3m are victims.

While false civilians casualties in Sri Lanka were reason to cry foul nothing was or has been said of the number of civilians killed & being killed by US/NATO troops. Is it only US/NATO forces that can kill civilians? Is it only the US/NATO nations that can flout fundamental freedoms & establish detention centersin Guantanamo Bay, Diego Garcia? In what context can US dictate about human rights & freedoms when it has not ratified the International Covenant on Economic, Social & Cultural Rights nor the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women. The US has also not ratified the Convention on the Rights of the Child. The US certainly has a very dismal record on home turf & its record in nations that it has forcefully taken over is far worse. Clearly those accepting US recommendations & bullying on the guise of human rights are ignorant of the hypocrisy that prevails.

Running through the home statistics of UK, EU nations etc will give similar statistics which ultimately brings us back to ask what all these bullying tactics is all about. If all these nations are interested in the Tamil people, their rights & needs only – the Tamils account for just 8m in Sri Lanka & countries like Norway & Canada are large enough to have these people relocated. For Tamils who decry about speaking/learning in Sinhala don’t raise a cry over learning German or German!

We welcome proposals but ultimately it is Sri Lanka that must decide. Fundamentally what everyone must accept is that Sri Lanka never had an ethnic problem – it was commercially twisted to take the excuse of “ethnicity” for it helped galvanize international support & credibility. Nations must also remember that in a population of 20m people 14.8m are Sinhalese. This number is something that people cannot & should not forget. When a diaspora member was challenged to name the discriminations exclusively suffered by Tamils he could mention only 3 & all these occurring post 1985. This shows that they are running out of examples & paying the western nations to look up different ways to ensure the LTTE incorporated enterprises continues to exist. Are we surprised that the bankrupt JVP are now garnering former LTTE – no we are not. We knew this would happen all along simply because the cash rich LTTE enterprise has nothing to do with Tamil people & all to do with making money & using innocent people to become rich.

The karma for these crimes will follow these people wherever they go.

Ibrahim: US Must Cease ‘Ambivalence’ Toward Muslim World by Ben Linden

Sailanmuslim — Tue, 10 Jan 2012 02:18:45 +0000

NEW YORK, February 9, 2011 – The US should actively support the burgeoning democratic movements in Egypt and throughout the Muslim world, argues Anwar Ibrahim, who sees American support for embattled Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak in the context of a larger "policy of ambivalence."

"You talk about democracy and freedom; you support autocrats and dictators," said the former Deputy Prime Minister of Malaysia.

"I'm not suggesting the Americans send troops. I've always consistently opposed the sending of troops.

"But you have to take a position—like [Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip] Erdoğan. His position is clear: when it comes to the people against the corrupt, repressive rulers, you must be with the people. That is what we stand for. You use the term 'inalienable rights,' but when it comes to some communities you can compromise."

Ibrahim, who many feel has been unfairly persecuted by the Malaysian government because of his calls for democratic reform, was joined in conversation by Asia Society Associate Fellow Ann Marie Murphy, who is Associate Professor at Seton Hall University's John C. Whitehead School of Diplomacy and International Relations and adjunct research scholar at Columbia University's Weatherhead East Asian Institute.

The implications of the Egyptian uprising for the entire Muslim world are enormous, according to Ibrahim, who noted that "no Muslim country, from Pakistan to Indonesia, Malaysia, South Thailand, or South Philippines, did not produce thousands, if not hundreds of thousands, of graduates from Egypt."

Ibrahim denied that the revolts in Egypt and elsewhere were being hijacked by radical Islamists, as some in the West fear.

"Let us be clear that these initial revolutions, be they in Tunisia or Egypt, are quite spontaneous. They are popular movements. You can't say that they are either Islamic or secular movements; they are just peoples' movements, and the issues are clear: they want to rid their country of decadent, corrupt, repressive rulers. They want democracy and freedom, and of course more transparent policies that guarantee their welfare and economic well-being. The basic issues are still economic."

Security Council Remains Grounded by Political Manipulation By Thalif Deen

Sailanmuslim — Tue, 27 Dec 2011 05:16:19 +0000

When Russian Ambassador Vitaly Churkin briefed reporters recently, he offered some biting criticisms of the growing political manipulation of the most powerful body at the United Nations: the 15-member Security Council.

Implicitly targeting some of the Western nations – specifically the United States, UK and France – he said "words no longer mean what they used to be".

When Security Council resolution 1973 approved a "no-fly zone" inside Libya last May, it was meant to neutralise the Libyan air force and prevent it from bombing civilian demonstrators.

Accusing the military forces of the North Atlantic Treaty Organisation (NATO) of exceeding their authority, Churkin said that in the good old days, "no-fly zone meant nobody is flying."

"In the brave new world, no fly zone means free-wheeling bombing of targets which you choose to bomb in whatever modality and mode you want, including the bombing of TV stations," he said.

"It is of grave concern to us to see the enormous ability of some of our colleagues to interpret resolutions" to suit their own interests, he added.

"It was not a perfect day for diplomacy, and it was not a perfect day to work in the Security Council," said Churkin, who currently holds the rotating monthly presidency of the Security Council.

After another divisive meeting of the Council last week, Churkin complained, "I saw every trick in the book thrown at me, short of trying to strangulate the president of the Security Council."

But the accusations against the three veto-wielding permanent members of the Council – the United States, UK and France, and their allies – can be equally applied to the other two permanent members, Russia and China.

As they try to protect their own political, economic and military interests worldwide, the Big Five have remained deadlocked on several political hotspots, including Yemen, Bahrain and Israel (protected by the three Western powers) and Syria and Iran (protected by Russia and China).

Chris Toensing, editor of the Washington-based Middle East Report, told IPS that Churkin's criticisms cannot be taken at face value because Russia's narrow interests have so clearly driven its own behaviour at the Security Council this year.

"I don't buy Russian outrage over Libya. (Former U.S. Defence Secretary) Robert Gates was crystal clear, long before the vote on Security Council resolution 1973, that a no-fly zone would be preceded by massive bombing," Toensing said.

The Russian and Chinese decision to abstain on resolution 1973 was a case of sacrificing a regime to which they had minimal ties.

"Where they do have meaningful ties, as in Syria, they dig in. The United States has, of course, used the Security Council in an equally utilitarian fashion," said Toensing, who is also the executive director of the Middle East Research and Information Project (MERIP).

James A. Paul, executive director of the New York-based Global Policy Forum, told IPS the Security Council is a political body that operates despotically.

It has 15 members, including five permanent members, but in fact it is run almost exclusively by the P-3: the United States, the UK and France, he said.

Those three countries draft the great majority of the resolutions and shape the business of the Council in every way, said Paul, who closely monitors the workings of the Security Council on a daily basis.

Most importantly, he pointed out, the P-3 count on the more-or-less automatic support of at least six of the 10 elected members, meaning that they have a voting bloc that can carry nearly any resolution.

Through pressure and mutual deals, they can often bring all Council members, including China and Russia, into their orbit.

"This P-3 domination is increasingly anomalous, in light of the waning global power of these states, but their hegemony in the Council remains very strong," he noted.

Stephen Zunes, professor of politics and international studies at the University of San Francisco, told IPS the Security Council has always been manipulated by the prerogatives of the P5 – the United States, UK, France, China and Russia.

The biggest change in recent years, he pointed out, is that P5 members used to allow resolutions critical of allies to be adopted, but simply made sure they were under Chapter VI (peaceful settlement of disputes) rather than Chapter VII (measures to prevent breach of peace and acts of aggression).

"For decades, the U.S. and its allies supported or abstained on resolutions aimed at Indonesia, Morocco or Israel regarding their territorial conquests, for example, but made sure they were never enforced through sanctions or other mechanisms," Zunes said.

More recently, however, members of the P5 have been more prone to veto such resolutions, prevent them from coming to a vote, or insist on watering them down until they are meaningless, said Zunes, who has written extensively on the politics of the Security Council.

A case in point: In the 1970s, the United States abstained or voted in favour of four resolutions citing the illegality of Israeli settlements in the occupied territories and calling on the Israelis to dismantle them.

This February, however, the United States vetoed a resolution which reiterated their illegality and simply called on Israel to freeze the construction of additional settlements.

"Unfortunately, this trend is likely to escalate as a result of NATO's decision to go well beyond the mandate granted in the Security Council resolution to enforce a no-fly zone to protect Libyan civilians and instead effectively become the air force of the Libyan rebels," Zunes said.

This has undoubtedly contributed to the Chinese and Russian willingness to block even such reasonable Security Council initiatives as the recent draft resolutions on Syria, he added.

Paul told IPS that during 2011, there has been an interesting group of elected members on the Council, namely, India, Brazil and South Africa, in particular, bringing a spirit of independence.

"And they have not always been willing to go along with the P-3," he said, pointing out that they have preferred alternative policies, especially the use of mediation and negotiation, as opposed to the use of force.

"They are sufficiently strong member states to withstand pressure from the P-3, and they have strong, democratically-based political systems, that do not simply replicate Western thinking or follow in the wake of Western interests," Paul said.

Western critics of the Council these days often argue that it is blocked by spoilers who are preventing urgent humanitarian action in places like Syria.

This is missing the point, since the evidence is very strong that the Western powers do not act on the basis of human rights or humanitarian motives, he said.

The blockages reflect the insistence of the P-3 to have their way in a changing world, coming up against new and emerging power alignments.

"This reminds us that the Security Council is an organ in great need of membership reform, if it is to play a creative role for peace and better reflect the world that is emerging and not the world of 1945," Paul added.

Exploitation of Islam; Non projection of Quran, Rise in Masjid building activities in the West; Misuse of funds; Vested interests of Masjid Management-Boards/Comittee; Need for regular elections and accountability:

Sailanmuslim — Tue, 13 Dec 2011 17:50:33 +0000

Our Ajmi Muslims due to lack of Quranic knowledge and understanding suffer from deviations, Shirk, Bidah, falsehood, grudge, enmity, extremism, sectarianism, Maslak and Fiqah differences, bad behaviours, sins and evils, un Islamic customs and practices, exploitation of Islam by vested interests, groups and parties, misguidance by Taghoots, Pirs, Faqirs, Aamils, Babas etc. Our Aalims/Moulvis particulalry Masjid Imams hardly project Quran and Allah's directives in all walk of life in Juma Khitabs and in other lengthy speeches on different occasions and indulge more in projection of un-authentic Hadiths and weak stories, sayings, traditions, 'fairy tales' etc. to keep us backward and confused in religious knowledge in order to continue their religious rule and domination to promote their preisthood over us like Pope and Bishops, etc.

Islam opposes priesthood ( 57 : 27 ) and there is no concept of a middleman or priest between Allah and humans as we are all directly accountable before Allah for our deeds and misdeeds. But our Moulvis/Aalims don't talk about these directives of Allah so as to continue to make their livelihood on Islam which is not allowed and even teaching of Quran to earn money is a great sin ( 2:41,159,174-175/ 6:90/16:95 ). Our Moulvis/Aalims have confined Islam to so-called five pillars which is not mentioned as such in Quran or any authentic Hadiths. The whole Quran is a pillar to be followed in entirety.

In Masajids in the West they don't even keep a Mufti for advice and mediation matters because of their own exposure of wrong doings. In our Madressahs the students are made to read, do Tilawath, Hifz/ Qirath of Quran without understanding and hence what the teacher/Moulvi say becomes Islam. There is no bar if we read the translation of Quran in our own language as the basic motto is to understand and practice all the directives of Allah and not what the Mullahs say, twist and misguide us with weak Hadiths, Un authentic tales, stories, sayings and traditions to keep us deviated and non knowledgeable about Quran and to keep us dependent on them for guidance like Bishops, Pope in Christianity; Pundits, Gurus in Hinduism and Monks in Budhism. No doubt there are good and Taqwa based Aalims who are sincere to Islam and do not indulge in such money making business and misguiding actvities. They should come forward to guide us.

Allah bestowed Quran in Arabic because the languge of Arabia was Arabic and had HE sent the Quran in any other language, then the Arabs would have said how can we read and understand the Quran not in our language when the Prophet is also Arabic knowing ( Please see details: 12 :1-2 /41:1-4, 44 / 42:7/ 43 : 1-3 ). Hence all the non Arabs Ajmi Muslims MUST read the translation of Quran with explanations/commentary to understand all the directives of Allahs particularly Muhikmath. Almighty Allah, creator of universe and the humanity knows and understand all languages, dialects, Duas, actions of deaf and dumbs of humans and non humans, calls/actions of all animals, insects etc., and also of angels, Satans and other universal objects and aliens. Hence we should avoid narrow outlook and misguidance about Allah, the master of universe that HE knows only Arabic language. Arabic is a common language of the Arabs, Muslims and non Muslims and also contain good and bad words. The previous Holy Books were sent by Allah in prevalent languages at that time.

Hence we should avoid all narrow outlook about Islam, the DEEN for entire humanity by asking our Muslim brethren and sisters to read translation of Quran which is being distributed by Saudi Arabia free to all Hajis and Ajmi Muslims in all languages of the world to promote Quranic knowledge and understanding so that they are not misguided or exploited by the Taghoots, demi Gods, Pirs, Faqirs, Aamils, Babas, professional and commercial Mullahs and their parties and groups etc. and in order to save us from un Islamic customs and practices, various deviations, exploitations, extremism, sectarianism, Maslak and Fiqah differences, excesses in rituals and over acting in religious matters, Shirk, Bidah, sins and evils etc.

To raise funds for Masjid building activities and maintenance, the commercial Moulvis/Aalims engaged on commission and payment basis, instead of making a simple and honest appeal with facts and fiqures, exploit Islam and play with the religious sentiments of the Muslims and make a false promise of sending the donors to Jannah not at all supported in Quran. They delay Namaz deliberately particulalry on 27th Ramzan, Khatm Quran Taraveh prayers with long Dua and also Eid Namazez to collect money by exploiting Islam and playing with the religious sentiments of the Muslims lacking Quranic knowledge. They indulge in auction of Allah's House through open bidding as if Allah is poor ( Nauzi Billah) and collect cash, checks, pledges and even remove the jewellery of our women in the name of Allah. In the Masajid built by our donations, they insult the Namaziz through a warning notice on books and book shelves "Don't take away the Books" or 'Don't remove the Books' etc. as if we are theives, Hence to put our Masajid and Madressahs on the right track and end exploitation of Islam and misuse of funds, following suggestions are made:

———-Our Aalims and the Masjid Imams MUST give importance to projection and explaining all the directives of Allah along with relevent authentic Hadiths in conformity with the Quran as per Allah's direction ( 10 : 15, 64 / 18 : 27 ) so that we live a better and progressive life based on piety, righteousness and good deeds as per Quran and avoid all sins and evils, falsehood, deviations, extremism, Shirk, Bidah, un-Islamic customs and practices, bad behaviour, Satanic influences, misguidance by Taghoots, Pirs, Faqirs, Babas, Aamils, Commercial and vested Mullahs, religious groupings and parties, Maslak and Fiqah differences, etc.

————-Please press the managements of the Masajid to promote reading and explaining of Quranic translation in the Madressahs to our students along with relevent authentic Hadiths to make our students fully equipped in Islamic knowledge to avoid all religious exploitations, deviations, extremism, excesses in rituals and other issues, Satanic influences, misguidances by Taghoots, Pirs, Babas, Aamils, vested interests, Shirk, Bidah, un Islamic customs and practices etc. The centuries old system of children sitting on the floor and doing Tilawath, Hifz and Qirath generally without understanding and shaking their bodies unnecessarily as if to please the God, be upgraded to let them sit on chairs and tables. When the Moulives use the chairs, sofas and tables in the Masajid and drive cars and avail all modern amenities in their homes, then why the children are discriminated in the name of our progressive religion. Islam is an easy DEEN to follow and practice ( 27 : 1 ) and there is no compulsion or force ( 2:256/ 22:77-78). Islam is not a theology, it is a way of life ( 5 : 3 ).

———-The Masajid should remove all such insulting notices/remarks against the Namazziz written on the religious books and on the 'Book Shelves' not to take away or remove the books. They think we are book thieves. They should also remove all such banners/notices or flyers promising Jannah to donors not at all supported in Quran as this is the sole right of Allah alone. If a person with black income donates heavily, how come that he will go to Jannah directly without accountability on the Day of Judgement. Avoid giving donations to such Masajid which do not comply.

———–The Masajids should avoid engaging commerical Mullahs on commission and payment basis for fund raising purpose to exploit Islam, use pressure tactics and play with the religious sentiments of the Namaziz to collect donations and empty their pockets through cash, pledges, checks and even removing jewellery of our women in the name of Allah as if Allah is poor ( Nauzu Billah). They delay the Namaz deliberately on 27th Khatm Quran Taraveh prayers with Long Dua and also the Eid Namazez for fund raising purpose instead of making a simple and honest appeal with facts and figures for donations. Delaying namaz deliberately for monetary purpose is a sin as well as praying behind such commercial Mullahs. The Imams should be TAQWA practicing.

————The Masajid MUST conduct fair and free elections of the Board of Directors/Members of the Managing Committee of the Masajid every three years from the donors of a fixed amount to infuse new blood and thinking and to put an end to rule of vested interests and occupying groups and to prevent misuse of funds/donations. There are already reports of misuse of funds in various Masajid and nearly two dozens cases are pending in the courts of Ontario alone which is bringing bad name to Islam. The 'Toronto Star' dated 20-1-2011 reported a headlines news about alleged misuse of funds amounting to $ 600,000 by the CEO of ISNA Masjid, Mississauga, On. but no action was taken by the Masjid to register a case for recovery of public donated funds.

———— All receipts of cash, donations, checks, pledges, gifts and jewellery etc. and expendiure details with vouchers including payments drawn by the Masjid Committe members/boards, payment made to various Aalims/ Naat Khwans, hotel expenses, travelling expenses, daily allowances, expenditure on various works carried out etc. be made available for inspection by the Namaziz/donors as Masajid are public property built with our donations. The yearly Auditor be appointed by the donors. Every donor of $100 and above be made a member to cast a vote or stand for elections.

IF THE ABOVE GENUINE REQUESTS ARE NOT ENTERTAINED BY THE MANAGEMENTS OF THE MASAJIDS/ MADRESSAHS, THEN PLEASE DON'T GIVE DONATIONS AND APPROACH THE COURTS TO DISSOLVE SUCH 'QABZA'/PERMANENT COMMITTEES/BOARDS AND AMEND THE RULES/CONSTITUION GOVERNING ALL THE MASAJIDS FOR REGULAR ELECTIONS AND ACCOUNTABILITY. PLEASE START A SIGNATURE CAMPAIGN ON A PETITION IN THIS REGARD. PLEASE SAVE ISLAM FROM EXPLOITERS. THIS IS THE DUTY OF ALL MUSLIMS. PLEASE PRINT AND CIRCULATE.
WE ARE NOT AGAINST ANY BODY PARTICULARLY SINCERE AALIMS EXCEPT THE EXPLOITERS OF ISLAM.
THANKS. MAY ALLAH BLESS US ALL,

SAEED SIDDIQUE,

ON. CANADA.

False Perceptions Underpin Anti-Migrant Sentiments By Thalif Deen

Sailanmuslim — Wed, 07 Dec 2011 04:44:12 +0000

UNITED NATIONS, Dec 6, 2011 (IPS) – The rising tide of anti-migrant sentiment worldwide is caused primarily by the biased, polarised and negative debate on migration, according to a new study released here.

In its latest World Migration Report released Tuesday, the Geneva- based International Organization for Migration (IOM) said people in destination countries tend to significantly overestimate the size of the migrant population, sometimes by as much as 300 percent.

As an example, the report points out that the actual percentage of migrants in Italy was around 7.0 percent in 2010. Yet polls showed that the population – rather erroneously – perceived this percentage to be around a staggering 25 percent.

Similarly, in the United States, some public opinion polls showed that in 2010, the public believed the percentage of migrants in the population was at 39 percent, a far cry from an actual 14 percent.

The report points out that "distorted communication about migration contributes to widespread anti-migrant sentiments, which have recently resurfaced in many parts of the world."

Harmful stereotypes, discrimination and even xenophobia have reappeared in societies of destination, resulting in controversy on the value of multiculturalism.

"It is all too evident that migration is often the catch-all issue that masks public fears and uncertainties relating to unemployment, housing and social cohesion in host countries," says IOM Director General William Lacy Swing.

Migration, he said, can also be blamed for the loss of human capital and for economic dependency in countries of origin.

"Accurately informing the wider public about migration may be the single most important policy tool in all societies faced with increasing diversity," said Swing, a former U.S ambassador who served in several African countries, including Nigeria, South Africa, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Joseph Chamie, director of research at the New York-based Center for Migration Studies, told IPS, "Certainly, accurate and relevant communication is always desirable and few would dispute the call by IOM for an open and constructive debate on international migration."

However, he said, reputable media communication regarding international migration does not appear to be distorted nor does it appear to play a major role in the public's desire to see less immigration and the rejection of multiculturalism by many governments.

"It is important to note that there is a surprising gap between government and public views on migration," he said.

Most governments and business enterprises tend to be favourably disposed to immigration, while the general public remains reluctant to admit foreigners, especially those who differ greatly from the host communities, said Chamie, a former director of the U.N. Population Division.

Whether in affluent countries in the West or less wealthy nations in the developing world, he argued, people are concerned about immigration.

In addition to unemployment and economic uncertainties, people are worried about losing their traditional culture and national identities. They feel that their way of life is being badly affected and needs protection from the adverse effects of foreign influences, he added.

Opinion polls regularly report that large majorities believe that there should be greater restriction of immigration and tighter control of their country's borders, said Chamie.

In its report, IOM calls for "a fundamental shift in the way we communicate about migration, especially during economic downturns when political discourse, media reports and public opinion on the nature, purpose and socio-economic impact of migration tend to be negative".

Yet the report does not call for an uncritical bias on migration issues.

An open discussion about migration means understanding and directly addressing what drives people's fears and the negative attitudes as expressed in polls in order to reduce public hostility.

The report also says that public attitudes towards migration continue to be strongly influenced by the socio-economic status, age and level of education of respondents and their level of interaction with migrants.

In Germany, a 2009 poll showed that 65 percent of young people said they have more positive attitudes towards migration because they regularly interacted with migrants.

"The perceived availability of jobs and prevalent perceptions that migrants take jobs away from nationals and/or place a strain on a country's resources also influence attitudes and poll results," the report said.

However, it notes that opinion polls can be unreliable as their results may be based on false assumptions of what a migrant is or is not.

It also underlines that surveys and media reports rarely pay attention to or echo the voice of employers, who remain key actors in today's global migration scene.

The study suggests that questions relating to the changing compositions of our societies and cultural diversity can be addressed by integrating diversity into mainstream media and by encouraging migrants to use new social media tools to regularly engage with host and home societies.

"Whilst honest and balanced media reporting is paramount to foster a more enlightened debate on migration, migrants must also find their voices to tell their own stories," Swing said.

All too often perceived as passive, helpless and marginalised individuals, migrants would then be seen for what they are: shapers of their own destiny, said Swing, a former special representative of the U.N. secretary general for Western Sahara and the Democratic Republic of Congo.

Chamie told IPS that in addition to the migration gap, law enforcement officials and policymakers as well as business leaders are viewed by the public as lax in implementing approved policies and enforcing existing laws relating to immigration.

For many, simply the presence of tens of millions of unlawful residents in the labour force attests to such laxity.

Moreover, various national leaders and party officials most recently in France, Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom have expressed serious doubts about the success of immigrant integration, especially among those who differ religiously and ethnically from their host communities.

World leaders such as Angela Merkel of Germany, Nicolas Sarkozy of France, and David Cameron of the UK, for example, have noted that attempts to build a multicultural society have failed, he added.

85-year-old Woman Strip Searched at JFK Airport By Nicholas Hirshon

Sailanmuslim — Mon, 05 Dec 2011 04:00:06 +0000

Lenore Zimmerman, 85, shows injury she says came during strip search by security at JFK Airport.

An 85-year-old Long Island grandmother says she plans to sue the TSA after a humiliating strip search on Tuesday by agents at JFK Airport.

Lenore Zimmerman, who lives in Long Beach, says she was on her way to a 1 p.m. flight to Fort Lauderdale when security whisked her to a private room and took off her clothes.

“I walk with a walker — I really look like a terrorist,” she said sarcastically. “I’m tiny. I weigh 110 pounds, 107 without clothes, and I was strip-searched.”

TSA spokeswoman Lisa Farbstein said a review of closed circuit TV footage from the airport shows “proper procedures were followed.”

But Zimmerman, whose hunched back puts her at 4-foot-11, said her ordeal began after her son, Bruce, drove her to the JetBlue terminal for the Florida flight. She lives in warm Coconut Creek during the winter.

She checked her bags, waited for a wheelchair and parted ways with her doting son — her only immediate relative.

When Zimmerman reached a security checkpoint, she asked if she could forgo the advanced image technology screening equipment, fearing it might interfere with her defibrillator.

She said she normally gets patted down. But this time, she says that two female agents escorted her to a private room and began to remove her clothes.

“I was outraged,” said Zimmerman, a retired receptionist.

As she tried to lift a lightweight walker off her lap, she says, the metal bars banged against her leg and blood trickled from a gash.

“My sock was soaked with blood,” she said. “I was bleeding like a pig.”

She says the TSA agents showed no sympathy, instead pulling down her pants and asking her to raise her arms.

“Why are you doing this?” she said she asked the agents, who did not respond.

The TSA claims the footage does not show any sign of the injury.

“Our screening procedures are conducted in a manner designed to treat all passengers with dignity, respect and courtesy,” Farbstein said.

Zimmerman says a medic arrived to treat her injury. The process took so long that she missed her 1 p.m. flight and had to catch a later one.

Her son said he was shocked when his mom called around 9 p.m. that night and described what happened.

“She was put through a hell of a day,” he said.

Zimmerman, who takes blood thinners, later had a tetanus shot for fear of infection from the walker wound.

Bruce Zimmerman, 53, said he can’t understand why the agents targeted his mom.

“She looks like a sweet, little old lady,” he said. “She’s not a disruptive person or uncooperative.”

nhirshon@nydailynews.com

Iceland recognises Palestinian state By Associated Press

Sailanmuslim — Fri, 02 Dec 2011 10:03:41 +0000

Icelandic parliament passes resolution making country the first in western Europe to accept Palestine as an independent state

Iceland's foreign minister, Ossur Skarphedinsson, said he would discuss the outcome of the vote with other Nordic countries before making a formal declaration on Palestinian statehood. Photograph: Alexander Nemenov/AFP/Getty Images

Iceland has become the first western european country to recognise Palestine as an independent state.

The Icelandic parliament said in a statement on its website that it had passed a motion with 38 of 63 votes in favour of a resolution to recognse Palestine "as an independent and sovereign state" based on borders predating the six-day war of 1967.

"Iceland is the first country in western europe to take this step," Ossur Skarphedinsson, the minister for foreign affairs, told RUV, the Icelandic national broadcasting service. He said the vote had given him the authority to make a formal declaration on the government's behalf, but before doing so he would discuss the move with other Nordic countries.

The resolution, which coincided with the UN's annual day of solidarity with the Palestinian people, recognised the Palestine Liberation Organisation as the legal authority for a Palestinian state and urged Israel and Palestine to reach a peace agreement.

The vote comes shortly after the Palestinians successfully gained admission to the UN's cultural agency, Unesco. Iceland was among 11 European Unesco members to support the move.

However, the suspected failure to win the required support of nine of the security council's 15 members, and a promise from the US that it would veto any council resolution endorsing membership, threatens to stall the move for full UN membership.

In a message to the UN on Tuesday, the Palestinian leader, Mahmoud Abbas, reaffirmed Palestine's bid for membership, saying it should complement peace negotiations provided Israel was prepared to negotiate on the basis of 1967 borders.

In a message read out by Palestinian UN observer Riyad Mansour, Abbas said Palestine's decision to apply to join the UN "is our legitimate right" based on the 1947 UN resolution to partition Palestine into two states.

Icelandic MP Amal Tamimi, who was born in Palestine, welcomed her parliament's move as a first step.

"I hope that more countries will follow suit," she said.

Israel’s Secret Iran Attack Plan: Electronic Warfare By Eli Lake

Sailanmuslim — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 06:45:15 +0000

Israel has been building stealthy, multibillion-dollar electronic weapons that could be deployed if Israel attacks Iran's nuclear sites, U.S. intelligence officials tell Eli Lake.

For much of the last decade, as Iran methodically built its nuclear program, Israel has been assembling a multibillion-dollar array of high-tech weapons that would allow it to jam, blind, and deafen Tehran's defenses in the case of a pre-emptive aerial strike.

A U.S. intelligence assessment this summer, described to The Daily Beast by current and former U.S. intelligence officials, concluded that any Israeli attack on hardened nuclear sites in Iran would go far beyond airstrikes from F-15 and F-16 fighter planes and likely include electronic warfare against Iran’s electric grid, Internet, cellphone network, and emergency frequencies for firemen and police officers.

For example, Israel has developed a weapon capable of mimicking a maintenance cellphone signal that commands a cell network to “sleep,” effectively stopping transmissions, officials confirmed. The Israelis also have jammers capable of creating interference within Iran’s emergency frequencies for first responders.

In a 2007 attack on a suspected nuclear site at al-Kibar, the Syrian military got a taste of this warfare when Israeli planes “spoofed” the country’s air-defense radars, at first making it appear that no jets were in the sky and then in an instant making the radar believe the sky was filled with hundreds of planes.

Israel also likely would exploit a vulnerability that U.S. officials detected two years ago in Iran's big-city electric grids, which are not “air-gapped”—meaning they are connected to the Internet and therefore vulnerable to a Stuxnet-style cyberattack—officials say.

A highly secretive research lab attached to the U.S. joint staff and combatant commands, known as the Joint Warfare Analysis Center (JWAC), discovered the weakness in Iran’s electrical grid in 2009, according to one retired senior military intelligence officer. This source also said the Israelis have the capability to bring a denial-of-service attack to nodes of Iran’s command and control system that rely on the Internet.

Tony Decarbo, the executive officer for JWAC, declined comment for this story. The likely delivery method for the electronic elements of this attack would be an unmanned aerial vehicle the size of a jumbo jet. An earlier version of the bird was called the Heron, the latest version is known as the Eitan. According to the Israeli press, the Eitan can fly for 20 straight hours and carry a payload of one ton. Another version of the drone, however, can fly up to 45 straight hours, according to U.S. and Israeli officials.

Unmanned drones have been an integral part of U.S. wars in Iraq, Afghanistan, and Pakistan, gathering intelligence and firing missiles at suspected insurgents. But Israel's fleet has been specially fitted for electronic warfare, according to officials.

“They would have to take out radar and anti-aircraft. They could also attack with missiles and their drone fleet.”

The Eitans and Herons would also likely be working with a special Israeli air force unit known as the Sky Crows, which focuses only on electronic warfare. A 2010 piece inThe Jerusalem Post quoted the commander of the electronic warfare unit as saying, “Our objective is to activate our systems and to disrupt and neutralize the enemy’s systems.”

Fred Fleitz, who left his post this year as a Republican senior staffer who focused on Iran at the House Permanent Select Committee on Intelligence, said in his meetings with Israeli defense and intelligence officials, they would always say all options were on the table.

"I think Israel has the capabilities with their air force and mid-air refueling to take on these sites," said Fleitz, who is now managing editor of Lignet.com. "They would have to take out radar and anti-aircraft. They could also attack with missiles and their drone fleet."

Whatever Israel ultimately decides to do about Iran’s program, one mission for now is clear. A senior Israeli official told The Daily Beast this month that one important objective of Israel's political strategy on Iran was to persuade Iranian decision makers that a military strike against their nuclear infrastructure was a very real possibility. "The only known way to stop a nuclear program is to have smashing sanctions with a credible military threat. Libya is the best example of this," this official said.

At the same time, if past practice is any guide, the Israelis would not likely strike at the same moment that their officials are discussing the prospect in the press. In other words, if Israel is openly discussing a military strike, it is unlikely to be imminent.

But if Israel goes radio silent—like it did in when it attacked a suspected nuclear site in Iraq in 1981—that may be an early warning sign that a strike is nearing.

When Sam Lewis was U.S. ambassador to Israel during the transition from the Carter to Reagan administrations, he warned the new administration there was a chance then-Prime Minister Menachem Begin might bomb the Osirak nuclear reactor in Iraq.

“I had given a full alert to the new administration about the dangers,” Lewis recalled in an interview. “We’d been having discussions with the Israelis about how they wanted to stop the project, there was a lot of news and then it all dried up.”

Lewis and his staff had moved on. Then without warning on June 7, 1981, in something called Operation Opera, Israeli jets flew in the dead of night via Jordanian air space and incinerated the nuclear facility that was under construction southeast of Baghdad. “I did feel after the fact that we should have assumed this bombing was going to take place,” Lewis said. “After it was over, I was not surprised, I was annoyed by having been misled by the quiet as it were.”

There may be a lesson for the Obama administration as it tries to calibrate what Israel will do on Iran. Since taking office, the president has made major efforts to avoid any surprises in the relationship with Israel, particularly on the issue of Iran. Obama and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, for example, tasked their first national security advisers to establish an unprecedented system for regular consultation between the two countries, featuring regular video-teleconferences.

They formed a standing committee on Iran as well, to check the progress of sanctions, share intelligence, and keep both sides informed. Despite all of this, Netanyahu has refused to give any assurance to Obama or his top cabinet advisers that he would inform or ask permission before launching an attack on Iran that would likely spur the Iranians to launch a terrorist attack on the United States or Israel in response, according to U.S. and Israeli officials familiar with these meetings. The Telegraph first reported the tension over the weekend.

Defense Secretary Leon Panetta "expressed the desire for consultation on any contemplated future Israeli military action, and [Ehud] Barak understood the U.S. position,” said one official familiar with the discussions.

The Israelis may be coy this time around because of the experience of then-Israeli Prime Minister Ehud Olmert. In 2007, the Israelis presented what they considered to be rock-solid evidence that Syria was building a covert nuclear facility at al-Kibar. They asked President Bush to bomb the facility, according to the new memoir from Condoleezza Rice.

“The president decided against a strike and suggested a diplomatic course to the Israeli prime minister,” she wrote. “Ehud Olmert thanked us for our input but rejected our advice, and the Israelis then expertly did the job themselves.”

One American close to the current prime minister said, “When Netanyahu came into office, the understanding was they will not make the same mistake that Olmert made and ask for something the president might say no to. Better to ask forgiveness than to ask permission.”

The Right To Dream We Are Fighting For Justice By Arundhati Roy

Sailanmuslim — Mon, 21 Nov 2011 05:44:36 +0000

Pity the nation that has to silence its writers for speaking their minds… Pity the nation that needs to jail those who ask for justice while communal killers, mass murderers, corporate scamsters, looters, rapists and those who prey on the poorest of the poor, roam free.” – Arundhati Roy

The People’s University" – Held at Judson Memorial Church 11/16/11 -

Tuesday morning, the police cleared Zuccotti Park, but today the people are back. The police should know that this protest is not a battle for territory. We're not fighting for the right to occupy a park here or there. We are fighting for justice. Justice, not just for the people of the United States, but for everybody.

What you have achieved since September 17th, when the Occupy movement began in the United States, is to introduce a new imagination, a new political language into the heart of empire. You have reintroduced the right to dream into a system that tried to turn everybody into zombies mesmerized into equating mindless consumerism with happiness and fulfillment.

As a writer, let me tell you, this is an immense achievement. And I cannot thank you enough.

We were talking about justice. Today, as we speak, the army of the United States is waging a war of occupation in Iraq and Afghanistan. US drones are killing civilians in Pakistan and beyond. Tens of thousands of US troops and death squads are moving into Africa. If spending trillions of dollars of your money to administer occupations in Iraq and Afghanistan is not enough, a war against Iran is being talked up.

Ever since the Great Depression, the manufacture of weapons and the export of war have been key ways in which the United States has stimulated its economy. Just recently, under President Obama, the United States made a $60 billion arms deal with Saudi Arabia – moderate Muslims, right? It hopes to sell thousands of bunker busters to the UAE. It has sold $5 billion-worth of military aircraft to my country, India, which has more poor people than all the poorest countries of Africa put together. All these wars, from the bombing of Hiroshima and Nagasaki to Vietnam, Korea, Latin America, have claimed millions of lives – all of them fought to secure the "American way of life".

Today, we know that the "American way of life" – the model that the rest of the world is meant to aspire towards – has resulted in 400 people owning the wealth of half of the population of the United States. It has meant thousands of people being turned out of their homes and their jobs while the US government bailed out banks and corporations – American International Group (AIG) alone was given $182 billion.

The Indian government worships US economic policy. As a result of 20 years of the free market economy, today, 100 of India's richest people own assets worth one-quarter of the country's GDP while more than 80% of the people live on less than 50 cents a day; 250,000 farmers, driven into a spiral of death, have committed suicide. We call this progress, and now think of ourselves as a superpower. Like you, we are well-qualified: we have nuclear bombs and obscene inequality.

The good news is that people have had enough and are not going to take it any more. The Occupy movement has joined thousands of other resistance movements all over the world in which the poorest of people are standing up and stopping the richest corporations in their tracks. Few of us dreamed that we would see you, the people of the United States on our side, trying to do this in the heart of Empire. I don't know how to communicate the enormity of what this means.

They (the 1%) say that we don't have demands… perhaps they don't know, that our anger alone would be enough to destroy them. But here are some things – a few "pre-revolutionary" thoughts I had – for us to think about together:

We want to put a lid on this system that manufactures inequality. We want to put a cap on the unfettered accumulation of wealth and property by individuals as well as corporations. As "cap-ists" and "lid-ites", we demand:

• An end to cross-ownership in businesses. For example, weapons manufacturers cannot own TV stations; mining corporations cannot run newspapers; business houses cannot fund universities; drug companies cannot control public health funds.

• Two, natural resources and essential infrastructure – water supply, electricity, health, and education – cannot be privatized.

• Three, everybody must have the right to shelter, education and healthcare.

• Four, the children of the rich cannot inherit their parents' wealth.

This struggle has re-awakened our imagination. Somewhere along the way, capitalism reduced the idea of justice to mean just "human rights", and the idea of dreaming of equality became blasphemous. We are not fighting to just tinker with reforming a system that needs to be replaced.

As a cap-ist and a lid-ite, I salute your struggle.

Salaam and Zindabad.

Arundhati Roy won the Booker prize in 1997 for her novel, The God of Small Things. Her non-fiction work includes An Ordinary Person’s Guide to Empire, Field Notes on Democracy: Listening to Grasshoppers, and Broken Republic. An impassioned critic of neo-imperialism, military occupations, and violent models of economic ‘development’, Roy was awarded the Sydney Peace Prize in 2004. Her consistent exposure of the Indian state’s repressive policies has led to her being variously labelled a seditionist, secessionist, Maoist and unpatriotic troublemaker.