Author Archives: Bob Pitt

Fear keeps Turkey out of the EU

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“When on his recent visit to Turkey President Obama called for Turkish entry into the European Union, he put his finger on a strategic and cultural sore spot. The French president, Nicolas Sarkozy, speaking for the majority position in Europe, was quick to respond: Turkey may one day enjoy a privileged relationship with the EU, but full membership is out of the question. Turkey is not European – geographically or culturally….

“Political parties that call for an increasingly narrow view of Europe are gaining ground. These parties promote a strictly Judeo-Christian perspective of European history, mistrust of Islam, repressive hardline immigration policies and reject a Turkey they claim is overpopulated and excessively Muslim. Europeans have become fearful. Economic crisis has brought with it calls for greater security and for protection of purchasing power, and from ‘foreigners’ and ‘immigrants’, who are seen as threatening financial stability and cultural homogeneity.”

Tariq Ramadan in the Guardian, 7 August 2009

Mosque threat man avoids prison

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Neil MacGregorA Derbyshire man who threatened to blow up Glasgow Central Mosque has been sentenced to three years’ probation.

Neil MacGregor, 36, had also said he would execute a Muslim a day unless all of Scotland’s Mosques were closed. He made the threats after watching an internet video of a British hostage being beheaded in Iraq.

Sheriff Andrew Mackie said he did not believe custody would help to address the root cause of MacGregor’s problem which was his mental health.

At an earlier hearing, MacGregor, from Melbourne, Derbyshire, admitted a racial breach of the peace. He telephoned and e-mailed Strathclyde Police to make the threats from a flat in Glasgow, between 30 January and 15 February 2007. The court heard that the e-mail read:

“I’m a proud racist and National Front member. We as an organisation have decided to deal with the current threat from Muslims in our own British way, like our proud ancestors. Our demands are very small. Close all mosques in Scotland. If our demands aren’t met by next Friday, we’ll kidnap one Muslim and execute him or her on the internet, just like they did to our Ken Bigley.”

MacGregor then followed up the e-mail with a call threatening to blow up Central Mosque.

Muslim leaders criticised the way MacGregor’s case was dealt with by the police and courts. Osama Saeed, of the Scottish-Islamic Foundation, said he believed that if a young Muslim had similarly threatened violence after viewing videos from Iraq, he would have been dealt with completely differently by the police.

BBC News, 7 August 2009

See Scottish Islamic Foundation press release, 7 August 2009

Update:  See also Inayat Bunglawala’s piece at Comment is Free, 8 August 2009

Update 2:  See “Former soldier who issued mosque bomb threat jailed”, BBC News, 6 April 2011

Eastern Eye interviews John Denham

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Phrases that ‘label’ Muslims hurt fight against extremism

By Aditi Khanna

Eastern Eye, 7 August 2009

The government is to undertake a major re-labelling drive to redefine its relationship with Muslim communities.

The reason behind the plan is because phrases like “Preventing Violent Extremism” as part of its anti-terror strategy seem to be alienating the very groups it plans to work with, according to communities secretary John Denham.

The newly-appointed minister for communities and local government is taking a personal interest in matters concerning race equality and cohesion. He said his key focus would be on a clear policy shift away from defining the government’s relationship with Muslims entirely around tackling extremism.

Denham told Eastern Eye: “I am very concerned at the extent to which the relationship between the government and Muslim communities is defined by the issue of international terrorism and extremism.

“Muslims want to engage on a range of wider issues and while we are committed to that, it may not always come across as such. They are communities of high aspirations, and need to feel that we consider issues of social mobility and access to professions as absolutely crucial.

“It has been brought to our attention that some of the labelling around government policy may be working as a disincentive. Some local authorities have already dropped the phrase ‘pre- venting violent extremism’ because they feel it identifies them as part of the problem.

“We want the Muslim community to play a positive role. If labelling is preventing them from participating in our efforts, then it defeats the entire purpose.”

A new, revised guidance around preventing extremism is being drawn up and will be re-launched in the coming months.

The communities and local government department is also working on a document aimed at addressing the rise in “white racist extremism”.

Denham added: “We have had a formal police warning recently about the threat of terror attacks from extremist far-right groups. We are determined to have a consistent approach towards extremism wherever it exists.

“There is not just one type of extremism that raises concerns. The recent European elections say more about voter abstention than support for far-right groups like the BNP.

“But a major push in tackling far-right extremism is high on our agenda. We will make sure unfairness, whether real or perceived, is tackled.”

At least 100 council wards in England will be identified for the scheme. Measures include meetings for residents to express concerns about immigration and ensuring councils are transparent about housing allocation.

The initiative comes after the British National Party won two seats at the European Parliament elections for the first time in June.

The hate preacher who … er, didn’t in fact preach hate

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The Board of Deputies has sent an angry protest to the Home Office about the UK visit of a leading Saudi Arabian cleric who has made numerous antisemitic speeches.

Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais has been on a lecture tour to mosques and shared a platform with Tony Baldry, Tory MP for Banbury, in the town last week.

Vivian Wineman, president of the Board, said: “There is no doubt that the presence of Sheikh Al-Sudais undermines British values of tolerance and respect and we will continue to ensure that the government is aware that the Jewish community sees his presence here as entirely offensive.”

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Blackwater founder implicated in murder

Posted on by Bob Pitt

OLYMPUS DIGITAL CAMERAOver at The Nation Jeremy Scahill reports that former employees of Blackwater, the private military and security company that worked as a contractor for the United States government during the invasion and occupation of Iraq, have made some shocking acusations against its owner Erik Prince, including allegations of involvement in the murder of individuals who were co-operating with federal authorities investigating the company.

Among the charges against Prince is that he “views himself as a Christian crusader tasked with eliminating Muslims and the Islamic faith from the globe”, according to a declaration by one of the witnesses. The declaration continues:

“To that end, Mr. Prince intentionally deployed to Iraq certain men who shared his vision of Christian supremacy, knowing and wanting these men to take every available opportunity to murder Iraqis. Many of these men used call signs based on the Knights of the Templar, the warriors who fought the Crusades.

“Mr. Prince operated his companies in a manner that encouraged and rewarded the destruction of Iraqi life. For example, Mr. Prince’s executives would openly speak about going over to Iraq to ‘lay Hajiis out on cardboard’. Going to Iraq to shoot and kill Iraqis was viewed as a sport or game. Mr. Prince’s employees openly and consistently used racist and derogatory terms for Iraqis and other Arabs, such as ‘ragheads’ or ‘hajiis’.”

Via Lenin’s Tomb

Prepare for the Islamic Antichrist, warns new book

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Islamic AntichristRichard Bartholomew draws our attention to the publication by WorldNetDaily of a new book, The Islamic Antichrist: The Shocking Truth about the Real Nature of the Beast, by one Joel Richardson. It is advertised on the WND site as a “devastating account of the possible connection between the Biblical Antichrist and the Islamic Mahdi”.

WND explains: “The Bible predicts that in the last days a charismatic leader will establish a global following in the name of peace. The Koran also predicts that a man will rise up to lead the nations, pledging to usher in an era of peace. The man in the Koran is called the Mahdi, or Islam’s savior. However, the man in the Bible is the Antichrist. Could it be possible that this is the same person?

“Richardson’s stunning research and analysis suggest that it is. In ‘The Islamic Antichrist’, he exposes Western readers to the traditions of Islam and predicts that the end times may not be that far away. His book will stun readers who are unaware of the similarities between the Antichrist and the ‘Islamic Jesus’.”

Richard Barthlomew also notes a follow-up post at WND in which Joel Richardson suggests that the election of Barack Obama may well foreshadow the arrival of the “Islamic Antichrist”. The article is subtitled: “Massive wealth redistribution will be economic policy of the Beast”!

WND explains: “Richardson says the Book of Daniel reveals the Antichrist will invade the wealthy nation of Israel specifically to plunder and gain control of its commodities and wealth. ‘But what is so interesting is the Bible tells us his reason for seizing this wealth is to give it away to his followers,’ says the author. ‘While slightly more violent than Obama’s tax plan, it is no less populist in its methodology of radical wealth redistribution’.”

Assorted rightwingers who can’t tell the burkha from the niqab condemn police

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A police force has been accused of wasting public money after three officers dressed in burkhas and pretended to be Muslim women for a day. Two sergeants and a community support officer wore either a full burkha or a Muslim dress and headscarf as part of an “In Your Shoes Day”.

But the idea was blasted as a “complete waste of police time and taxpayers’ money”, by Douglas Murray of The Centre For Social Cohesion. “It’s not the duty of police to empathise with particular sections of the community. It is the duty of the police to prevent crime,” said Mr Murray.

The day was branded “an absurd div­ersion from real policing” by Matthew Elliott of The Tax Payers’ Alliance. People want the police out catching criminals, not indulging in politically correct gimmicks,” he added.

The burkha was a “symbol of oppression of women” which police should not enc­ourage, said Sid Cordle, of the Christian Peoples Alliance. “Are they going to go out dressed as prostitutes or the homeless to see how they feel?” he added.

Metro, 4 August 2009

See also the Daily Mail and the Daily Express.