PassionIslam july 2010

Issue: 28 July 2010

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France, Germany, and the United Kingdom use foreign intelligence obtained under torture in the fight against terrorism, Human Rights Watch said in a damning report released this week.

The 62-page report, “No Questions Asked: Intelligence Cooperation with Countries that Torture,” analyzes the ongoing cooperation by the governments of France, Germany, and the United Kingdom with foreign intelligence services in countries that routinely use torture.

The three governments use the resulting foreign torture information for intelligence and policing purposes. Torture is prohibited under international law, with no exceptions allowed.

“Berlin, Paris, and London should be working to eradicate torture, not relying on foreign torture intelligence,” said Judith Sunderland, senior Western Europe researcher

at Human Rights Watch. “Taking information from torturers is illegal and just plain wrong.”

The intelligence services in France, Germany, and the UK do not have detailed instructions on how to assess and follow-up on information coming from countries that torture, Parliamentary oversight in each country is also inadequate.

Intelligence services in all three countries claim it is impossible to know the sources and methods used to acquire shared information. But officials in the UK and Germany have made public statements indicating that they believe it is sometimes acceptable to use foreign intelligence even if it is obtained under torture. Such statements send the wrong message to abusive governments, Human Rights Watch said.

“The rules meant to exclude torture from the courts don’t work,” Sunderland said. “It should be up to prosecutors to prove that evidence

originating in countries that torture wasn’t obtained through abuse.”

The use of torture intelligence in the fight against terrorism by France, Germany, and the UK damages the credibility of the European Union, the actual practices of these leading EU states contradict the EU’s anti-torture guidelines, which make eradicating torture and ill-treatment a priority in its relations with other countries. Over the long-term, abuses in the name of countering terrorism also feed the grievances that fuel radicalization and recruitment to terrorism, Human Rights Watch said.

“Europe has been forced to confront its complicity in US counterterrorism abuses,” Sunderland said. “It is time for France, Germany, and the UK to take responsibility for their own role in third-party abuse, and to ensure that their intelligence cooperation isn’t perpetuating abuse.”

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Damning report highlightsUK’s role in torture

2 I LOCAL & NATIONAL NEWS Passion Islam I July 2010

Write to: Editor, Passion Islam, PO Box 159, Batley, West Yorkshire, WF17 1ADor email: [email protected] - www.passionislam.com

This Magazine contains Ayaat of the Qur’an and Hadith of the Prophet (SAW), please ensure you handle it with respect & care - Sukran - Views expressed in the Passion column are of the contributers and not Necessarily of Passion Islam

t h e P a s s i o n by Steve Jolly - Campaigner

The row over hundreds of surveillance cameras quietly installed to spy on whole communities in Birmingham – including my own – has grown louder and louder, forcing a halt to the scheme that now hangs suspended, dangling in mid-crisis just like the unwanted cameras. “Project Champion” now looks like a real loser.

The offending lenses will be covered over with bags, we are told, and a full public consultation will follow. Liberty is mounting a legal challenge and the Independent Police Complaints Commission (IPCC) will be investigating West Midlands police over whether they briefed or misled local councillors. My MP, Roger Godsiff, has tabled a debate in parliament and John Hemming, MP for Birmingham Yardley, informed me he has raised the issue with the home secretary.

This is quite a result for the campaign I started only two months ago. Along with a few other local residents and councillors who were also alert enough to have concerns and ask questions about the scheme, we have succeeded in exposing a major counterterrorism operation for what it is: ill conceived, poorly implemented, botched and – worst of all – potentially counterproductive.

Surely the plan to spy on whole communities in Birmingham could not have remained secret for long. The camera posts are hardly invisible: they resemble machine-gun turrets and are everywhere. And yet Britain is a society so used to the proliferation of CCTV cameras that they have become just part of our street furniture and are regarded

as normal. All those other cameras act as camouflage; would anyone notice a few more? They are everywhere we look, except we have become sufficiently inured that we just don’t see them any more. For that reason the whole affair could well have gone unnoticed and slipped under the radar, as intended.

The police strategy appears to have relied on the idea that nobody would notice a few hundred more cameras. After all, the population has been hoodwinked into believing these things are substitute police officers, a panacea for all types of crime, and that support for CCTV is somehow linked to good citizenship. Surely the only privacy-loving miscreants who would object to their every move being tracked and recorded on a database must be criminals? After all, if you were not doing anything wrong, why would you mind? These dangerous assumptions are wrong and must be challenged. It’s worrying that few people I’ve spoken to recently seem to know what the words “civil liberties” mean. Fewer still will stand up and fight to protect them. “The price of liberty is eternal vigilance”, it’s said, and never was that truer than right now in Birmingham.

Watching Nick Clegg’s political reform speech on TV in May was a defining moment in my campaign. When the deputy prime minister promised that his government would “end the culture of spying on its citizens” I cheered as if England had just scored a goal. “Britain must not be a country where our children grow up so used to their liberty being

infringed that they accept it without question.” Back of the net! It was as though I had written it myself.

I set up a Facebook group and a website to launch my campaign, then I wrote an article for a local magazine, started a petition and lobbied MPs and councillors to denounce the spy-cam scheme. After passing the story to Paul Lewis, at the Guardian, and Liberty I found I had officially become an activist, the leader and spokesman for the campaign to have the cameras removed. The campaign group, NO CCTV also contacted me. They had been following my campaign and were behind me all the way, offering support and useful information.

After I was quoted in two Guardian articles my phone did not stop ringing and I soon found myself at the centre of the storm, campaigning on local and national radio and television culminating in five media appearances in one day. It is safe to say now that the truth is out, but whether the spy-cam scheme will be abandoned remains to be seen.

Civil libertarians should watch with interest to see what happens next in Birmingham, as it has grave implications for the relationship between the state and the private individual. I suspect that apart from the home secretary, there is only one other person with the power to order a stop to this. So if you’re listening, Nick Clegg, come to Birmingham’s aid and restore our civil liberties, as you promised. It’s an open goal and now is your chance to score.

Birmingham’s spy-camhas had its cover blown

Photograph: David Sillitoe for the Guardian

Passion Islam I July 2010 NEWS I 3

The UK’s Supreme Court ruled that a control order against an Ethiopian terrorist suspect breached his human rights by forcing him to live 150 miles (240 KMs) away from his family.

The suspect, identified only as AP, was ordered to live under a 16-hour curfew in the English Midlands to keep him away from so-called Islamist extremists in London. But

in an appeal to the Supreme Court, seven judges agreed unanimously that the control order isolated him from his family and breached his right to liberty.

Delivering the verdict, one of the judges, Sir John Dyson, said the home secretary must find out the

effect of a control order before imposing it.

Control orders were introduced in 2005 to restrict the movements of terrorist suspects, where there is considered to be inadequate evidence to gain a prosecution.

The orders, which include virtual house arrest, were originally only

issued against foreign suspects until it was extended to British nationals after it was ruled to be discriminatory.

Last year, the House of Lords also ruled that the use of control orders based on secret evidence were unlawful and subsequently led to a number of control orders being lifted.

Britain’s new coalition government has yet to decide on the existing control order regime, with both the Conservatives and Liberal Democrats previously voting against their introduction when they were in opposition.

Earlier this year, the joint committee on human rights followed the all-party home affairs committee in urging the government to abandon their use, saying that they cost too much and caused “untold damage to the UK’s international reputation.” IRNA

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Terror suspect winsruling on control order


Britain’s new coalition government has come under renewed fire for excluding controversial plans to replace the country’s nuclear Trident missile system from the current Strategic Defence Review.

The Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament (CND) said it is mystifying how Defence Secretary Liam Fox could express the need for a “clean break” from Cold War-legacy thinking without being willing to review the “greatest Cold War legacy” - the Trident nuclear weapon system.

“This is Back to the Future stuff. Liam Fox is saying we need to move on from Cold War thinking but reaching the same conclusions

on defence that Margaret Thatcher did (in the 1980s). There can be no break from the Cold War without reconsidering Trident,” said CND chair Kate Hudson.

Hudson also drew attention to the election manifesto commitment maybe by the government’s junior partners, the Liberal Democrats, not to renew Trident.

“Where do the Liberal Democrats stand on this? Will they be proposing alternatives as the coalition agreement stated or have they accepted the Conservatives’ decision?,” she asked.

She suggested that it was also incumbent on Harriet Harman as the Labour Party’s acting leader, and

all her would-be replacements, to show some leadership and call on the government to ensure a proper review including Trident. CND are joining anti-war demonstrators in a protest on Budget Day next Tuesday, calling on the government to scrap Trident and save four billion a year on the futile Afghan war by bringing troops home rather than making cuts on schools, hospitals and public services.

Britain’s oldest and Europe’s biggest single issue peace movement has also been bombarding Fox and junior Lib Dem defence minister Nick Harvey with emails to ensure Trident is included in the defence review. IRNA

Home Secretary announced that the Government would seek to renew the 28 day pre-charge detention limit for terror suspects for six months.

During this period there will be a wide-ranging review of counter-terrorism measures, including whether holding someone for 28 days without charge is excessive. The UK’s current pre-charge detention limit is the longest in the western world.

The review will also include the unsafe and unfair control order regime, which Liberty has campaigned against since it was introduced in 2005. Liberty also expects it to consider reform of Section 44 stop and search, admission of intercept evidence in criminal proceedings and overbroad speech offences.

Liberty Director Shami Chakrabarti said: “Six months in Whitehall passes a lot quicker than 28 days in a police cell without knowing why.

The Coalition has bound itself together with the language of civil liberties. Now it must reduce

the longest pre-charge detention period of any western democracy. A wide review of counterproductive counter-terror laws is welcome. At its conclusion, we also expect an end to the scandal of punishment without trial under control orders.”

Pre-charge detention refers to the length of time you can be locked-up and questioned before you face a charge. In that time you might never be told what you are accused of, or be able to challenge the evidence against you.

The Liberal Democrats had a 2010 manifesto pledge to “reduce the maximum period of pre-charge

detention to 14 days”. No one has been held for more than 14 days in the UK since the previous Government dropped its proposals for 42 days in October 2008.

Control orders allow suspects to be indefinitely tagged, confined to their homes and banned from communicating with others without police interview, charge or trial.

The effect of this legislation is that some people have been subject to detention and community punishment for over seven years on the basis of the Home Secretary’s suspicions and secret evidence which the suspect will never see.

An end to lengthy pre-chargedetention and control orders?

UK criticised for excluding nucleararms from defence review


The British government has admitted that is still awaiting a pledge from Israel never to again clone passports that were used in Mossad’s assassination of a Hamas official in Dubai back in January.

“We have not yet received a formal assurance from the Government of Israel on this matter,” Foreign Office Minister Alistair Burt said after being asked about the demand made nearly three months ago.

“We will continue to discuss these issues with the Israeli Government:

we will not tolerate the misuse of British passports,” Burt told MPs in a written parliamentary answer published.

The demand for a pledge was made by former foreign secretary David Miliband in March after he said “compelling evidence” had been found that Israel’s intelligence agency had cloned British passports following Mossad’s assassination.

“The fact that that was done by a country that is a friend, with significant diplomatic, cultural,

business and personal ties to the UK, only adds insult to injury. No country or Government could stand by in such a situation,” Miliband said.

Britons travelling to Israel were also warned by the Foreign Office not to hand their passports over to Israeli officials unless it is absolutely necessary.

The demand was made following the expulsion of an Israeli diplomat, believed to be Mossad’s London chief and has been linked as a precondition for any replacement.

Reports in Israel last month claimed that Britain’s Labour government was refusing to accept a replacement diplomat until it received a written commitment not to misuse UK passports.

Yediot daily said that Israel had avoided signing such a commitment, “probably because it would be interpreted as a confession that Israel did misuse British passports in the Dubai operation” and hinted it was waiting for a change of government in the UK.

It reported that if the Conservatives form the next government as happened “an improvement in bilateral relations is expected and perhaps the rehabilitation of the intelligence ties between the two countries.” IRNA

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The Muslim Prisoners’ Experiences report by Chief Inspector of Prisons Anne Owers argued that prisons could fuel extremism among England and Wales’s 10,300 Muslim inmates due to a “blanket, security-led” approach that treated them as terrorists.

It pointed out that despite the jailing of several high-profile terrorist suspects less than one in 100 Muslim inmates have been convicted of terrorism.

The report also claimed that Muslim prisoners have a more negative experience of prison life than others, mainly because they fear for their safety, and that Islam played a rehabilitative role in the lives of many prisoners.

Ms Owers said: “It would be naive to deny that there are, within the prison population, Muslims who hold radical extremist views or who may be attracted to them for a variety of reasons. But that does not argue for a blanket security-led approach to Muslim prisoners in general.”

She said prisons had come a “considerable distance” in improving facilities for different faith groups but recommended that the National Offender Management Service develops a strategy to treat Muslims

as individuals with specific needs. Juliet Lyon of the Prison Reform

Trust welcomed the report and said Muslim prisoners were “too often” seen as extremists in the making.

She said: “By focusing solely on Muslim prisoners as potential or actual extremists, there is a real risk that the prison service’s approach becomes a self-fulfilling prophecy.

“Without proper support all prisoners, regardless of their race or religious background, are likely to become disaffected from society.”

Prison Officers Association national chairman Colin Moses said there needed to be more recognition that Muslim prisoners

had dramatically changed the work expected of prison officers.

“Future reports should not keep placing the blame on uniform staff but the government,” he said.

Muslim reformed offender Danny Afzal said: “The vast majority of Muslim men in prison do not hold radical, extremist views.

“When I went to prison I found that practising my religion gave me discipline, structure and kept me safe.”

National Offender Management Service chief Phil Wheatley denied the service had “a blanket security-led approach to Muslim prisoners.”

A former worker in the UK external Intelligence service, MI6, accused of stealing and disclosing ‘top secret’ material has appeard in court, police said.

Daniel Houghton, 25, worked for the Secret Intelligence Service between September 2007 and May last year.

He is accused of stealing the material and of breaching the Official Secrets Act by disclosing the files, the police added.

Houghton of north London appeard at Woolwich Crown Court here for a plea and preliminary hearing.

No further details was available at the time of going to press.

A council has apologised after it issued an advert for a “female, white and non-Muslim” driver to take a disabled child to school.

Northamptonshire County Council said it was launching an investigation after it issued the advert to private taxi companies.

It is understood the stipulations were made by the child’s parents.

The advert stated: “The contractor must provide the escort. Please note that the escort must be female, white and non-Muslim.”

A spokeswoman for

the council said: “We apologise unreservedly for this error of judgment which resulted from trying to address the specific needs of an individual child.

“We’re confident on the basis of our initial investigations that there was no malicious or discriminatory intent.

“However, we have now launched a full-scale review into this matter. We’re deeply sorry for any offence or distress this has caused.

“The council takes equalities very seriously and we will not tolerate any practices in this

organisation which discriminate against any group or community.”

Generally, it is illegal for employers to discriminate against job candidates on the basis of their gender, race, sexuality or disability.

An unnamed Muslim taxi driver told the Northampton Chronicle: “To say it is offensive would be very strong because I don’t know the reasons behind it, but the council should not be issuing tenders like this, full stop. I was in total disbelief that it would make such a stipulation.”

Prisons ‘could fuel Muslim extremism’

Council ‘sorry’ for non-Muslim ad

Ex-MI6 workerin court on secrets charge

Passion Islam I July 2010 LOCAL & NATIONAL NEWS I 9

The UK is taking part in a European surveillance programme which is designed to gather personal information about suspected “radicals” from across the political spectrum.

Confidential documents reveal how an initiative to gather data on “radicalisation and recruitment” in Islamic terrorist groups has been expanded to incorporate other organisations.

Political activists who have no association with terrorism could now find themselves monitored by authorities mandated to discover information about their friends, family, neighbours, political beliefs, use of the internet and even psychological traits.

Police and security agencies have agreed to monitor “agents” who adhere to ideologies potentially involving violence. The documents define targets for the surveillance as people involved in “extreme right/left, Islamist, nationalist, anti-globalisation” groups.

Europol, a EU law enforcement agency, has been asked to produce a list of people involved in either promoting such groups, or in trying to recruit members.

In the UK, the police have developed a centralised monitoring apparatus to spy on “domestic extremists”, an umbrella term with no legal definition which, in practice, includes law-abiding environmental

protesters, anti-war activists, and anti-racist campaigners.

The scheme has a central database held by the national public order intelligence unit, a secretive body funded by the Association of Chief Police Officers (Acpo). Monitoring of political activists is a task filled by the terrorism and allied matters division of Acpo.

The advice lists “environmental extremists” alongside far-right activists, dissident Irish republicans, loyalist paramilitaries, and al-Qaida inspired extremists, as among those “currently categorised as extremist [that] may include those who have committed serious crime in pursuit of an ideology or cause”.

The UK government has also been criticised over Prevent, a programme aimed at stopping Muslims being lured into violent extremism. The initiative was branded a mass surveillance project after it was found it was being used to gather intelligence on innocent people who were not suspected of involvement in terrorism.

Under the new, approved, EU scheme, states have acquired a 70-question list on “agents of radicalisation” under their watch. Much of the information presumes a high-degree of intrusive monitoring, obtainable only via covert surveillance techniques, such as phone tapping.

It is assumed, for example,

that law enforcement agencies will obtain information about a person’s “feelings” about a group that could be “considered as the enemy”. One section asks for information about “oral comments” made by targets, while others ask about religious knowledge, behaviour, and socio-economic status.

Under “relevant psychological traits”, law enforcement agencies are asked to collate and share information on “psychological disorders, charismatic personality, weak personality, etc”. Another question asks: “Is there a prior relationship between the agents? Schoolmates, friends, relatives, shared time in prison, etc.”

This latest data-sharing agreement is the culmination of long-standing attempts to create a pan-European database of individuals whom police suspect could cause trouble at large demonstrations.

EU officials, principally led by Germany, have tried repeatedly to widen the shared data on suspected terrorists and serious criminals to include political activists, defined in documents as “troublemakers” who attend “large public gatherings”.

The moves were stalled by objections from some member states, including the UK, concerned about civil liberties and data protection. But they reappeared as a firm commitment in the EU’s five-year Stockholm programme.guardian

The British Broadcasting Corporation is showering Afghan cable networks with lucrative deals to cut broadcastings of Iran’s English-language news channel, Press TV.

The Press TV bureau in Kabul was informed on Wednesday that “a number of BBC employees have recently contacted the cable networks’ union in Herat to persuade them into breaking contract with Press TV and blocking all satellite transmission of its programs.”

“The BBC reportedly offered to

triple the union’s pay once it agrees to strip Press TV of its broadcasting rights in Herat,” the bureau added.

The move has drawn sharp criticism from media figures in Iran, who believe it is in line with US efforts to limit Press TV activities in Afghanistan, which is grappling with an all-out humanitarian crisis since the US-led invasion in 2001.

Last year, US military forces confiscated technical equipment of Press TV’s Afghanistan bureau, only days before Iran’s President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad made a visit to the country.

Local reports revealed that Press TV has started to emerge as a popular news source among the people and even journalists in Afghanistan.

According to the reports, Afghan officials and ordinary citizens have welcomed Press TV as an alternative, more credible news source, ever since it became available on cable in Kabul and various provinces.

Afghan President Hamid Karzai, meanwhile, recently told a private gathering that he tunes into Press TV’s news reports as he finds them to be more reliable and enlightening than other English language news sources.

UK monitors suspected radicals aspart of European surveillance project

BBC sabotaging Press TV broadcasts


Britain’s immigration officials in the Home Office plan to deport child asylum seekers back to Afghanistan by setting up a £4m “reintegration center.”

The Guardian has disclosed that the UK Border Agency plans to set up a £4m “reintegration center” to deport unaccompanied child asylum seekers to Kabul from Britain. Immigration officials at the Home Office hope to forcibly deport 12 boys under 18 and 120 adults per month by providing “reintegration assistance” in Afghanistan.

Other European countries, such as Norway, Sweden, Denmark and the Netherlands are also reported to be preparing to deport Afghan children to Kabul, with Norway announcing plans to open up a reception center there.

Such actions are supported by an EU policy that calls for the deportation of unaccompanied child

asylum seekers only upon “creating reception centers that can provide care for minors when the family cannot be found.”

Simone Troller of Human Rights Watch has warned about the flaws in the UK’s proposed plan, pointing to a government document that called for an “EU-wide presumption” that a child’s best interest was to return, which also argued against any formal

safeguards such as guardianship as “immensely expensive to put in place.”

Donna Covey, chief executive of the Refugee Council, stressed that, “There has been little said about how these children would be kept safe…The money would be better spent improving the way that children’s claims are assessed.”

passionislam.com

The Prince was invited as Patron of Oxford Centre for Islamic Studies to help celebrate the centre’s 25th anniversary. Speaking about his visit, His Royal Highness paid tribute to the role of faith communities in the UK and praised the work done by OXCIS, in particular the Young Muslim leadership programme.

This is a vital contribution to the process of boosting the self-esteem of young Muslims, about whom I care deeply.’

Opening his speech, The Prince of Wales reaffirmed the need to help UK’s minority communities and faith groups integrate into British Society. The Prince has spent more than 25 years working on encouraging UK minority communities to integrate into British society and to build good relationships between all faith communities.

The Prince chose “Islam and the Environment” as the focus of his speech, bringing together two important strands of his work over three decades. Addressing the audience, The Prince spoke about the importance for us all to realise the damage which Mankind is doing to the environment and take steps

to halt it, before it is too late. One of the many issues of commonality between the World’s great faiths is a strong focus on protection of the environment – God’s creation.

The Prince of Wales spoke about the great importance and respect the Islamic faith attaches to the preservation of the environment. He said: From what I know of the Qu’ran, again and again it describes the natural world as the handiwork of a unitary benevolent power.

It very explicitly describes Nature as possessing an “intelligibility” and that there is no separation between Man and Nature, precisely because there is no separation between the natural world and God. It offers a completely integrated view of the Universe where religion and science, mind and matter are all part of one living, conscious whole.

We are, therefore, finite beings contained by an infinitude, and each of us is a microcosm of the whole.

This suggests to me that Nature is a knowing partner, never a mindless slave to humanity, and we are Her tenants; God’s guests for all too short a time.

If I may quote the Qu’ran, “Have

you considered: if your water were to disappear into the Earth, who then could bring you gushing water?”

This is the Divine hospitality that offers us our provisions and our dwelling places, our clothing, tools and transport.

The Earth is robust and prolific, but also delicate, subtle, complex and diverse and so our mark must always be gentle.’

The Prince also noted that these teachings were also evident in Judaism and in his own faith, Christianity and were well expressed in the writings of Islamic poets and scholars, and Western poets like Wordsworth

He argued that there were more commonalities between the teachings of the great faiths on the relationship with nature than differences.

‘The inconvenient truth is that we share this planet with the rest of creation for a very good reason – and that is, we cannot exist on our own without the intricately balanced web of life around us.

Islam has always taught this and to ignore that lesson is to default on our contract with Creation.’

UK plans to deport Afghan children

Prince of Wales talks of Islam & the environment

Passion Islam I July 2010 n LOCAL & NATIONAL I 11

Ministers are bringing forward to the autumn measures requiring many immigrants marrying UK citizens to prove they have a command of English.

The measures, which Labour had planned to introduce in July 2011, will apply to partners coming to the UK from areas outside the EU, such as South Asia.

Home Secretary Theresa May said the move would “help promote integration”.

Campaigners said they supported efforts to help immigrants learn English, but the plans were discriminatory.

Under the new rules, anyone from outside the EU applying for a visa to join their spouse or partner will have to prove they have a basic command of English, to help them get by in daily life, before their application is approved.

The measure applies to same-sex partners.

At present, visa applicants have to show only that their marriage or partnership is genuine and that they can financially support themselves.

The home secretary said: “I

believe being able to speak English should be a pre-requisite for anyone who wants to settle here. The new English requirement for spouses will help promote integration, remove cultural barriers and protect public services.

“It is a privilege to come to the UK and that is why I am committed to raising the bar for migrants and ensuring that those who benefit from being in Britain contribute to our society.

“This is only the first step. We are currently reviewing English language requirements across the visa system with a view to tightening the rules further in the future.”

In 2009, 59,000 people from outside the EU were granted a visa to live with their partner in the UK.

Officials estimate that the new language test will lead to 10% fewer applications overall and it is likely to affect most the UK’s Indian, Pakistani and Bangladeshi communities.

The spousal visa allows someone to stay for two years, after which they can apply for indefinite leave to remain. Applicants must then pass a further test on life and language in

the UK. Hina Majid, of the Joint Council

for the Welfare of Immigrants, said she supported helping immigrants to learn English, but the plans were discriminatory.

“Take the young girl [from a developing country] who meets the love of her life and wants to come over here to be with him,” said Ms Majid. “It may take her several years to pass and in that time they may not be able to live together in the UK.

“It’s unnecessary, it’s costly and it will tear migrant families apart.”

Anti-terror law has been used illegally to stop and search tens of thousands of people in Britain, Home Office figures revealed.

Powers under Section 44 of the Terrorism Act, which requires no without grounds for suspicion, were used in “error” after the proper authorisations were not given from 2004, Police Minister Nick Herbert admitted.

The mistake was discovered after a freedom of information request triggered a review of the Metropolitan police’s section 44 records, Herbert said in a parliamentary statement to coincide with the Home Office figures.

“Subsequent investigations revealed that approximately 840 were stopped and searched in the relevant area during the period of the invalid authorisation,” he said referring to London alone just for April 2004.

Searches across Britain revealed that 14 police forces had unlawfully used their counter-terror stop and search powers in 40 different operations.

Official figures show the powers were used to stop 148,798 people last year, and have been used repeatedly against peace protesters

and photographers.In a landmark judgement in

January, the European Court of Human Rights ruled that the blanket use of section 44 across the whole of London was unlawful and criticised the lack of legal safeguards against abuse. “I am aware there is considerable concern about the operation of section 44 stop and search powers going beyond these authorisation errors,” Herbert said.

He said the government is “committed to a wider review of counter-terror legislation, including the operation of section 44 stop and search provisions.” “I have instructed Home Office officials unconnected with the administrative process to conduct the internal review of procedures,” he added. - IRNA

Immigrant rules tightened for overseas partners

Thousands ‘illegally’ searched under terror laws

12 I WORLD NEWS Passion Islam I July 2010

Dubai, where a top Hamas commander was killed in January in an assassination blamed on Israel’s Mossad spy agency, is to have security cameras “everywhere,” the police chief was quoted as saying.

The bustling Gulf city currently has 25,000 security cameras, but “surveillance needs to be ramped up to meet the growing requirements of an expanding city,” Lieutenant

General Dahi Khalfan told The National newspaper.

“We need to work according to a well-studied strategic plan and not only react to events as they come along... We will have cameras everywhere,” said Khalfan of the $136 million (€110 million) project.

Hamas commander Mahmud al-Mabhouh was killed at a luxury hotel in the emirate, and Khalfan

said police were able to track down the suspected killers with the help of security cameras.

“With the al-Mabhouh murder we were able to play back time through the footage captured by cameras,” said Khalfan, adding they analyzed 1,72D hours of images and “were able to pull the strings together and identify the suspects.”

passionislam.com

Irish accountancy and law firms will need to divert expertise to Islamic finance if the country is to attract business from this lucrative sector, according to a leading business academic.

Eamonn Walsh, professor of accounting at University College Dublin, said recent changes to legislation and tax rules that paved the way for Islamic finance investors in Ireland had been long overdue. However, he said that professional services firms needed to create a local knowledge base in this area for Ireland to win investments.

IDA Ireland is to promote the International Financial Services Centre as a hub for Islamic funds and banks, which are governed by Sharia law.

These rules do not allow interest to be charged; instead, banks share in the profit and loss of ventures.

Walsh, who has acted as a financial consultant to several large firms in the Gulf region, said there

were opportunities in the sector, although Ireland was late coming to the table.

‘‘It is an area that has grown quite rapidly in the last three years,” said Walsh. ‘‘It is estimated at the moment that Islamic finance is worth around $260 billion so, in the global economy, it is a small part of the market. But this is expected to quadruple in the next five or six years.

‘‘It would have been better had changes to legislation been [made] a year ago or two years ago, but the fact is that we have them now and that obviously is a good thing,” he added.

Walsh said that the changes to Irish legislation paved the way for Islamic banks and funds and sent out a positive message.

‘‘It’s a way of Ireland saying it is serious about the Gulf states and [about] trying to encourage trade and investment,” he said.

passionislam.com

Local investors launched a $100 million tourism project in the Dead Sea, based on Islamic architecture and social values.

The project, dubbed “Al Buhayra”, will have the largest lagoon in the region, according to developers.

The 1,000-suite resort will be developed by Sama Jordan for Investment, Real Estate and Tourism Development and Jordan Agriculture Engineers Association (JAEA).

The joint venture will include 16,000sq.m as swimming pools and areas designated exclusively for women and children in addition to restaurants, cafes and playing grounds, Muhanad Kanaan, marketing manager in Sama Jordan, said.

The hotel suites will surround a 40,000-sq.m lagoon that will provide waterfront and all water-associated activities.

Construction of the first phase of the project, which will include 200 suites, will start next month and be ready to receive guests by beginning of 2012.

According to the investors, the luxury suits will be offered on a timeshare investment basis that is inspired by Islamic rules and teachings.

Families can enjoy the resorts facilities and can also own their shares based on the Islamic concept of “a recognised ownership system by the Jordanian Civil Law and is a common practice across the world.

Irish firms urged to improveknowledge of Islamic finance

Local Investorslaunch first Islamicthemed tourismresort project

Dubai to have securitysurveillance “everywhere”


In the latest US drone aircraft struck a house in Pakistan’s North Waziristan region killing at least 10 people in the region.

The aircraft fired two missiles at a house at Datta Khel area near the Afghan border, killing four people at the scene. Several others were critically injured six of them died later of wounds.

It is the second US strike in the North Waziristan region, the stronghold of Taliban militants, in two days.

A US drone aircraft targeted a compound of suspected militants in Mir Ali, a main town in North Waziristan, and killed at least three people.

The US has intensified drone strikes in North Waziristan in recent months despite outcry against the attacks by international rights groups and Pakistan.

The Amnesty International said

the US use of drones to target insurgents in northwest Pakistan has generated considerable resentment inside Pakistan.

The international body called on the US in a report to clarify its chain of command and rules of engagement for the use of drones and ensure proper accountability for civilian casualties.

Washington has refused to halt drone strikes while considering the use of the technology as effective to eliminate al-Qaeda and Taliban militants.

In August last year Pakistani Taliban chief Baitullah Mehsood was killed along with his wife in South Waziristanj when US drone fired missiles at the house of his father-in- law where he was staying at the time of the strike.

Pakistani leaders insist that drone aircraft kill civilians and that it also badly affect the anti-terror war.

Saudi Arabia denied a British report alleging it has conducted tests to stand down its air defenses to allow Israeli warplanes to use its airspace in any bombing raid on Iran’s nuclear facilities.

Riyadh slammed the news reported by The Times newspaper as “false” and “slanderous,” the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported.

“Saudi Arabia has followed the false and slanderous allegations reported by some British media that it would let Israel attack Iran via its airspace,” SPA quoted a foreign ministry official as saying.

The kingdom “rejects violating its sovereignty or the use of its airspace

or territories by anyone to attack any country,” the unidentified official said, noting that Saudi Arabia does not have diplomatic ties with the Jewish

state.Israel, which regards Iran as its

principal threat, has refused to rule

out using military action to prevent Tehran developing nuclear weapons. Iran says its nuclear program is aimed solely at power generation.

The Times report mentioned that Riyadh, which views Iran as a regional threat, had agreed to allow Israel to use a narrow corridor of its airspace in the north of the country to shorten the distance in the event of any bombing raid on Iran.

The U.N. Security Council slapped a fourth round of military and financial sanctions on Tehran for refusing to abandon its controversial nuclear program.

Iran has refused to heed U.N. demands to suspend uranium enrichment, insisting that it is aimed at peaceful nuclear fuel production. It denies seeking to make atomic weapons, as suspected by the West.

French authorities signed a “framework convention” with Muslim leaders to help log anti-Muslim racism in the country.

The framework convention was signed between Interior Minister Brice Hortefeux and the President of the French Council for the Muslim Faith (CFCM), Mohammad Mussawi, whose organization represents the majority of Frances almost six million Muslims

The agreement will lead to the “implementation of a statistical and operational follow-up on anti-Muslim acts,” the Interior Ministry said

Beyond day-to-day incidents of racism, Muslims have sporadically been the target of more organized attacks here, notably against mosques or social facilities used by the Muslim community

In recent years, there have also been a number of high-profile anti-Muslim actions against graveyards or sections of graveyards reserved for Muslims who fought for France in the two World Wars

These attacks are generally the work of extreme-right, marginal groups, with little support and practically no political platform.

Saudis deny report of test clearing skies to Israel

US drone strike kills civilians in Pakistan

French governmentsigns convention on anti-Muslim racism

Passion Islam I July 2010 WORLD NEWS I 15

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Amid repeated Israeli allegations about the existence of long-range missiles in southern Lebanon, UN peacekeepers in the area say no evidence has been found to prove the claim.

Speaking to Jerusalem Post, Commander General of UN Interim Forces in Lebanon (UNIFIL) Alberto Asarta Cuevas rejected the allegation, saying there was no evidence of long-range missiles in the area.

“We have not found evidence of any new military infrastructure in this area,” he said.

The confirmation comes as earlier last month, the UNIFIL commander reaffirmed that the UN peacekeepers had found no long-rage artillery such as Scud missiles in southern Lebanon.

Cuevas also described the situation in Lebanon as more stable compared to the situation therein before Israel launched its war on the country in 2006.

About 1,200 Lebanese, most of them civilians, were killed in the 2006 conflict, in which Israel suffered a defeat and was forced to withdraw from Lebanon after 33 days without achieving any of its objectives.

Israel, which has violated the Lebanese airspace on numerous

occasions, accuses Syria of supplying Hezbollah with Russian-made Scud missiles.

Meanwhile, Damascus and Beirut along with Hezbollah have dismissed the allegation, saying Israel is using the claim as a pretext to launch another war against Lebanon.

The quest for justice for a Canadian who was mistakenly tagged as a terrorist by U.S. authorities and shipped off to a Syrian prison for close to a year of abuse came to an abrupt halt last month when the U.S. Supreme Court declined to hear his case.

Maher Arar is a Syrian-born Canadian and father who was arrested in 2002 while passing through New York’s John F. Kennedy Airport on his way home to Canada. The Canadian government provided U.S. authorities with bad intelligence suggesting Arar had ties to al-Qaeda. Arar was deported to Syria, where he was held in a cell for 10 and a half months, during which time he claims he was tortured.

The Canadian government investigated Arar’s case, concluded that he was not a terrorist, had no ties to terrorists, and had been unjustly detained and tortured, apologized, and paid him $10.5 million.

The U.S. Supreme Court offered no explanation for its refusal to hear the case. But some court observers have suggested that it was because two justices had previous involvement in the case and would have had to recuse themselves because of perceived conflicts of interest. It was suggested that with only seven justices voting, it would be difficult to reach a fair verdict.

Arar is still considered a terrorist by the U.S. but no court has ever heard his case on the merits. Arar and his family remain on a U.S. watch list, and the United States has never officially apologized or admitted it made a mistake. Officials have said only that the Arar case was not handled well.

Upon his release by Syria – without charges – Arar sued the Justice Department of former President George W. Bush, but his lawsuit was rejected on state secrets grounds by a succession of U.S.

courts. The Bush administration invoked the state secrets privilege routinely.

The Center for Constitutional Rights (CCR), which has represented Arar in the various stages of his case, said in a statement that “the Obama administration could have settled the case, recognizing the wrongs done to Mr. Arar as Canada has done.”

The group added, “Yet the Obama administration chose to come to the defense of Bush administration officials, arguing that even if they conspired to send Maher Arar to torture, they should not be held accountable by the judiciary.”

The final possible legal steps for Arar now lie with Congress or President Obama. Congress could theoretically pass a resolution acknowledging the U.S. error. And President Obama could issue an executive order with the same conclusion.

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No hidden missiles in Lebanon: UN

US High Court derails rendition victim’s lawsuit


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A study released highlighted major educational discrimination of migrant children in Germany.

Unveiling the report of German social welfare agencies at a news conference in Berlin, one of the

authors of the survey, Barbara John pointed to the “structural discrimination” of migrant children in German schools.

She warned that the results of the study were “alarming.” “Our educational system promotes social segregation ...,” said John. It is “deepening social inequalities,” she added.

According to John, every third German student completes high school, compared to every 10th migrant student.

Meanwhile, the high school

dropout rate among migrant children hovers around 15 percent, compared to only six percent among German students.

Some 40 percent of migrant students finish ninth grade, compared to 21 percent of German pupils. Less than three percent of foreign university students in Germany have obtained their high school in Germany.

John stressed that the nation’s school system was “not prepared yet for the challenges of multi-cultural society.”

There are some six million children of migrant origin living in Germany. Every third teenager in Germany has a migrant background.

Hamas has welcomed a proposal by the European Union (EU) to monitor Gaza crossings in a bid to help lift the Israeli-imposed siege on the Palestinian territory.

Hamas “welcomes this proposal in all its aspects,” of EU or international presence at Rafah, Ma’an news agency quoted the Palestinian movement’s senior official Salah al-Bardawil as saying.

Bardawil, however, strongly rejected the idea of Israel policing in the south, stressing that “Israel should not obstruct any convoys or ships coming to the Gaza port.”

Spanish Foreign Minster Miguel Angel Moratinos, whose country currently heads the rotating EU presidency, floated the idea of an

international monitoring force. The proposed plan reportedly

includes the activation of the EU monitoring committee at Rafah and developing similar initiatives at at least three other crossings.

The force would also assist in sea patrols so that the Gaza port could open.

The proposal comes on the heels of a May 31 commando attack by the Israeli navy against a convoy carrying some 10,000 tons of humanitarian aid to the Gaza Strip.

The offensive killed nine people onboard the six-ship Freedom Flotilla which — accompanied by 700 international activists — indented to break Tel Aviv’s blockade on the impoverished residents of Gaza.

The proposal is to be brought forth and discussed in the European bloc, “so that situations like the ones that happened this week will not be repeated,” Moratinos said.

Bardawil said the Palestinian government will study the plan “so a consensus can be reached” on what is acceptable in terms of having international patrols in Gaza waters.

Hamas welcomesEU monitoring force

Study points to major discriminationof migrants in German schools


“Islam and Media in Europe: How to Face Islamophobia?” was on the agenda in a high profile seminar in Lille, France.

Participants recommended establishing channels of dialogue with the intellectual elite, opinion leaders and media professionals in Western countries.

Such dialogue, they insisted, should be initiated by civil society organizations operating in the spheres of information and human rights in the Muslim world, with the ultimate aim of putting an end to the adverse impacts of Islamphobia.

The colloquium, held by the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) and the World Islamic Call Society (WICS), in coordination with the Lille-based Avicenna Institute for Human Sciences, called for setting up an ISESCO Communication Chair for Redressing Stereotypes about Islam. It also called for a more active role of the information and cultural advisors in the Muslim countries’ embassies in Western countries, in such a way as to challenge stereotypes about Islam and Muslims through closer relations with media professionals and journalists.

In the same vein, participants invited businesspeople in the

Muslim world to invest part of their capitals in Western media institutions, in a bid to counterweight the influence of the Zionist lobby and the smear campaigns against Islam and Muslims.

Intellectuals and media practitioners settled in the West were invited to be involved in public life and public debate to dispel misconceptions about Islam and Muslims, and openly respond to provocations aimed at Muslim communities in the West.

Also, participants in the colloquium recommended that Western intellectuals and media professionals be brought to bear in the battle to defy the stereotypical view of Islam, and allow for a deeper sensitivity to Muslim feelings and increased cooperation with Muslim people, through friendship and other associations or leagues.

Also stressed was the need to install religious attach s at Islamic diplomatic missions in the West for a better understanding of Islam, and join up with Islamic centers in the West to hold religious symposia and cultural forums for dialogue with Westerners, with the participation of moderate Muslim personalities.

ISESCO and similar Arab and

Islamic organizations were also called on to pursue concrete action to promote dialogue of cultures, religions and civilizations, by reaching out to civil society and media outlets in the West, and benefiting from Muslim elites living there, in line with the objectives of ISESCO’s strategy in this regard.

They called for establishing an Islamic European Donation Fund to support media programs and public relations activities aimed at redressing misconceptions about Islam and countering Islamophobia.

In the same spirit, they commended ISESCO’s efforts as part of its program to refute media smear campaigns against Islam and Islamic civilization and counter Islamophobia, urging it to seek broader expert assistance from Muslim media leaders in the West in order to achieve the objectives being sought in this regard.

Meanwhile, participants commended WICS’ efforts to disseminate Islamic culture and advertise Islam in African communities, and invited it to step up its cooperation with ISESCO in seeking expert assistance from Muslim media leaders based in the West to refute media smear campaigns against Islamic and Muslims.

Seminar calls for countering Islamophobia through dialogue with Media Leaders

50 Sudanese Christians reverted to Islam in a ceremony attended by the country’s President Omar al-Bashir.

According to IQNA’s ICRO branch, the 50 new converts said the Shahaada(Declaration of Faith: there is no God but Allah and Muhammad (PBUH) is the prophet of God) at the ceremony.

President Omar al-Bashir congratulated the new reverts and wished them blessings of peace and prosperity.

Islam is the largest religion in Sudan where Muslims make up nearly 80 percent of the population.

50 Sudaneseembrace Islam

Passion Islam I July 2010 WORLD NEWS I 19

A German court has rejected a legal bid by a 16-year-old Muslim student to have the right to conduct prayers at his school, reports say.

The court in Berlin ruled against Yunis’ bid to pray, stating that it would upset peace in the school, and abuse students’ rights to the entitlement of a calm and educational

environment, Reuters reported.

The maintenance of an academic school environment takes precedence over the student’s right to religious observance, the appeals court said.

“The Islamic prayer ritual has a demonstrative character and serves as social control,” a Berlin

Senate official said in favor of the ruling.

“This is a good day for the Berlin school,” school director Brigitte Burchardt said after the verdict.

She said the decision would reduce potential conflict that may arise in the school.

Last year the same pupil had initially been given the right to pray

once a day in the same school. This year a higher Berlin court overturned that judgment.

With Germany holding more than four million Muslims, such a ruling imposes a heavy burden on the country’s Islamic prayer conducting community, the Spiegel Online said.

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The first phase of the Makkah Monorail project is expected to be completed before this year’s Haj. This will enable Haj pilgrims to use 35 percent of train service, said President of the Saudi Railway Organization (SRO) Abdul Aziz Al-Hoqail.

This phase will connect the holy sites of Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina. This will reduce the traffic congestion, specially on the day of Arafat, to a large extent.

“While the entire project will be completed before the Haj season next year, the finishing of the first phase would mean that 35 percent of our services will be offered to the pilgrims this year itself,” Hoqail said.

This would mean that more than 50,000 cars and buses that carry pilgrims between Arafat, Muzdalifah and Mina would no longer be required.

Work on the project began two years ago in the southern parts of the holy sites where majority of pilgrims from Saudi Arabia as well as Gulf countries are traditionally accommodated.

This would also mean that pilgrims will have to walk no more than 300 meters to reach any one of the three boarding stations in Arafat.

Muzdalifah will also have three stations. The first station in Mina is close to Muzdalifah, the second in the center and the third close to the fourth floor of the Jamrat Bridge.

The rail is constructed parallel to the pedestrian road so that pilgrim tents in Mina are not disturbed.

The entire train system, including stations, will be elevated and pilgrims will have access to escalators and staircases to reach it.

The rail network will initially link the holy sites to the Haramain Railway and other railway networks, and eventually to the Gulf Railway.

Each of the five lines of the

monorail project will have an hourly capacity to carry 60,000 to 80,000 passengers between Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifah, and later between Mina and Makkah. All trains will have 12 large compartments, each of which will be 23 meters long and three meters wide.

A Chinese company has undertaken the construction of the railway lines and stations employing 5,000 workers who work round clock.

An informed source said the railroad cars and trains’ engines would shortly be shipped from China to the Jeddah Islamic Port.

Arab News

Makkah Metro to serve pilgrims this Haj

Berlin bars Muslimboy from prayers


The International Halal Market Conference (IHMC) 2010 was held in Brunei.

The Conference highlighted the topic entitled, “halal development programmes in Muslim-Minority regions”. The session was conducted by three speakers from Australia, Bosnia Herzegovina and United

Kingdom.The first speaker, the Board

Member of the Australian Government Halal Consultative Committee Australia, Mr Jon Hayes said among things, that guidelines are now provided to all establishments for the halal slaughter of livestock and preparation,

identification, processing, storage, segregation and certification of halal red meat and red meat products for export to all importing countries. The guidelines apply to all export registered establishments that produce, process and on store halal red meat and meat products for export.

The director of agency for halal quality supervision of Bosnia Herzegovina, Mr Amir Sakic talked about ways to unlock the gate of Europe for halal and that the country has a long Islamic tradition and indigenous Muslim population. According to him, Bosnia also has a great number of Muslim specialists and experts in all Halal related fields.

Meanwhile, the Chairman of European Halal Development Agency, EHDA of United Kingdom, Mr Muhammad Nazir said at least 7 to 8 million people in the UK consume halal food and meat and that the number is growing as more opt to buy halal. The size of the Muslim population in Europe is set to grow from 13 percent to between 22 and 37 percent by 2025.

The 5th International HalalMarketing Conference 2010

Passion Islam I July 2010 SPORT I 21

Batsman Usman Khawaja became the first Muslim named in an Australian Test squad as selectors announced a 14-strong party for the two-match series against Pakistan, the country of his birth.

Left-handed Khawaja, 23, admitted feeling “shocked” after being brought in for the July Tests in England, which were moved from Pakistan over security problems including last year`s extremist attack on the Sri Lankan team bus.

“I was a bit shocked, I had a feeling I was close but that could mean absolutely nothing,” he said. “The feeling didn`t really sink in straight away but I`ve told my family and they`re really excited.”

Islamabad-born Khawaja now has the chance to become the first Muslim player to wear Australia`s famed Baggy Green cap as a full Test player, and just months before the much-anticipated Ashes series against England.

Chairman of selectors Andrew Hilditch said Khawaja had earned his place after strong performances for

his domestic side New South Wales, scoring 698 runs including three centuries last season.

“Usman Khawaja has been selected on the back of some very strong Sheffield Shield performances,” Hilditch said.

“He is seen as being capable of batting anywhere in the order in

Test cricket, but importantly for this particular series a top-order batsman who could bat in the top four should the opportunity arise.”

Australia will play two Tests against Pakistan at Lord`s (July 13&17) & Headingley (July 21&25).

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Australia names first Muslim player in Cricket Test squad

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22 I SPECIAL FEATURE Passion Islam I July 2010

Every breath of a human, every moment of his or hers life in all Religious traditions, their teachings, their guidance, their viewpoints, their perspectives is worth more than a priceless gem. These breaths the human being takes in order to survive in life and the moments of life itself are like the pearls of a necklace. Just as a pearl will embellish the appearance of that neck that wears the necklace of pearls, in the same way the life of a individual is enhanced by that person who looks after the moments of his life. No Treasure trove of any Ruler, no Sultanate of any Sultan, no Kingdom of any King, no Rulership of any Queen in tantamount is equal in value to one moment of an individuals life. Life in-fact in numerous places of the Quraan, either directly or indirectly, is described by Allah as a favour on human beings.

In one verse of the Quraan, Allah says, “ How can you disbelieve? Seeing that you were dead and He gave you life. Then He will give you death, then again will bring you to life (on the Day of Resurrection) and then unto Him you will return.” (Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 28)

Out of all the bounties Allah has bestowed upon human beings, the most precious is the gift of life. Each one us should remember that this life Allah has granted us, it is not our

personal possession or our personal property. In-fact it is a trust from Allah, making us merely trustees. Because we are trustees we should utilise each and every moment of our lives in the paths that please Allah.

In one verse of the Quraan Allah informs mankind, “And I (Allah) created not the jinn and mankind except that they should worship Me (Alone)”. (Surah Adh-Dhariyat Verse 56)

From this verse we can learn the reason why Allah created mankind.

How precious is this gift of life, we can learn through the Holy Quraan, Ahadeeth (Traditions and Sayings of Prophet Muhammad (Peace be upon him)) and the Shariah (Islamic Law).

For instance, in one verse of the Quraan, Allah says, “He has forbidden you only the carrion (flesh of dead animals), and blood, and flesh of swine, and that which is slaughtered as a sacrifice for others than Allah (or has been slaughtered for idols, on which Allah’s Name has not been mentioned whilst slaughtering). But if one is forced by necessity without wilful disobedience nor transgressing due limits, then there is no sin on him. Truly, Allah is Oft

Forgiving, Most Merciful.”(Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 173) In the closing stages of this verse Allah talks about one who is forced to consume Haraam (unlawful) items due to the fear of death. Allah

says, then there is no sin in him. For example, one is in severe hunger, such hunger that could lead to ones death, he consumes something that is Haraam (unlawful) e.g. Carrion, on the Day of Judgement he will not be questioned regarding these Haraam (Unlawful) items he consumed in order to save his life. Similarly one is fasting in the Month of Ramadhaan and severe thirst over-takes him, again it is permissible for him to break his fast in order to saves ones life. Even if he broke the fast by consuming Haraam (Unlawful) fluids e.g. Blood, he will not be questioned regarding this. From this verse we can undoubtedly acknowledge how precious and valuable life is in the eyes of The Almighty Allah.

Life in many people’s opinion is a journey. Some even sees it as a pilgrimage. In the Islamic perspective it is a journey far beyond death. It is like a trip around the world. We stop in many different Continents, Countries, Cities, Towns and Villages. Some bring happiness and some give us grief. The white beaches, beautiful rainforests, buildings etc would force a smile on the face of many a person regardless of what grief he is in, but the sight of the poor, war-stricken and weak will give one intense grief. Life is a test from Allah, He tests people in various ways and times. He tests some by blessing them with countless bounties to see if the

Suicide & Islam

Passion Islam I July 2010 SPECIAL FEATURE I 23

continued next month

servant appreciates what he has been blessed with by Allah and he shows gratitude towards Allah for blessing him with these bounties. At times Allah in his infinite wisdom, puts a person in intense grief, to see if the servant turns to Allah and seeks guidance and help. Excellent examples of both situations are found in the life and story of the Prophet of Allah, Ayyub (AS).

Allah granted him many bounties, then he gave him such illness that the people around him could not bear. Prophet Ayyub (AS) turned to Allah for help and Allah in his infinite mercy returned all the past bounties upon him. In some narrations it has been said that Allah gave him more bounties than the amount he had before his illness. In the Quraan Allah has mentioned the call for help of Prophet Ayyub (AS). Allah says: “And (Remember) Ayyub (Job), when he cried to his Lord: “Verily, distress has seized me, and you are the Most Merciful of all those who show mercy”. So We answered his call, and removed the distress that was on him, and We restored his family to him (that he had lost) and the like thereof along with them as a mercy from Ourselves and a reminder for all those who worship Us. (Surah Al-Anbiya Verse 83-84)

In another Surah of the Quraan Allah says regarding Prophet Ayyub (AS): “And remember Our slave Ayyub (Job), when he invoked his Lord (saying):”Verily Satan has touched me with distress (by ruining my health) and torment (by ruining my wealth)! (Allah said to him): “Strike the ground with your foot: This is (a spring of) water to wash in, cool and a (refreshing) drink”. And We gave him back his family, and along with them the like thereof, as a Mercy from Us, and a Reminder for those who understand.”And take in your hand a bundle of thin grass and strike therewith (your wife), and break not your oath. Truly, We found him patient. How excellent a slave! Verily, he was ever oft- returning in repentance (to Us).

Like Prophet Ayyub, each and every one of us is tested by Allah in someway or another. Some turn to Allah and seek help, as in the case of Prophet Ayyub and others turn

completely to the opposite side, which leaves many in grief. These people upon whom many grieve and mourn are the people who have turned to suicide.

Suicide, or self-killing, has been known throughout the whole of recorded history and has been a phenomenon in every culture and social setting. It was noted in the Biblical Times within the Jewish and Christian faiths. It is mentioned in the Bhagavad Gita within the Hindu faith, in classical Greece and Rome, and later throughout the Middle-Ages, when the reaction to the heresy of suicide was severe hostility from the Universal Church, whose later fathers railed against the canonical sin of despair.

Suicide occurs in every culture, not only in the Western developed world, but also in India, China and, despite severe theological prohibitions, in Islam.

Within the Judaeo-Christian tradition, there are eleven instances of suicide described in the Bible’s Old Testament and one in the New Testament. Perhaps the most famous death in the former is the suicide of King Saul following his defeat in the hands of the Philistines, heard in David’s lament, and ‘how are the mighty fallen’. Saul had sought the assistance of his bodyguard to help kill himself. The soldier was horrified at the irreligious notion of killing his appointed King, and turned the sword upon himself. Saul, apparently aided by such an example, then followed suit. It appears that the avert prohibition against suicide was first formerly pronounced by Saint Augustine, who in his City of God describes the action as a ‘moral sin’.

The Church did not always condemn suicide when, for example, following some severe assault, such as rape, the victim took a ‘virtuous’ or honourable way out. She could then claim sympathy and the forgiveness of her society and family, in both Roman and Christian times.

As shown, neither the Judaic nor Christian parts of the Bible are there direct injunctions against suicide. However, this is not the case in the traditions of the true religion, Islam, which continues to be a major influence upon many Islamic people.

There are a few quite specific sanctions expressed in the Quraan

against self-killing. The Prophet Muhammad (SAW) also assigns suicide to the lower levels of Hell. Allah says explicitly in the Quraan, “And do not kill yourselves. Surely, Allah is Most Merciful to you”. (Surah An-Nisa Verse 29) In another verse of the Quraan, Allah says: “And do not throw yourselves in destruction”. (Surah Al-Baqarah Verse 195)

The impact of this injunction still has considerable force in Islamic countries, and it may be one reason why, with the exception of Jordan and Turkey, there is no recorded suicide in national statistics of the Islamic Nations. But, in the last decade or so there has been a substantial increase of suicide in Muslims living in Non-Muslim countries, namely Britain and America.

The current attitude and dilemmas, unlike in previous times, suicide can be discussed relatively easily today, even within the mass media of the late twentieth century. For example, in the worldwide magazine Time there have been three major articles concerning suicide, which while acknowledging dilemmas, were mainly concerned with where firm baselines should be drawn, accepting without question the ‘obvious’ rationality of such actions in many situations. Yet a little more than 100 years ago, Robert Louis Stevenson, in what was considered to be a horrendous book, The Suicide Club, found himself almost at the extreme end of the case of language, because he could not describe in sufficiently villainous terms the leader of this ‘devilish’ club. Constantly, modern poets and novelist have almost celebrated suicide.

The reasons that lead a person to commit suicide are as numerous and complex as the thousands of people who do so every year. Below are a few contributing causes of suicide:

Unipolar affective disorder (Depression) The mental disorder usually called ‘depression’ is now described as ‘unipolar affective disorder’. The term depression is of course problematic, in that a low mood, or sometimes a feeling of emotional glumness, of living ‘out of sorts’ or ‘fed up’, is a frequent experience for many people. In this sense it is ‘normal’ and many

24 I SPECIAL FEATURE Passion Islam I July 2010

Rather “every soul will be (held) in pledge for its deeds”. Man’s life cannot be sound or correct unless they have a path to follow and limits at which to stop.

Look at how they fabricate lies against Allah, and speak about Allah with no guidance: “Then woe to those who write the Book with their own hands and then say, ‘This is from Allah,’ to purchase with it a little price! Woe to them for what their hands have written and woe to them for that they earn thereby” [al-Baqarah 2:79]

Allah has taken from the Christians the pledge that they will follow ‘Eesa and follow that which he brought, but they changed and distorted that; they differed then they turned away. So Allah will punish them with enmity and hatred in this world, and with torment in the Hereafter, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And from those who call themselves Christians, We took their covenant, but they have abandoned a good part of the Message that was sent to them. So We planted amongst them enmity and hatred till the Day of Resurrection (when they discarded Allah’s Book, disobeyed

Allah’s Messengers and His Orders and transgressed beyond bounds in Allah’s disobedience); and Allah will inform them of what they used to do”[al-Maa’idah 5:14]

On the Day of Resurrection, ‘Eesa will stand before the Lord of the Worlds, Who will ask him before the witnesses what he said to the Children of Israel, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“And (remember) when Allah will say (on the Day of Resurrection): ‘O ‘Eesa (Jesus), son of Maryam (Mary)! Did you say unto men: “Worship me and my mother as two gods besides Allah?”’ He will say: ‘Glory be to You! It was not for me to say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, You would surely have known it. You know what is in my inner-self though I do not know what is in Yours; truly, You, only You, are the All-Knower of all that is hidden (and unseen).

Never did I say to them aught except what You (Allah) did command me to say: “Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord.”’ And I was a witness over them while I dwelt amongst them, but when You took me up, You were the Watcher over them; and You are a Witness to all

things. (This is a great admonition and warning to the Christians of the whole world).

If You punish them, they are Your slaves, and if You forgive them, verily, You, only You, are the All Mighty, the All Wise”’ [al-Maa’idah 5:116-118]

Allah has created kindness and mercy among the followers of ‘Eesa and the believers. They are closer in friendship to the followers of Muhammad than anyone else, as Allah says (interpretation of the meaning):

“Verily, you will find the strongest among men in enmity to the believers (Muslims) the Jews and those who are Al-Mushrikoon, and you will find the nearest in love to the believers (Muslims) those who say: ‘We are Christians.’ That is because amongst them are priests and monks, and they are not proud” [al-Maa’idah 5:82]

Eesa ibn Maryam was the last of the Prophets sent to the Children of Israel. Then after him Allah sent Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), from among the descendents of Ismaa’eel, to all of mankind. And he is the last of the Prophets and Messengers.

Eesa (Jesus)Peace be upon him Part 3

Eesa (Jesus)Peace be upon him

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