MFS - The Other News

                    Morning Posting.

• Updated !Earthquakes in the last 24 hours in the world seismic activity situation Venezuela 5.0 ; Reunion 5.0 !More info here.

• Europe - Nuclear Event in MultiCountries situation update on Friday, 11 November.Here.

• Japan : For the most accurate info on the nuclear disaster go to : Paul Langley's Nuclear History Blog.Here.

• Was Obama's Harvard education been paid for by Khalid Al-Mansour, an advisor to Saudi prince Al-Walid bin Talah?(Westernjournalism).By Steve Baldwin.Most Americans don’t realize we have elected a president whom we know very little about.Researchers have discovered that Obama’s autobiographical books are little more than PR stunts, as they have little to do with the actual events of his life. The fact is we know less about President Obama than perhaps any other president in American history and much of this is due to actual efforts to hide his record. This should concern all Americans.A nation-wide network of researchers has sprung up to attempt to fill in the blanks, but at every opportunity Obama’s high-priced lawyers have built walls around various records or simply made them disappear. It is estimated that Obama’s legal team has now spent well over $1.4 million dollars blocking access to documents every American should have access to. The question is why would he spend so much money to do this?The president who campaigned for a more “open government” and “full disclosure” will not unseal his medical records, his school records, his birth records or his passport records. He will not release his Harvard records, his Columbia College records, or his Occidental College records—he will not even release his Columbia College thesis. All his legislative records from the Illinois State Senate are missing and he claims his scheduling records during those State Senate years are lost as well. In addition, no one can find his school records for the elite K-12 college prep school, Punahou School, he attended in Hawaii.What is he hiding? Well, for starters, some of these records will shed light on his citizenship and birth.For example, Obama’s application to Punahou School – now mysteriously missing – would likely contain a birth certificate. And, according to attorney Gary Kreep, “his Occidental College records are important as they may show he attended there as a foreign exchange student.” Indeed, Obama used his Indonesian name “Barry Soetoro” while attending Occidental. Kreep has filed lawsuits challenging Obama’s eligibility to be president and as part of his lawsuit he requested Obama’s records from Occidental. However, Obama’s lawyers quickly moved to stop Occidental from honoring this request.Furthermore, now that at least three document authentication experts have declared the scanned “Certificate of Live Birth” Obama’s campaign team gave to a pro-Obama website to be an obvious phony; we know that he is hiding something here as well.Over 49 separate law suits have been filed on the eligibility/birth certificate issue alone, with several of the suits making it all the way the United States Supreme Court, only to be denied a full hearing.What’s more, there are questions about how he paid for his Harvard Law School education since, despite a claim by Michele Obama, no one has produced any evidence that he received student loans. The Obamas will not release any student loan details despite repeated requests from the Chicago Tribune. However, it appears that his Harvard education may have been paid for by a foreign source. Khalid Al-Mansour, an advisor to Saudi prince Al-Walid bin Talah, told Manhattan Borough president, Percy Sutton, that he was raising money for Obama’s Harvard tuition. Incidentally, Prince Tala is the largest donor to CAIR, a Muslim group declared by the U.S. Government in 2007 as an unindicted co-conspirator in a terrorist financing trial. At least three of CAIR’s leaders have been indicted for terrorist activities. Al-Mansour’s admission opens up speculation as to whether Muslim interests have assisted Obama’s career in the hope he would eventually be in a position someday to promote their interests.Read the full story here.

• "Occupy Kristallacht?"Cars set alight, anti-Semitic graffiti sprayed in Brooklyn NY.(JPost).NYC Mayor, ADL condemn use of Nazi imagery, arson in predominately Jewish neighborhood on 73rd anniversary of Kristallnacht.NEW YORK – Anti-Semitic graffiti including swastikas, mentions of the Ku Klux Klan and profanities against Jews were painted on surfaces in a Brooklyn neighborhood early Friday morning, prompting the creation of a special New York Police Department task force.The Anti-Defamation league condemned the “shocking” incident of anti-Semitism on Ocean Parkway in Midwood. Three cars were also set on fire in the spree of graffiti on sidewalks and benches.“We condemn in the strongest possible terms these shocking acts of anti-Semitism,” said Ron Meier, ADL New York Regional Director. “The Nazi imagery and the burning of cars in a predominantly Jewish neighborhood is a chilling echo of a troubling past.”Meier noted that the incident took place on the 73rd anniversary of Kristallnacht in Germany.“It is sickening that decades later, Jews continue to be targeted by hateful crimes and it is necessary to act to bring those responsible to justice,” Meier said.“The fact that this most recent attack came on the heels of the 73rd anniversary of Kristalnacht may or may not be a coincidence,” Bloomberg said. “Either way, this kind of hateful act has no place in the freest city in the freest country in the world.”Hmmmmm..........."CHANGE"?Read the full story here.

• Mideast Diplomat Dennis Ross Leaving Obama's White House.(BigPeace).Dennis Ross, widely seen as one of the few strong pro-Israel advisers in the Obama administration, has announced that he will be stepping down as a presidential adviser.Ross’s departure comes as the Obama administration faces fresh criticism for private remarks last week between President Obama and French President Nicholas Sarkozy expressing hostility towards Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, which were captured on an open microphone. It is not clear whether the controversy is related to Ross’s decision to leave.Ross led efforts to promote the so-called Oslo peace process between Israel and the Palestinian Authority during the Clinton administration. He was brought into the Obama White House from the State Department in 2009, where he had been serving as an expert on Iran.Ross and former Middle East peace envoy George Mitchell were given the task of reviving stalled peace talks. The two had divergent views on how to do so, with Mitchell reportedly favoring a tougher line against Israel and Ross insisting that Palestinian leaders live up to past commitments to fight terror and incitement. Mitchell’s departure earlier this year was thought to be, in part, a protest against Ross.Ross also reportedly advised President Barack Obama not to confront Israel over housing construction in neighborhoods of Jerusalem which the administration–including Secretary of State Hillary Clinton–refers to as “settlements.” He perceived–correctly–that such demands, which reversed previous understandings with the Israeli government and exceeded Palestinian demands at the time, would encourage Palestinian intransigence.Pro-Israel groups, which have become frustrated with the confrontational stance the Obama administration has often adopted towards the Jewish state, saw Ross as a counterweight to Mitchell and to officials such as national security adviser Samantha Power, who is widely viewed as a critic of Israel.Though the Obama administration won praise from pro-Israel groups for opposing a unilateral declaration of Palestinian statehood at the United Nations that would have destroyed the peace process, Ross’s departure suggests that controversy over the Obama administration’s stance towards Israel will continue.Hmmmm.......“A good man brings forth good from the good treasure that is in his heart and the evil man brings out evil from the evil treasure that is in his heart. For the lips speak from the fullness of the heart.” ~ Luke 6:45.Read the full story here.

• New Documents Show Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan’s Comments on Obamacare Legislation While Serving as Solicitor General.(JW).Judicial Watch, the public interest group that investigates and prosecutes government corruption, announced today that it has obtained three new documents that provide additional information about Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan and the Affordable Care Act (also known as Obamacare) while she served as solicitor general. Justice Kagan has said she was not actively involved in the Department of Justice (DOJ) discussions regarding Obamacare. Moreover, the Supreme Court justice did not recuse herself from the High Court decision in April 2011 not to “fast-track” for Supreme Court review Virginia’s lawsuit challenging Obamacare.The following are highlights from the documents obtained by Judicial Watch pursuant to a Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) lawsuit filed on February 24, 2011. (Judicial Watch’s lawsuit has been consolidated with a similar FOIA lawsuit that had been first filed against the DOJ by the Media Research Center.):

1. An October 13, 2009, exchange between Kagan and former Deputy Solicitor General (and current Acting Solicitor General) Neal Katyal. Katyal informs Kagan, “We just got Snowe on health care,” referring to Senator Olympia Snowe (R-ME). (The bulk of the email exchange reflects a discussion about Kagan, and also provides instructions regarding a hiring decision within the agency, although the nature of the position is unclear. When Katyal asks if Kagan wants to handle the hire via email or in person meeting, Kagan responds, “In person. I’ll call a meeting when I return.”)
2. A March 21, 2010, email from Kagan to then-Senior Counselor for Access to Justice Laurence Tribe: “I hear they have the votes Larry!! Simply amazing...” Tribe responds, “So healthcare is basically done! Remarkable.”
3. A March 16, 2010, email from Kagan to David Barron, then-acting head of the Justice Department’s Office of Legal Counsel, asked if he had seen an article by Michael McConnell published in the Wall Street Journal that discussed a strategy by Democrats to “‘deem’ ObamaCare into Law without voting.” “Did you seee [sic] Michael McConnell’s piece in the wsj?” Kagan writes in an email with the subject line “Health care q.” “YES, HE IS GETTING THIS GOING,” replied Barron.

“These new emails are bound to raise additional questions about whether Justice Kagan ought to participate in High Court deliberations on Obamacare. Certainly, if these documents were known at the time of her confirmation, there may have been quite a different Senate debate. The Obama Justice Department dumped these documents just before a holiday weekend, hoping they would go unnoticed. This slow-walking of documents out of the Obama Justice Department is scandalous and makes one wonder what other information they are sitting on,” said Judicial Watch President Tom Fitton.Read the full story here.

• Erdogan's religious acrobatics: historic Nicaea council church back to being a mosque.(AsiaNews).Istanbul - The specter of Aghia Sophia continues to plague the Islamic world of Tayyip Erdogan’s Turkey. Not the most famous symbol of the church of Constantinople, but another church, Aghia Sophia in Nicaea (now Izmit), which predates the Constantinople church, having been built in the fourth century. It passed into history in 787 AD, when it was the last church to host a united Christendom drawn to discuss the iconoclastic question, in a truly ecumenical synod, before the fatal schism of 1024.This Christian church, the Aghia Sophia in Nicaea (Izmit), was transformed into a mosque in 1331 by Orhan Gazi who led the Ottomans and which was later made a museum in 1920, has returned once again to being a mosque.
All that was needed was a directive from the Directorate General for Religious Affairs led by Mehmet Gormez, appointed by Erdogan instead of Ali Bardakoglu, the man behind the visit of Pope Benedict XVI to Turkey, since retired. The move has elicited several considerations in Turkey and abroad in a period in which much importance and emphasis is placed on religious freedom. It is also noted that this decision by the Directorate for Religious Affairs, made in accordance with the Directorate General of Religious Foundations, to which the church of Aghia Sophia in Izmit belongs, is in complete contrast with the decisions of the Ministry of Culture in Ankara, which granted permission for religious celebrations in Christian monuments that have since been transformed into museums. The President of the Republic of Germany, Christian Wulf, in his recent visit to Turkey, made the request for permission for a mass to be celebrated at the Church of St. Paul in Tarsus, a request that was granted by the Turkish authorities . The same Patriarch Bartholomew I, 26 December 2000 celebrated a liturgy in the church of Aghia Sophia in Izmit on the anniversary of the second millennium of the birth of our Lord, as the church of Aghia Sophia in Izmit was counted, according to the Directive of the Ministry of Culture in Ankara, among those Christians monuments turned into museums. Erdogan's decision is puzzling, but also brings to light lurking divisions within Turkish society. In recent times, especially after the 2007 elections, Erdogan's policy has been characterized by an opening towards non-Muslim religious minorities,. Thanks to these re-openings, religious communities have begun to breathe once again. In is enough to mention the recent decree that provides for the restitution of property illegally confiscated in the past, from the religious foundations, and the grant of permission to celebrate religious functions in Christian monuments that have since become museums. The most symbolic outcome was the celebration of the Mass officiated by Ecumenical Patriarch Bartholomew in 2010 in the historic Monastery of Our Lady of Sumela on the Black Sea, the first after 80 years.These initiatives by Erdogan have never been welcomed by his Islamic-nationalist followers, who are not only present in Bahceli’s nationalist MHP party (which achieved about 14% in the last election), but they are also lurking in the ruling AKP party, under the wing of the Vice President Bulent Arinc, perhaps the most prominent politician in the Islamic conformist current within the ruling party. Arinc said during the inauguration the day before yesterday: "With this act we have regained the favor of our ancestors. The church of Aghia Sophia in Izmit is the result of conquest and as such, as it was used then, is right. A church can be transformed into a mosque. Both are places of prayer to God”. Bulent Arinc concluded, "How many mosques have been transformed into our churches?".There have however, been strong negative reactions within the Turkish intellectual world among which that of Professor. Selcuk Mulayim of Marmara University, who said that the church of Aghia Sophia in Izmit has played an important role in Christian history and as such should be considered as with the Hagia Sophia in Constantinople: a museum.Istanbul's comment diplomatic circles mummer that Erdogan, making a symbolic and instrumental use of the name of Aghia Sofia, has tried to satisfy certain sectors of his party, and not only. Consenting to the transformation of the church of Aghia Sophia in Nicaea (Izmit) into a mosque, he has calculated that certain "targeted" concessions will lengthen his stay in power.Hmmmm........"The Minarets are our bayonets, the domes our helmets, the mosques our barracks, and the believers our army." Read the full story here.

• "Like Shooting Fish in a Barrel" only not in Israel!Israel rushes airliner defences as Libya leaks SAMs.(Reuters).Israel has accelerated the installation of anti-missile defences on its airliners, a security official said on Friday, seeing an enhanced risk of attack by militants using looted Libyan arms.Jets flown by El Al (ELAL.TA) and two other Israeli carriers are being equipped with a locally made system known as C-Music that uses a laser to "blind" heat-seeking missiles, the official said, giving a 2013 target for fitting most of the fleet.As a stop-gap, Israel is adapting air force counter-measures for use aboard civilian planes, said the official, who declined to elaborate on the technologies involved, or to be identified."We have long been aware of the threat and were ahead of the rest of the world in preparing for it. Libya has meant government orders to step things up even further," the official said, citing intelligence assessments that chaos during the North African nation's uprising against Muammar Gaddafi allowed trafficking of Libyan shoulder-fired missiles to Palestinians and al Qaeda-linked groups in the Egyptian Sinai.Israel began deploying another system, "Flight Guard", on El Al after al Qaeda tried to shoot down a planeload of Israeli tourists in Kenya in 2002. Flight Guard's use of diversionary flares set off safety concerns abroad and the Israelis turned to C-Music, manufactured by Elbit Systems Ltd. (ESLT.TA).According to the Israeli official, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu's government is covering the $1 million to $1.5 million that it costs to fit C-Music to each plane.The bathtub-sized pods, built into the planes' bodies, increase drag in flight, meaning "a few million (dollars) a year" in extra fuel expenses, the official said, adding that this, too, would be borne by the government.Israel's main international gateway, Ben-Gurion Airport, is 10 km (6 miles) from the occupied West Bank where, along with the Islamist-ruled Gaza Strip, Palestinians want a state.The Israeli official said he had no information indicating the presence of anti-aircraft missiles in the West Bank -- unlike in Gaza, which has seen an influx of smuggled weaponry from Egypt since Israel withdrew settlers and soldiers in 2005.The official said Netanyahu had, in closed-door discussions, described C-Music as a way to help reassure the Israeli public about security should the government one day return occupied land to the Palestinians under a peace agreement.Asked for confirmation, Netanyahu's spokesman, Mark Regev, quoted him as saying that "in any possible peace deal there have to be effective security arrangements that can deal with a range of security threats, including shoulder-fired missiles".Israel also wants to protect traffic to its small airport in the Red Sea resort of Eilat, which abuts Jordan and Egypt, where Islamist militants have operated in the past. Armed infiltrators killed eight Israelis on the Egyptian border on August 18.Hmmmmm........Copter Crash (SAM?) Kills a Leader in Mexico’s Drug Fight?Read the full story here.

• Qatar arrests a five-man (Iran trained)cell that targeted Saudi embassy in Bahrain.(AlArabiya).Bahrain said on Saturday a cell planning to “target” the Interior Ministry building, the Saudi embassy in the kingdom and a causeway linking the island state with neighboring Saudi Arabia had been broken and its members captured.The state news agency BNA quoted an Interior Ministry spokesman as saying that four Bahraini members of the cell were captured by authorities in neighboring Qatar after they entered the Gulf Arab state by land from Saudi Arabia and found them to be in possession of documents and a computer that included details on vital installations.The four members of the cell were detained in Qatar and turned over to Manama, while a fifth Bahraini was arrested inside the country, spokesman General Tareq al-Hasan said.Hasan said the four arrested in Qatar had been traveling by car from Saudi Arabia. Authorities seized “documents and a computer containing information of a security nature (and) details on certain vital sites,” as well as dollars and Iranian riyals.“They then confessed that they had left Bahrain illegally at the instigation of others and gone to Iran” to form an “organization to commit armed terrorist acts in Bahrain,” he added.Sent back to Manama on November 4, they denounced a fifth accomplice, who was subsequently arrested, and the five have been turned over to the judicial authorities.Earlier this year, Bahrain’s Sunni monarchy crushed pro-democracy protests, spearheaded by the majority Shiites, with the help of troops from other Gulf states, such as Saudi Arabia.Read the full story here.

• Fifteen dead in military base explosion west of Iranian capital Tehran.(AlArabiya).Iran Military Arsenal Blast Death Toll Rises to 27.(NYT).An explosion occurred at a military base west of the Iranian capital Tehran on Saturday killing fifteen people an official of the Revolutionary Guards told state TV. The student news agency ISNA quoted Alireza Janeh, head of security issues at the Tehran governor’s office, as saying: “The sound of this blast came from outside Tehran, to the west of the province ... it was in one of the military bases there.”The blast shattered the windows of residential neighborhoods in the western suburbs of Tehran, witnesses told AFP. It was heard in the city center. The incident occurred as troops were moving munitions at the base according to the Revolutionary Guards official who was quoted by Reuters. “The number of martyrs in today’s explosion in one of our ammunition depots stands at 15,” commander Ramezan Sharif was quoted as saying.Hossein Garousi, a lawmaker from the area, said the blast occurred when “a large part of an ammunition depot exploded,” parliament's website reported.Garousi said a crisis committee has been set up to investigate the incident.The arms depot belongs to the elite Revolutionary Guards, according to a statement on their website, which did not give further details.Several other members of the parliament's National Security and Foreign Policy Commission confirmed the report on the blast in Bidgoneh, saying that it took place at an Islamic Revolution Guards Corps (IRGC) base. Read the full story here.

• Canadian tourist in Egypt dies after being shot in chest.(BikyaMasr).Cairo: The Canadian tourist who was shot in the chest on Wednesday died on Friday after being in surgery for hours and having part of his intestine and Pancreas removed.The man, identiied as Jean Francois was shot in the chest while on his way, being accompanied by a friend, to an ancient Egyptian Museum in Sohag, in southern Egypt.Francois was 23-years-old.Men from the tribe of Samatta, who were in constant battle with the al-Ashraf tribe throughout last week, fired at the car where the two Canadian men were riding in on their way to visit the Abydos temple.An Egyptian security source said armed men from the Samatta tribe opened fire directly at the car when the driver refused to stop for them, thinking that men from al-Ashraf tribe were inside.Francois was hit in the chest and the bullet came out of his back.He was transfered immediatly to the a hospital in Luxor, where he passed away after a number of surgeries.Read the full story here.

• Canada - Sharia mortgage bank fails, 200 Canadian Muslim families mortgages are in limbo.(CBC).The financial dispute between an Islamic bank and about 200 families whose mortgages are in limbo, moved to a Toronto courtroom on Thursday.The homeowners had interest-free mortgages with United Muslim Financial totalling about $32 million. Since 2005, UM Financial has offered loans and mortgages to people who want to adhere strictly to Islamic (Shariah) law, under which no interest can be charged on a loan.The court will now decide what to do with those mortgages.UM Financial was ordered into receivership on Oct. 7. "At this time our main focus is to work with all stakeholders to ensure that the legal and moral interests of the families affected by this case are protected," said Afroz Kapadia, spokesperson for the group United Muslim Homeowners.The court-appointed receiver, Grant Thornton Limited, says it is facing challenges getting key documents from Omar Kalair, the head of UM Financial.The receiver claims UM Financial, "purchased $2.1 million of precious metals (silver and gold) in the weeks leading up to the receivership order" and that "proceeds of approximately $2.1 million were paid to UM Financial's Shariah board."The receiver also claims "Omar Kalair has failed to disclose the location of assets."Muhammad Heft — one of the homeowners — sat through the hearing, also convinced UM Financial isn't being upfront."In our community we have to have the highest standard of ethics and Shariah banking is not just a document it's a behaviour, it's a communication, it's an organization of a company and I think this one failed miserably," he said.The lawyer representing Omar Kalair said his client won't be making any statements to the media.Read the full story here.

• U.K. - Poppy-burning group Muslims Against Crusades is banned by Home Secretary as members plan anti-Armistice Day protest.(DailyMail).An extremist Muslim group who burned poppies have been formally banned by the state amid fears they were planning a 'Hell for Heroes' outrage today. Members of Muslims Against Crusades had pledged to interrupt today's Armistice Day two-minute silence with a 'surprise'.In response, Home Secretary Theresa May announced yesterday that MAC would be made a proscribed terrorist group.This means that membership of the group, holding meetings or wearing clothing or 'articles' to show support for the organisation are now criminal offences punishable by up to ten years in jail.Last night police were poised to arrest any activists who ignored the ban, which was evoked under the Terrorism Act 2000.There was an outcry last year when MAC fundamentalists torched poppies on Armistice Day, chanting 'British soldiers burn in hell' while the rest of Britain fell silent to honour the war dead.Members of the organisation have also heckled troops returning from Afghanistan and threatened to hijack the Royal Wedding by burning effigies of Prince William and Kate Middleton.But in the past fortnight officials have become increasingly concerned about the group's activities after a Tory MP was threatened by extremists at a mosque following a chilling message posted on the MAC website. MP Mike Freer had to be locked in his private room for his own safety when a group of up to dozen Muslim extremists stormed a constituency surgery at North Finchley mosque in North London, chanting 'Jewish homosexual pig'.Yesterday the group planned to arrive with placards and interrupt the two-minute silence with a 'surprise'.But yesterday the Home Secretary moved to ward off violence after police warned of possible clashes between the fanatics and the English Defence League and British National Party, who went ahead with a 'Protect the Poppy' overnight vigil outside the Royal Albert Hall last night. Mrs May said she was satisfied the group was 'simply another name for an organisation already proscribed under a number of names' including Al Ghurabaa, The Saved Sect, Al Muhajiroun and Islam4UK.'The organisation was proscribed in 2006 for glorifying terrorism and we are clear it should not be able to continue these activities by simply changing its name,' she added. Yesterday firebrand preacher Anjem Choudary, who acts as the MAC spokesman, said the organisation would be disbanded and the protest cancelled.But he pledged to continue the group under another name, describing Britain as a 'terrorist regime' which is 'worse than the Nazis'.He added: 'The planned Hell for Heroes demonstration has undoubtedly struck a raw nerve in Parliament by exposing the blunt truth behind the poppy.'The poppy, Armistice Day and Remembrance Sunday are the fig leaves behind which war crimes committed by serving British soldiers are covered and justified.'Muslims Against Crusades is the latest incarnation of an organisation originally set up by extremist preacher Omar Bakri Mohammed, who fled the UK six years ago. Julie Siddiqui, of the Islamic Society of Britain, said: 'We understand and share the Government's concerns about this organisation but feel that open debate exposing their shallow ideas is the way forward.Read the full story here.

• Breaking: Arab League suspends Syria over violence.(BikyaMasr).CAIRO: The Arab League, meeting in an emergency session on Saturday over the violence in Syria, has suspended Damascus from the regional body. The move has been welcomed by Arab activists across the region and could signal a change in policy toward the Bashar al-Assad regime.However, according to Arab League officials, the suspension does not go into effect until November 16.The decision came after activists and rights groups have reported over 225 people have been killed by Assad’s secuirity forces in November. At least 40 people were killed on Friday alone, which prompted the emergency meeting.The suspension also comes less than one week after an Arab League initiative was agreed upon by Damascus that aimed to end the violence.Damascus has refused to abide by the terms and has increased its attacks on civilians calling for an end to the Assad government.Activists also again called on the international community to enforce a no-fly zone on the country and intervene in the country, which has seen at least 3,500 people killed in protests since March 15, when the Syrian people began their street demonstrations against the government.Other organizations put the number of dead to over 5,000 people.In recent weeks, the violence has curtailed out of control as protesters have begun to arm themselves in self-defense. Soldiers who have defected from the military, if not shot on the stop as human rights organizations have reported, are engaging in street battles with the government-led forces.NATO, which intervened in Libya to help the popular revolt against Muammar Gaddafi and the subsequent civil war, has said publicly that they have no plans to become involved in a Syrian conflict.Human Rights Watch (HRW) reported this week that the government is employing tactics it described as “crimes against humanity” against civilians, including widespread torture and summary executions.In Lebanon, reports on the ground have stated the Syrian military is placing landmines along the border. Worries are that staunch ally Hezbollah in the country could become involved in a conflict that could see the region spill into a wider conflict.Read the full story here.More : Syria calls Arab League decision to suspend its membership ‘violation of charter’ :  Here.

• Mother, daughter stoned to death in Afghanistan.(BikyaMasr).An Afghani mother and her young daughter were stoned and shot to death on Thursday for “adultery and moral deviation” in the town of Ghazni, in the eastern part of the country. Security officials told the BBC that the armed men carried out the execution while the residents of the town abstained from intervening or calling for help.The armed men reportedly dragged the woman, a widow who lives with her daughter, out of their home and started stoning them; then the two were later shot.Police forces arrested two men over their involvement in the crime and they are believed to be affiliated with the Taliban.The town of Ghazni is supposedly under the control of the Afghani security forces, yet in reality much of the area is believed to be ruled by the Taliban.The Ghazni Province is one of the areas where security will be transferred over to Afghanistan’s security forces by NATO, as part of the withdrawal of forces from the country, by 2014.The militant group that was forced out of power by an international packed invasion, is still in control of many parts of the country and forces its own rules and sentences upon the Afghan people, such as this stoning and murder.Some Afghanis even turn to Taliban courts to solve disagreements, as the national government’s politicians are seen through a doubtful eye for the widespread corruption in the government.In the areas they control, the Taliban bans girls from attending school and enforces gender separation in public events, including weddings. They also collect taxes from residents to maintain their armed control of areas.However, an independent Afghan rights group says violence against women has increased in parts of the country and decreased in others.1,026 cases of violence committed against women were documented by the Afghan Independent Human Rights Commission in the second quarter of the this year, compared to 2,700 cases for the entire previous year.Read the full story here.

• Gay Saudi diplomat fears for life, denied asylum by Obama Administration.(BikyaMasr).An openly gay former Saudi Arabian diplomat was denied asylum by the United States, despite publicly stating that he would “be openly killed” if he were to return to his native Saudi Arabia.According to Ali Ahmed Asseri, who is currently in the US, the Obama administration refused his asylum request because “giving him refuge might upset relations with the kingdom.”Washington and the conservative Gulf Kingdom have close ties and many insiders in DC believe that the move is politically motivated.“There is no reason to think that the US would consider a move that would frustrate or anger a key Middle East ally,” a State Department official, speaking on condition of anonymity, told Bikyamasr.com.For Asseri, his future is uncertain now that his denial of asylum has been made public.Saudi dissident in Washington Ali al-Ahmed said the move by the US was entirely political, and feared for Asseri’s life.“This was a political decision by the Obama administration, who are afraid of upsetting the Saudis,” said Ahmed in an interview with the website Rasheed’s World.“His initial interview with Homeland Security was very positive, but then they came back and grilled him for two days after they found out that he had worked in the public prosecutor’s office in Saudi Arabia. He had been an inspector to make sure that judicial punishments, such as lashings, were carried out within the law—not more, not less. They then accused him of participating in a form of torture,” explained Ahmed.Hmmmm......Obama: “I will stand with the Muslims should the political winds shift in an ugly direction.”...And Obey Sharia law?Read the full story here.

• Controversy in India over Fatwa Against Celebrating Prophet Muhammad's Birthday.(Memri).By: Tufail Ahmad.India's Darul Uloom Deoband, the country's largest Islamic seminary, is caught up in a major controversy after issuing a fatwa (decree) against celebrating birthdays, including the birthday of Islam's Prophet Muhammad. Established in 1866 in the town of Deoband in northern India, about 150 kilometers from New Delhi, the internationally renowned seminary, the second largest in the world after Cairo's Al-Azhar University, adheres to Saudi-backed Wahhabi Islam, opposing any practices that are seen as innovations in Islam. According to an Indian media report, the seminary stated in the fatwa that "Islam does not permit such a practice, which is a tradition of Western countries."The fatwa came in response to a query by a student of the Aligarh Muslim University (AMU) who asked if it was Islamic to celebrate the birthday of AMU founder Sir Syed Ahmed Khan. On November 6, 2011, Maulana Kasim Naumani, the Vice Chancellor of Darul Uloom Deoband, said: "Muslims should not follow the tradition of Western culture of celebrating birthdays as it is against the Shariat law." Nauman also noted that the Darul Uloom Deoband does not celebrate the birth anniversary of Prophet Muhammad. The prophet's birthday is marked across the Islamic world as Eid Milad al-Nabi every year.Darul Uloom Deoband receives numerous queries from Muslims across the world to clarify various issues in Islam. It had ruled earlier also that celebrating the Prophet Muhammad's birthday is against Islam. On May 29, 2011, a Muslim from Brunei sent the following question: "I am an employee in Brunei (an Islami nation). In Brunei the government observes the Rabiul Awwal 12th as a National Holiday and celebrates the birth of the Prophet (sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) grandly and conducts many grand functions (so-called Majlises) on the special day. I'm asking that Brunei being an Islamic nation, is doing all these things correct? Are there place for these type functions in our religion?"In a response to the question, the Darul Uloom Deoband issued a decree, "Fatwa: 889/653/L=1432" – noting: "Celebrating Eid Milad al-Nabi [the birthday of Prophet Muhammad]... on 12th of Rabi al-Awwal is not proved from Sahaba, Tabiyeen, Tabe Tabiyeen and Ayimah Mujtahidin...; hence it is unlawful and innovation to celebrate this day as festival..."The November fatwa against celebrating the birthday of Prophet Muhammad has been criticized widely by various sections of Indian Muslims – an overwhelming majority of whom follows the Barelvi School of Islamic thought and visit the immensely popular shrines of Sufis (Islamic mystics) to mark their birth and death anniversaries. Both the Deobandi and Barelvi schools adhere to Sunni Islam. However, in contrast to the Deobandi School of Islamic thought, the Barelvi followers express an overwhelming, unconditional love for Islam's Prophet Muhammad, whose birthday is celebrated every year across most of the Islamic world by holding seminars, conferences, and public rallies. Mohammed Saeed Noori of the Raza Academy, a religious organization at the forefront of the orthodox Islamic movement in Mumbai, wrote a letter to the editors of Indian newspapers, warning that the Darul Uloom Deoband's fatwa will lead to sectarian clashes among Indian Muslims.His letter, written on behalf of the Raza Academy and published on its website, noted:

"The recent fatwa by Deoband published in a section of media has created a stir and led to a new controversy between the Muslims at large and the Ahle Sunnat in particular. Though the basic ideological difference between the Ahle Sunnah (also known as Barelvis) and the Deoband is based upon the status and respect of the Holy Prophet but it has hardly been brought out in the open [in the past] by the Deoband for fear of backlash from their own community."For more than 100 years, the Ahle Sunnat have been challenging the Deobandis to prove their stand, but either they entirely ignore or otherwise claim innocence about these beliefs being practiced by their peers. Hence it was surprising and shocking for the Ahle Sunnat to read the Deoband fatwa in the newspapers today, which prohibits Muslims from celebrating the Prophet’s birthday.... and making merry or feasting on that day."It is a known fact that the Prophet's birthday has been celebrated since the era of the Holy Prophet and prohibiting such a grand day clearly shows the evil intentions of the school of thought they follow. In fact, according to the Ahle Sunnat a person ceases to be a Muslim if he shows disrespect even for a second, or an ounce, for the Holy Prophet of Islam."Hence, we condemn this fatwa from Deoband and ask the Indian government to stop these kinds of fatwas before they result in sectarian clashes all over the country, as any Muslim will accept anything in his stride but the mere thought of insult to the Holy Prophet cannot be tolerable and acceptable even if it's done by a so-called Muslim or so-called Muslim organization."We warn the Darul Uloom Deoband of serious consequences if it tries to influence its belief on Muslims with political support and state that no one except Deoband would be responsible for any and every reaction on this fatwa."Perhaps the biggest criticism of the Darul Uloom Deoband fatwa came from the All India Ulama and Mashaikh Board (AIUMB), which represents thousands of Barelvi clerics and Sufis (mystics) from across India and is backed by 78 Sufi dargahs (monasteries and shrines). The dargahs are immensely popular and are visited by millions of Muslims and non-Muslims alike every year.According to a media report, AIUMB General Secretary Maulana Syed Ashraf Kichhouchhvi rejected the fatwa, arguing that most Islamic nations celebrate the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad.Kichhouchhvi said: "The birth of the Prophet is the greatest favor of Allah on humanity. So, Muslims celebrate the Prophet's birth anniversary with traditional zeal on the 12th of [the Islamic month of] Rabi-ul-Awwal... Some 'mischievous elements devoid of spiritualism' are trying to impose a foreign ideology on Indian Muslims."The cleric also took the opportunity to throw in a remark about Israel, stating: "Israel and Saudi Arabia are the only countries in the Middle East who do not recognize Mawlid an-Nabi (the Prophet's birthday) as a national holiday."According to another media report, Maulana Syed Ashraf Kichhouchhvi added: "The fatwa is proof that Deoband would like to impose the foreign ideology of Saudi Arabia and Wahhabism on India..."Ateeque Ansari, an Islamic scholar and coordinator of the Committee of Arabic Madrassas in the northern Indian town of Varanasi, argued that the issue of celebrating birthdays is not an Islamic issue.According to a report, Ansari said that Islam is emphatic in differentiating between farz (duty) and haram (forbidden), adding that a Muslim has to essentially observe a farz at all times but avoid anything that is haram, or forbidden in Islam.Ansari argued that the issue of celebrating a birthday is neither farz nor haram and has to do more with culture than religion, adding: "It is definitely not anti-Islamic but it is clear from the life and times of the Prophet that he himself never participated in any birthday celebrations."Arshad Alam, a professor at the Delhi-based Jamia Millia Islamia University, also questioned the Darul Uloom Deoband's monopoly on issues concerning Islam. He stated: "What gives the Darul Uloom Deoband monopoly to define Islam? Various sects, including Barelvis and Ahl-e-Hadees, contest the Deobandi position on Islam."Over the past few years, the Darul Uloom Deoband has attracted national and international attention for regularly issuing a series of fatwas that curb the rights of Muslim women in India and enforce an orthodox version of Islamic teachings. In February 2011, the renowned seminary issued a fatwa declaring that Muslim women cannot preach religion in the country's interior areas as per Islamic tenets. According to a report in the Urdu-language daily Roznama Munsif, the Dar-ul-Ifta, the department of Darul Uloom that issues edicts, said that only Muslim men can preach Islam in interior areas, and added: "It is the duty of men to deliver sermons in such areas under Islamic laws, but the same cannot be said about women."In April 2010, the seminary issued a fatwa banning Muslim women from modeling and acting in movies. The fatwa was issued jointly by prominent clerics Mufti Habibur Rahman, Mufti Mahmood Hasan, Mufti Fakhrul Islam, Mufti Zainul Islam and Mufti Waqar Ali, all from Darul Uloom Deoband, who were of the opinion that exhibiting and exposing a woman’s body and women making gestures and wearing revealing dress before the masses is against the very basic tenets of Islamic Shari'a and therefore haram.In August 2010, the Darul Uloom Deoband issued a fatwa that declared that women cannot become a qazi (Islamic judge) of a voluntarily established tribunal, which are set up in rural areas to resolve small disputes. Shaista Amber, an Islamic feminist and President of the All India Muslim Women Personal Law Board, slammed the seminary for the fatwa, stating: "The harassed women can easily relate to a female qazi and can narrate their tale of distress more conveniently. It is difficult and at times indecent for a woman to discuss everything in detail with a male Muslim qazi."In another such anti-women fatwa, the Darul Uloom Deoband declared that talking to one's fiancé on the phone for no reason is haram (prohibited in Islam), stating: "Talking to one's fiancé on the phone even after the engagement without any reason is prohibited in Islam... Islam does not allow this." In November 2010, the seminary ruled in a fatwa that the word talaq uttered thrice by a Muslim man to his wife on a mobile phone will be considered valid divorce, adding that the unilateral talaq (divorce) will be valid even if the wife is unable to hear it all three times due to the network and other problems. "It is not necessary that talaq take place when the wife hears it or when witnesses are present," the ruling said.The above examples are just a few intended to show the anti-women nature of edicts issued by the Darul Uloom Deoband. Renowned social activist Javed Anand, co-editor of the magazine Communalism Combat, last year accused the Darul Uloom Deoband of launching what he called "gender jihad" against women.Read the full story here.