Mohamed Ali Harrath – Littlejohn leaps on the anti-‘terrorist’ bandwagon

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Richard Littlejohn“For some unfathomable reason, the Government has the notion that if it embraces Muslim extremists they’ll help us win the war on terror. Assorted headbangers are given lavish grants and seats on ‘anti-terrorism’ committees. Ministers have got it into their heads that if we put our arms around them and cross their palms with silver, they won’t blow us up.

“The rest of the world thinks we’re stark, staring bonkers. And not without reason. So it didn’t come as any surprise to learn that a man wanted by Interpol in connection with terrorist offences has been hired as an adviser to Scotland Yard.

“Mohammed Ali Harrath was convicted in Tunisia of numerous criminal and terrorism offences and sentenced in his absence to 56 years in prison. Interpol has him subject to a ‘red notice’ (the highest level of alert) and is urging all countries, including Britain, to arrest and deport him. Yet in addition to advising the Yard on ‘best practice’ in combating terrorism, he also runs his own TV station, which pumps out Islamist propaganda to 1.6 million viewers in this country.”

Richard Littlejohn in the Daily Mail, 16 December 2008

Meanwhile, over at the Times, the appalling Pauline Neville-Jones is calling for Mohamed Ali Harrath to be sacked from his position as an adviser to Scotland Yard and even, it appears, to be deported: “The FCO must be aware that the Tunisian Government, an ally in the fight against terrorism, has asked for the extradition of this man.”

And Mad Mel (“Lunacy at the Yard“) has added her ten cents to the debate:

“It’s all because of this extraordinary belief by the higher echelons of the British security world that Islamist extremism is the antidote to Islamist terrorism – that the Muslim Brotherhood are useful allies against al Qaeda. That utterly false belief derives in turn from the refusal by the establishment to accept that what we are facing is an Islamic jihad, a religious war against the non-Islamic world.”

For a response to the witch-hunt see Islam Channel press release, 16 December 2008

US Right backs Namazie’s ‘One Law for All’ fraud

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“Last year, the UK began backing up Sharia judgments with the full force and authority of British civil courts. Now, a campaign has been launched to end the operation of all religious courts in Britain – especially those operating under Islam. Dubbed ‘One Law for All‘, the campaign commenced not coincidently on December 10, 2008, the 60th anniversary of the UN Declaration of Human Rights. Promoters of the No Sharia Campaign wanted to highlight the contrast between human rights and Sharia law….

“A win for the campaign against Sharia would be a win for human rights, and especially the rights of Muslim women in the UK who might otherwise have no choice but to suffer discrimination at the hands of Islamic jurists. More importantly, it would be a statement to those who hold a radical political ideology cloaked in the name of Islam, that Britain stands for freedom and equality, and will not appease those who seek to subvert it.”

Deborah Weiss at Front Page Magazine, 16 December 2008

Parents ‘would not want a Christian school and far less a Muslim one’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Under the typically scaremongering headline “Learn the Koran: Muslims bid to teach your kids” the Daily Star reports on proposals for an Islamic faith school in Swindon (hat tip: ENGAGE).

The piece concludes with a quote from Keith Porteous Wood, director of the National Secular Society, who says the school would be a “disaster” for the community. He adds: “I have great sympathy for local parents. A lot of them would not want a Christian school and far less a Muslim one” (emphasis added).

Strange isn’t it how secularist Islamophobes like Porteous Wood manage to combine a militant atheist hostility to all religion with an ingrained belief that Islam is significantly worse than Christianity? (Cf. Richard Dawkins)

‘Terrorism adviser to Met is on wanted list’ – another HP-inspired witch-hunt

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Terrorism adviser to Met headlineA man wanted by Interpol for his links to an alleged terrorist organisation has been advising Scotland Yard on countering Muslim extremism, a Times investigation has discovered.

Mohamed Ali Harrath has been the subject of the Interpol red notice since 1992 because of his alleged activities in Tunisia, where he co-founded the Tunisian Islamic Front (FIT).

Tunisia has accused Mr Harrath, the chief executive officer of the Islam Channel in Britain and an adviser to the Scotland Yard Muslim Contact Unit, of seeking help from Osama bin Laden. It says that the FIT wants to establish “an Islamic state by means of armed revolutionary violence”.

Mr Harrath has been convicted in absentia of numerous criminal and terrorism-related offences by Tunisian courts and sentenced to 56 years in prison.

Times, 15 November 2008

As is often the case with anti-Muslim witch-hunts these days, this one originates with Harry’s Place.

Attacker tried to strangle Muslim woman with her own hijab

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Muslim woman was left degraded and ashamed after her hijab was ripped from her head and used to strangle her. Barka Ali-Abdulla told a court she was left afraid for her life and unable to go out after she was attacked by Tanya Squires. Ms Abdulla, a Somali refugee, said she was left so devastated she is thinking of leaving Britain after living here for more than 20 years.

Squires, 21, who is three months pregnant, hurled a stone at her head in an unprovoked attack near Churchill Square, Brighton, in August. When Ms Abdulla, the mother of a young daughter, turned round Squires spat in her face and launched a vicious assault on her, Brighton Magistrates Court was told yesterday. Amanda Burrows, prosecuting, said: “Squires punched her hard in the eye and then pulled off her hijab, a traditional headscarf, which she used to try to strangle Ms Abdulla.”

Squires was given a five month prison sentence suspended for a year and was ordered to pay £200 compensation to her victim. She was also ordered to wear an electronic tag and not go out between 8pm and 6am until February 5.

The Argus, 13 December 2008

Catholic bigot backs secularist bigots

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“The militant atheists of the National Secular Society have launched a campaign against the spread of Sharia in Britain, entitled ‘One Law for All‘.

“Good for them. Britons of all religious and ethnic backgrounds should fight against moves (supported by that nincompoop Rowan Williams) to establish a parallel Muslim legal jurisdiction in this country.

“It’s courageous of the NSS, which represents diehard old Lefties, to pick a fight with ‘community leaders’ who are attempting to force ordinary Muslims into an Islamic ghetto. The Guardian‘s multicultural chatterers (such as the frightful Madeleine Bunting) will be outraged.

“True, the NSS would like to strip all state faith schools of their legal rights – but, you know what? I’d rather see Catholic schools lose their state funding (which I’m not sure does them much good anyway) than allow the Government to franchise out the rule of law to Muslim Arbitration Tribunals, which is what is happening.

“The gutlessness of Christian leaders in allowing radical Muslims to infiltrate public institutions is deeply disheartening. A few Catholics and evangelicals speak out against it; but, for the most part, bishops are too busy engaging in ‘multi-faith dialogue’ or wailing about ‘secularisation’ to notice the radical anti-Christian agenda of Muslim leaders with real influence in local councils, schools, universities, prisons, the police and the health service.”

Damian Thompson at the Daily Telegraph, 11 December 2008

Treating all faiths equally – right-wing Christian bigots are outraged

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Cabinet rift has erupted over plans to give new legal rights to Muslims and other minority religious groups. Deputy Labour leader Harriet Harman has drawn up measures aimed at forcing councils, schools, hospitals and other public bodies to treat members of all faiths equally.

But MPs and Christian campaigners fear the move will lead to a fresh onslaught of politically-correct rulings, such as banning Christmas celebrations and outlawing crucifixes from the workplace. Tory MP Mark Pritchard, a leading campaigner against anti-Christian discrimination, said:

“This will undermine rather than enhance community relations between different religions. Labour untie the Judeo-Christian cords that have held this nation together for centuries at their peril. This is not about equality, it is about shoring up Labour’s declining Muslim vote.”

Simon Calvert, of the Chris­tian Institute, said: “We are worried that this will further squeeze out Christians. Christian groups already find it difficult to get funding from local councils.” He feared town hall bureaucrats could “over-interpret and goldplate” the measures. “It will mean more of the politically-correct measures we have already seen,” he added.

Recent decisions which have caused outrage include the outlawing of hot cross buns in hospitals and an attempt at one town hall to stop councillors eating biscuits during Ramadan.

A Whitehall source confirmed “unease” within the Cabinet over the measures. The source said the move appeared to fly in the face of a recent Government decision to try to take the initiative away from hardliners inside the Muslim community.

He added that it was easy to see how the law could be misapplied by local authorities and other public bodies who were too willing to give in to extremists.

Daily Express, 11 December 2008

Local authorities should deny premises to non-violent organisations like HT

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Police are to tell councils of the local terror threat they face and identify extremists and preachers of hate operating in their midst, the Home Secretary Jacqui Smith has announced.

The new measures were outlined at a conference for police, council leaders and Muslim groups in central London to relaunch the Government’s “Prevent” strategy for targeting the origins of extremism.

Ms Smith also warned council leaders not to give platforms to radical groups even if their views stopped short of directly advocating violence. She said radical groups were careful to “cynically skirt the fringes of laws that rightly defend free speech to promote hate-filled ideologies”.

“They may not explicitly promote violence, but they can create a climate of fear and distrust where violence becomes more likely,” she said.

Groups such as Hizb ut-Tahrir were careful to avoid advocating violent attacks within Britain while spreading extreme views.

Daily Telegraph, 11 December 2008

No doubt all those individuals and organisations who opposed the law against incitement to religious hatred or defended the publication of the Danish cartoons will be vociferous in their denunciations of this attack on the right to free speech.

Violence against Muslims increases in Holland

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Geert WildersViolence against Muslims in the Netherlands rose considerably last year, according to the latest monitor on racism and extremism published by Leiden University and the Anne Frank Foundation on Wednesday.

The number of violent incidents against Muslims rose to 82 in 2007, from 62 in the preceding year. However the total number of racist attacks last year was down to 187, according to the 306-page report.

The Anne Frank Foundation says anti-Muslim sentiment has grown “significantly” in the last year and public opinion about Muslims has become more negative.

The researchers also point to the stream of anti-Muslim comments by the populist PVV party, led by the controversial member of parliament Geert Wilders. This, and the massive attention they are given in the media, has contributed to Islam phobia in the Netherlands, the foundation says.

The fact that the justice department decided not to prosecute those who made these anti-Muslim statements also played a role, say researchers Jaap van Donselaar and Peter Rodrigues.

The researchers also conclude that the PVV can be labelled as an extreme-right group because of, for example, its dislike of “strangers” and the political establishment and its tendency towards authoritarianism. The party also attracts more radical right-wing extremists.

Wilders is furious with the report. “They have gone completely mad. It is an insult to the PVV and our voters,” he told ANP news agency.

The arrival of the PVV has played a major part in changing the extreme-right climate in the country, according to the report. And the willingness of extreme right groups to take action has grown significantly. The number of demonstrations organised by extreme right-wing group is expected to rise to 20 this year from 12 in 2007.

Dutch News, 10 December 2008

See also “Islamophobia on the rise” on the website of the Anne Frank Museum.

It’s also worth noting that Wilders’ ally Ehsan Jami, who has made his own contribution to the rise of Islamophobia in the Netherlands, has just released his film Interview with Mohammed.

Toube’s latest idiocy – now MPAC are jihadists

Posted on by Bob Pitt

There are few individuals in the blogosphere who combine ignorance and malice in quite the same poisonous mixture as David Toube of Harry’s Place. Having recently subjected Global Peace & Unity, Yasir Qadhi, Azad Ali and Salma Yaqoob to his venomous lying attacks, this obnoxious bigot has now turned his attention to the Muslim Public Affairs Committee (“MPACuk comes out for political violence“), whom he accuses of being “a Jihadist organisation”.

Anyone who has had the misfortune to follow Toube’s posts at Harry’s Place will be aware that he randomly applies the label “jihadist” (along with “fascist”) to pretty well any variant of political Islam. In MPAC’s case, his charge is that they posted a comment piece on their website making the point that violent oppression inevitably generates violent resistance.

As one commenter on Toube’s post points out: “I don’t see how explaining what they feel are the causes of political violence is the same thing as approving of political violence.” In another comment Sunny Hundal, no admirer of MPAC, to his credit dissociates himself from Toube’s absurd attack on them – “violent they’re certainly not”.

Toube’s ignorance knows no bounds. Even when there’s a basis for criticism of an organisation or individual his slovenly attitude to the facts leads him to make an idiot of himself. In another recent post, headed “Fascists and Trots debate at Hizb conference” Toube denounced as a Hizb ut-Tahrir front the 13 December conference on “The Global Financial Crash” organised by Global Vision 2000.

The sole basis for this charge is that HT have a speaker at the event. Applying that stupid criterion you might as well assert that Saturday’s conference has been organised by Stephen Schwartz’s neocon Center for Islamic Pluralism, on the basis that Irfan Alawi is listed as a speaker. Global Vision 2000 is in fact the brainchild of one rather cranky individual, who among other eccentricities is a 9/11 truther. In my opinion the left should give the event a wide berth.

But what about the “fascists and Trots” bit? Well, “fascists” is a reference to Holocaust denier Alistair McConnachie, who has been invited to speak at the conference, and the Trots are the Socialist Workers Party – except that there are no SWP speakers on the platform, so the “debate” between them and McConnachie is entirely a product of Toube’s imagination.

As we have remarked in the past about Toube, it’s a measure of the irrational discourse surrounding the subject of Islam and Islamism that this ridiculous little man is actually given a hearing in some circles.