The Islamisation of Europe (part 697)

Posted on by Bob Pitt

“In 1683, a Turkish army reached the suburbs of Vienna. The outcome trembled in the balance until Jan Sobieski of Poland arrived with his army, threw back the Ottomans and finally freed western Europe from the threat of Muslim domination, thus completing the work begun by Charles Martel at Poitiers in 732.

“Or did he? Today, there are plenty of Europeans who would say: ‘Charles Martel, Jan Sobieski, you are needed at this hour.’ There are widespread fears that Muslim immigrants, reinforced by political pressure and, ultimately, by terrorism, will succeed where Islamic armies failed and change irrevocably the character of European civilisation.”

Bruce Anderson in the Independent, 2 June 2008

Ireland: Opposition calls for school ban on hijab

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Muslim girls should not be allowed to wear a headscarf in public schools, the two main opposition parties said last night.

Labour’s Ruairi Quinn said immigrants who come to Ireland need to conform to the culture of this country. “If people want to come into a western society that is Christian and secular, they need to conform to the rules and regulations of that country,” the Labour spokesman on education and science told the Irish Independent.

His comments come amid mounting controversy over guidelines on the wearing of the hijab, commonly worn by Muslim girl in state schools.

His stance on the issue was backed by his Fine Gael counterpart Brian Hayes, who says it makes “absolute sense” that there is one uniform for everyone.

Mr Quinn said immigrants should live by Irish laws and conform to Irish norms. “Nobody is formally asking them to come here. In the interests of integration and assimilation, they should embrace our culture,” he said. He added: “Irish girls don’t wear headscarves. A manifestation of religious beliefs in such a way is unacceptable and draws attention to those involved. I believe in a public school situation they should not wear a headscarf.”

Mr Hayes said Ireland should not be going down the route of multiculturalism.

Last night, a spokesperson for Integration Minister Conor Lenihan said he had no problem with students wearing the hijab. “For those that wear the hijab, it’s an issue of modesty. It’s not so long since Irish women wore headscarves to church, so we have to respect that,” the spokesperson said.

Irish Independent, 2 June 2008

Muslim speakers at Texas school outrage parents

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Friendswood Junior HighFRIENDSWOOD — A presentation to Friendswood junior high students about Islam has ignited a furor among some parents. Parents of Friendswood Junior High School students started a letter campaign to school officials in protest of a presentation meant to combat hate and bullying.

On May 22, two Muslim women gave a 30-minute presentation about Islamic culture as part of a yearlong study at the school of respect, tolerance and culture, according to a statement from district officials.

Principal Robin Lowe had “best intentions”, said Karolyn Gephart, district spokeswoman. The guest speakers discussed Muslim culture, including topics such as food, religion, dress, beliefs and famous Muslims, Gephart said. “If you pulled a book about Islam from the library, you would find the same stuff in the book,” Gephart said. “There was no proselytizing.”

Parents, however, were not told about the presentation. By district policy, parents are supposed to be informed about the purpose and content of presentations so that they can keep their children out of the presentation if they think the material might be offensive or inappropriate. Not informing parents beforehand was a mistake that would not happen again, Gephart said.

Kim Leago, whose son is in the eighth grade at the junior high, said she’s still upset that her child was exposed to the “inappropriate” presentation. Choosing to teach about Islamic culture was the “worst choice” of any religion, Leago said. “I’m not a prejudiced person … but Muslims, from what I know of the faith, don’t want to be incorporated with Americans,” she said. “Look at what’s going on in the world right now, with the war and with 9/11.”

Dr. Ahmed Ahmed, a member of the board of directors for the Galveston Islamic Center, said there’s a common misperception that Muslims are somehow un-American. The few Muslims that have tainted the faith as terrorists have helped spread the myth that Islam is violent and extremist. “Muslims in the U.S. are Americans, not intruders,” he said. “They are not invaders; they are not outsiders. We are all Americans, and we are all working toward a better America.”

Galveston Daily News, 31 May 2008

World Net Daily for its part, in an article entitled “Islam-promoting principal defied order to protect kids”, reports that the two speakers were associated with the Council on American-Islamic Relations, one of the most mainstream of US Muslim organisations. WND quotes a statement by an organisation called the Houston Area Pastor Council:

“The failure of the principal of Friendswood Junior High to respect simple procedures requiring parental notification for such a potentially controversial subject, to not only approve but participate personally in a religious indoctrination session led by representatives of a group with well-known links to terrorist organizations and her cavalier response when confronted, raises serious questions about her fitness to serve in that role.”

Muslim leader’s protest at police ‘spy tactics’

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Osama Saeed (4)Strathclyde police are facing accusations that it operates a covert intelligence monitoring unit which is infringing the rights of Muslims, after the force launched an investigation into claims that a group of Asians on a clay pigeon shoot had behaved “like terrorists”.

Osama Saeed, chief executive of the Scottish Islamic Foundation, has written to Strathclyde’s chief constable, Stephen House, expressing concern at the way Special Branch officers are questioning Asians about their lifestyles, religious and political beliefs and internet activities. He added that the continued use of the tactics would lead to “further marginalisation of Muslims”, and is already leading some to think twice about practising their beliefs for fear that police will disrupt their lives.

His comments came as one solicitor claimed police have also been secretly “recruiting” Muslims to provide information about their community in return for payments.

The 10-strong shooting party were questioned informally at their homes and businesses by two policemen a year after their November 2006 trip to Kypeside Farm, an activity centre near Lesmahagow in Lanarkshire. The officers, believed to be from Special Branch, were reacting to a tip-off from a member of the public who claimed the group had been overheard discussing “shooting AK-47 rifles in Pakistan”.

The 29-year-old trip organiser, who declined to be identified, said: “They wanted the names of my family and friends and my thoughts on Afghanistan, Iraq and what I would do if I encountered an extremist at my mosque. I replied that I didn’t think I would go to them because they were so ignorant, but would speak to the imam.

“I had my solicitor present, who told me that it was no coincidence several men were standing trial for involvement in a terror camp in the Lake District. It hadn’t even crossed my mind what we did could be seen as terrorist activity and I found it very sinister.”

Sunday Herald, 1 June 2008

More anti-Muslim scaremongering from the Express

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Now Muslim clerics to teach our childrenMoves to allow Muslim clerics into classrooms to address pupils were condemned yesterday. The latest scheme put forward by Schools Secretary Ed Balls was greeted with derision. Critics branded the proposals by the under-fire minister unworkable and unnecessary.

The package of measures, to be published next week, will set out a proposal to invite British-born imams into schools to speak about growing violent extremism among young people.

Under the plans, the imams would teach citizenship so that pupils learn about the Koran and Islam in the context of a multicultural society. But last night the scheme was described as yet another worthless Government gimmick. Opponents said the plans would simply provide another opportunity to deliver “faith-based citizenship lessons” on Islam.

The National Union of Teachers caused an outcry in March by suggesting that Muslim clerics and other religious leaders should be sent into every school as an alternative to having specific faith schools. Head teachers and other critics warned that this could allow extremists to target pupils. Now the proposals by Mr Balls appear to take the move a step further.

Daily Express, 31 May 2008

Stop the War Coalition public meetings

Posted on by Bob Pitt

DEFENDING THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY

Stop the War has organised a series of rallies to defend the Muslim community, starting next week. If one of these rallies is being held in your area, please attend and publicise as widely as you can.
PUBLIC MEETINGS:  RACISM, THE WAR ON TERROR AND THE MUSLIM COMMUNITY

* LONDON Tuesday June 3, 7PM. Speakers: Moazam Begg, George Galloway, Anas Al-Tikriti, Chris Nineham, Louise Christian, David Edgar. Bishopsgate Institute, 230 Bishopsgate, London EC2M. Nearest tube, Liverpool Street.

* BIRMINGHAM: Wednesday June 4, 7PM. Speakers: Terry Eagleton, Anas Al-Tikriti, Salma Yaqoob, Andrew Murray. Bordesely Centre, Stratford Road, Camp Hill Roundabout.

* MANCHESTER: Thursday June 5. Speakers: Moazzam Begg, David Edgar, Nahella Asraf. Friends Meeting House.

* BLACKBURN: Wednesday June 11, 7PM. Speakers: Alice Mahon, Anas Al-Tikriti, Chris Nineham. Blackburn Central Library, Hornby Lecture Theatre.

* LEEDS: Thursday June 12, 7PM. Speakers: Alice Mahon, Anas Al-Tikriti, Chris Nineham. Leeds Islamic Centre, Spencer Place, Chapeltown, LS7.

* GLASGOW AND EDINBURGH: Details not yet available. See http://www.stopwar.org.uk for updates.

Computer image shows Washington DC devastated by al-Qa’eda nuclear attack

Posted on by Bob Pitt

Nuclear Jihad“Stills from a video entitled Nuclear Jihad: The Ultimate Terror, were posted on al-Ekhlass and al-Hesbah, two password-protected websites believed to be affiliated with al-Qa’eda.

“The images were created to facilitate discussions of the feasibility of nuclear strikes on the US or Britain, according to the SITE Intelligence Group, which released the images.”

Daily Telegraph, 30 May 2008

Except that the images were in fact lifted from a computer game called Fallout 3.

A reply to the Church of England Newspaper

Posted on by Bob Pitt

The following letter was published in the Church of England Newspaper, 30 May 2008:

Sir, In a time of fear and polarisation, Christians must avoid both the political right’s shrill paranoia and the liberal left’s naive secular arrogance.

Sadly, your leader (“Religious trends and our religious future“, May 23) falls into the former trap, with predictions of the UK as “an Islamic nation” and talk of concessions to Muslim “demands”.

Ironically, the supporting anecdotes, seemingly culled from the front pages of the Mail and Express, undermine the overall claim of a Muslim “advance”. The hospital bed story you cite, for example, was slammed as “entirely inaccurate” by the hospital in question.

We would not accept the same deluge of sensationalistic smears, generalisations and hate speech about any other race or religion. There is a humble yet honest conversation to be had between Christians and Muslims in Britain, but comments like these do not help.

Ben White

Muslim TV crew stopped under terror law

Posted on by Bob Pitt

A Muslim TV producer has accused the police of constantly targeting her crew and stopping them from filming in the streets of London. The crew from an international Muslim network, which included three hijab wearing members, were filming in Notting Hill, west London, in March when they said they were stopped and quizzed. Producer Anousheh Demartino, who was stopped on three previous occasions, told The Muslim News:

“They asked us for our ID and why we were filming. After we told them we were allowed to continue. 20 minutes later we were stopped again. This time we were asked for our residential address; they only asked me, the two other hijab wearing women and not [our] young cameraman. I protested at first and asked why they needed my home address when it was a professional not a personal matter, but he insisted and, not wanting to prolong the incident, I gave him the details.” Anousheh says she was given no legal reasons as to why they were stopped filming; however, she did say the officer made a reference to terrorist activity.

Speaking of her “frustrating” experience as a Muslim journalist she said, “I was stopped before with another crew and given report slips once on High Street Kensington in February and once on Victoria Road. We have to carry those slips with us all the time. I don’t know why we constantly get stopped, is it because we are not a large mainstream media [outlet], or is it because I wear the hijab?”

The incident came a month before a Muslim BBC journalist was held to the ground by police officers after his radio equipment was mistaken for an explosive device.

Muslim News, 30 May 2008