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24 Rajab 1437 A.H.- May 1, 2016 Issue # 18, Newsletter #1652



Hadith of the Week

When the Prophet, pbuh, Passed Away .....
The Prophet, pbuh, was Nearest to Aisha, r.a., Loved Personal Cleanliness even at the end, Prayed to meet the best people in the Other World.


Narrated Aisha: 'Abdur-Rahman bin Abu Bakr entered upon the Prophet while I was supporting the Prophet on my chest. 'AbdurRahman had a fresh Siwak then and he was cleaning his teeth with it. Allah's Apostle looked at it, so I took the Siwak, cut it (chewed it with my teeth), shook it and made it soft (with water), and then gave it to the Prophet who cleaned his teeth with it. I had never seen Allah's messenger cleaning his teeth in a better way. After finishing the brushing of his teeth, he lifted his hand or his finger and said thrice, "O Allah! Let me be with the highest companions," and then died. 'Aisha used to say, "He died while his head was resting between my chest and chin."

(Sahih Bukhari, Book 59, Hadith 722)




 Personal Note

This made my day.
A blessing from Allah! From Guatemala!

[Central America.]
by Kaukab Siddique

After juma on April 29, I entered a Muslim store to buy halal chicken.

First surprise! The manager was from Guatemala though the owner of the store is Pakistani.

The wonder of it is that the manager is a convert to Islam. He and his wife and child embraced Islam while he was still in Guatemala. It was a hard core Christian community with no Muslim for miles.

His family is still in Guatemala.

I was going to tell him that I can give him the Quran in Spanish which Br. Solano [Hispanic activist] gave me. It was as if he read my mind. He said, I have the Qur'an in Spanish.

During our conversation, before I left with halal chicken, he said he can give the Quran to a couple of Spanish speakers if I have two extra copies.

The shop also has CDs of the entire Qur'an with English translation and another with Urdu translation. [I took one of each. No charge. Donation by a Muslim shopper!]

Such a gentleman. May Allah bless him and his family.




 ViewPoint

Viewpoint:

In Baltimore, on the anniversary of the Uprising, Things Remain the same.
by Kaukab Siddique

April 27. The more things change, the more they remain the same, as the saying goes.

A year after the death of Freddy Gray in police custody and the outrage and uprising which followed, we notice the following:

No one on the police force has been convicted.

Right on the date of the anniversary, a Black youth was shot.

Police brutality is commonplace and is no longer news. It is carried out more scientifically with deniability.

The oppressed communities, mostly Black and poor, have not seen any considerable improvements in their lives.

Massive funds are available but they are being directed towards developments for the upper segments of society.

Gentrification is going on apace, with the broken down and derelict structures in the poorer areas becoming money makers for corporate entities.

Citizens are encouraged to go to gambling places, casinos, night clubs. Liquor is easily available. The plague of heroin seems to be unstoppable.

The relations of the upper classes with Israel and the Jewish lobby are flourishing with millions of dollars being siphoned off for Zionist interests.

The Black elites and the mega churches seem to be complicit with the oppression and exploitation of the masses. The uprising has been used by the rich Blacks to proclaim their own leadership.

Some Muslims are working to help the needy but the big mosques have nothing to say about or against the ongoing oppression because it would involve criticism of Zionism and Israel.

The struggle continues.

Political Prisoners :

AhmedAbdelSattar.org

FreeZiyadYaghi.info

FreeMasoudKhan.net





 Book Review

Book Review: Background Study
by: Mantaqi

Why is the Muslim World facing alien ideas of homosexuality, abortion and Break up of Families?

The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order
Author: Samuel P. Huntington

Mr. Huntington's book is excellent in the manner the author's arguments are laid out. He is honest, straightforward and does not shy away from the truth, even if it is painful. The book does have a point of view, and despite his honesty, Mr. Huntington is not a neutral observer, but rather a partisan of the West.

According to Mr. Huntington, the post-Cold War world order is multi-civilizational and multipolar. Since 1500, for four hundred years, a multi-polar world existed, with the nation sates of one civilization, namely the West, supplying all the main actors.

After the collapse of the Soviet Union, there were some hubristic utterings by some deluded commentators who proclaimed the end of history. They meant that the human development has reached its final stage, which is liberal democracy. The events since then have forcefully refuted this foolishness.

Mr. Huntington states in his book that in the new world order, the clash would be between civilizations, usually at the fault lines between two civilizations. Furthermore, he is of the opinion that the Western hegemony is going to fade, as other civilizations become more assertive.

Huntington identifies the following distinct civilizations:
  1. Western.

  2. Latin American.

  3. African.

  4. Islamic.

  5. Sinic (Chinese).

  6. Hindu.

  7. Orthodox.

  8. Buddhist.

  9. Japanese.

Except for Latin American, African, and Islamic civilizations, all others have one or more core states. In case of Japan, the core state and the civilization are one and the same.

The populace of the Islamic civilization has a great sense of belonging to one Umma (the global Islamic community). However, during the last two hundred years they were systematically conquered and divided up by the Western powers.

The coup de grace was delivered after World War I, when the remnants of the Ottoman Empire were divided up in mini-statelets, whose rulers were totally subservient to their Western masters. These regimes have matured into "bunker regimes", which rule their unwilling masses through torture, coercion, bribery, massive violence and state terrorism against their own people.

In this they are aided by miniscule elites, which are totally alienated from their own culture and traditions, and owe allegiance to foreign powers. The armed forces and security services of these regimes have proven to be singularly feeble while defending the sovereignty and territorial integrity of these states, but have proven to be capable and efficient in terrorizing their own civilian populace. The ultimate guarantor of these regimes is the West.

This state of affairs, combined with an absence of a core state which can "gather" these nations, and protect the people from internal repression and external aggression has led to a state of endemic violence, unrest and repression. This situation has begun to de-stabilize the established world order.

The civilization which is at the zenith of its power at the present time is the Western civilization. It has a penchant of presenting its own values as "global values" of a "global civilization."

So we see that the immense power and prestige of the West being used to impose and force homosexuality (in the guise of gay/human rights), abortion and promiscuousness (in the guise of reproductive rights of women), and break-up of traditional families (in the guise empowerment of women), on civilizations which consider such behavior as anathema.

Huntington warned against this folly very pithily by saying "In the emerging world of ethnic conflict, and civilizational clash, Western belief in the universality of Western culture suffers three problems: it is false; it is immoral; and it is dangerous." Unfortunately, foolish politicians and demagogues, drunk with hubris and arrogance, backed by an uninformed and delusionary populace have embarked on the very same path of folly, against which Huntington warned in his book. Thus, once again humanity has to suffer because of the delusions of a few.




 Local Outreach



Jamaat al-Muslimeen Activity at Biggest Baltimore Mosque: 100 Muslims Reached.

On April 29, after juma', , at Masjid Rahmah, in West Baltimore, a 4-page multi-colored document was given to 100 Muslims. most of them Pakistanis, India, Arab countries, some Africans and some African Americans.

This is a growing community with more than 500 people in attendance. The children's school seems to be a great success. Owing to the expenses of the fancy building, fund raising is the biggest activity here. Most people leave right away after prayers, so the organizers focus on getting the people to stay and participate.

The khatib [preacher] violated the Sunnah by using a big chunk of his sermon for fund raising. Using a captive audience to squeeze them for money is definitely not Islamic. It's like the behavior of churches. Fortunately Masjid Rahmah has not started passing the hat around [yet.]

The masjid is zero on political issues and the suffering of the Muslim ummah. Hence Jamaat al-Muslimeen's message was exactly fitting for the political vacuum.

The 4-pager given to 100 contained these items:

Justice for Shifa: Event in Atlanta for a Bangladeshi Muslim unjustly stuck in a US prison.

Rally in NY for Ahmed Ferahi, an Algerian prisoner in Attica treated so badly that he tried to kill himself.

Islam is a complete way of life including politics & spirituality. Do you know Jinns? [Kaukab Siddique]

On keeping one's word. [Imam Badi Ali.]

Islamic State trying to enter Damascus. Hizbullah-Russian advance on Aleppo failed. [Reuters, AP etc.]

Palestinians demonstrate for 7000 prisoners held by Israel. [Media monitor]
One Woman's witness: Authentic hadith and Sura 24.

8. Movement for the rights of Sunni prisoners in Iran, many facing execution. [Special report]




 Egypt

Islamic scholar forgives CIA woman though he endured torture.

Abu Omar is an Egyptian scholar who was abducted by the CIA from Italy after 9.11 and handed to Egyptian police who beat him and tortured him and mistreated him. He was released later.

Italy went after the CIA agents but they had fled. They were sentenced in absentia. One of them, a woman, is stuck in Portugal awaiting extradition to Italy.

Abu Omar says he has forgiven her as she was only doing the orders of higher ups and he thinks a woman should not be mistreated . He wants her to be able to meet her mother in India though he was denied seeing his dying mother by the Egypt regime. He wants top officials to be tried.




 Libya

13 Egyptian Migrants and 3 Libyan Smugglers killed in shooting in Bani Walid.
Gaddafi Ruined Libya though Admirers still Adore him.
Why are Egyptians
fleeing to Libya?

[New Trend media monitor]

April 27. Egyptian migrants killed three Libyan smugglers in Bani Walid and tried to flee with the bodies.

They were caught by police and then attacked by another smuggler who killed 13 of them.

Libya looks chaotic. For 40 years Gaddafi ruled Libya and turned it into a pressure cooker for the human sprit.

Finally the people rose against him and he slaughtered them. He kept killing for 30 days and his tanks were advancing on Benghazi to carry out a final blood bath when the western powers intervened.

They stopped the tanks but then they kept on bombing till they destroyed Libya's infrastructure.

Gaddafi did not understand that dictatorship cannot continue forever. The western powers did not realize that Gaddafi had tried but had failed to crush the Islamic spirit.

There is chaos in Libya, seemingly but 40 years of tyranny will lead to at least 10 years of chaos. The groups in power in Tripoli in the West and Tobruk in the east identify with Islam. In between at Sirte, the Islamic State has emerged.

The West still has influence in Libya but its push on the two main groups to move against IS has been rejected.

The West has a general Haftar who has been on the rampage for a year.

Egyptians are flooding into Libya, trying to get to Europe. Evidently General Sissi's regime in Cairo has failed to provide for Egyptians and they are leaving even without a war.




 Bangladesh

Tragic End of US-backed Attempt to introduce Homosexual Magazine in Bangladesh.
Al-Qaida Took Responsibility.

[Source: The Guardian, UK .]

On April 25, six men entered an apartment in central Dhaka, Bangladesh, and hacked a man to death who started the country's first LGBT magazine. His companion was also killed. Both were self proclaimed "gays." Their deaths created a stir all the way up to Washington, DC. As the photo below shows, one of them, Mannan, worked for the US government and was close to the US ambassador. Here is how the daily Guardian of UK described it:

"the latest killings, were on Monday night, of Xulhaz Mannan, editor of the country's only lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender magazine (LGBT), and Mahbub Rabbi Tonoy, an actor and fellow gay rights activist. Critics have accused the Awami League government of failing to act effectively to stop the carnage.

"It is shocking that no one has been held to account for these horrific attacks and that almost no protection has been given to threatened members of civil society," said Amnesty International's Champa Patel, reacting to the four killings so far this month.
 Xulhaz Manna

Founder of Bangladesh's first and only LGBT magazine killed

Xulhaz Mannan hacked to death in country where several academics and bloggers have been brutally murdered.

John Kerry, the US secretary of state, echoed the criticism, along with other western leaders."

[Champa Patel, of Amnesty, is a Hindu name.]

According to the Guardian, al-Qaida has issued statement paraphrased here: "the banned group Ansar al-Islam, the Bangladeshi branch of al-Qaida on the Indian subcontinent, claimed responsibility on Tuesday for killing the two gay rights activists in what it called a "blessed attack".

It said the two were killed because they were "pioneers of practising and promoting homosexuality in Bangladesh" and were "working day and night to promote homosexuality ... with the help of their masters, the US crusaders and its Indian allies".

Earlier, an English professor from Rajshahi visiting Dhaka was similarly murdered. He is accused to be an atheist who was going from village to village setting up music centers.

The latest is that a Hindu who blasphemed against the Prophet, pbuh, was killed on April 30 in the city of Tangail.

[New Trend's view is that the regime crushed the peaceful Jamaate Islami movement and the vacuum has been filled by al-Qaida and the Islamic State.]




 Palestine

Meet Janna, 10-Year old Palestinian Journalist Recording Israeli Atrocities
alJazeera.com/news/2016/04/janna-jihad-meet-palestine-10-year-journalist-160426132139682.html




RESEARCH

 Dr Kaukab Siddique

Weak Translation of Hadith Misleads Readers: A Comment on the Meaning of 'Aql and Jariya. Two Reasons why Women's Rights are Misunderstood by Muslims.
by Kaukab Siddique, PhD

In his translation of Sahih Bukhari, Dr.Muhsin Khan translates hadith number 826 (in volume 3, section XVII, on Witnesses) as follows: "Narrated Abu Sa'id Al-Khudri. The Prophet said: 'Isn't the witness of a woman equal to half of that of a man?' The Women said, 'Yes'. He said, "This is because of the deficiency of a woman's mind." The Arabic is fazalika min nuqsan-e-aqaleha which should be translated as: "That is owing to her lack of understanding." The translation of 'Aql as "mind" is incorrect. The term "mind" is a platonic concept which refers to innate ability. 'Aql is the word for understanding, sense and wisdom which is acquired through experience and development of educational abilities. The mind is fixed and unchanging; Understanding can be developed. The term "mind" has to do with the idea that some people are born with intelligence and some are not: In its essence it is a racist concept.

We can try to define the meaning of the word "aql" by looking at its usage in the Qur'an. It is used to refer to an ability which learns from observation and which works though experiencing the wonders of God's creation:

And of His signs is this: He shows you the lightning for a fear and a hope, and sends down water from the sky, and thereby quickens the earth after its death. Surely in that are signs for people of understanding (liqaumin-yyaqiloon).
The Qur'an 30:24

And the difference of night and day and the provision that Allah sends down from the sky and thereby quickens the earth after her death, and the ordering of the winds, are signs for people of understanding (liqaumin-yyaqiloon).

Sura 45:5

These verses are meant for the general audience of the Qur'an. Anyone who is willing to use his understanding and look at the heavens and the earth can perceive the underlying power which makes the universe possible. These verses are not aimed at some special elite which has a "mind" which others lack. Certainly women are not excluded from the audience of these verses. No honest commentator would be able to claim that the signs of God mentioned in these verses are not available to women because women are deficient in their "minds"! Any person, man or woman, can perceive the ayat (signs) of Allah and arrive at conclusions about God's Oneness, Creativity, Power, and Nurturing Love.

Dr. Muhsin Khan has made a major blunder. He did not realize that the holy Prophet was actually urging the women to gain understanding. He was not saying that they are deficient by nature and will always remain so! When a teacher says to a student: Your understanding of the book is weak, you are deficient in your analysis; think, don't cheat, etc; the teacher is actually urging the student to gain the understanding which he/she lacks. Islam came to educate people, to raise them from out of the marshes of ignorance, not to condemn them.

If Dr. Muhsin Khan had looked at other hadith in the same chapter of Bukhari's Sahih, he would have realized two things:

  1. The holy Prophet did not reject the witness of one woman even as opposed to a man's.

  2. He did not think that women are deficient in their minds.


In hadith number 827 and 828 we are told that the holy Prophet abrogated a marriage on the basis of ONE WOMAN'S WITNESS who had testified that in their infancy she had suckled both the husband and the wife. The narration indicates that the male narrator did not want to accept the woman's witnessing but the holy Prophet would not countenance his hesitation. (Incidentally the woman was black and a slave from the Era of Ignorance, which also indicates the revolutionary Islamic concepts of equality of all races and peoples along with equality of male and female.)

Further on in the same chapter of Bukhari's Sahih, we have a lengthy narration of the slander which was spread against hazrat 'Ayesha (radi Allahu unha) by the hypocrites. In the narration we find hazrat Ali urging the holy Prophet to ask for one woman's witness and the holy Prophet going through the process of asking one woman without saying that two women are required. (The Qur'an then confirmed this witnessing by affirming the noble character of the blessed 'Ayesha.) The words of the narration are:

"'Ali ibn Abi Talib said: O messenger of Allah! Allah has not put restrictions on you, and there are many women other than she; yet you may ask the young woman (Barera) and she will tell you the truth. On that the messenger of Allah, peace and blessing of Allah be on him, called Barera and asked her: 'O Barera! Did you ever see anything which raised your suspicion? Barera said: No. By Allah who has sent you with the Truth, I have never seen anything wrong in her except that she is young and sometimes sleeps after having kneaded the dough and the goat comes and eats it. On that day the messenger of Allah, peace and blessings of Allah be on him, stood up to give the khutba and asked the people to support him against Abdullah ibn Ubayy ibn Salul. The messenger of Allah said: Who will support me against that person who has hurt me in the matter of my family? By Allah I know nothing but good about my family, and they have accused a man about whom I know nothing except good and he never entered my house except in my company."

Those who have read their hadith books carefully know that Barera was a freed slave woman. In fact, she had been freed by hazrat 'Ayesha and used to spend her time with hazrat 'Ayesha as her companion, friend, and helper. In both hadith the witness of one woman is accepted by the Prophet, and the question of their 'deficient mind' is not raised. The reason for acceptance was that Islamic education had given women mental maturity and understanding. By the time the slander against hazrat 'Ayesha occurred, the Muslim community had strengthened its roots. When the verse about two female witnesses was revealed in Sura al-Baqarah, the Islamic community had just begun in Medina. Our male commentators have built their weak position on Sura al-Baqarah while completely ignoring Surat un-Noor where hazrat 'Ayesha's example was used by Allah to indicate the equality of males and females before the Law for all times to come.

Dr. Muhsin Khan has also slipped in his translation of the word jariya. He translates it as "woman-servant" which though better than laundi (female slave), as some Urdu language translators put it, is still off the mark. The word jariya simply means a young woman or girl. Barera was not a slave or a servant. (Bukhari's Sahih attests that the holy Prophet's household did not have a servant, male or female) She had been freed by hazrat 'Ayesha. Somehow Dr. Khan could not see that the word jariya occurs three times in hadith 829 referring to hazrat 'Ayesha herself. (As hazrat 'Ayesha points out, she was a young woman at that time and weighed very little; hence the camel driver did not know if she was sitting in the curtained seat atop the camel or not and moved on without her.) Thank goodness that Dr. Khan does not claim that hazrat 'Ayesha was a slave girl too! I hope he will look up the story of Barera and find out that she had been freed. (Freed slaves often lived with those who had freed them in a system of wilayya because they had no family systems of their own.)

I am not trying to condemn all of Dr. Khan's translation. Readers however should notice how many different factors can come in to create misgivings and misunderstanding about Hadith. We all have much to learn. Those who are translating holy books into English are often very deficient in their English; however, they are not willing to face the fact that they are deficient in their understanding of English. Inshallah, we can learn from each other. Let them tell us where we make mistakes in Arabic, and let them listen to us where we point out their mistakes in English. The language of the people is an essential vehicle for the dissemination of a message. The Qur'an was revealed in Arabic to a people who spoke Arabic. Similarly, Islam in America must be conveyed by people who can speak and understand the idiom of the American people.

"And if We had sent the Qur'an in a foreign tongue, they would have surely said: if only its verses were expounded (so that we might understand). What! I foreign tongue and an Arab?--Say to them (O Muhammad): For those who believe it is a Guidance and a healing; and as for those who disbelieve, there is deafness in their ears, and it is blindness for them. Such are called to from afar. "

The Qur'an 41:44




MAHMUDAH INSTITUTE

Mahmudah Institute of Wellness and Mindful Living holds Mindful Running and Walking Event in August, GA April 23rd.
www.mahmudahinstitute.org

 Mahmudah Institute of Wellness and Mindful Living

What is mindful? The word "mind "could be laden with a wealth of meanings. Mindful in our perspective is:



Mindful walking has the following principles:

  1. Wear comfortable non descript clothes. Avoid clothes that take your attention away from the walk. Thus we have provided Tee Shirts in various colors so it is not a dictated uniform and yet it doesn't single anyone out as being ostentatious. Wear comfortable shoes.

  2. Make an intention before you begin your walk to be mindful of yourself, your field with the brain, heart, mind, intellect and intuition and allow your body to follow. Bless your feet and your spirit and of those around you silently before starting

  3. Begin your walk in silence allowing your hearing, seeing and touch senses to override your tongue. Allow gratitude to seep into you as your walk the path. Try to stay silent at least for the first 30 minutes unless there is an emergency.

  4. Do not disturb others, nor react to them if disturbed. This mindful walk is for you; each one of you can best savor it in silence with all other senses ready to receive.

  5. Allow the river of thoughts to come and go like the ripples in the canal and the river that you see on either side of the path.

  6. Teach the above principles to your children and walking buddy before you begin the walk.




PAKISTAN

 Pakistan Flag

Support for Oppressed Muslims in Kashmir and Bangladesh.
India Changing Population of Kashmir with Hindus.
Massive Arrests and Killings of Islamic People in Bangladesh by pro-India Regime.

by Qaiser Sharif

LAHORE, Apr. 29; The central Shoora of the Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, has called upon the government to convene a national conference to formulate an effective policy for the liberation of Kashmir in consultation with the Kashmiri leadership.






Plunderers won't find refuge anywhere says Jamaate Islami Pakistan. Unity with Laborers.

LAHORE, May one; Ameer, Jamaat e Islami, Pakistan, Senator Sirajul Haq, has said that those named in the Panama leaks won't find refuge in the US, London and even in Panama, and added that the JI would chase the plunderers of national wealth everywhere.

He was addressing the kiln workers at Sheikhupura in a show of solidarity with the labourers on May Day. He had lunch with the workers and also talked to the media on the occasion.

Sirjaul Haq said that whenever there was demand for the recovery of the looted money, voices were raised that democracy was in danger. He however added that the JI was not against democracy, it was only against loot and plunder.

The JI chief appealed to the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court to head the enquiry Commission in order to steer the country out of the present crisis because the nation did not have confidence in anybody else.

He said that those who ruling the country had their hearts in London and Panama and added that the workers would have to rise against the prevailing system based on tyranny and exploitation.

"If the rulers want to shed off the extra fat on their body, they should spend a few days with the workers instead of visiting London," he remarked. He asked federal and provincial ministers what steps they had taken for the welfare of the workers so far.

Sirajul Haq said that the country was being run by international thieves who were transferring abroad the money by the workers through hard labour. He said that those hiding their wealth could not be well wishers of the poor.

The JI chief said that some Opposition leaders showing great sympathy with the poor also had offshore companies and said that they too would have to account for their wealth along with the rulers.

He said that those representing the workers did not know even the basic problems of the poor. Secular ladies working for the western NGOs sitting in air conditioned offices claimed to represent the Pakistani women working at kilns and farms.

He said that the common worker lived from hand to mouth even after working round the clock whereas the rulers living on public taxes gave more importance to their horses and pet dogs than the poor labourers.

He said that the constitution ensured provision of basic necessities of life to every citizen but the workers and labourers did not get basic health and education for their children.

Sirajul Haq demanded that minimum pay for a worker be Rs. Twenty thousand and minimum pension for industrial workers should be Rs. Ten thousand in view of the prevailing price level.

The JI chief was given a rousing welcome on reaching Sheikhupura.

JI Secretary General, Liaqat Baloch expressed solidarity with the workers by having breakfast with the labourers at Akbar Chowk. Speaking on the occasion, he demanded that the common workers should be given the facility of social security.

Released by Media Cell, JIP, Mansoora, Lahore.




Jamaate Islami Central Committee Supports People of Aleppo [Syria], Palestine and Egypt.

LAHORE, May one; The central Shoora of the Jamaat e Islami has strongly condemned the indiscriminate bombings in Syrian city of Halab causing large scale killings.

While castigating the double standards of the world community headed by the US the Shoora has appealed to the UN and the humanity lovers to play their role in stopping the killings in Syria. It demanded that an emergent meeting of the UN Security Council be convened to end this bloodshed.

The Shoora deplored that the forces of Bashar al Asad and his allies were targeting the citizens, mosques and hospitals. It said that if such bloodshed had been going on in some non Muslim country, the whole world would have been up against it. It noted that according to the UN estimates, around four lakh people had been martyred in Syria while more than 15 million had been forced to flee to the neighbouring countries.

The Shoora saluted the Turkish government's humanitarian steps on this issue, and appealed the entire Muslim Ummah and the world community to take immediate measures for solving the problems facing the Syrian refugees.

The Shoora also slated the latest Zionist activities including fresh Jewish settlements in Palestine and mass detentions of Palestinian children , It appealed to the Muslim states to break their criminal silence on the issue and help end the atrocities of the Zionists on the Palestinians under siege in Gaza.

The Shoora also condemned the atrocities going on in Egypt under Gen. Sisi for the last three years and resolved to continue moral support to the oppressed Egyptian brethren on Islamic human grounds. It saluted the determination of the Akhwans facing Sisi's atrocities.

The Shoora expressed concern over the bloodshed going on in Iraq since the advance of the US forces in 2003. It urged the Iraqi masses to foil the international agenda to break their country. It urged the Iraqi government to allow equal rights to all citizens, reject all foreign pressure and restore the people's confidence in it.

 Women Elected to Jamaate Islami's Central Committee

Women Elected to Jamaate Islami's Central Committee [Shoora] [Photo]




War News

 War News

Syria

Alawite-Shia-Russia Air Strikes on Hospital in Aleppo. Preparation for Major Assault by Hizbullah-Iran-Alawites

MSF says deadly air strike hit Aleppo hospital.

At least 14 patients and three doctors have been killed in an air strike on a hospital in the Syrian city of Aleppo, the charity Medecins sans Frontieres (MSF) says. Among those killed in the MSF-supported al-Quds hospital was one of the city's last paediatricians, MSF said.

Local sources blamed Syrian or Russian war planes. The Syrian military has denied targeting the hospital. Monitors say attacks by both sides left 34 dead and dozens wounded on Thursday. Violence in Syria, and particularly in Aleppo, has intensified in recent days, despite a partial truce.

The International Committee of the Red Cross says Aleppo is on the brink of a humanitarian disaster. The upsurge in violence comes amid reports that the Syrian army, backed by Russian air power, is gearing up for a major offensive on the city.

The escalation has threatened to derail UN-brokered peace talks in Geneva, which resumed last month. On Wednesday, the UN envoy to Syria urged the US and Russia to intervene "at the highest level" to save the talks.

'Just crumbled'

 MSF-supported hospital in Aleppo

"MSF-supported hospital in Aleppo destroyed, at least 14 patients and staff killed, toll expected to rise," MSF tweeted on Thursday.

It said that the hospital was well-known locally and had been hit by a direct air strike on Wednesday.

"We condemn the destruction of the al-Quds hospital, depriving people of essential healthcare," the charity said. An activist at the scene, named Zuhair, told the BBC that buildings around the hospital were also hit.

"It was an air strike by two rockets, heavy rockets from [a] Russian air strike," he said.

"Near the hospital one building on five floors just crumbled and just crashed down, and we don't know how many dead will be under these ruins."

The Syrian military denied targeting the hospital.

 MSF-supported hospital in Aleppo

An MSF representative, Aitor Zabalgogeazkoa, told the BBC that the paediatrician who died was Mohammed Wasim Moaz, who had worked at the hospital since 2013.

Mr Zabalgogeazkoa said: "He kept it going, was always there and always worried about the needs of the people. He was honest and very committed. He worked in conditions you cannot even begin to imagine."

Rami Abdurahman, head of the monitoring group the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights, told the BBC that Dr Moaz, 36, was the last paediatrician in the rebel-held part of Aleppo and another was to be sent on Thursday to take his place.




Syria

Deluge of Bombs on Aleppo: Massacre of Civilians, including women and children, and Slaughter of FSA Resistance Fighters.

Assad's Shiite-Hizbullah-Alawite forces Still Unable to Advance, Suffer Heavy Casualties.

[Sources : Human Rights observatory, Reuters, the Guardian, Syrian regime propaganda.]

Daily bombing of Muslim areas of Aleppo by Russian jets, Assad's air force and helicopters, and shelling by long range artillery has destroyed the city's civilian facilities including hospitals, mosques, waterworks, electricity and bakeries. The city's Islamic resistance forces, mostly factions of the FSA, have suffered heavily but are still functional enough to stop the entry of Assad's forces into Aleppo.

United Nations' calls for cease fire were ignored by Assad and the Russians who claimed they were only bombing "terrorists."

USA actually appears to have tricked FSA factions by bringing about cease fire through Russia in Lattakia and around Damascus. It helped Assad to release forces from these areas to add to the push against Aleppo.
However by May 1 when the Hizbullah-Iranian advance on Aleppo faltered again, Assad started bombing around Damascus, Hama and Idlib again.

The Syrian Observatory has computed these figures for civilian deaths caused by Russian-Assad-Hizbullah-Shiite attacks in the 30 days of April:

A total of 859 Muslim civilians, including 143 persons under the age of 18, and 118 citizen women above the age of 18 were killed as follows:



Muslim resistance factions, mostly FSA who are pro-West, also suffered heavily including more than 700 killed. It could have been a wipe out but al-Nusra and ISIS are holding back Assad's forces from the south and the east. [Unfortunately they also oppose each other.]

Assad's forces, mostly Alawites from Lattakia, Shias from Iraq and Afghanistan, Hizbullah from Lebanon and Iranian and Russian "advisers," could not advance and suffered heavy losses at the hands of Nusra and ISIS mujahideen including about 500 killed.

ISIS has advanced again in the Yarmouk camp corridor to Damascus and Deir ez-Zour [south east Syria] but could not break out owing to Russian air strikes.

The Muslim factions FSA defending Aleppo tried to retaliate for the Assadi bombing by firing rockets, mortars and heavy machine guns into segments of the city controlled by Alawites and YPG Kurdish Communists killing scores of civilians.

Fighting is also reported for two weeks from Qamishli in the extreme north east of Syria between Assad's garrison there and Communist Kurds [who control most of the city] with losses on both sides.




News Within the U.S.

 News within the US

New York

How Racist Ideology Plays out in America: Officer given Probation and Community Service for taking a Life.
by Sis. Aisha [Jamaat al-Muslimeen]

As expected, officer Peter Liang was given a light sentence for taking a life. The Asian judge, who presided over the trial, sentenced Ex-cop Liang to 5 years probation and 800 hours community service. The Black prosecutor, Kenneth Thompson, gave this Asian judge an opening to give a light sentence. Asians are a very small percentage of the American population and it is very odd that an Asian judge was assigned to this case involving an Asian officer. These are one of the instances that lead people to understand that this outcome was planned all along. Criminal trials involving police misconduct are never left to a jury decide. Everything is mapped out between their defense attorneys, the prosecutors, and the judges. The Black community be d--ned!

Micheal Greys, one of the panelists on the popular show Community Cop, questioned if the Asian Community would have been as vocal against officer Liang's being charged and convicted had he killed a White person? Greys, a former corrections officer, does not believe that would have been the case. White supremacy is a world wide phenomenon and it has affected the psyche of many people from different cultures. Many people do not respect Black life or the life of their own people when compared to White people. But, Black people are on the bottom of the racist hierarchy. Racist hierarchy: You have White (Caucasian), Yellow (Central Asian), Red (Native American), Brown (Latino), Black (Africa/Southeast Asian). White supremacy is the root of racism and rules have been created to make the illusion of White supremacy appear real. Many cultures all over the world have learned and promoted this man-made social structure. Allah plays no role in this at all. It is a shame how people give other people power to humiliate and oppress them.

The truth is that the police force, all over America, has been militarized and activists, who are aware of it, have been trying to alert the general public for years. The police can be seen wielding their might against citizens at these World Trade Conferences or any other political event. No community will be spared when it is decided that will be the norm for everyone, including assaults and killings with impunity. Racism continues to be a successful tool for division in Western society, especially America.




New York
Jahar: Short Film Review

An Alternative View of the Alleged Marathon Bomber. Loyalty or Treachery? Did he do it?

by Karin Friedemann [Boston]

On Saturday, April 23, 2016 I attended the Tribeca Film Festival in New York City to see the 13 minute student film entitled, "Jahar" at the Bow Tie Cinema in the neighborhood of Chelsea.
TribecaFilm.com/filmguide/jahar-2016

"In the days after the Boston Marathon bombing, a young man must come to terms with the fact that one of his friends is involved," reads the blurb on the Film Fest schedule. The director, Henry Hayes, was born and raised in Cambridge, MA. He moved to New York in 2011 to attend NYU's Tisch School of the Arts. He now lives in Brooklyn and works as a commercial editor.

The screenwriters were Zolan Kanno-Youngs and Henry Hayes. The cast was only four actors: Devante Lawrence, Andre Ozim, Andrew Raia, and Alberto Rosende.

The film starts out with the young men watching the TV news, which is announcing Dzhokhar Tsarnaev and his brother Tamerlan as the Boston Marathon bombers. Then it cuts to "Two Years Earlier." Jahar is portrayed as a short, dorky white guy, even though in reality he is over 6 feet tall. He is shown in high school being ridiculed. "What kind of name is Dzhokhar?"

His friend defends him, saying, "His name is Jahar." His friends, two black and one white, treat Jahar in an inclusive, yet condescending way. "That's my nigga right there," says "Mo" as they hang out in the basketball court smoking blunts. "That's my boy, my brother." They also call him "Jizz," which Jahar was clearly not comfortable about. Their conversation is vacuous.

In Jahar's mother's version of events, Tamerlan told her he was on his way to pick up Jahar from school, when the police started chasing them. In this film version of events, Jahar gets a call on his cell phone after his friends asked him for a ride somewhere. "Sorry, I got to go help my brother," he says. "Help him with what?" they ask. "I don't know," Jahar answers and leaves.

Without any transition, the film cuts to the three friends minus Jahar standing back on the basketball court in communal shock, contemplating what had just happened.
Only Jahar's friend, "Mo" was loyal. "Who was the one who drove us all home that night after the party? Eight drunk guys and one in the trunk and he was able to get us past the police. We know him," Mo insisted. The "Mo" character is supposed to be the screenwriter, Zolan.

But the other friend says, "I don't know man. Do we really know him?"

"That's our boy, that's our nigga," Mo continues to insist.

The film ends with the FBI asking Mo, "What was he like?"

After the film, native New Yorker Karina asked the director and artists if deep down inside they may think he's innocent? Any time in their mind did they ever think he was framed?

"They both said no they do not think he's framed, they believe he's guilty, and both looked at me like I had 10 heads. Rude, and clearly ignorant, making a film without any real research into the case," Kitty told NT. "I'm pissed at the producers who are so arrogant... They loving the success of this while their "friend" is on death row for something he didn't do."

Whether he was innocent or guilty, one would expect more personal concern from true friends. It was a very disappointing reaction, since the movie was actually quite moving regarding the one friend's defense of Jahar. It made me think a lot about loyalty.

Clearly, these young men were capitalizing off the fact that they knew the Boston Bomber in high school, without engaging in any character development or political challenge. The film seems quickly thrown together rather than deeply thought out. It only made the festival due to the high profile content. The line-up for the Question and Answer session had more participation from the makers of Jahar than from any other producers of short films, which added to my impression that the film was receiving special treatment. Zolan has now been given a job writing for the Boston Globe, at a time when many writers have been laid off.
"Seems strange that he would be right in with the propaganda media. Maybe that's the deal they offered him if he went along with the official narrative. The look on the actors face playing him at end made you think he got scared at that point," Karina told NT.

It was, on one hand, somewhat daring to stir up sympathy for the accused. However, the filmmakers' demeanor afterwards just made me think of traitors. Because if your friend truly did something like that, you would want to ask him why. Or if you believed he was innocent you would stand by that. The film gave the impression of some students that knew him superficially and decided to make themselves popular by using him.

"What was their point of making the film? For a different perspective? Why do they care about portraying a different perspective if they believe he's guilty? More questions than answers for me," said Nicole, who had driven from Vermont to see the film.




Guantanamo

Portraits of Injustice/Voices of Victims of Repression : Abu Zubaydeh. The Nation (4/25): The CIA Waterboarded the Wrong Man 83 Times in 1 Month.

[A good lesson for those who think the CIA runs the World -- NT Editor]

None of the allegations against Abu Zubaydeh turned out to be true. That didn't stop the CIA from torturing him for years. He had the dubious luck to be the subject of a number of CIA "firsts": the first post-9/11 prisoner to be waterboarded; the first to be experimented on by psychologists working as CIA contractors; one of the first of the Agency's "ghost prisoners". And as far as we know, he is still in solitary detention in Guantánamo.

National Coalition to Protect Civil Freedoms
P.O. Box 66301
Washington, D.C. 20035

2016-05-01 Sun 22:43:49 ct

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