Jimmy's Corner

As talks on freedom of speech and expression continue on whether more responsibility is needed while using this responsibility-more-than-a-right freedom in reaction to Muslim peoples' anger over the Danish cartoon controversy, a new sense of freedom seems to be imposing itself. It is the freedom to polish biographies:

Online reference site Wikipedia blames US Congress staff for partisan changes to a number of political biographies.

Computers traced to Capitol Hill removed unpalatable facts from articles on senators, while other entries were "vandalised", the site said.

An inquiry was launched after staff for Democratic representative Marty Meehan admitted polishing his biography.

Well, Marty Meehan was not alone:

Using the public history of edits on Wikipedia, researchers collected the internet protocol numbers of computers linked to the US Senate and tracked the changes made to online pages.

The site lists half a dozen prominent biographies that had been changed by Senate computers, including those of Minnesota Senator Norm Coleman, California Senator Dianne Feinstein and Senator Tom Harkin of Iowa.

Well, guess who is being polished along with those guys:

It said the Congressional computer network has been blocked from editing for brief periods on a number of occasions in the last six months due to the inappropriate contributions.

The article on President Bush has been altered so many times - not just from within Congress - that Wikipedia's volunteer monitors have had to block further "editing".

Well is it a new kind of imposing on people what to know and hiding from them what they should not know? Most of the edits have to do with the politicians' biographies and history, so if they are lying about their history, what else are they ready to lie about?

In Egypt we call such polishing campaigns as "حملات التلميع الورنيشي" which means "Shoe-polishing campaigns", describing things that policians here are trying to polish as dirty as their shoes. I think American politicians are starting to learn from their Egyptian likes.

Article source: BBC News: Technology

I have heard many many rumors before, that eventually proved to be true, that an Egyptian newspaper published the Jyllands-Posten cartoons before the situation gets so escalated. Well, it is now true that the Al Fagr newspaper (that I am sure if you ask an ordinary Egyptian guy about it will say he knows nothing about it) published the Jyllands-Posten's cartoons that caused the current global crisis. It was the Sandmonkey who could prove these rumors to be correct. But sounds like Sandmonkey and his supporters missed one greatly important point which is what the newspaper wrote about the cartoons.

Al Fagr newspaper wrote in the article's headline, which is cut in Sandmonkey's scanning of the paper, what is translated into English as "The Rudeness continue... Mockery of....". Of course it is clear that the rest of the sentence says "Mockery of Prophet Muhammad"... And who knows what the rest of the article says. I will try to find a copy of this paper myself.

My point is the pictures in this newspaper are printed to show the readers samples of what the Jyllands-Posten have published in order to put the reader in the picture. It is totally different from the context in which they were published in the Jordanian newspaper Shihane. As from the headlines it makes it clear that Al Fagr is taking the same standpoint Muslims have now.

Ironically, I remember now when the Danish Ambassador in Cairo appeared in El Beit Beitak he complained that the news about the cartoons spread by the "word" in the Middle East and that made the situation worse... So now what do you want?

I say, put these cartoons in their context and you will find out that the unknown newspaper took the same standpoint the Muslims take nowadays. Don't rush into conclusions that just aid your point of view without looking at the picture from all angels.

Some would say that the problem is publishing photos of Prophet Muhammad is haram (religiously illegal) and that's what the whole crisis now is about. Well, again you missed the point, as the crisis now is mainly about offending religions under the cover of IRRESPONSIBLE FREEDOM OF EXPRESSION, which is something criticized by Muslims, the Vatican, Russian President Vladimer Putin and even the US President George W Bush.

Whisper to my readers: Al Fagr is one of many Egyptian papers that are almost unknown. One proof till I update this post with exact number? If this newspaper is a known one, why no one noticed anything about the cartoons till the last few weeks? I believe if one of Egypt's well known newspapers like Al Akhbar, Al Gomhuria or Al Ahram the reaction could have been different since October 2005.

Whisper to Sandmonkey: I still agree with you that Arab governments made the best use of the people's pre-occupation by the crisis. But I would like to add that the Syrian government is working on spurring the spirit of nationalism once more to form public resistance against the Western pressures on Al Baath, and the cartoons' crisis is like a heavenly present for Bashar Al Assad. I think this answers questions about the lack of security guarding the Danish Embassy in Damascus before the attacks.

MOSCOW, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- A Moscow museum has announced it will exhibit the entire series of cartoons of Mohammed that have caused riots throughout the Islamic world.

Yury Samodurov, director of the Sakharov Museum and Public Center, said on Russian television that the center was ready to organize a public exhibition of the cartoons satirizing the founder of Islam that originally were published in a Danish newspaper, Pravda.ru reported Monday.

"We must show the whole world that Russia goes along with Europe, that the freedom of expression is much more important for us than the dogmas of religious fanatics," Samodurov said.

The exhibition reportedly will open in March. Lawyer Yury Shmidt has said he will invite French philosopher Andre Glucksmann and French novelist Michel Houellebecq to the opening ceremony to read lectures about the threat of Islamic fundamentalism.

In 2003 the Sakharov Museum outraged many Russian Orthodox believers with the art exhibit "Be Careful -- Religion," which many felt was insulting to their beliefs. UPI (United Press International)

Seems like it is not only the Middle Eastern media that is stimulating the situation that turned to a global crisis. What does this Russian fellow think the reaction will be when he includes the cartoons in his Sakharov Museum? Is he waiting for the Muslims to respect his so-called freedom of expression after he includes what offends them in an art gallery? To me it is like bringing the corpse of a man who died in a war and putting in a glass box in a gallery to show how the bullets could give more beauty to the dead body. This is just inciting and stimulating the Muslim anger, and even offending 20 million Muslim Russians and the Russian President Vladimir Putin himself who was against the cartoons.

This morning I have an article on BBC News:

Mr Rasmussen told a news conference in Copenhagen "we are now facing a growing global crisis" over the cartoons.

He urged Muslims to refrain from violence, saying the row was being exploited by extremists.

"We need to resolve this issue through dialogue, not violence," he said.

I do not believe people like this guy (I am not scrolling up to remember his name) will help answer the call of the Danish PM Rasmussen. I think stimulating the situation in both Middle Eastern and European medias will just make the job hard on Denmark and Arab countries trying to end the violence incited by extremists and start a dialogue with Denmark and the whole European Union.

I just the dialogue starts as soon as possible as it seems that collations are starting to be formed after Bush's statements expressing support and solidarity with Denmark (after backing Muslims over cartoons... two in one??), and after the European Commission spokesman Johannes Laitenberger said it was considering its response as "a boycott of Danish goods is by definition a boycott of European goods".

Impatient whisper: No for violence and start the debate!

It was a very exciting night in Cairo International Stadium as the Pharaohs could bring back their own history of taming lions. The Pharoahs now qualify to the final match to play (once more) against Cote d'Ivoire as they send the Tiranga Lions home with a 2-1 loss. I say I held my breathe for the whole 90 minutes as the game became very open on both sides after Mido was replaced by Amr Zaki who scored the winner for Egypt in the 80th minute.

The very first moments of the match were boring as the two teams seemed to be very cautious. However, the Senegal national team could well control the midfield as the Pharoahs preferred playing on counter attacks and long balls directed to Mido who was under strong man marking. In a very fast counter attack Egypt's left winger Mohammed Abdul Wahab crossed the ball in to the advancing Mohammed Barakat but the Senegali defender Mendy pushed it with his fist giving Egypt a penalty kick. I can't describe how hard the moments before Ahmed Hassan, Egypt's skipper, played the penalty kick scoring Egypt's first goal. However, the referee urged Hassan to play the penalty kick once more as he thought there was something wrong. Hard moments against, and yeah, Hassan scored again as he placed the ball past the goal keeper.

Then moments after the second half started Senegal scored the equalizer from a well placed header after a very silly mistake by Egypt's center defender El Saka. Both teams seemed to have lost their nerves and the Pharaohs missed many serious chances that could have sealed the game. Then comes the tragedy in the 80th minute as Mido became angry when substituted by Amr Zaki, somehow he confronted Egypt's manager Hassan Shehata but the team's captain Hossam Hassan could calm things down. It was clear that Mido was very enthusiastic and wanted to do something but he was not in form and he suffered strong man marking from the Lions' defense. The tragedy continues as Amr Zaki gives the lead back to Egypt from the very first touch as he met Abu Treka's cross with a magnificent header, just seconds after he stepped in the pitch. Consequently, the Tiranga Lions knew they were in a hot spot and they have nothing to lose, and they ran for full attack in the last minutes of the game. Again Emad Moteb missed two serious chances as the Senegalese defense became very open as the team attacked with their full force. Finally, the referee gave the final whistle and again the same scenes repeated itself. All Egyptians happy, all Egyptians thank God... All of them aspire for the final against the Cote D'Ivoire Elephants, all dreaming of the fifth ACN title for the Egyptian team.

In brief, an Egyptian ferry - Al Salam Boccaccio '98- sank in the Red Sea as it was carrying 1414 passangers, who are mainly Egyptians who work in Saudi Arabia and were going home to spend vacations. Rescue operations started to MOVE 7 hours after the ship sank. I have been searching for answers to my questions in the past few days trying to reach a conclusion or to figure something out of this whole mess. I say I have reached conclusions that are not 100% sure, however, pictures of misery, frustration and anger just stress on the tragedy the victims' families suffer. Yesterday night I was about to post this entry but an Egyptian talk show (El Beit Beitak) stopped me as they were debating the ferry disaster. So here I am introducing a conclusion of what I thought and what seems to true about the ferry and what really sounds like fairytales.

The very first fact that strikes me very hard is that the EGYPTIAN ferry raised a PANAMANIAN flag. This fact made me a bit confused, as why an Egyptian ship should raise the flag of a country it never belonged to. Editor-in-chief of the independent al-Usbu newspaper and MP Mustafa Bakry’s statement to BBC News guided me somehow into the right direction. Al-Salam company, which owns the ferry, used to purchase used ferries from Genoa, Palermo and Greece, then repair these ships and turn them into transportation ships raising the Panamanian flags to avoid Egyptian regulations.

This leads us to the point that there might be corruption inside the company itself that resulted in the ferry tragedy. But first there are more important points about the disaster itself that need to be examined.

Stories of eye-witnesses who survived the accident say that there was fire in the garage of the ferry. One of the eye-witnesses said that he was the first to see the smoke in the garage as he was ASLEEP ON THE STAIRS to the garage. He woke up smelling smoke to his lungs (where the bloody fire alarms are?) and he called a sailor on the ferry who ran up to tell the captain. Then it seems like the fire was too big to handle (isn’t the bloody ferry equipped to face big fires?) and the ship started sinking. There are stories that the captain decided to go back to Duba (the port from which he started the journey) then changed his mind back to Safaga (the Egyptian destination port) then again back to Duba then back to Safaga then the ferry sank. This story is not assured by eye-witnesses and seems to be illogical looking at who the captain is.

The ferry’s captain is Admiral Sayed Omar, nicknamed Captain Omar. He was chosen as one of the best 15 captains in the world. And he was considered the best in the Middle East. And take this, he used to work in the Atlantic and Indian oceans and the Japanese Maritime authorities honored him after saving his ship from a hurricane in the Indian Ocean. Thus, it sounds too stupid to throw the blame over Captain Omar, who is still missing and seems to be considered dead.

The fact that one of the passengers was asleep on the stairs to the ferry’s garage makes me think about the real capacity of the ship, and whether the ship is well equipped with life boats enough to carry all passengers in such situations. Some striking news came on Yahoo News: “An official at the maritime authority control room in Suez (…) said about 150 more survivors were still known to be on lifeboats. The official spoke on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the press.” which means only 10% of the passengers could get into life boats. Moreover, there are survivors who told stories about the crew taking their life-jackets off and telling them everything was okay minutes before the ship started sinking. These stories make me ask if the crew was trained well to handle such situations or not???

Then comes the surprise, another ship which is Saint Catrina received an SOS signal from a second rank officer from Al Salam ’98 saying that the ship sank at 1:15 am and they need help. The SOS signal was received at 6:08 am which means 5 HOURS after the ship already sank, and the signal came from a walkie-talkie the officer had with him before jumping into the water (why didn't they use the damn SOS device on the ferry?) . That walkie-talkie’s range is between 2-5 kilometers, which shows that Saint Catrina’s position was near the place where the ship sank. Captain Salah Goma’a who was in charge of the SC ship, called the company and they told him to GO ON HIS JOURNEY. Seems like all clues point to the company as the one responsible for the whole disaster. And sounds like questions about the sailors, the ferry, the flag, the fire alarm and the SOS signals will be answered if we look at the company itself.

Looking at the company’s profile, it was found out that the company came into maritime business in 1990 and it owned just one ship used for tours in the Nile. Suddenly, this company grew so quickly and became the SOLE company working on the line between Egypt and Saudi Arabia across the Red Sea. This fact brings to me a question whether there is some government corruption behind the rising of this company so quickly and having no competetion whatsoever. The company bought all its ships from Palermo, Genoa (Italy) and Greece and they were all used ships and used for transporting CARS NOT PASSENGERS. One of the workers in Al Salam company sent a message to El Beit Beitak TV show saying that Al Salam ’98 (the ferry) was burnt and repaired in France before the company purchases it. Moreover, he added that the company makes them sign before every voyage a paper saying that they are responsible for their own lives (claims that has been denied by Captain Salah Goma’a). Moreover, the Italian company from which Al Salam company purchased its ships signed an accord with Al Salam that it is not responsible for any consequences if these ships are used for passenger transportation.

And here is the surprise, all the ships Al Salam owns are supervised and maintained by Al Salam TeleStar, a company owned by the son of the owner of Al Salam company.

The question now is how this company broke the Egyptian maritime laws?
The Egyptian maritime laws stress that no ship older than 20 years old will be authorized to work on Egyptian maritime lines. However, the laws never specified a maximum age for these ships. No wonder the ship Al Salam ’98 was 35 years old (that’s why Al Salam raised a Panamanian flag as the Egyptian regulations are tough). Additionally, in the Egyptian laws a ship should contact its company first if there are any problems, and then the company contacts the Egyptian authorities (sounds too dumb doesn’t it?). That's why there was not direct contact between the ferry and the Egyptian port Safaga.

Here, MP Mustafa Bakry, who is now a member in a committee sent by the People’s Assembly (the Egyptian Parliament) that is interrogating everyone connected to the disaster, gives a scenario of what they think happened before the ferry sank. Of course after they took into consideration the stories of eye witnesses, they reached this scenario:

1. Fire started in the ship’s garage, fire alarm is not working.
2. Captain Omar called his company through the satellite phone, they told him to go on.
3. Fire came out of control, Captain Omar calls again, they tell him to go on to Safaga.
4. It proved that the SOS systems on the ship were not working for three months, therefore, no SOS signal was received from the ship during the fire problem and before sinking.
5. Captain Salah Goma’a took off with his ship Saint Catrina at 2:45, received a signal from a surviving second rank officer from Al Salam ’98 at 6:00 AM telling him the ferry sank at 1:15 AM.
6. Captain Salah Goma’a called the company and they told him to go on his journey (passengers from Saint Catrina said that their ship was about to sink and it had 1800 passengers, as there was strong winds and high waves that day).
7. After Captain Salah Goma’a’s call the company called the Egyptian authorities that moved to search for survivors 1 hour later.

This means that even those who survived the accident were kept in the sea in that bad weather and high waves for more than 6 hours before someone goes to help them. Moreover, there is another tragedy with the rescue operations and the way the disaster was handled after that, which I will blog about soon.

***Angry whisper: Al Salam Maritime Company owned a ship that sank last October after crashing into another ship near Suez. The whole thing reminds me of the Alaska Airlines disaster…

More to come soon….

Sources:
BBC News
Yahoo News
El Beit Beitak TV show
Egyptian Newspapers (al-Usbu', al-Masry al-Yawm, Al Akhbar)
Egyptian Sandmonkey blog

Finally one positive rational message I got in my inbox tonight. The message which is in Arabic asked Muslims to defend their Prophet (pbuh) not by violence but by applying the rules of Islam. The rules that Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) represented all his life, that are completely different from extremists and terrorists call for. The message even calls those people who are angry and still want to protest to just boycott or write articles about what they feel to make the other view what they think. But violence is never the answer.

*Please, those who can make banners or logos on photoshop or any other program, please try to make a banner or a logo saying "Violence isn't the answer" or "NO Violence". Let's spread the word.

This morning my brother came home after school and went directly to my room to hand me a sheet of paper that was handed to him in the street or by some neighbour I think. The sheet of paper photocopied an article dated that way:

Al Masry Al Youm Newspaper (Egyptian Today Newspaper)
Issue No. 599, Thursday 2/2/2006

One of the leaders of Danish Muslims:
Jyllands-Posten did not apologize and it's Arabic message was published on its website for 50 minutes only! (that was the headline)
Jyllands-Posten is playing tricks on Muslims... The Grand Imam of Al Azhar made no mistake (says the subhead)

These were the headlines of the article on the somewhat independent newspaper. What's really funny is that what came in the headlines in contradicted with the body of the article. Let me first show you at first the lie:

This is the website of the Jyllands-Posten on 6/2/2006 with the apology in Danish, English and Arabic placed even before the headlines. As for the contradictions, the body of the article mentioned nothing about what came in the headline, it even quoted the Danish Muslims speaker saying that the parliament in Denmark criticized the PM there because he did not handle the problem well and did not apologize immediately to the Danish Muslims which caused the problem to get out of control. And even quoted him saying that violence is never accepted and most of the Danish people are against the cartoons.

The question is why using headlines that contradict the body of the article? Is it meant for materialistic profit? Or is it just a way of increasing sales by playing on people's feelings and emotions? I believe our Arab media should take a better role in emphasizing the importance of debate, and newspapers should start to present some articles about the true situation in Denmark putting aside any other considerations.

Now on the back of the sheet of paper that was handed to my brother, there was instructions printed on how Muslims should boycott the Danish products... It is ringing bells that our governments and media should now work on starting a debate and increasing the people's awareness of what's really going on. Otherwise, things would reach a limit to be regretted.

Mohammed Ahmed, aged five

Survivor Mohammed Ahmed, aged 5

Mohammed survived, but some of his family remain missing

The last time Mohammed saw his father, Ahmed, was when Ahmed put him on a lifeboat and told him to wait.

More than 20 hours later, five-year-old Mohammed was fished from the water wearing a life ring.

The lifeboat Mohammed had been on with his sister, Rahma, capsized after being overloaded with passengers.

Until now, only Mohammed has been found, says his uncle Harun Mohammed.

Mohammed's father, mother, three-year-old sister and two-month-old baby brother are missing at sea.

Mohammed told his uncle that he saw a lot of smoke and was then put on the lifeboat by his father. He says that ferry then "broke".

After his lifeboat capsized, Mohammed says he does not remember anything.

At the Hurghada General hospital, where Mohammed arrived on Saturday, he plays with his silver plastic pistol.

He has cuts on his face, but his uncle insists he is in good health and not distressed.

Relatives fuss over him, kissing him and joking with him.

Mohammed's family were travelling back to their native Egypt when the ferry sunk.

The five-year-old's father, Ahmed, worked as a teacher in construction in the holy city of Medina.

After being rescued, Mohammed was initially taken to the hospital in Safaga before being transferred 30 miles to this hospital.

But for Mohammed's uncle the agony is not over.

All Mohammed's immediate family are missing and he has yet to tell his five-year-old nephew. BBC News

Al Salam '98, or rather Egypt's Titanic, or even Egypt's second Titanic is a new story of the Egyptian tragedy. The young Mohammed and his tragic story is a result of greed, negligance or ignorance? We do not know. I intended not to write about this tragedy till facts become clear about it... looks like they will never do. Thus, I have questions that are putting my mind on fire, especially after I saw that kid on TV who saw his father and mother die meters away from him after they made him wear a life-ring.

1. The ferry raised Panama's flag although it is an Egyptian ship and registered in Egyptian naval offices... why?
2. All survivors say they were left in water for 6-20 hours after the ship sank... where were the rescue teams?
3. Reports say the Captain turned back to Saudi Arabia then back to Egypt twice as the ship was on fire... any explanation?
4. Survivors say life boats and jackets were not enough for the 1400 passangers... what's the real capacity of the ferry?
5. Survivors say they were left on the deck and sailors kept running back and forth and no one told them anything... were the sailors trained for such situations?
6. The victims families are left without information dying in frustration, worried and angry... can't the authorities just keep them in picture and assign someone to speak to them on regular basis?

The answers will be on soon... Answers that will never justify the tragedy of the 5-year-old Mohammed who (till now) lost his family.

*pictures source: BBC News

Demonstrators set fire to the Danish embassy in Beirut, as protests against cartoons of Muhammad spread. BBC News

It is getting even worse and no one listening. I have to admit I am terribly angry now. The London protestors, those who attacked the Danish embassies in Lebanon and Syria... You have tarnished the image of Islam more than the cartoons. One question that I want any any any of those who participated in this or even support... Do you think that torching embassies and calling for the heads of those responsible or the cartoons did well to help show the image of Islam?

STOP THE BOYCOTT, STOP THAT VIOLENCE AND START THE DEBATE!

Answer the claims behind the cartoons through articles and facts. Attacking embassies should never be the answer because it convinces no one and helps no one to get into an understanding. If Muslims post articles with facts answering the insults of the JP they will have greater positive influence and help show the reality of Islam. Stones, moltovs, angry chantings, stupid placards glorifying the 7th of July London bombings are worse than a hundred thousand cartoons. I say it again:

STOP THE BOYCOTT, STOP THAT VIOLENCE AND START THE DEBATE!

I have received this message from Denmark this morning. I believe it stresses some of my opinions. I will comment on it, just read it first:

Hello Jimmy,

I'm from Denmark and I'm starting to find the general reaction to this sillyness quite offensive on behalf on both sides.

There are a few points I'd like to point out that apparently seem to have failed to go through.

1) If your neighbour does something that is offensive to me. Will you apologise for that? should you be held responsible for that?. What is happening right now is that my stupid neighbour happened to have offended you - but you are punishing me for what he did.

2) The muslim world entirely seem to have misunderstood what all this was about in the first place. As the situation stands the drawings started because a writer of childrens book about Muhammed was unable to find anyone willing to make drawings for it because they were afraid to be killed by extreme muslims. That spawned a discussion about whether the rules that applies in the muslim world should apply in a small nordic country. While it is forbidden for muslims to eat pork - should that rule apply to non-muslims as well? - as a result the newspaper asked 12 cartoonists to make drawings of how they saw Islam in their everyday life. One of them drew an image of Muhammed with a bomb in his hat - because that was what he saw on the TV all the time. People threating people with death in the name of the prophet. You need to understand that this has nothing to do with hos the prophet is - but how the prophet is comming across to the rest of the world due to extremists filling so much of the media picture.

The point is that those drawings were never meant to be offensive to muslims - but to show how muslims themselves are comming through in the western world because of their actions on tv. You have probably seen as much as this as I have.

3) the delegation of danish muslims that travelled around in the muslim countries to gain support for putting pressure on the danish government actually brought along 2-3 drawings and pictures that had nothing to do with what was in the JP. One of these was an image of the prophet with a pigs nose. These pictures was included by this delegation for reasons unknown to me and my fellow citizens. We have no idea where they came from - but it would seem that they were included to cause anger with muslim leaders. The leaders of the different muslim communities in denmark are currently in a state of war with eachother of who should be "Mr. Islam". The promotions of these drawing were initially a part of that struggle that got out of hand.

4) While you write that the JP is a right wing newspaper and that it once supported nazists etc - that needs to be seen in a context. First of all the right-wings here in denmark would be considered left-wing in most other countries. As to the second thing about the nazi-past of the newspaper - then that needs to be seen in a historic context as well - and not to be seen as having an impact on the newspaper as it is today. While the JP certainly has been one of the most critical of extremist islamic views here in denmark, it has also been one of the foremost in the debate of how good integration of muslims happens in denmark.

5) It seems that the concept of idependant media does not seem to be very well understood in the muslim countries. If our prime-minister EVER would try to interfere in what a newspaper did he would be out of a job the next day. He neither can or want to interfere. As to muslims being offended by what the newspaper wrote - they could simply go to court against the newspaper. Something that they have not done.

6) As a matter of fact the danish public prosecution looked into the matter a short time following the publication of the drawings but found that they in this case could not interfere. That would however not stop the danish muslims from going to court against the JP. As a matter of fact we have certain racism paragraphs here in denmark that means people can end up in jail for raising hate against any group because of the racial, national or religious behaviour. The danish muslims decided not to go to court - but instead to try to raise a storm of protests from the muslim world. The only reason I can see for that is because of the formerly mentioned struggle to become "Mr. Islam".

Anyways .. just thought I'd drop a line to bring up a couple of points ;)

- Martin Jensen

Mr. Jensen's message makes it clear how great is the misunderstanding between Muslims and the West in general. Umm... I gonna make that clear but I should first answer some of Mr. Jensen's points. The situation should not be described as your neighbour offending me and how you should act because the JP is Danish and very popular, therefore, it somehow represents a bit of a larger number of Danish citizens and points of view. Thus it is different from "your neighbour" because it is a part of you. However, I still agree with you that the stupid actions of the newspaper brought about problems to all Danish citizens, the same way it brought great offenses to all Muslims all over the world. I am sure that not all the Danish agree or even respect what the paper published.

Actually there is a question that is popping up in my mind now: did the JP write, in the very first time it published the cartoons, that these cartoons are not an offense on Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), but they just reflect how his image comes to the Western world? If they did not, then this simply justifies the way Muslims understood these cartoons as a direct offense to their Prophet and their religion. Moreover, the problem is even there in the pictorial depiction of the Prophet (pbuh) as in Islam pictorial depictions of any prophet is prohibited. So can you imagine how it just offends a Muslim to find a popular newspaper publishing pictorial depictions of Prophet Muhammad, and these depictions even go to the worst as they show him as a terrorist which is something very untrue and very stereotypical?

One thing I stated before, Mr. Jensen: you cannot apply the rules of the western societies over the eastern ones. Therefore, I say the JP committed a great mistake by trying to "test the Muslim boundaries" that way. I say testing comes through polls, interviews, reports and readings into the Muslim culture. You can't just hit a man with your car to see if he is going to get hurt or not. And I think some Danish Muslims took the matter to court but the plea was rejected, although the cartoons not just spread stereotypical false ideas about Islam, but they even cause hatred towards those who belong to a religion whose prophet is a terrorist, you get my point?

Yet, again, I say I agree with you in the main points of your message, which I think it came in time to help the debate and understanding between the Danish and Muslims. I believe the Danish Muslims bear great responsibility for these cartoons because they live in a nutshell in Denmark not trying to mingle with their society and show the reality of their religion. Moreover I agree with you it is now turning to be offensive on both sides, as those who run to burn the Danish embassy in Syria and the protestor who ask for the heads of those responsible for the cartoons take the matter to a dangerous extreme, that is so stupid and unacceptable. I think this message tells a very important point as well, Muslims should change the way the world sees them, and surly debates, discussions and positive participation of Muslim in their western societies are just the first step. Violence and fury are never the right answers.

Finally, I think Mr. Martin Jensen's message makes some important points clear and I hope it helps in the understanding and debate between the Danish and Muslims. I have to thank you, Mr. Jensen for dropping by and I hope you keep on the participation.

Totally insane, totally foolish, totally unacceptable, totally STUPID!
The cartoons are stupid? Yes, They offended Muslim feelings the most? Yes... Violence the right answer? NO!

The cartoons described Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) as a terrorist which is never true and extremely offensive. Nevertheless, if the answer is violence then you are just emphasizing these foolish claims behind the cartoons. How would you speak to the world and say Islam is a religion of peace and forgiveness while you are carrying a moltov and burning embassies down!!! I am sure most of those who went out in fury chanting angry chants and fighting to burn the Danish and Norweigan embassies down rarely go into a mosque or even read and understand the verses in the Holy Qur'an regularly. If you are so angry, so offended then continue the boycott and redirect this anger and turn it into a useful constructive power rather than a destructive one. Be good representatives of that religion, not another copy of the Shakespearian angry mob. Moreover, the government and the right-wing stupid newspaper in Denmark apologized, which is quite enough as it is now known that such cartoons would cause fury and should be avoided with self-censorship and responsibility. What do you want? I tell you what to do.... go read the Holy Qur'an: "But if they cease, then God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful" (Al Baqarah 192)

And the protestors in London, I have a question for you... Being a Muslim you should be a good representatives of Islam, do you think "slaying", "butchering" and "beheading" are keywords to convince the world of the truth of Islam? Your words answer you. Additionally, do you think Islam tells you to slay, butcher and behead those who criticize you (even with such foolish claims... I mean such foolish claims like those represented in you while in fact they contradict Islam)? If your answer is "yes", then go learn Islam well.

In order to convince the world of what you believe you have to debate and answer fact by fact, not go shout in the streets asking for slaying the others.

It was just another great day in Cairo. I have been to the CIS (Cairo International Stadium) to watch Quarter Final's match between Egypt and RD Congo (or DR Congo whatever they'd like to call it). The day was overwhelming for me, waking up so early in the morning to go on an errand then praying Gomo'a in the mosque, the meeting my friends and heading towards the stadium. The very first part till the prayer was okay and went normal. Then it is started to look frustrating as two of my friends called me to apologize, but then things went okay once more when they were replaced (with the literal meaning of the word) with two other friends in our group and. Then started the long but quick journey to the CIS.

On the way to the stadium I look at the road from the window of the bus. Looks like all Cairo is going to attend the match. Egyptian red white black bright flags are being waved out of the cars windows. Some cars had big flags covering the cars from the front windshield to the rear windshield. Guys and girls, families and children all smiling, singing, cheering and waving the flags of their country (a scene you rarely *or never* see in a normal day).

Entering the stadium was not an easy task to be honest, and I think there are two main reasons for that: the first one is very funny as the stadium security asked the fans (who exceeded 12.000 in my section) to walk on the narrow pavement and leave the road clear (although the road is already made for the fans to walk to the stadium). The second reason is the number of the electronic gates to the stadium is not even close to enough.


Now a deeper look into today's scenes...
I will put the disadvantages aside (disadvantages like it is almost high-class people that were in the stadium today because of the tickets' prices, and most of them know nothing about football and are just there for a "trip" as one of my friends called it). Today I have witnessed great spirit of nationalism (if the term goes okay), youngmen who are the majority of this nation all stand together, not just in the stadium but even in the streets and at every corner, all celebrating their countries sporting victory. Again I see power and enthusiasm and a clear evidence that this nation can turn out to be a better fast developing nation if the power imprisoned within its young men is well used and directed.

Whispers:
Hossam Hassan, you are the man.
Gamal Mubarak, I saw your guards.
RD Congo, au revoir!
Egyptian young men, the day will come when this nation restores its glorious past and make new history of it with your own hands.

Downloads: To download the goals click here.

Flashback:
On September 2005 the Jyllands-Posten, which is a popular Danish independent newspaper whose history related to fascism and support of the Nazi policies, published cartoon greatly insulting Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) spreading a greatly negative stereotypical image of Islam and Muslims. The protest against the cartoons started with Danish Muslims asking the Danish Prime Minister for a formal apology and more responsibility on freedom of expression. They were ignored. With a slow pace, protests spread all over the Islamic countries asking for a boycott of Danish products. The boycott could very well snatch apologies by the Prime Minister and the newspaper. They can be considered half apologies but the Prime Minister's call for more responsibility when using freedom of expression met the needs of offended Muslims. The situation is developing but I just think I should give a final word on it now here.

Final word on the situation:

Difference between western and eastern societies:
The western societies used to read and see on everyday basis cartoons, articles, movies and even sketches harshly attacking religion and Jesus Christ. Naturally many get offended but they just thought it is freedom of expression. The point is, in eastern societies people have a more conservative approach when it comes to religion. Eastern Arab societies, including Muslims and Christians, put religion in the highest regard. Literally, religion possesses a sacred position for them. I remember that a few years ago an independent newspaper in Egypt published photos and an article about a priest involved in sexual relationships with different women. Christians all over Egypt became furious and attacked the office of the newspaper and great scorn spread among them as they were greatly offended by the article and the photos (and they had every right to do). The newspaper was shut and the editor was jailed. This story just tells us that it is not only Muslims who are very conservative about their religion, but it is the Arab eastern societies in general. Now being so conservative and sensitive when it comes to religion, Muslims were greatly offended by these stupid childish negative stereotypical cartoons. Add to that, they were ignored when they asked for an apology.

My point here is life is different in eastern societies. You cannot offend someone's religion and get away with it waving a the flag of freedom of speech. And to me, applying the western societies' rules over the eastern societies is just like applying the rules of biology over math. Consequently, there should be more responsibility (I am not saying censorship) and self-censorship when someone is dealing with the religious beliefs of others. Specially if the other is from a totally different culture.

Freedom of expression and double standards:
Those who stick to the idea that freedom of expression is more sacred than religion itself and there should be no protests against the cartoons whatsoever, I have a couple of questions for you. If freedom of expression is sacred and should not be questioned, this means that the rules apply to everyone and everything, right? Well, there are countries in Europe (France is an example) that punish anyone who attacks the or discusses the reality of the Holocaust. Isn't it an attack on the freedom of expression? Some would say that the Holocaust is different as the magnitude of the massacre is sooo heavy and bla bla bla, but there is freedom to attack the Torah and the Talmud, no problem about that.

Here comes my second question, Michael Jackson was recorded on a phone call saying that the Jews are "leeches" and they suck his blood (meaning always ask for his money). The pop singer was sued and faced a massive campaign asking him to formally apologize. Moreover, his song "They don't care about us" was attacked when he said "Jew me, Sue me, Kick me, Kike me" and he apologized and changed the lyrics of his song!... Isn't this an attack on the freedom of expression and freedom of speech??? I believe if there are rules banning discussing or attacking the Holocaust, there should be rules banning attacking religions in general including Islam. Otherwise, it will be just a dangerous sign of hypocrisy and double standards.

The aim of the boycott:
The boycott of Danish products in the Middle East deservedly started as a reaction to the way the pleas of Danish Muslims were ignored. Thus, the aim of the boycott was to have an apology from the newspaper and a call for more responsibility over freedom of expression if it is going to offend other people's beliefs. After the economic losses and having 11,000 jobs at stake in Denmark, the government apologized, ambassadors started to correct the image to Muslim societies and the newspaper itself apologized. Now, calls from Danish Muslims to end the boycott started to get heard. The aims of the boycott was met, now things should get back to normal. Stop the boycott... So what's now?

What's now?
I have noticed that the cartoons triggered great emotions and power among Muslims, especially Muslim young people. Such emotions and power should now be redirected to a different better direction before we lose it. No doubt that Islam's image is tarnished all over the world by the misdeeds and mischief done by the likes of Bin Laden, Zwahiri and Zarqawi. Therefore, in order to make sure that such photos will not be published again Muslims have to show the world the reality of Islam. The question is, how can we do so?

Start the work!

On the individual level:
First of all, in order to tell others about Islam, you should know it very well yourself. The greatest problem is that most of the Muslims are just very bad models of their religion, simply because they don't apply it in the right way. Therefore, the people who boycotted the Danish products and went out in demonstrations denouncing the caricatures should save some of their power to know their religion very well to be good representatives of what they believe. There are websites that offer great help for Muslims and non-Muslims to look into and discover Islam. I recommend Islam Online.

Let's start with the blogsphere. The blogsphere is a great place to start introducing the true image of Islam, I believe Muslim bloggers should dedicate a space in their blogs or even introduce on regular basis articles from authorized or trusted sources about Islam showing and analyzing the noble message of the religion. It would be even better if these bloggers form circles or blogrolls, cooperation is much better than individual work I believe. As for me, I have decided to dedicate part of my blog to show the reality of Islam and publish recent articles on the relationship of Islam and current events.

As for the way to start out of the blogsphere, I believe we should participate in big foundations and organizations, or even form them, working on purifying the image of Islam to the world. There are organizations that are working hard on showing the true image of Islam like Bridges Foundation. Bridges Foundation has a motto which is "Peacemaking through Education", so if all the Muslims are so angry about the caricatures, then they should be similarly eager to be educated and then educate the true word of their religion which calls for peace inside oneself and with others. For any other suggestions please leave a comment.

On the businessmen level:
Businessmen should participate in this campaign too. In "El Beit Beitak" there was a call for launching a world-wide space channel with one aim is to speak the truth about Islam and show the true image. I believe if this channel is to start there should be positive participation from Muslim businessmen so that this channel can reach everyone all over the world. Moreover, businessmen can donate and help foundations working in the same field.

That way the Muslims' power and feelings about Islam can be redirected into a better more useful way. I suggest that the campaign should not only work on showing the reality of Islam to non-Muslims, but also spreading the true values of Islam among Muslims themselves. Be it a universal human message that calls for respect to religions and beliefs of others.

Is this just another dream I add to my dreams' list? Well, I hope this dream comes true as soon as possible.

Whispers in your ears: Indonesia and Malaysia are two great Muslim countries, they are developed, clean, economically stable, modern and greatly participating in the technological progress and industries. Islam is not backwardness.

In January 28, 1986 millions witnessed the tragedy of the Challenger space shuttle. The disaster that caused the death of seven astronauts and scientists whose main aim was the scientific progress of their people and humanity. I believe they are the real heroes in our world, those who lose their lives out of battlefields not fighting to kill their fellow human beings but fighting the forces of nature to explore the unknown seeking the progress of the human race. The world needs more of those who are willing to know and reach the truth, those who are ready to explore and accept the other, in order to achieve peace for mankind, for humanity. I wonder how many soldiers lost their lives in wars (whether fighting for a cause or for the greed of their politicians) and now forgotten and unremembered? But scientists and researchers who lose their lives for the sake of humanity live eternally in the minds of people.

Moments ago I was watching “El Beit Beitak” (Egyptian popular talk show whose name means “Make yourself home”). The last part of the show there was an interview with Essam Haggi, who is an Egyptian young scientist who works in NASA on the space shuttle Spirit. Prof. Haggi spoke freely about his work in NASA and said that he is working in a team that used certain radar technology and discovered water under the surface of Mars. The new technology was first tested in the Egyptian Western Desert. Talking about the Egyptian scientists and why they do not participate in the country’s scientific progress, Prof. Haggi said “Almost all of the Egyptian scientists who live and do successful work abroad were first given the sack from their posts in Egypt”. Moreover, he added “most of the researchers in Egypt have duties which is to supervise students taking exams, what does supervising exams have to do with research work?”. Then, Prof. Haggi touched a very important fact that “two thirds of the population in Egyptian are people whose age is under 30 years old”.


This interview just brings up the questions: when will the government try to make the best use of this human power in its population? I wonder how many people that are just like Professor Essam living with their brains becoming rusty with great thoughts and inventions? When will our government believe that it is science that builds up a nation not aids or talks?

Solution is easy: “Stop imposing ready made solutions and ask the young people how they believe they should be educated” Prof. Essam Haggi.

I dream of the day I see Egyptian astronauts and scientists joining scientists from all over the world working for the sole noble purpose of the welfare and prosperity of mankind. I dream of the day when we have the likes of Prof. Ahmed Zuwail, Prof. Farouk el Baz and Prof. Essam Haggi working in Egypt for the progress and welfare of this nation whose power is manifested in its population. I dream of the day when Mr. Mubarak thanks God for having two thirds of his people as creative young men, not considering it as a curse on Egypt.

Introduction:
In the last few days I have noiced that most of the readers in the blogsphere have one thing in common: great misconceptions about Islam. I even found out that it is very rare to find someone who knows the reality of Islam or even bits and pieces about it. Thus, I thought I should help show the solid facts about Islam and try to analyze very briefly the reasons why Islam is connected to terrorism. This article illustrates briefly the truth about Islam and gives an analysis of the connection between Islam and terrorism.

Allah or God?? Who is Allah?
Allah
The name for God, the Supreme Being, in the Arabic language; the common name for God in Islam.

[It is God who raised the skies without support, as you can see, then assumed His throne, and enthralled the sun and the moon (so that) each runs to a predetermined course. He disposes all affairs, distinctly explaining every sign that you may be certain of the meeting with your Lord] (Ar-Ra`d 13:2)

The last of the Abrahamic religions, following Judaism and Christianity, Islam considers the creation of the universe as ultimate proof of the existence of one Creator who “is that dimension which makes other dimensions possible; He gives meaning and life to everything” (Rahman) According to the teachings of Islam, Allah (God) is the one and only god, the absolute Creator of the universe, its components and its laws. Allah is the beginning and the end of all things, and this is the foundation for Islam’s teachings.

What’s Qur’an?
The Qur’an is the final book, which Allah (God) revealed to the Prophet Muhammad. Allah has guaranteed the Qur’an’s protection from any corruption or distortion.

Among the books that were revealed are the Torah, which was revealed to Musa (Moses); the Gospel, which was revealed to Isa (Jesus); the Psalms, which Allah gave to Dawood (David); the Tablets of Ibrahim (Abraham) and Musa; and, finally, the Qur’an.

The Qur’an is the word of Allah as passed down to Muslims through the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) and the existence of only one version of the Qur’an (there are no dissimilarities between any two copies) attests to the reverence in which Muslims hold it. For Muslims, the Qur’an, containing the word of Allah, provides irrefutable proof of His existence. Along with the Qur’an, nature provides another source for the proof of Allah’s existence. This intimate relationship between the Qur’an and nature is shown in the phrase ayat, which refers to signs of Allah’s existence in nature and also refers to the verses in the Qur’an.

The Definition of Islam:
The word "Islam" also implies "peace" which is the natural consequence of total submission to the will of Allah. Hence, it was not a new religion brought by Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) in Arabia in the seventh century.

Peace means to be at peace with yourself and your surroundings and submission means submission to the will of God. A broader meaning of the word "Islam" is to achieve peace by submitting to the will of God. Islam enjoins faith in the oneness and sovereignty of God, which makes man aware of the meaningfulness of the universe and of his place in it.

Islam signifies a moral attitude and a way of life. The doctrines, morals, ethics, legislations, institutions, teachings and values that are preached to be adopted by the human race at all levels of the individual family, community, nation and humanity are structured to achieve peace and prosperity for all mankind.

Islam was revealed to the Prophet Muhammad by Allah (God) (the Lord of Existence) through angel Gabriel, in the Arabic language.

Continuity of the Message:
Islam is the same eternal message revealed through the ages to all of God's prophets and messengers. Muslims believe that all of God's prophets brought the same message of Pure Monotheism. For this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not the founder of a new religion, as many people mistakenly think, but he was the Final Prophet of Islam.

Sources of Islam:

1. The Qur'an: The religion of Islam came direct from heaven. The Qur'an and all its tenets were sent down by Gabriel from God himself to Muhammad. As for the Qur'an, it is held to be of eternal origin, recorded in heaven, and lying as it does there upon the "Preserved Table" (Surah 85:22). Thus God alone is held to be the "Source" of Islam; and if so, then all effort to find a human origin for any part of it must be in vain.

2. The Hadith (Sunnah): The Sunnah is the second source of Islam. Sunnah is an Arabic word which means "Method". It was applied by the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) as a legal term to represent what he said, did and agreed to. Its authority is derived from the text of the Qur'an, because the Qur'an says: "Nor does he (Muhammad) speak of (his own) desire." (Surah 53:3) The Qur'an and the Sunnah are complimentary. The meaning of the Qur'an is general in nature, the Sunnah makes it specific and particular. The Sunnah explains the instructions of the Qur'an.

3. Ijma and Qiyas: Ijma (that is consensus of opinion of scholars) and Qiyas (that is laws derived through analogical deduction) are the secondary or dependent sources of Islam or Shari'ah. Ijma and Qiyas derive their value or authority from the Qur'an and the Sunnah. Therefore, they are called dependent sources.

Pillars of Iman (the main beliefs in Islam):
1. Belief in Allah (the One with no partner)
2. Belief in His angels
3. Belief in Divine Books
4. Belief in Messengers and Prophets ( all Prophets sent by God )
5. Belief in The Last Day (They day of Judgement, the day of resurrection)
6. And belief in al-Qadar (the Divine Destiny) be it good or bad.

Pillars of Islam:

1. The declaration of faith: To bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, and that Muhammad is His messenger to all human beings till the Day of Judgement.
2. Prayers: Daily prayers are offered five times a day as a duty towards Allah.
3. Fasting the month of Ramadan: The Muslims during the month of Ramadan not only abstain from food, drink and sexual intercourse from dawn to sunset, but also from evil intentions and desires.
4. Zakat: To pay annually 2.5% of one's net saving on which a year has passed as a religious duty and purifying sum to be spent on poorer sections of the community.
5. Pilgrimage to Makkah: It is to be performed once in a lifetime, if one can afford it financially and physically.

Aqeedah & Shari'ah in Islam:
Islam is built in two parts, Aqeedah (Islamic Belief) and Shari'ah (Islamic Law), 'Aqeedah is the foundation of Islam and the Islamic nation is firm in its awareness. It is known with evidences of the Shari'ah from the Book & Sunnah that man's saying and actions are only authentic and acceptable to Allah, when their 'Aqeedah is authentic, if however the 'Aqeedah is not authentic then their sayings and actions are invalid. Aqeedah is the Islamic belief (belief in Allah's oneness, Lordship and Attributes. Belief in His Angels, His Books, His Messengers, the Day of Judgment, and Fate whether good or bad).

The second part of Islam is Shari'ah (Islamic Law ), the true embodiment of justice. The Shari'ah is fully complete. It is the Way which encompasses the totality of man's life.It contains all that man needs to achieve a whole and sound life in this world . The completion and the perfection of the Shari'ah means that it is above, and free from, contradiction and inconsistency. Allah says, "Do they not ponder on the Qur'an? Had it been from other than Allah, they would surely find therein much discrepancy." (Surah 4:82)

Islam and Freedom:
Islam has given to mankind freedom of thought, speech, and action but within a correct and reasonable framework, (i.e. whereby one does not harm others or oneself), so that certain foods and drinks, which are very harmful, are not permissible because of the harm they cause to oneself. Likewise slander and assault and the like are not permissible because of the harm they cause to others. Islam takes care of human beings in every aspect of their life (spiritually, emotionally and physically), because the man is created of both soul and body.

Islam and Terrorism:
Terror, in its broadest sense, is violence committed against non-military targets for political purposes. To put it in another way, the targets of terror are entirely innocent civilians whose only crime is, in the eyes of terrorists, to represent "the other". This is an act bereft of any moral justification. This, as in the case of murders committed by Hitler or Stalin, is a crime committed against "mankind".

The Qur'an is a Book revealed to people as a guide to the true path and in it, God commands man to adopt good morals. This morality is based upon concepts such as love, compassion, tolerance and mercy.

"You who believe! Enter absolutely into peace (Islam). Do not follow in the footsteps of Satan. He is an outright enemy to you." (Soorah 2:208)

The values of the Qur'an hold a Muslim responsible for treating all people, whether Muslim or non-Muslim, kindly and justly, protecting the needy and the innocent and preventing the "dissemination of mischief". As God says, "God does not love mischief makers." (Sorah 28:77)

All these verses reveal that organizing acts of terror against innocent people is against Islam. On the contrary, Muslims are responsible for stopping these people, removing "mischief on earth" and bringing peace and security to all people all over the world. Islam is by no means the source of any injustice.


Islam vs. Terrorism in focus: What is the Islam’s stance on terrorism?
In the first place, we would like to stress that the study of world history would show that Islam and terrorism are extreme opposites. There is no meeting point between Islam and terrorism as practiced by terrorist groups in different parts of the world. Terrorism involves the indiscriminate use of force to achieve certain objectives. Whereas, the basis of national and international relations in Islam is peace and not war as falsely claimed by some people.

In Islam, the use of force is allowed only in special situations, particularly when the Muslim community is threatened by hostile forces. This is natural and logical for any other community indeed. Then again, the use of force in a campaign of Jihad is determined by the leader of the Muslim community in a very orderly way.

For a detailed discussion on the Islam’s stance on terrorism, we would like to cite for you the following:

One of the distinctive characteristics of the times we live in is the overwhelming presence of violence in our societies. Whether it is a bomb going off in a market place, or the hijacking of an aircraft where innocent people are held at ransom to achieve political ends, we live in an age, where the manipulation and loss of innocent lives has become commonplace.

Such is the all-pervasive nature of indiscriminate violence, that “terrorism” is considered as one of the prime threats to peace and security in our societies.

The word “terrorism” came into wide usage only a few decades ago. One of the unfortunate results of this new terminology is that it limits the definition of terrorism to that perpetrated by small groups or individuals. Terrorism, in fact, spans the entire world, and manifests itself in various forms. Its perpetrators do not fit any stereotype. Those who hold human lives cheap, and have the power to expend human lives, appear at different levels in our societies. The frustrated employee who kills his colleagues in cold-blood is a terrorist who provokes our anger and revulsion. Ironically however, the politician who uses age-old ethnic animosities between peoples to consolidate his position, the head of state who orders “carpet bombing” of entire cities, the exalted councils that choke millions of civilians to death by wielding the insidious weapon of sanctions, are rarely punished for their crimes against humanity.

It is this narrow definition of terrorism that implicates only individuals and groups, that has caused Muslims to be associated with acts of destruction and terror, and as a result, to become victims of hate violence and terror themselves. Sometimes the religion of Islam is held responsible for the acts of a handful of Muslims, and often for the acts of non-Muslims!

Could it be possible that Islam, whose light ended the Dark Ages in Europe, now propound the advent of an age of terror? Could a faith that has over 1.2 billion followers the world over, and over 7 millions in America, actually advocate the killing and maiming of innocent people? Could Islam, whose name itself stands for “peace” and “submission to God”, encourage its adherents to work for death and destruction?

For too long, have we relied on popular images in the media and in Hollywood films, for answers to these pertinent questions. It is now time to look at the sources of Islam, and its history to determine whether Islam does indeed advocate violence.

The Sanctity of Human Life:
The Glorious Qur’an says: (…take not life, which God hath made sacred, except by way of justice and law: thus doth He command you, that ye may learn wisdom.) (Al-An`am 6: 151)

Islam considers all life forms as sacred. However, the sanctity of human life is accorded a special place. The first and the foremost basic right of a human being is the right to live. Allah says in the Qur’an says: (… if any one slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people.) (Al-Ma’idah 5: 32)

Such is the value of a single human life, that the Qur’an equates the taking of even one human life unjustly, with killing all of humanity. Thus, the Qur’an prohibits homicide in clear terms. The taking of a criminal’s life by the state in order to administer justice is required to uphold the rule of law, and the peace and security of the society. Only a proper and competent court can decide whether an individual has forfeited his right to life by disregarding the right to life and peace of other human beings.

The Ethics of War:
Even in a state of war, Islam enjoins that one deals with the enemy nobly in the battlefield. Islam has drawn a clear line of distinction between the combatants and the non-combatants of the enemy country. As far as the non-combatant population is concerned such as women, children, the old and the infirm, etc., the instructions of the Prophet are as follows: "Do not kill any old person, any child or any woman.” (Reported by Abu Dawud) "Do not kill the monks in monasteries" (Musnad Ahmad ibn Hanbal)

During a war, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) saw the corpse of a woman lying on the ground and observed: "She was not fighting. How then she came to be killed?" Thus non-combatants are guaranteed security of life even if their state is at war with an Islamic state.

Jihad:
While Islam in general is misunderstood in the western world, perhaps no other Islamic term evokes such strong reactions as the word ‘Jihad’. The term ‘Jihad’ has been much abused, to conjure up bizarre images of violent Muslims, forcing people to submit at the point of the sword. This myth was perpetuated throughout the centuries of mistrust during and after the Crusades. Unfortunately, it survives to this day.

The word Jihad comes from the root word iahada, which means to struggle. So Jihad is literally an act of struggling. Jihad primarily refers to the inner struggle of being a person of virtue and submission to God in all aspects of life.

Secondarily, Jihad refers to struggle against injustice. Islam, like many other religions, allows for armed self-defense, or retribution against tyranny, exploitation, and oppression. The Glorious Qur’an says: (And why should ye not fight in the cause of God and of those who, being weak, are ill-treated (and oppressed)? Men, women, and children, whose cry is: ‘Our Lord! Rescue us from this town, whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from thee one who will protect; and raise for us from thee one who will help!) (Aal-`Imran 3: 75)

Thus, Islam enjoins upon its believers to strive their utmost in purifying themselves, as well as in establishing peace and justice in the society. A Muslim can never be at rest when he sees injustice and oppression around him. This reminds me of Martin Luther King Jr. said: “We will have to repent in this generation not merely for the hateful words and actions of the bad people but for the appalling silence of the good people.”

Islam enjoins upon all Muslims to work actively to maintain the balance in which God created everything. However, regardless of how legitimate the cause may be, the Glorious Qur’an never condones the killing of innocent people. Terrorizing the civilian population can never be termed as Jihad, and can never be reconciled with the teachings of Islam.

History of Tolerance:
Even Western scholars have repudiated the myth of Muslims coercing others to convert. The great historian De Lacy O'Leary wrote: "History makes it clear, however, that the legend of fanatical Muslims, sweeping through the world and forcing Islam at the point of sword upon conquered races is one of the most fantastically absurd myths that historians have ever repeated.” (Islam At Crossroads, London, 1923, page 8)

This is not surprising to a Muslim, for his faith prohibits him from forcing others to see his point of view. The Glorious Qur’an says: (Let there be no compulsion in religion: Truth stands out clear from Error: whoever rejects evil and believes in God hath grasped the most trustworthy hand-hold, that never breaks. And God heareth and knoweth all things.) (Al-Baqarah 2: 256)

Islam: The Great Unifier
Far from being a militant dogma, Islam is a way of life that transcends race and ethnicity. The Qur’an repeatedly reminds us of our common origin: (O mankind! We created you from a single (pair) of a male and a female, and made you into nations and tribes, that ye may know each other (not that ye may despise (each other). Verily the most honored of you in the sight of God is (he who is) the most righteous of you. And God has full knowledge and is well acquainted (with all things).) (Al-Hujrat 49: 13)

Thus, it is the universality of its teachings that makes Islam the fastest growing religion in the world. In a world full of conflicts and deep schisms between human beings, a world that is threatened with terrorism, perpetrated by individuals and states, Islam is a beacon of light that offers hope for the future.
The above quotation is excerpted with some modifications from: www.whyislam.org

In the light of the above, it becomes crystal clear that Islam doesn’t permit aggression, violence, injustice, or oppression. At the same time, it calls to morality, justice, tolerance, and peace.

This leads us to one clear fact that those terrorists who say they are Muslims and applying Islam are simply NOT Muslims. They are hiding behind the word Islam to make their misdeeds seem to have a noble purpose. However, they do not belong to Islam, and never did.

Why terrorism is always associated with Islam?

1- Role of Media (double standards and dishonesty)

The large media coverage given to Muslim extremists' terrorism compared to media coverage given to similar acts of terrorism practiced by other groups .An example of the foreign media's double standards is the fact that the massacre 8000 Muslims at Srebrenica in 1995 never led to a stream of articles in the press about the violent tendencies of Christianity. At the same time, there are many well known terrorist movements (like Irish Republican Army, National Liberation Army, Red Army Faction, Liberation Tigers of Tamil… etc.) that are treated in the same manner by the Western media: their actions are never connected to their religions or beliefs. Yet, every act of Muslim extremists' terrorism brings to the surface a great raft of criticism of Islam as a religion. Hence, the media in the western societies plays a major role in the spread of stereotypical false ideas about Islam which lead to anti-Muslim feelings within the people in these societies. This brings us to the Danish newspaper’s caricatures depicting Prophet Muhammed (pbuh) as a terrorist. To sum up, media plays a great role in spreading and emphasizing the idea that Islam is a religion of violence, which is a very false dishonest idea, rather than trying to compare and contrast the reality of Islam and the claims of terrorists who say they belong to it.

2- The role of Muslims in western societies:

Muslims who live in Muslim communities bear the responsibility of showing the true face of their religion. Nevertheless, in western communities Muslims prefer not to blend with the society in order to conserve their traditions. This leads to the isolation of Muslim communities in the western society. Such isolation builds a barrier between the Muslim communities and their societies, which prefer to look at these communities the same way media dictated them rather than exploring these Muslim isolated communities. For example, the Muslim and Arab communities in France are mostly isolated in certain districts and towns which led to a great tension between these communities and the authorities. No doubt Muslims in France face great oppression when it comes to occupying job positions and in educational institutions. The banning of Hijab in schools has widened the gap between Muslims and the French society. Moreover, it has become a commonplace fact that a woman wearing hijab will not take a job, which is again great oppression and intrusion into the individual’s most sacred privacies which is religion. Additionally, Muslim Arab communities complained a lot about the way the Police treats them. They are guilty until proven innocent when they are involved. Such a biased stereotypical view by the French society, and the isolation in which the Muslim communities live, resulted in the famous riots in France in late 2005 after a Muslim young man was killed while being chased by the Police for no reasons.

3- The view of Islam as a new strategic enemy and media dilemma:

Chief among the negative consequences of the events of 11 September was the deformation of the image of Islam in the Western media. A fixed model was formulated linking terrorism to Islam. The violent attacks in which Muslims were convicted brought about a state of direct animosity against Islam in Europe and the United States. Most Arab and Islamic countries were listed among the zones that endanger European and US security.

A strong current in the West now pictures Islam as the common enemy that has replaced communism. Observers of Western media are noticing an increasing tide of animosity against Islam and Muslims living in Western countries. They attribute this to incorrect understanding on the part of some Western intellectuals of Islam and its teachings, and the tendency to highlight the incorrect practices of some Muslims, generalise and deform the image of Islam as a whole.

The rectification of the image of Islam in the West requires strong and persistent efforts from the Muslims themselves, both in the Islamic world and in Muslim communities in the West. This effort should be a comprehensive process, starting from within by consolidating mechanisms of Islamic work on the popular and official levels. Muslims will never be able to improve their image before the world if they fail to appear as a nation of culture and civilisation. Effective initiatives must also be undertaken to educate the non-Muslim world concerning correct Islamic concepts, of peace and tolerance, and to clarify the incorrect views of Islam held by some that lead to conflict between the West and Islam.

However, breaking through the Western media is not an easy task for Arab and Muslim media as Western societies enjoy abundant media coverage that makes it unnecessary for them to look outside. Specialised institutions and organisations should thus be charged with the responsibility of managing a media programme to promote a true image of Islam, backed up by the necessary funding and human resources.


4- Misunderstanding and misinterpretation of Islam:

Most of the Muslim extremists are just a direct result of misinterpretation and misunderstanding of Islam teachings. For example, Taliban manifests the utmost misinterpretation of Islam through the society they built in Afghanistan. To cut it short, they interpreted religion in the way they wanted to see it. Therefore, they built a society under the name of Islam, yet, in fact this society is just the way they want to build their terrorist nest. Some would say if Islam’s teachings are so clear as stated above, how would they misinterpret them? The answer is very simple, these people did not understand Islam and they never won any religious debate they got involved in. They just viewed religion in the way they wanted to see it; the way that answers their needs not the way Islam really is. Taliban’s society just reminds me of the Puritan society (despite the fact that there are major differences between the two societies). Like Taliban, the Puritans prohibited all kinds of pleasure and colors and they were so narrow-minded to accept any debate that proves them wrong. My point is, the Christian teachings are very clear and simple, yet, the Puritans viewed these teachings in a very different way. Taliban did the same with the Islamic teachings, but they were more into aggression and violence.

Finally, this article is meant to show in brief the truth of Islam as a religion of peace not violence and oppression. Moreover, it tries to shed light to the reasons why Islam is falsely linked to terrorism. As for the first part it is not influenced by any personal opinion or point of view, it is just stating unrevealed facts about Islam. The second part tackling the reasons why Islam is falsely linked to Islam is just giving a very brief explanation of the reasons that logically lead to such misunderstanding of Islam from a moderate Muslim point of view.

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*Sources and References: (All the sources are available on the web)

• Answers.com
• Nehal El-Hadi’s Islam and the Nature of the Universe. June 2, 2005
• Islam Online Website: www.islamonline.net
• University of Haverford, Department of Religions: Massacre of Srebrenica
  
• Khaled el Aswar’s The Incorrect Image of Islam in the Western Media, The International Politics Journal, issue January 2002.
• Islam: Definition and General Information 08/07/2002

Special thanks to the great efforts of Ms. Noha Bayoumi to bring this article to light.