Spain: 250 call shops, 'Halal' butchers and grocery shops identified, which would finance ISIL and Al Qaeda.

Spain: 250 call shops, 'Halal' butchers and grocery shops identified, which would finance ISIL and Al Qaeda. HT: DreuzeInfo.

Madrid: A Report of the Spanish special services, indicts a network of businesses and businesses owned by members of the Muslim community are financing Daesh and Jabat Al Nusra in Syria.

Indeed, the Spanish special services reported that more than 250 phone shops of Halal Meat and Halal grocery Muslims living properties in Spain, would be involved in financing and Daesh Jabhat Al Nusra in Syria, and through a uncontrollable network of international transfer of funds, named 'Hawala'.

According to a report on the subject, published by the Spanish newspaper El Pais and the Italian news agency Ansamed, the Spanish security services have identified about 300 terminals and 'office' secret network 'Hawala' in the cities of Barcelona, Tarragona, Lleida, Bilbao, Santander, Valencia and Madrid.

This network is used to fund jihadist activities as it would be used by Syrian immigrants, Tunisia, Algeria and Pakistan to send outside of Spain, funds which the vesting conditions are not always blameless.

The sources added that the Spanish intelligence services believe that the network 'Hawala' is also the means by which the 100 Spanish fighters in Syria are young Moroccan origin for most of them, are transferred parts of their payroll to their families.

NETWORK 'HAWALA'

The Hawala system in Spain would be controlled by Pakistani groups established in Catalonia. They would provide as Spanish services, transaction estimated at € 300 million per year, serving 150,000 customers.

In the world, 'Hawala', which was inspired by a native Chinese model, would be responsible for transport to more than $ 200 billion fund, per year, escaping all controls. Hmmmm.....Halal 'Butchers' sticking together. My guess Illegal 'immigrant Jihadist' probably use the same network to integrate in Europe as a fifth column.

Source: http://www.lemag.ma/Espagne-250-teleboutiques-boucheries-et-epiceries-Halal-qui-financeraient-Daech-et-Al-Qaida_a88241.html

Video - Ahrar al-Sham releases video showing their Special Forces training camp “Usood al-Harb"

HT:

Ahrar al-Sham [finally] releases full 19-min video showing their Special Forces training camp “Usood al-Harb": http://t.co/BE9bDSoCIj #Syria

— Charles Lister (@Charles_Lister) October 21, 2014

'State sponsor of Terrorism' Qatar eyeing UN chief position.

'State sponsor of Terrorism' Qatar eyeing UN chief position. (YNews).

Israel might be facing another diplomatic problem soon as Qatar, a harsh critic of Israel and one of Hamas' main sources of funding, is eyeing the role of UN Secretary General, according to a report Sunday in the Telegraph.

Sources in the Persian Gulf told the paper that the young new Emir of Qatar, Sheikh Tamim bin Hamid al-Thani, is trying to promote the nomination of Qatar's former prime minister, Hamad bin Jassim bin Jaber Al Thani, for the role of UN chief Ban Ki-moon, who is ending his term in 2016.

According to the paper, the Emir of Qatar offered Hamad bin Jassim, who served as prime minister under the previous Emir of Qatar and resigned last year, to support his campaign for the United Nation's Secretary General as a form of "political compensation."

The Telegraph noted that Qatar played a central role in the 2006 election of the then-foreign minister of South Korea, Ban Ki-moon.

Qatar may be a small nation of less than 2 million residents, most of them not even citizens, but its vast oil and gas stocks and its exaggerated wealth give it great political and economic influence all over the world. This is how, for example, it was chosen - against all expectations - to host the 2022 World Cup games (according to reports, Qatar did so using bribery) as well as hosting many other conferences and large-scale international events, which add to its prestige.

If Qatar has its way again and the UN Secretary General is a Qatari appointment, Israel's status in the world could suffer further.

Qatar, which Israel accuses of funding Hamas and other terror organizations, is a harsh critic of Israel, even though the two countries have had various degrees of economic ties over the years.

Comments made by the UN Secretary General receive broad coverage throughout the world and if a Qatari is elected to this position, it would be easier for Doha to smear Israel.

The UN's member states are those who elect the Secretary General and Qatar has already proven it could influence those pulling the strings using diplomatic and economic pressure.

Even so, an election of the Qatari sheikh at this moment in time could draw criticism not just from Israel, but from other countries amid reports and suspicions Qatar is aiding other terror organizations in addition to Hamas.

Qatar has extensive ties, among others, with the Nusra Front (an al-Qaeda-linked group operating in Syria), and other Islamist factions fighting to topple Bashar Assad's regime. Hmmmm.....Electing this guy at the head of the UN will only confirm they are truly the "UNITED NUTCASES".

Video - Al-Qaida holds largest, most drone unattended gathering in years.

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Group's 2nd in command is shown announcing his plan to "eliminate" America; CNN reports US must have not been aware of meeting.(Jpost).

A civilian video has surfaced on YouTube illustrating the largest gathering of al-Qaida in years, reported CNN on Tuesday.

The meeting, which reportedly took place in Yemen, shows Nasser al-Wuhayshi a man known to be al-Qaida's second in command, a man who, according to CNN, has previously announced his determination to attack the United States.

According to the international news organization, either the US was not aware of the dangerous meeting, or was not notified with enough time to attack.

"We must eliminate the cross," says the al-Qaida leader in a speech in the video. "The bearer of the cross is America."

US officials believe the professionally produced video is recent, says CNN, and that an attack could be in planning stages.   Hmmm.....NSA IRS FBI CIA and which ever group choose to listen to all our calls, read our emails AND FUCKING MISSED THIS TARGET RICH OPPORTUNITY COMPLETELY.

More here. 

Directive From A.D. 634 Drives Discrimination Against Christians in the Middle East.

Mar Thecla Monastery in Ma'loula (photo: WikiPedia).

Directive From A.D. 634 Drives Discrimination Against Christians in the Middle East. HT: Heritage Daily

Christian's worshipers in parts of the Middle East, especially Syria are experiencing discrimination driven by a directive issued over 1300 years ago.

The minority Christian population are been told by extremist groups to convert to Islam, pay a tribute to the Muslim rulers, or leave the land that they have occupied for millennia. These stark choices stem from a 7th century directive offered to Syria's Christians under the Islamic caliphate that was established after the land was seized from the Byzantium Empire.

This ancient directive has become a major point of discussion by the supporters of Sharia implementation. Currently the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) has made it very clear to its supporters that they want to revive the most stringent clauses of the pact. Al-Nusra Front, a smaller extremist group has taken a more pragmatic approach and want to wait until total victory has been achieved.

On December 2, 2013, al-Nusra Front seized the town of Maaloula for a second time from the Syrian Army. Armed fighters from the group entered the most famous Christian town in Syria. This town has residents which still speak Aramaic, the language of the population of the Holy Land in the 1st Century.
One of their first actions entering the town was to kidnap nuns from the Greek Orthodox monastery of Mar Takla as a way of intimidating the remainder of the Christian population. They also targeted Christian places of worship which resulted in damage being inflicted on several churches.

In contrast, ISIS has adopted a stricter hard-line approach, calling for the immediate wholesale implementation of Sharia restrictions on Christians, including demolishing and destruction on Christian places of worship.

A man who identified himself as a leader in the National Defense Committee, told Heritage Daily, that as the Islamist fighters entered the town, they were heard to call out "God is Great," and, "O Christians: Convert to Islam and you will be safe." According to eye witness, Christians were then told that they had three very simple choices: convert to Islam, pay the jizya (which is a traditional tribute for non-Muslims) or leave the area.

This is a disturbing and stark echo form a dark period of the middle east. On inspection it is very clear that these extremists groups have not only taken the spirit of this 7th century directive but are also using nearly the exact words used by the 7th-century Muslim military leader, Abu Ubaida ibn al-Jarrah, to the people of Syria after the Battle of Ajnadayn: "Islam, tribute, or war."

The Battle of Ajnadayn, fought on July 30, 634, in an unknown location close to Beit Guvrin in present day Israel; it was the first major pitched battle between the Byzantine (Roman) Empire and the army of the Arabic Rashidun Caliphate. The result of the battle was a decisive Muslim victory. The details of this battle are mostly known through Muslim sources, such as 9th century historian Al-Waqidi.
The militants' seizure and subsequent actions at Maaloula caught the attention of Christians around the world, but it was not the only Christian town to be seized by armed Syrian opposition groups.
Since the beginning of the crisis in Syria, slogans were seen in protests, such as "Alawis to the grave, and Christians to Beirut." Before Maaloula, the extremists entered dozens of villages whose residents would flee before the militants arrived, This was the result of them hearing reports of sectarian killings and the targeting of churches. Non-Muslims who stayed behind were soon forced to pay tribute in return for protection as per the original directive.

In Aleppo, parts of which are under the effective control of various extremists groups, Christian business's were required to pay 50% of their profits as a form of levy to be left alone. Churches and monasteries were not safe however and were attacked with explosives.

The term fiqh, which in English could be translated as a form of jurisprudence has been adapted by a few Muslim religious scholars to reconcile Sharia as it existed in the era of the Prophet Muhammad with modern life. However this pragmatic approach has been rejected by the most hard-line extremists groups.

The Sharia councils of the main extremist groups have begun to have a serious debate on how to deal with the "Nazarenes, their word for christians" and whether they can be considered dhimmis, or a non-Muslim citizen of an Islamic state.

The two groups' "Sharia experts," before the recent battles between them, had debated the matter at length, invoking the so-called Omar's pact, which was given to the Christians of Syria in the 7th century. Caliph Omar ibn al-Khattab pledged safety to the Christians of Syria in return for paying a tribute, which they accepted grudgingly.

Omar or Umar, was the founding ruler of the Caliphate and took over as leader of Islam after the prophet died. Under his rule it expanded at an unprecedented rate, ruling the whole Sasanian Empire and more than two thirds of the Byzantine Empire. His attacks against the Sassanid Persian Empire resulted in the conquest of Persia in fewer than two years. It was Umar, according to Jewish records, who set aside the Christian ban on Jews and allowed them into Jerusalem and to worship.

Until these extremists groups can come to some joint understanding, they are currently adopting different approaches to the Christian minority they encounter.

Our source said, "After the text of the pact was invoked, the dispute grew even sharper. ISIS reckoned that the document's text should be implemented to the letter, while the Sharia experts of al-Nusra called for implementing a realistic interpretation, postponing the matter until after Bashar al-Assad is overthrown and victory is at hand."

Historians are in disagreement over Omar's pact, but the sources said that the al-Qaeda affiliated groups have decided to adopt the strictest version the translation we have printed below:

They shall not erect in their city or the suburbs any new monastery, church, cell, or hermitage; they shall not repair any of such buildings that may fall into ruins, or renew those that may be situated in the Muslim quarters of the town; they will not refuse the Muslims entry into their churches either by night or by day; they will receive any Muslim traveler into their houses and give them food and lodging for three nights; they will not harbor any spy in their churches or houses, or conceal any enemy of the Muslims.

They will not teach their children the Quran; they will not make a show of the Christian religion nor invite anyone to embrace it; that they will not prevent any of their kin from embracing Islam, if they so desire. That they will honor the Muslims and rise up in their assemblies when they wish to take their seats; that they will not imitate them in their dress, either in the cap, turban, sandals, or parting of the hair; they will not ride on saddles (cars in our time), or gird on swords; that they will not sell wine; that they will not shave the front of their heads; that they will keep to their own style of dress, wherever we may be; that they will wear girdles round their waists.

That they will not display the cross upon their churches or display their crosses or their sacred books in the streets of the Muslims; that they will not recite their services in a loud voice when a Muslim is present; that they will not take any slaves that have already been in the possession of Muslims [...] and that if they violate any of the conditions of this agreement, then they forfeit their protection and the Muslims are at liberty to treat them as enemies and rebels.

It's becoming a very disturbing development to see that the main extremists groups engaged in this bloody and vicious conflict is fuelling the division and hate, by using history to justify their actions.

Turkey's Role in the Kidnapping April 2013 of the two Syrian Bishops.

Turkey's Role in the Kidnapping April 2013 of the two Syrian Bishops.HT: Aina.

On April 22, 2013 Bishops Yuhanna Ibrahim and Paul Yazici were kidnapped in Syria. During the kidnapping their driver was murdered. A fourth person in the car, Fuad Eliya, was released. 

Bishop Yuhanna Ibrahim is of the Syriac Orthodox Church and was considered the strongest candidate to succeed the current Patriarch. Bishop Paul Yazici is of the Greek Orthodox Church, he is the brother of the current patriarch.

The Bishops left the Turkish border on April 22, heading towards Aleppo. In the silver coloured Kia Sorrento was also Fuad Eliya and Bishop Ibrahim's driver, Fathallah Kabud. Bishop Paul Yazici was on his way home to Aleppo after an overseas trip.

To get home safely to Syria he asked Bishop Ibrahim to pick him up at the Bab El-Hawa border crossing. 20 kilometers from the border crossing the car stopped at a checkpoint controlled by the Free Syrian Army (FSA) and passed without incident. About two kilometers from this checkpoint, at 3:45 PM, the car was stopped by eight heavily armed men.

According to Fuad Eliya, the only survivor of the kidnapping, the perpetrators were not Syrians, but seemed to be people who came from Caucasus. Their clothes were similar to Taliban attire. One of the kidnappers forced the driver out of the car and put himself behind the wheel, another armed man sat in the backseat of the car, and they drove behind the kidnappers' blue truck. The cars changed direction and drove back to Bab El-Hawa. This is where the Bishops were last seen.

The Chaos In Syria And Turkey's Role In The Conflict

Since the war broke out in Syria, Turkey has played an active role in the conflict. The Syrian opposition's headquarters are in Istanbul. The Free Syrian Army runs its operations virtually from refugee camps in Turkey that are placed along the Syrian border. Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Turkey have supported and financed the Syrian opposition, helping with logistics and weapons. But Turkey has played an ever more active role and has successively increased weapons deliveries to the opposition. Even the more radical groups, such as Al-Nusra and many more which are associated with Al-Qaeda, have received weapons from Turkey. The chaos in Syria has attracted jihadist groups from many countries in the region. The 900 kilometer border between Turkey and Syria has becpme a gateway to Syria for jihadist groups.
Russia has supported the regime in the Syrian civil war. Russia's support has evoked reactions from Muslims in the Caucasus region, which have been drawn to the Jihad in Syria. Jihadists from the Caucasus have two reasons to engage in the "holy war" in Syria, to help their Sunni co-religionists and to exact revenge on Russia, which according to the jihadists has been oppressing them in the Caucasus. But these jihadist groups have rarely participated in any real battles, instead they prefer to amuse themselves by plundering and murdering innocent civilians. Often they commit war crimes and crimes against humanity. This propaganda video is one of many examples showing how brutally these terrorists act. Those who watch the video can see that these terrorists are from the Russian Caucasus. The "holy war" -- Jihad -- has united many extremists from Chechnya, Dagestan, Azerbaijan, Turkey, the Balkans and many other Muslim countries. They have been able to move inside Turkey unhindered, along the Syrian border.

It has been generally known that Turkey has helped these extremists with weapon and logistics. But in the last few months Turkey has been caught red-handed several times. Turkish media that slipped past Turkish state censorship reported the following:

• A truck loaded with armour-piercing rockets was stopped outside Adana, close to the Syrian border. It was heading to the rebels in Syria but was stopped at the police check point.
• In early January, 2014 a police roadblock stopped a truck headed to Syria. The police began searching the truck but were stopped by the Turkish secret service, MIT, who escorted the truck to Syria. According to the Turkish ministry of interior, the cargo consisted of clothes, medicine and other emergency care for Turkmens in Syria. But the question is why a load of "emergency care" was being escorted by Turkish secret agents, which report directly to Prime Minister Erdogan. A couple of days later the Turkmens organizations denied that they had received any emergency care from Turkey.

As a result of Turkey's involvement and to the active support for the extremist groups, eleven Syrian civil opposition organizations decided to take Turkey to the court for Human Rights in Europe.

The Caucasus "Holy War" in Syria

The extremist group which consists of many different ethnicities from the Caucasus was founded in 2006 under the name "Caucasus Emirate" during the Chechen war against Russia. This Caucasian mobilization is now also in Syria. The terrorists from the Caucasus excel in their brutality. Abu Omar the Chechen, who founded the Hattab brigade very quickly made a name for himself. Several small groups that came from the Caucasus announced their allegiance to Abu Omar the Chechen. In Syria these groups were called the "Turkish Brothers." The Caucasus Emirate has at various times been allied with the Free Syrian Army and Al Qaeda. Lately the group has joined the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS). Jihadist groups which are terrorising the population of Syria along the Turkish border are well known to Turkey. These jihadists are provided with weapons and communications equipment such as walky-talkies by the Turkish secret service MIT.

One of these jihadist groups is lead by Abu Amer el-Kuwaiti, who controls his operations in the Aleppo area from the Turkish border city of Antakya. Abu Amer el-Kuwaiti is assisted by a person from Dagestan by the name of Magomed Abdurrakhmanov, who uses the code name Abu Banat (in Turkish Ebu Benat). It is this person who is suspected of kidnapping the Bishops. We will return to this shortly.

During the summer of 2013 a video clip appeared on YouTube showing a person brutally cutting off the heads of three men. People in the video, including the killer, speak Russian. You can also hear a Turkish voice that says "sit down, sit down" so that there is a clear view of the slaughter. 

The person who is performing the decapitation in the video is Magomed Abdulrakhmanov, a.k.a. Abu Banat. The brutal slaughter drew the ire of many in many different parts of the world. When these horrible pictures appeared in the media there was speculation about who this man is. Information about Abu Banat's real identity appeared on several Russian websites and forums (here and here). When his identity was disclosed it was learned that he was a police officer in Dagestan who had found his way to Jihad in Syria.

In the beginning of 2013 Abu Banat's group established itself close to the village El-Meshed, which is only five kilometers away from the border crossing at Bab El-Hawa. He married a woman from the village of El-Meshed. Abu Banat wanted to show his authority through brutality. He terrorized the villagers and murdered a villager to set an example. He instituted harsh Sharia laws, such as those who smoke would lose a finger and those who drink alcohol will be punished. News of about Abu Banat's brutality spread. His group engaged in raids and terrorized the surrounding areas.

The group's activities drew attention and rumors started to circulate about a "fantasy camp" with lots of weapons, money, valuables and jihadists who played video games on PlayStations. News of the group's raids and brutality reached the Free Syrian Army, which sent a group of soldiers to investigate. The FSA claims the group never participated in the war against the Syrian regime but devoted itself exclusively to looting. A battle occured between the FSA and Abu Banat's group which resulted in the dissolution of the group.

Abu Banat Is Detained In Istanbul

On April 23, 2013 the police stopped a car outside the city of Konya. In the car they found a Syrian woman and three other persons of Chechen origin. All were missing valid ID documents. The Turkish magazine Radikal reported this event with the headline Orthodox Bishops' murderer arrested in Konya. The magazine also wrote that because these persons did not have valid ID documents they were deported to their home countries.

But that was not so. The police released all of them after they received a residential address in a suburb of Istanbul where the group lives.

With the memory of the brutal decapitation video fresh in his mind, one of the police officers recognized one of the persons in the car. He reported to the police in Istanbul about his suspicions of the group. A local magazine in Konya intercepted the police report and the news spread throughout Turkey. Several magazines wrote that the Bishops' murderer had been arrested in Konya. When the police searched the house at the given address they found weapons and grenades. The group was arrested for violation of the Arms Act and preparation for terrorist attacks. The group has been in police custody since the summer of 2013, in the Maltepe prison in Istanbul.

When the news about the group that was suspected of kidnapping of the Bishops spread, the authorities stated the group had been deported. Why was this stated when in reality the persons where in police custody in Istanbul? The answer was discovered after access to the police investigation report was gained. According to the report, Abu Banat is known to the Turkish secret service MIT, who have supplied him with equipment.

The Turkish Government's Handling of the Events

When the news about the arrest of the suspected murderer of the Bishops spread in Turkey, Bishop Yusuf Cetin of the Syriac Orthodox Church contacted the Turkish government. Secretary of State Ahmet Davutoglu had on several occasions commented on the kidnapping case.

 In a meeting with Syriac Orthodox Church Bishops, Davutoglu said that he had received intelligence reports that the Bishops were still alive and that Turkey is doing everything to save them. Secretary of State Davutoglu had given the impression that they have knowledge of who the kidnappers are. Prime Minister Erdogan also made similar statements when he visited Stockholm and met Assyrian representatives in the beginning of November, 2013. 

As late as last Christmas the former Turkish attorney general Sadullah Ergin said to the Greek Orthodox Church in Hatay the government was working on saving the Bishops. These and many other statements were been given by Turkish officials despite the fact that the Bishops' suspected murderer was in police custody in Istanbul. 

All indications point to the fact that Turkey had a hand in the Bishops' kidnapping and has therefore done everything to hide the truth about the suspected murderer.

On September 29th, 2013 investigative journalist Erkan Metin published a long article on www.suryaniler.com. During his investigation, Mr. Metin discovered that Abu Banat's is Magomed Abdurkhmanov from Dagestan and that he might be in custody. Mr. Metin contacted the police and confirmed that they were holding a person named Magomed Abdurakhmanov -- contrary to press and government reports that he and his group had been deported. Abu Banat's group was in police custody at the Meltepe prison in Istanbul.

Upon further investigation Mr. Metin discovered a link between Abu Banat's group and the kidnapping of the Bishops.

A website (www.kavakazcenter.com) that belongs to the "Caucasus Emirate" featured on July 3, 2013 the headline Russian footsteps in Syria, and claimed that it was the group led by Abu Banat that was behind the kidnapping of the Bishops. The website also stated that Abu Banat is a Russian agent. The website said that according to its sources in Syria, the Bishops had been killed by an explosive belt strapped to their backs (this method is often used by the Taliban in Afghanistan).

But why would Abu Banat, who is a member of the Caucasus Emirate, be disavowed by being identified as a Russian agent?

According to Erkan Metin, the video of the decapitation on YouTube was the breaking point. The Caucasus Emirate wanted to distance itself from a group that had drawn negative attention to itself. This was also confirmed by the Turkish police interrogation of Abu Banat about the decapitation. According to the transcript of the hearing, which was published officially in December 2013, Abu Banat said the following:

It was I who decapitated these three persons. It was the first time I had decapitated a human. But I don't understand why these came up on the Internet. It was something we did every Friday after we sentenced people in the Sharia court. I executed the punishment by decapitation.

When the report of the investigation of Abu Banat's group was released publicly the results of of Erkan Metin's investigation were corroborated -- that the group was responsible for the kidnapping of the Bishops. The following are key findings from the report:

• The police made a superficial hearing and avoided going deeper into the events. No questions were asked about the kidnapping of the Bishops.
• Abu Banat confessed that is was he who decapitated the persons the YouTube video.
• Abu Banat said that he had received walkie-talkies from a person by the name Abu-Cahfer from the Turkish secret service.
• Abu Banat and his companion were injured, probably in the battle with the FSA, and fled from Syria.
• Secret documents which were published during the investigation showed that on April 26th 2013, four days after the kidnapping of the Bishops, the Turkish secret service MIT wrote a report to the state department in Ankara. In this report it described how the Bishops had been taken and moved between different locations before they were finally brought to the village Mashad Ruhin (also called el-Meshad) outside Aleppo. This information tied Abu Banat to the kidnapping of the Bishops. Since his group was using Turkish walkie-talkies, the Turkish secret service MIT monitored the conversations and mapped their activities and movements carefully.
• Abu Banat acknowledged that he had committed both war crimes and crimes against humanity. The ministry of justice refused to file charges on the grounds that this was a Syrian matter.

Questions to Prime Minister Erdogan

Erol Dora, an Assyrian member of the Turkish Parliament, submitted a written question to Prime Minister Erdogan about Turkey's involvement in the kidnapping of the Bishops and the country's relationship to the suspected killer. Erol Dora also asked the justice minister Bekir Bozdag why the ministry refused to try a person who had admitted that he decapitated people in Syria. According to Erol Dora, who is a lawyer, the Turkish constitution says such crimes do not necessarily have to occur in Turkey for the perpetrator to be tried.

Conclusions

Turkey is supporting the Syrian opposition, allowing jihadist to pass through its territory to Syria. Evidence strongly indicates that Turkey knew about the jihadist group lead by Abu Banat, and this group had kidnapped the Bishops. The Turkish secret service, MIT, were in contact with this group and supplied the group with equipment.

The following are interviews with investigative journalist Erkan Metin: Turkish, Assyrian.
Dikran Ego is freelance Journalist living in Sweden; he regularly writes on Assyrian matters and is editor at Assyria TV.

Video - Iraqi National Police (INP) Emergency Response Unit (ERU) engaging al-Qaeda affiliated ISIL

Video - Iraqi National Police (INP) Emergency Response Unit (ERU) engaging al-Qaeda affiliated ISIL, Anbar Province, January 2014.

Obama supported Jihadists Torch Statues, Crosses in Syrian Churches.

Obama supported Jihadists Torch Statues, Crosses in Syrian Churches.(Fars).

Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) fighters entered the Greek Catholic Church of Our Lady of the Annunciation in the Northern city of Raqa and torched the religious furnishings inside, the Syria Observatory for Human Rights said.

They did the same at the Armenian Catholic Church of the Martyrs, and also destroyed a cross atop its clock tower, replacing it with the ISIL flag, the Observatory said, AFP reported.

Additionally, Christians clerics have been kidnapped, and some brutally murdered, by jihadists.

In January, the Middle-East director of Human Rights Watch, Sarah Leah Whitson, said, "The destruction of religious sites is furthering sectarian fears and compounding the tragedies of the country.

"Syria will lose its rich cultural and religious diversity if armed groups do not respect places of worship."

The New York-based group said that "while some opposition leaders have pledged to protect all Syrians, in practice the opposition has failed to properly address the unjustified attacks against minority places of worship."

At the outset of the rebellion against President Bashar al-Assad, rebels welcomed the support of jihadist groups, largely made up of foreign fighters.

But the jihadists, who have reached a position of dominance in specific parts of the country, are increasingly alienating the native population.

On Thursday, an ISIL commander from the United Arab Emirates was killed in fighting with Kurds in the North of Syria, the Observatory said.

A report on Thursday said that Al-Qaeda-linked militants in Syria have destroyed several Jewish mausoleums in the historical town of Tadouf in the Northern city of Aleppo.

Militants reportedly demolished a number of the most ancient Jewish mausoleums in Aleppo in North of Syria.

Foreign-backed militants have so far destroyed many religious sites in Syria since the unrest began in 2011.

Earlier this month, members of the al-Qaeda-affiliated al-Nusra Front attacked the historical Christian village of Maaloula near the capital, Damascus, and destroyed parts of it, before Syrian security forces arrived to repel them.

Three of the seven historical churches in the village were burnt by the anti-Damascus militants.

Maaloula – a mountain village of 2,000 residents, 60km Northeast of Damascus - is a major pilgrimage destination for Christians from around the world.

It’s home to some of the most ancient Orthodox Christian relics and is also one of the very few places in the world where people still speak Aramaic, a biblical-era language that Jesus is believed to have spoken.

In mid-August, The Syrian armed rebels killed tens of civilians and injured dozens more by attacking two Christian-populated villages in Homs countryside.

A group of extremist armed rebels attacked two villages of Al-Hasn and Marmarita mostly populated by Christian citizens, killed more than 15 villagers and injured many more.

The Syrian army, however, repelled the attacks and pushed back the militants who were trying to capture other villages of Homs countryside in Western Syria.

The conflict in Syria started in March 2011, when sporadic pro-reform protests turned into a massive insurgency following the intervention of western and regional states.

The unrest, which took in terrorist groups from across Europe, the Middle-East and North Africa, has transpired as one of the bloodiest conflicts in recent history.

As the foreign-backed insurgency in Syria continues without an end in sight, the US government has boosted its political and military support to Takfiri extremists.

Washington has remained indifferent to warnings by Russia and other world powers about the consequences of arming militant groups.

   

"Support your own Jihadi" - Private donations give edge to Islamists in Syria.

"Support your own Jihadi" - Private donations give edge to Islamists in Syria.(Wapo).

GAZIANTEP, Turkey — The stream of U.S. weapons heading to moderate rebel groups in Syria is being offset by a fresh torrent of cash for Islamist extremists, much of it from small networks of Arab donors who see the Syrian conflict as a step toward a broader Islamist uprising across the region, U.S. and Middle Eastern officials say.

The private donors, who use Twitter and other social media to collect millions of dollars from sympathetic Muslims, are providing crucial backing for Islamist militias that appear to be gaining ground in northern and eastern Syria, even as fighting stalls elsewhere, the officials said.

Dollars raised over the Internet are wired between private banking accounts and hand-delivered by courier, often in border towns like this city of 1.4 million, about 20 miles from the Syrian frontier, according to Middle Eastern intelligence officials who monitor the activity.

Some fundraising pitches ask for specific pledges to cover the cost of a weapon, for example, or to finance an operation. For $2,400, a donor can pay for the travel, training and arming of a single non-Syrian fighter.

Video - Member of 'Toronto 18' muslim terror ring killed in Syria, local mosque calls him a martir, request prayers.

Member of 'Toronto 18' muslim terror ring killed in Syria, local mosque calls him a martir, request prayers.HT: Tundratabloids.

Teargas v stones, bottles: Hundreds of protesters clash with Turkish police near Syrian border.

Teargas v stones, bottles: Hundreds of protesters clash with Turkish police near Syrian border.(RT).Large doses of teargas, paintballs, and water cannon were fired as protesters clashed with police in the Turkish town of Reyhanli near Syrian border. The mass demonstration comes a week after twin car bomb explosions a week ago, which killed 46 people.

The protest began with more than 1,000 participants. Local reports stated that the count could have even stood at over 10,000. However, it quickly fragmented, with the number of attendees dwindling to the hundreds.

Protesters waved red banners, and lobbed stones and bottles at the officers as the intensity of Saturday’s clashes escalated. Riot police made attempts to disperse the crowds, marching in solidarity with the victims of last week’s attacks.

Police prevented the protesters from reaching the center of the town, where the bombs exploded by the city hall and post office. Barriers were broken down, with some detained, and others suffering injuries, according to a local tweet. The clashes calmed down after approximately an hour.

Angered by Turkish authorities’ policy towards Syria, protesters have been calling for Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan and his cabinet to resign as people blame them for the decision to take in Syrian refugees fleeing the conflict in their country, saying it has made Turkey a target for attacks.

Prime Minister Erdogan also came in for criticism for traveling to the United States this week, instead of visiting the town to display support in the wake of its tragedy.

The twin blast provoked mass rallies throughout the country. Thursday also saw protesters in Istanbul with activists attempting to march to Erdogan's office, as they blame the PM for funding and support for the Syrian rebels against President Bashar Assad.

Riot police blocked the road and fired teargas canisters to disperse the crowd as protesters threw stones.

This followed a day of teargas and water cannons in Ankara, where 30 people were arrested and two injured in clashes with police. Turkey had been quick to blame Syria for the deadly attacks, with Ankara warning it would take “all retaliatory measures necessary,” raising the prospect of an escalation in the conflict.

Interior Minister Muammer Guler and other Turkish officials have accused a former Marxist terror group that they claim have links with Syria's intelligence services Al Muhabarat.

Syria dismisses Turkey's accusations, claiming “this is not the behavior of the Syrian government.” "It is Erdogan who should be asked about this act... He and his party bear direct responsibility," Syrian Information Minister Omran al-Zoubi told a news conference on last Sunday. "As an assassin, he should resign."Hmmmm........."It came just in time for Erdogan's US voyage."Read the full story here.

Iranian Scholar Blames Sacrilege of Islamic Sanctities on Muslim Ignorance.....and of course the 'Zionists'.

Iranian Scholar Blames Sacrilege of Islamic Sanctities on Muslim Ignorance.....and of course the 'Zionists'.(Fars).A prominent Iranian scholar strongly condemned the recent desecration of the shrine of a highly revered Shiite figure in Syria by Wahhabi extremists, and said the tragic event took place due to Muslims' negligence.

"Today, if the Wahhabis boldly insult the shrine of the Prophet (Mohammad (PBUH))'s old friend, (it happens because) they have stolen our thoughts long time ago," Chairman of the Scientific Committee of the Islamic World Peace Forum Touba Kermani said in Tehran on Wednesday.

Armed rebels affiliated to the Wahhabi extremists attacked the mausoleum of Hojr ibn Oday, one of the close companions of Prophet Mohammad (PBUH), in the Damascus suburb of Adra last week and exhumed his grave, taking his remains to an unknown location. Yet, the Wahhabi extremist groups continued their desecration of Muslim sanctities and damaged Ja'far al-Tayyar, another close companion of the Prophet and the brother of Shiite Islam's first Imam, and torched his grave in Karak province in Southern Jordan two days later.

"If we continue our negligence, they will embark on exhumation of the holy prophet's shrine and this will not happen but through the enemy front's approach and our negligence as Muslims," she added.

The Nusra Front, affiliated to the Al-Qaeda terrorist organization, has taken up the responsibility for the desecration of Oday's grave.

Hojr was a staunch supporter of the first Shiite Imam Ali (PBUH) and led the army of Muslims to victory in several crucial battles. He and his sons finally fell victim to their loyalty to Imam Ali (PBUH) and were murdered at the order of the Umayyad Caliph Muawiyah in the year 660 CE.

The sacrilege of Islamic sanctities has aroused intense feelings in Muslim lands, specially in Shiite communities.

Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei strongly condemned the recent desecration of the Oday's shrine, and called on all Muslims across the world to continue their protests against the sacrilege of Islamic sanctities.

Addressing a large number of Iranian officials in Tehran on Monday, the Supreme Leader praised the Sunni Muslims' reaction to the Wahhabi extremists' attack on the mausoleum of Hojr ibn Oday in the Damascus suburb of Adra, and said their protest displayed the high level of their vigilance and deep insight.

"Muslims' reaction to this bitter accident and condemnation of this move should continue because if scientific figures, intellectuals and political elites of the Islamic Ummah don't fulfill their duty, conspiracies will not stop at this limit," Ayatollah Khamenei said.

He said that Muslim intellectuals and scholars should prevent any further spread of such plots by means of political methods, religious fatwas (decrees), articles and other peaceful measures.

Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the clear footprints of enemies revealed in such sacrilegious moves, and blamed those who have kept silent on the development, saying, "International organizations and figures as well as those politicians who mourn for the destruction of an ancient artifact, have kept mum about this flagrant insult."

In Yemen, leader of the Houthi Movement Seyed Abdelmalik Al-Houthi in a statement on Saturday condemned the desecration of Hojr's shrine.

"This action which has been done in line with the Zionists' criminal plots seeks to increase religious intolerances," the leader of Yemen's Houthi Movement said.

Al-Houthi described the desecration of Hojr as an immoral and inhumane action.

In Iran, Parliament Speaker Ali Larijani in a message condemned the sacrilege of Islam's religious sanctities.

In his message, the speaker condemned "the Syrian terrorists' new crime of desecrating and exhuming the grave of Hojr ibn Oday".

Larijani called on the UN and UNESCO to take the necessary action to prevent the destruction of Muslims' religious and cultural sites.

Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister for Arab and African Affairs Hossein Amir Abdollahian also strongly condemned the desecration of the shrine of a prominent Shiite figure in Syria by Wahhabi extremists.

Amir Abdollahian said that the perpetrators of such ugly acts are affiliated to the Zionist regime who have conducted similar attempts at holy Muslim sites in the occupied territories

The Iranian deputy foreign minister warned the masterminds of such inhumane acts that they will receive a response that will make them sorry for what they have done.

Also, large groups of Iranian seminary students and teachers staged protest gatherings in Tehran and Qom on Saturday to strongly condemn the Wahhabi extremists' insult to Shiite Islam.

Seminary students and teachers convened at the shrine of Hazrat Abdolazim Hassani in Southern Tehran on Saturday reading a message of the Supreme Leader of the Islamic Revolution, Ayatollah Seyed Ali Khamenei, who condemned the sacrilegious act.
The protesters also chanted slogans against the perpetrators and their Wahhabi supporters. They also issued a statement condemning the so-called Free Syrian Army (FSA) for conducting such shameful acts.

In a similar move in Qom, the seminary students and teachers gathered in the city's Feyzieh seminary school today and condemned desecration of Hojr ibn Oday.

They read the messages of Grand Ayatollahs Golpayegani and Makarem Shirazi who condemned the desecration of Hojr ibn Oday's shrine.

Reports from Iraq also said that similar moves had been done by Shiite seminaries in the holy city of Najaf.

Late last week, Iraqi Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki also condemned the desecration of the grave of Hojr by foreign-backed terrorists.

In a statement issued by his office, Maliki described the attack as a "mean act" that targeted the unity among Muslims. Read the full story here.

Related: Syria - 'Insurgents' Destroyed the shrine of Hajar Bin Adi a companion of the prophet.

Investigator: UN has testimony Obama admin supported Syrian rebels used Sarin gas.

Seems Assad did not cross the 'red line' after all.

Investigator: UN has testimony Obama admin supported Syrian rebels used Sarin gas..(YNet).

The United Nations independent commission of inquiry on Syria has not yet seen evidence of government forces having used chemical weapons, which are banned under international law, said commission member Carla Del Ponte.

"Our investigators have been in neighboring countries interviewing victims, doctors and field hospitals and, according to their report of last week which I have seen, there are strong, concrete suspicions but not yet incontrovertible proof of the use of Sarin gas, from the way the victims were treated," Del Ponte said in an interview with Swiss-Italian television.

"This was use on the part of the opposition, the rebels, not by the government authorities," she added, speaking in Italian.

Del Ponte, a former Swiss attorney-general who also served as prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia, gave no details as to when or where Sarin may have been used.

The Geneva-based inquiry into war crimes and other human rights violations is separate from an investigation of the alleged use of chemical weapons in Syria instigated by UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon, which has since stalled.

President Bashar Assad's government and the rebels accuse each another of carrying out three chemical weapon attacks, one near Aleppo and another near Damascus, both in March, and another in Homs in December.

The civil war began with anti-government protests in March 2011. The conflict has now claimed an estimated 70,000 lives and forced 1.2 million Syrian refugees to flee.

The United States has said it has "varying degrees of confidence" that Sarin has been used by Syria's government on its people. President Barack Obama last year declared that the use or deployment of chemical weapons by Assad would cross a "red line".Read the full story here.More here.

Video - Everything u ever wanted to know about the Pakistan-Afghanistan conflict.

HT: Tarek Fatah.

Russsia sending planes and warships to Syria, may evacuate Russians: official.

Russia sending planes and warships to Syria, may evacuate Russians: official.(AA).

Russia is sending four more warships to the Mediterranean Sea, the defence ministry said on Tuesday, as the crisis in Syria worsens and Moscow takes measures for a possible evacuation of citizens.

The four landing ships will join an escort ship and smaller vessels that are already on duty in the region, the defence ministry said in a statement to Russian news agencies.
A military source quoted by RIA Novosti said their main task could be taking part in a possible evacuation of Russian citizens from Syria.
"Even though the tasks of the warships has not been announced, it can be assumed that given the development of the situation in the region their main job will be taking part in a possible evacuation of Russian citizens from Syria," said the source.
Russia has also sent two planes to the country to pick up Russians wanting to leave as the navy despatched four warships to the Mediterranean reportedly for a possible larger evacuation.
Two emergencies ministry planes carrying humanitarian aid for Syria took off from Moscow for the port city of Latakia and would take any Russians wanting to leave on their flight back, the ministry said.
Observers are watching for any hints of Russia planning a full-scale evacuation of its citizens which would be seen as a tacit admission from Moscow that the regime of President Bashar al-Assad is doomed in its fight against rebels.
The defence ministry said in a statement to Russian news agencies that the ships would be on "military service" but gave no further details.
The Russian emergencies ministry Ilyushin-62 and Ilyushin-76 planes were carrying over 40 tonnes of humanitarian aid and would be ready to evacuate any Russians wanting to leave the country, a ministry statement said.
According to Russian media, 8,000 Russians are registered with the consulate in Syria but there could be as many as 25,000 Russian women who have married Syrians living in the country.Read the full story here.

Video - Allen West Interviews Frank Gaffney on Mali/Africa Conflict – Obama and Bush Policies Faulted.

HT: CounterJihadReport.In a preview of the new PJ Media Next Generation TV show Allen West is joined by Frank Gaffney of the Center for Security Policy and John Phillips to discuss the situation in Mali and Algeria. Gaffney, although a Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense in the Reagan administration, faults both the Bush and Obama administration policies regarding Islamists, Sharia, and the more recent Arab Spring.

Go to Next Generation TV to see the interview