“Islamists Dominate Saudi Arabia Elections” from AP: JIDDAH, Saudi Arabia – Candidates backed by conservative clerics dominated the final stage of Saudi Arabia’s landmark municipal elections, according to results announced Saturday. In the kingdom’s commercial capital of Jiddah, the seven winning candidates were those whose names appeared on what was dubbed the “golden list” — […]
The worst-ever article on Islam?
Daniel Pipes opines that this could be the very worst article on Islam, and with good reason: “It has every platitude, inaccuracy, and banality in the book, from mistranslating the word Islam to getting the number of Muslims in the United States wrong to that hoary business about “A Muslim can’t be a terrorist, and […]
Bulgarian Police Official Warns Of Jihadist Threat
Jihad in the Balkans. But wait a minute: don’t the learned pundits say that there is no significant threat there? “Bulgarian Police Official Warns Of Islamist Threat,” from AP, with thanks to Nicolei: SOFIA (AP)–Bulgaria’s top police official warned Thursday that pockets of Islamic fundamentalism in the Balkans are creating a favorable environment for the […]
US warns Philippines south could become “new Afghanistan”
What’s that? The Philippines, you say? But I thought that “serious extremist movements are visible only in Saudi Arabia, Iraq (where they are imported, mainly from the south), Iran, Pakistan, regions of Nigeria and Malaysia, and a tiny number of war zones like Chechnya and southern Thailand.” Hmmm. Maybe I should get a new batch […]
Three Misunderstanders of Islam Indicted on Terror Charges in the US
Ibrahim Hooper, call your office: more Muslims keep thinking that Islam is commanding them to plot acts of violence. What are you going to do about it? (Sarcasm aside, I keep repeating this theme lately to emphasize the connection between the Qur’an and Islamic teachings and these acts of terrorism. The time for bland denials […]
Egypt arrests three misunderstanders of Islam over Cairo bombing
We keep hearing about how Islam is being “misunderstood.” Can we get Ibrahim Hooper over to Cairo to clue these guys in on the real thing? “Egypt arrests 3 Islamists over Cairo bombing,” from AFP, : CAIRO – Egyptian security forces have arrested three Islamists suspected of planning last week’s suicide bombing in a Cairo […]
Americans alienate Indonesia
An overview of the Abu Bakar Bashir trial follies, which we have covered here from the beginning. From the Toronto Star, with thanks to Witness: In this nation, too, official and populist indifference greeted early American warnings of homegrown terrorism. That didn’t change until after the bombings in Bali (2002) and two in Jakarta (at […]
UK: Muslims’ fury as Pope ‘compared to Prophet’
All right, so Jalal Chaudry spoke imprecisely from a Muslim perspective. But his comments are an “insult to all Muslims”? Here’s one from the Touchy Touchy Department, via the Scotsman, with thanks to Twostellas: A MUSLIM leader was at the centre of a furious row today after being accused of comparing Pope John Paul II […]
Saudi Arabia: Tiny minority of extremists flogged for graffiti
How many other Saudi teenagers think this way? What genuine steps are really being taken by the Saudis to stop them from thinking this way? After all, a flogging won’t change the minds even of these boys. It will likely only reinforce their sense of their own righteousness. From South Africa’s News24, with thanks to […]
Moroccan official: Those who blame Islam for tragic events are extremists’ aides
This kind of thinking is common: if you point out the Islamic bona fides of the terrorists, you are just helping the terrorists. But it is not actually true. The Islamic world has a massive problem; to ignore, deny, or sugarcoat is what actually helps the terrorists, because it does nothing to stop them from […]