Qur’an burning inquiry continues after case withdrawn

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Police say they are continuing to investigate an incident in which the alleged burning of a Koran was filmed.

Officers are to pursue “further lines of inquiry” following advice from the Crown Prosecution Service before reaching a decision about charges. South Wales Police said this would “take some time to complete”.

Sion Owens, a BNP candidate for the Welsh assembly election who was accused of being filmed burning the Koran, had a case against him withdrawn on Monday.

Police said in a statement on Friday they were “continuing to investigate the incident” and were “consulting with the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) while this work is ongoing”.

“Advice received from the CPS today has identified further lines of inquiry which will be pursued before a decision regarding any charges is reached and these will now take some time to complete,” the statement continued. “We remain grateful for the support of our communities, while the work of investigating these allegations continues.”

Mr Owens, 41, from Bonymaen, Swansea, was charged with a public order offence on Saturday. When he appeared at Swansea Magistrates’ Court, the CPS said it was withdrawing the case against him. It said at the time investigations would continue and that “almost certainly other proceedings will ensue”.

Joanne Shannon, another BNP candidate also arrested in connection with the incident, had already been released on police bail.

BBC News, 15 April 2011

Terry Jones still intent on staging provocation outside Dearborn mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Terry Jones cartoonPastor Terry Jones preaches the Gospel for a living, but the second holiest day in Christianity just slipped his mind.

The Quran-burning provocateur, who is expected to protest in Dearborn next week, said he didn’t realize before he committed to coming here that the protest is planned for Good Friday. “This might be hard to believe,” Jones said, “but honestly we didn’t realize (it was Good Friday) or that Sunday was Easter.”

Oversight now recognized, Jones said he still plans on coming and that he would be traveling with about five associates for the protest, which tentatively is planned for outside the Islamic Center of America. The location, he said, was chosen because of its symbolism as one of the largest mosques in North America.

The protest originally was organized by a Port Huron militia group known as “Order of the Dragon”, but has very much become the Terry Jones-show since he announced his intention to join.

Asked whether he thinks Dearborn’s Muslim community is jihadist or wants to institute Sharia – Islamic law similar to Christianity’s Canon law – Jones said he is uncertain. “I don’t know Dearborn’s Muslims so I can’t say,” said Jones, who acknowledges never having read the Quran. “But when you see what’s happening in Europe in Muslim-dominated countries, it wouldn’t surprise (me).”

Dearborn Press and Guide, 15 April 2011

Cartersville, Georgia: FBI investigating vandalism at mosque

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Cartersville Islamic Center vandalisedMembers of the Muslim community are concerned that their place of worship has been the target of an apparent hate crime for the second time in less than a month.

The Islamic Center of Cartersville was vandalized earlier this week, according to a Bartow County Sheriff’s Department incident report. Deputies were dispatched to 71 Maple Ridge Drive Tuesday morning shortly after Bilal Mahmood reported the damages.

Mahmood told the deputy he was the last person at the center Monday night and everything was intact.
When he returned Tuesday at 6:30, he saw three front glass entrance doors with large holes in them. He also saw one window pane on the front of the building with a large hole. “Bilal allowed me to enter into the building where I retrieved four large rocks that were used to damage the window and doors,” the deputy wrote in the report.

Amjad Tausique worships at the mosque and helped start that location; he said he’s very concerned. “We’ve been working and reaching out in the community for a long time,” he said. Tausique said Muslims have been in the city for close to 40 years. “We are tax-paying, peaceful, law-abiding citizens,” he said. “It’s totally not right for someone to come and destroy the place of worship.”

The center was also vandalized in March, and BCSO investigator Jonathan Rogers said the Federal Bureau of Investigation is handling the case and have leads.

Besides the damages to the door and windows, Tausique said nothing was stolen. During the last vandalism, a stink bomb was thrown into the building, which Tausique said smelled for days. Meanwhile, security cameras were installed and an extra patrol in the area at nights was requested.

Tausique said they just want to be treated like everyone else in the community. “We have families like anyone else, kids in school, jobs and business,” he said. “Just because we are Muslim and we worship one God, doesn’t mean we’re not American.”

Daily Tribune News, 15 April 2011

Update:  See “Vandals target mosque with painted rocks”, WSBTV, 18 April 2011

Allison Pearson supports French niqab ban – now there’s a surprise

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“The burka and the niqab should be banned in Britain. They are a barrier to integration, a statement of hostility to the host country. Poor women who have been brainwashed into hiding their faces are victims, not martyrs. The burka is a not a sign of religion, but of subservience.”

Allison Pearson in the Daily Telegraph, 14 April 2011

Still, at least we’re spared references to Muslim women “wearing nose-bags over their faces” or to Pearson’s sense of “burkha rage” against veiled women who are “taking the mickey out of our country and its tolerant ways”, or her more general complaint that Britain has done “too much” to “accommodate its immigrant groups”.

Update:  The EDL are impressed by the article: “Allison Pearson seems to have started to understand the nature of the 7th century Islam that has taken hold in our towns and cities”.

Further update:  See also ENGAGE, 15 April 2011

EDL to protest against ‘extremist Muslims’ … in Weymouth

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Fears are mounting over a march through Weymouth by the right-wing English Defence League protesting at Islamic extremism.

The newly-formed Weymouth branch of the group organised the march following a TV programme that showed Islamic extremists on the streets of the town. They will be undertaking the protest in Weymouth on Saturday, April 30 at 1pm to protest the “entrapment of the youth of Weymouth by extremist Muslims”. A counter march by opponents of the EDL will take place at the same time.

Continue reading →

Fox Nation promotes Trump’s Islam-bashing

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Continuing its practice of shamelessly promoting and embracing controversial statements by Donald Trump, Fox Nation is hyping an interview Trump gave to Christian Broadcasting Network’s (CBN) David Brody, in which he said that “[t]here’s something” in the Quran “that teaches some very negative vibe” and defended the assertion that there is “a Muslim problem” in the United States.

Fox Nation may not realize it, but Trump’s charge that there is “a Muslim problem” originated with Fox’s own Bill O’Reilly. During an appearance on The View in October 2010, O’Reilly asserted that “Muslims killed us on 9-11” while discussing a proposed Islamic center in New York City. O’Reilly later apologized, saying, “If anyone felt that I was demeaning all Muslims, I apologize,” but pushed back against his critics by repeatedly insisting that “there is a Muslim problem in the world.”

O’Reilly continued to defend his remarks during an interview with Trump, who agreed that a “Muslim problem” exists, saying: “Absolutely. Absolutely. I don’t notice Swedish people knocking down the World Trade Center.”

Media Matters for America, 14 April 2011

Sacked Muslim employees seek damages over alleged racism at Bankers Life office in Missouri

Posted on by Bob Pitt

CLAYTON, Mo. — An office manager at Bankers Life and Casualty subjected two U.S. citizens to racial slurs and fired them because of their Palestinian descent and Muslim religion, the men say.

Ali Badran and Warrad Warrad say their boss, Daniel Colvis, insulted them repeatedly about their race, religion and ethnicity. Colvis is or was the manager of Bankers’ Chesterfield office, according to the complaint in St. Louis County Court. The insults included being called “goat fuckers” and “sand niggers;” being told, “please don’t blow yourselves up;” and being asked, “is Osama Bin Laden your uncle?”, and “did you do a dance on 9-11?” the men say.

Badran and Warrad say Colvis fired them even though they had a better sales history than their Caucasian counterparts. They say Colvis harassed women and African-American employees as well. They seek damages for lost income, suffering and humiliation.

Courthouse News Service, 13 April 2011

Springfield Islamic Center receives threatening letter and finds burned Qur’ans

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Islamic Center of SpringfieldLeaders of the Islamic Center of Springfield say they received a threatening letter targeting Muslims on Sunday and earlier that day found charred remains of three Qurans.

The anonymous letter says that Muslims “stain the earth”, and the author vows “Islam will not survive”. A copy of the letter was provided by the Rev. Mark Struckhoff, executive director for the Council of Churches of the Ozarks. At the end of the five-line typed letter is a drawing of a ram’s head with the slogan “Death to Islam!” printed below it.

“I do not understand. What are they gaining from this?” asked Wafaa Kaf, coordinator of the women’s section at the Islamic Center and one of the center’s leaders who described the charred books. “Have they accomplished anything? Are they happy now?”

This isn’t the first reported crime against the Islamic Center, 2151 E. Division St. On Jan. 8, worshippers were confronted with hate-filled graffiti scrawled across the walls of the building.

“You bash us in Pakistan. We bash you here,” the red spray paint said. Other messages were sexual, including a drawing of a penis near the women’s entrance and a reference to Allah being gay. Two days later, another act of vandalism broke off an exterior water spigot. However, the FBI did not initiate a hate crimes investigation into those incidents.

News-Leader, 14 April 2011

See also CAIR press release, 14 April 2011

Update:  See “Bigotry at Islamic Center is an affront to all”, editorial in News-Leader, 15 April 2011

Bletchley: arson fears over pub mosque plan

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A resident living near a disused pub fears it will be burnt down if it is turned into a mosque.

Winifred Penner, who lives near The Plough Pub in Manor Road, Bletchley, is worried about a possible backlash if plans to transform it into a Muslim place of worship are approved by Milton Keynes Council tomorrow. The 83-year-old, who has lived in Manor Road for more than 60 years, said:

“I’m worried that if anyone’s against it they might do some damage – and we’re right by it. There’s good and bad in everyone, so I can’t say I don’t want the mosque there, but I’ve heard rumours that they’re going to burn it down if it gets given the go-ahead. Just a few weeks ago somebody threw a whole pig’s head on the roof.”

Following reports of repeated vandalism, the police and Milton Keynes Council have even been forced to install CCTV overlooking the former music venue.

Paul Saunders, 63, who also lives in Manor Road, added: “It’s a great concern, the BNP have been there already. Somebody has already got up onto the roof and painted ‘NO’ on it.”

MK News, 13 April 2011