Obama chooses Muslim haters as his advisors

Recently Obama's appointment of Rahm Emanuel as Chief of Staff has raised consternation amongst Arab nations. Emanuel is an avid Israeli supporter. He holds an Israeli passport and joined the Israeli army reserve during the first Gulf War in the early 1990s. A prominent Israeli newspaper, Maariv described Mr. Emanuel's appointment as "our man in the White House". No less has been attention attracted by Sonal Shah's appointment as an advisor. Shah and her family have connections with religious Hindu parties including the Bahartia Janta Party (BJP). BJP is well known for its hatred for Muslims and played an instrumental role in the Gujrat massacre in 2002. Both appointments underscore that America will continue to look favorably towards Israel and India, and its position towards the Muslim world is not about to soften.

Minster says Britain's parliament is too white

Harriet Harman, Minister for Women and Equality in Prime Minister Gordon Brown's cabinet, said the British parliament was too white and male to have "sensible" debates on a string of issues. Harman, the Leader of the House of Commons, warned that the legislature would have "no legitimacy" if it is seen as a "narrow and self-serving elite". "We cannot sensibly discuss the veil (in the Commons) when there is no Muslim woman MP; it was impossible to discuss domestic violence when there was 97% men in the Commons," she was quoted as saying by the Evening Standard. It appears that Obama's victory in the US has forced many European countries, especially Britain to restructure their political landscapes and make it more appealing to domestic and international audiences.

Enemy of Muslims praises King Abdullah for his peace initiative

This week at an interfaith meeting at the United Nations, Shimon Peres the enemy of Muslims praised the king of Saudi Arabia for his Middle East peace initiative. "Your Majesty, the king of Saudi Arabia," he said. "I was listening to your message. I wish that your voice will become the prevailing voice of the whole region, of all people. It's right. It's needed. It's promising. The initiative's portrayal of our region's future provides hope to the people and inspires confidence in the nations." Peres was referring to the Saudi peace plan, proposed in 2002, which calls for Israel to withdraw from parts of occupied Palestine in exchange for Arab recognition. Peres's overtures coincide with Israel's inhumane blockade of Gaza. Once again the rulers of Saudi Arabia have betrayed the Palestinians by openly supporting the brutal occupation by the Jewish state. Allah says: "The Jews and Christians will never be pleased with you until you follow their belief".

Russia's constitutional reform points to Putin's return as president

On 13/11/2008 the Times reported that Russia's parliament is rushing through plans to extend the presidential term from four years to six. A constitutional amendment is to be fast-tracked through the Duma, the lower house of parliament, which will vote this week on all three readings of the Bill. Deputies usually take weeks to consider legislation over three readings before passing it into law. The speed of reading is leading to speculation that Vladimir Putin plans a dramatic return to the Kremlin. An unnamed Kremlin adviser was quoted in Vedomosti, a daily business newspaper, last week as saying that the reform was intended to restore Mr. Putin to the presidency as early as next year. He became Prime Minister after selecting Mr. Medvedev to be his successor in elections in March. Under such a scheme Mr. Medvedev would enact the amendment and some unpopular social reforms. He would then resign and call a snap election in 2009 to make way for Putin to return. This would allow Putin to govern for two more terms of six years each, until 2021, allowing him to continue with his aggressive policies against America and the West.

Pakistan raises interest rate to please IMF

On 12/11/2008 the state bank of Pakistan raised its interest rate from 13% to 15%. The rate increase comes at a time when all the major economies in the world are slashing interest rates to save their economies from recession. Pakistan is following in the footsteps of Ukraine and Vietnam; both increased interest rates to qualify for IMF bail out packages. Pakistan does not require the IMF loans to rescue its economy. Rather, Pakistan needs abandon wholesale the capitalist economic solutions it copies from the West and return to Islamic economics. This includes a return to the gold standard, taxation on wealth, restriction on the privatization of public utilities, default on international loans and pursuance of industrialization on a war footing. These solutions can only be implemented through the re-establishment of the Khilafah "Caliphate". The Khilafah "Caliphate" is the only system that will ensure economy self-sufficiency for Pakistan and its people.

What is the current status of Bashir's case on the Darfur issue in the International Court of Justice? Presently one observes a lessening in the acuteness of tensions between Europe & America, does this imply that they are closer to a solution on these issues?

Official Spokesman of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Bangladesh Mohiuddin Ahmed issued a press release today in reaction to the announcement of the schedule for election 2008. In his statement Mohiuddin Ahmed said the current elite, the government system and the election process is a total failure.

Chicago: Bus converts 14 people to Islam.

14 people have accepted Islam while a bus - with a simple sign: "ISLAM" Got Questions? Get Answers! are going around Chicago to inform about Islam. The bus dawah project aims at combating Islamaphobia and prejudices against Islam by encouraging non-Muslims to ask questions. For example, Leslie C. Toole was thinking about becoming a Muslim for 10 years - but he needed something to "push him along". Mr. Toole, the new Muslim, believes that the simple yet stark advert which merely says "Got Questions? Get Answers" is a brilliant way to draw people's attention. "I thought it was a neat idea...I had never seen that before." The bus dawah project also provides every new Muslim with the Shahada package, which includes: A How to Pray DVD, a Help Yourself in Reading the Qur'an book, and brochures on various topics about Islam.

US presidential candidates keep their distance from Muslims

By all accounts Muslims are following the presidential race and planning to vote. That means a good many of approximately 7 million U.S. Muslims - many of whom live in battleground states - will turn out to cast their ballots. But many say they feel disenchanted with both candidates. Neither presidential candidate has made any real efforts to reach out to Muslim and Arab Americans. "The Obama campaign has kept Muslim Americans at arms-length for obvious reasons," says Dr. Moustafa Bayoumi, an associate professor of English at City University of New York-Brooklyn College and author of the recently released book How Does It Feel to Be a Problem: Being Young and Arab in America. The reasons include the distrust and prejudice some Americans feel toward Muslims and Arabs. But while the Obama campaign might try to side-step the Muslim community, the McCain camp is using Islam "as a very destructive and hate-filled way to promote their campaign," says Bayoumi. McCain has said the Constitution established the United States as a Christian nation. Bayoumi says this type of rhetoric alienates anyone belonging to a non-Christian faith: "It's meant to say that there's an ‘us' and there's a ‘them.' At the core of the ‘us' is the Christian Evangelical movement. At the core of the ‘them' are the Muslims." The behavior of both candidates should spur Muslims in America to realize that voting for either candidate is a futile exercise and will not halt America's war against Islam.

UK: Beating radicalization will take 30 years

Recently, Britain's terrorism minister said that it would take 30 years to fully solve problems with the radicalization of young Muslims. Lord Alan West told a committee at London's House of Commons that the U.K. government had a growing understanding of how extremists target teenagers. He also told lawmakers that work to stop young people falling prey to extremists would take around three decades. It is interesting to note that across the world the West is either inflating its estimates to combat Islam or in some cases like Afghanistan has already conceded defeat. Muslims should be buoyed by such developments and should redouble their efforts to re-establish the Khilafah "Caliphate".

Swiss court rejects mixed swimming case

Last week, a Swiss court turned down a request by a Swiss Muslim father to exempt his two sons from attending mixed swimming classes. It argued that exempting students from mixed swimming classes for religious reasons must be very restricted. Equality between the two sexes and the success of the integration process should be given priority over religious considerations, argued the court. The verdict runs counter to a 1993 court ruling which allowed the exemption of a Muslim schoolgirl from attending mixed swimming lessons that violate her religious tents. There are more than 340,000 Muslims in Switzerland, which has a population of 7.4 million.

Exploring cultural heritage with Turkey will not protect Balkan Muslims

This week the future of Balkan Muslims was discussed during Balkan Symposium that was held at Istanbul Grand Cevahir Hotel. For the first time in many years, Chief muftis of Bosnia-Herzegovina, Serbia, Albania, Macedonia, Bulgaria and Greece gathered together at the IHH-organized symposium. Delivering the opening speech, IHH President Bülent Yıldırım said Turkey should strengthen its historical and cultural relations with Muslims in the Balkans again to reassert itself in the region. Yıldırım stated Balkan Muslims have long been neglected and said the symposium aimed to bring up the situation of the Balkans and Balkan Muslims. Global actors are trying to carry out various scenarios in the Balkans, Yıldırım said, adding "Turkey has the potential to prevent global games being played in the Balkans. It could contribute to peace in the region. This is what 12 million Muslims in the Balkans want." On their part the Chief muftis of Balkan countries agreed that Balkan Muslims were made orphans after the retreat of the Ottomans. To redress this situation they suggested that a joint council should be established to probe Ottoman cultural legacy and problems of Balkan Muslims. Only the Khilafah "Caliphate" can protect the Muslims of the Balkans. The messenger (s.a.w) said, "The Imam is a shield behind which the people are protected and behind whom they fight."

Thai Muslims oppressed by the government

Recently, leading a leading human rights group stated that the abuses by the Thai military are forcing Muslims to live in fear in Thailand's Narathiwat province. "Muslims in southern Thailand live in fear of the army storming in to take their men away to be tortured," said Brad Adams, Asia director at the Human Rights Watch. The HRW has recently accused the army and police of using forced disappearances to intimidate Muslims, urging a public government's renunciation of the standard policy. "The army is fighting an insurgency but that doesn't mean soldiers can abuse people," said Adams. "And prosecuting troops for mistreatment could actually help calm the situation and rebuild trust with the Muslim community." Thai Muslims, who make up five percent of the predominantly Buddhist kingdom's population, have long complained of heavy-handed practices by the military in the South. Narathiwat, Pattani and Yala are the only Muslim-majority provinces in Thailand and were an independent Muslim sultanate until annexed officially a century ago.