ROTTERDAM, January 14 -- It's an interesting controversy. And useful to understand the stubborn dynamics of Islamist thinking. The topic being whether Muslims, as the hadith commands, should respectfully mourn the dead (The hadith says: "... even if the deceased had notoriety for being an evildoer Prophet Mohammed said they should be remembered [or mentioned] with benevolence...), the controversy, once again, shed light to one of the pillars of political Islam: discourtesy for the "other," because the "other" is the "infidel" who does not deserve benevolence – even when dead. Yeni Akit, a daily newspaper and a more-than-staunch supporter of President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan, is widely known with its militant Islamist past and present. One of its common journalistic practices is to curse any deceased whom the newspaper deems infidel/Zionist/traitor/terrorist/crusader plus you name it; practically categorised as "anyone who does not think, believe and practice like we do." After the recent death of a theatre actress, known with her secular views, Yeni Akit returned to its Islamist journalistic book of rules and followed the pattern. In protest, Hürriyet columnist Ahmet Hakan, himself a former Islamist, reminded Yeni Akit of the hadith that commands Muslims to respect the dead. "Always remember your dead with benevolence." This columnist, always curious about the intellectual codes of Islamist thinking, enthusiastically waited for an explanation from Yeni Akit. If these Islamists are so grossly violating a well-known hadith they should have an explanation – and least to convince themselves, if not the others. And they always have an explanation. Yeni Akit's reply to Mr Hakan came a day after, and it offered us non-Islamist souls [infidels, in Islamist lexicon] a fascinating opportunity to further decipher political Islam and the age-old question of why political Islam is about rage, not peace. Yeni Akit's editorial response to Mr Hakan essentially argued that: Yes, there is the hadith that commands Muslims to respect "your dead." And we do so. About "our dead," Yeni Akit explained, explicitly telling Mr Hakan that "the other dead are not our dead." So, in this thinking the Islamists have "their dead and other dead" and they are not obliged to respect the other dead. Fine, gentlemen, do remember your dead with benevolence and ours with curses and blasphemy. Your shy, subtle appeals to the civilised world that "political Islam is well compatible with universal norms of democracy" look more and more ridiculous.
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PARIS, Januari 12 -- A powerful explosion occurred in the central district of Paris on Saturday morning, police confirmed. Reports say several people were injured, while a suspected car bomb is believed to have caused the blast. The explosion took place on the Rue de Trevise, causing fire and chaos on the adjacent streets, local witnesses and journalists report. Pictures and videos posted online show plumes of smoke and flames slowly consuming one of the buildings. Witnesses on the ground say many still need medical assistance. BAGHDAD, Januari 11 -- The US-led military coalition in Syria has begun the process of withdrawing troops from Syria, a US military official said Friday, declining to comment on specific timetables or movements. Col. Sean Ryan, spokesman for the coalition fighting the Islamic State group, said the US started “the process of our deliberate withdrawal from Syria.” “Out of concern for operational security, we will not discuss specific time lines, locations or troops movements,” he said in a statement emailed to The Associated Press. MANBIJ, January 8 -- Russian military police have started patrolling the surroundings of the northern Syrian city of Manbij in the Aleppo governorate, near the border with Syria. "Today we started patrolling the security zone near the city of Manbij and its surroundings. The task is to ensure safety within the zone of responsibility, to control the positions and movement of armed groups," he said. The route of military police patrols will change regularly. According to Mamatov, during their missions Russian servicemen are receiving reports from local residents about weapons caches and unexploded ordnances left after the region’s occupation by militants. Following the US decision to withdraw troops from Syria, groups of Kurdish Self-Defense Forces requested the Damascus government to establish control over territories they used to hold, including Manbij. According to the Syrian Defense Ministry, about 400 members of Self-Defense Forces left the city and headed to the eastern bank of the Euphrates River, where they are set to concentrate on fighting against the Islamic State terrorist group. DAMASCUS, January 4 -- Russian military has delivered food baskets and winter clothing to the residents of Syria's Aleppo. The aid is provided by the Russian charity organizations, a representative of the Russian Defense Ministry's Center for Reconciliation of Opposing Sides in Syria, Igor Privalov, said on Friday. "We have provided children and women with warm clothes. We are also distributing bread to all the residents of Aleppo," Privalov told reporters. He added that this time the humanitarian assistance had been delivered to the parishioners of Faras church located in Aleppo's Midan district. As the Syrian government has regained control over most of the country's territories that were seized by terrorists, it is now focused on creating favorable conditions for repatriating refugees. Moscow is assisting Damascus in this by providing humanitarian aid to civilians and being a guarantor of the ceasefire, along with Turkey and Iran. BAGHDAD, December 31 -- The Iraqi army had announced victory in late 2017 after an ISIS occupation that started in 2014 with massacres in Mosul and throughout a wide area. Tens of thousands of gang members captured during the war continue to face trial. There are some 20.000 persons reportedly on remand. Iraqi Supreme Council of Judges Spokesperson Judge Abdul Settar Bayraktar announced that 616 men and women have been put on trial for membership to ISIS in 2018. Bayraktar said 508 of these individuals have been convicted on grounds of antiterror laws. Bayraktar didn’t give details about the convictions but said 466 of the individuals had been women, 42 men and 108 children, 31 boys and 77 girls. Bayraktar said 73 women and 22 men are still under investigation in the prosecution. Most of the convicts are citizens of Turkey and former Soviet republics. One German citizen, one Belgian citizen and one Russian citizen have been sentenced to death. Two female and one male French citizens have been sentenced to life in prison. WASHINGTON, December 31 -- President Donald Trump has ordered a slowdown to the withdrawal of U.S. forces in Syria, Republican Sen. Lindsey Graham has said. "I think we’re in a pause situation," the South Carolina Republican said outside the White House after lunch with the president. Trump announced earlier this month that he was ordering the withdrawal of all the roughly 2,000 troops from war-torn Syria, with aides expecting it to take place swiftly. The president had declared victory over ISIL in Syria, though pockets of fighting remain. Graham had been an outspoken critic of Trump’s decision, which had drawn bipartisan criticism. "I think we’re slowing things down in a smart way," Graham said. National security adviser John Bolton was expected to travel to Israel and Turkey next weekend to discuss the president’s plans with the American allies. During his appearance on CNN’s "State of the Union," Graham previewed his arguments to Trump for reconsidering the Syria pullout. "I’m going to ask him to sit down with his generals and reconsider how to do this. Slow this down. Make sure that we get it right. Make sure ISIS never comes back. Don’t turn Syria over to the Iranians. That’s a nightmare for Israel," Graham said, according to the Associated Press. Meanwhile, AFP reported Dec. 30 that the US flag fluttered above four US armoured vehicles driving through drizzle in the Syrian city of Manbij Dec. 30, each visibly carrying an armed soldier on lookout duty. "The Americans’ presence is reassuring for people, as the situation has become tense since we heard about their decision to withdraw," said Mohammed Ahmad, a 28-year-old shop owner in Manbij. Turkey, which views the YPG as a terrorist group, had been threatening a military operation against Manbij. Turkey and its allied fighters have been amassing troops around Manbij in recent days. Syria’s military announced Dec. 28 it has taken control of Manbij after the YPG invited the regime ahead of Turkey's offensive but Turkish and US officials denied reports that Syria's Bashar al-Assad regime forces entered the city. ROTTERDAM, December 29 -- Four people were arrested in Rotterdam on Saturday under suspicion of planning a terrorist attack. According to the local authorities, the police have collected evidence at the scene where the arrests were made. The police have not yet revealed the details of the planned attack. The arrest was conducted by the joined group of Rotterdam police officers and specialist arrest teams. The prosecutor's office is currently investigating the incident. Earlier this week, Dutch police arrested seven people aged from 21 to 34, who were seeking to acquire guns, grenades and bombs to organize a multiple-site terrorist attack at a major public event in the country. Saturday afternoon the police arrested a fifth person on suspicion of preparing a terrorist crime. In the morning, four arrests had already been made in Rotterdam. Immediately after the arrests, there were five or six homes searched. What this has yielded is still unknown. The seized goods are analyzed. The research will continue in the coming days, with the emphasis on the nature and scope of the terrorist threat. Because of this ongoing investigation, the police do not make any further announcements.
STOCKHOLM, December 28 -- The state broadcaster SVT’s coverage of the double murder of 24-year-old Louisa Vesterager Jespersen and 28-year-old Maren Ueland by Islamists in Morocco has sparked a fury of criticism. Besides running an article that the savage murder of the two Scandinavian girls “had nothing to do with Islam”, they also pushed the narrative that sharing of the graphic video of the murder is illegal, warning Swedes not to share the video as that is punishable with up to four years imprisonment. Scores of viewers complained that SVT was more concerned by people sharing the video of the killing, than they were with the horrific murders, themselves. As well, they failed to mention the ISIS style execution by beheading, instead reported the murder from “neck wounds”.
Some who made the decision to watch the video admitted it was a poor choice, regretting having seen it. Svenska Dagbladet columnist Ivar Arpi stated on his Facebook page: ”Happened to watch the movie clip that is being circulated. The one where one of them gets her head cut off. I wish I could unsee it. I’ve seen many horrible things. For a while I felt a responsibility as a journalist to see the movie clips that Daesh released. Still, this was much worse. It is the worst I have ever seen. It will haunt me”, he also referred to the murderers as “beasts”. MUMBAI, December 26 -- India’s anti-terrorist agency Wednesday said it had busted a local militant cell inspired by ISIS that was planning to carry out bombings and target prominent politicians. The National Investigation Agency (NIA) said 10 members of an obscure militant group called Harkat ul Harb-e-Islam were arrested in multi-city raids and a further six suspects were being questioned over their alleged links with the group. NIA spokesman Alok Mittal said arms and ammunition were recovered from the raids over 17 locations, including in the capital New Delhi, as the group prepared to strike several targets ahead of the high-profile Republic Day national event on January 26. “They were at an advanced stage of carrying a series of blasts,” Mittal told reporters at a press conference in New Delhi. “They wanted to explode remote-controlled bombs and even conduct fidayeen [suicide] attacks.” Mittal said the group had attempted to make suicide vests and developed a homemade rocket launcher, adding that the unidentified mastermind of the weapon was based overseas. One of the accused is an engineer, he said. Authorities have previously claimed to have foiled similar ISIS-inspired cells but there is no evidence of the militant group’s presence in the country. BAGHDAD, December 26 -- The ISIS terrorist group has kicked off a series of attacks in western and northwestern regions of Iraq, revealed security and political sources. Examples of these attacks, were the car bombing in Tal Afar on Tuesday that left two people dead and the kidnapping of 14 civilians in Kirkuk also on Tuesday. The developments have taken place a year since former Prime Minister Haidar al-Abadi’s announcement that ISIS has been defeated in Iraq. An informed political source told Asharq Al-Awsat that prior to the arrival of ISIS, corruption among the military was rife in these regions. This would eventually pave the way for ISIS’ onslaught. After the liberation, however, the regions became embroiled in a struggle for power among forces that emerged victorious in the May parliamentary elections, the source said on condition of anonymity. Each of the victors alone wants to assume power, he went on to say. This dispute is being played out in parliament and government whereby the Sunni camp has been split into two: the Islah and Binaa blocs. The rivalry between them is demonstrated in the differences over ministerial portfolios. The dispute could later seep into the provinces and state agencies, he added. This rivalry could ultimately be exploited by ISIS, he warned.
Meanwhile, security expert Saeed al-Jayashi told Asharq Al-Awsat that since June, ISIS has been working on developing its media and since August, it has been upping its terror operations. He added that the Iraqi armed forces have developed high expertise in combating ISIS. The current developments, however, he warned, cannot be tackled with security measures, but through political and social means. On the Tal Afar bombing, MP Hassan Touran told Asharq Al-Awsat that the region is an important Turkmen area. It also lies inside the Nineveh province and on the volatile Syrian border. ISIS is trying to regroup and recover its power in this region through all possible means, he warned. The security plan in place must therefore be reviewed in order to counter the organization. BAGHDAD, December 25 -- Islamic State (IS, formerly ISIS) claimed responsibility for a car bomb attack in the northern Iraqi city of Tal Afar. The group said on its news agency Amaq on Tuesday. The attack on Tal Afar, a former IS stronghold, killed two people and wounded 11, Reuters reported, citing the Iraqi military. Tal Afar is about 80km west of Mosul. The city experienced cycles of sectarian violence between Sunnis and Shiites after the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003, and produced some of IS’s most senior commanders. The city with about 200,000 residents came under the militants’ control when IS overran swathes of Iraq’s north in 2014. ANKARA, December 25 -- Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan sent more troops to Syria’s border on Monday ahead of an imminent U.S. withdrawal, as the White House announced he had invited Donald Trump to Ankara. Unlike several other allies of the United States, Turkey has praised President Trump’s decision to withdraw 2,000 of his ground forces from Syria, a country where it will now have a freer rein to target Kurdish fighters. On Monday Ankara sent more troops to its Syrian border and said an offensive targeting the Syrian Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG) militia and IS group will be launched in the coming months. Turkey views the YPG as a “terrorist offshoot” of the outlawed Kurdistan Workers’ Party (PKK), which has waged an insurgency against the Turkish state since 1984. But the militia has also been a key U.S. ally in the fight against Islamic State in Syria, working with American forces on the ground there. “Just as we did not leave our Syrian Arabs to Daesh (ISIS), we will not leave Syrian Kurds to the cruelty of the PKK,” Erdogan said during a speech in Ankara. A Turkish military convoy arrived overnight on Monday at the border with local media reporting that some vehicles had entered Syria. In a telephone conversation Sunday between Trump and Erdogan, which both sides described as “productive,” they agreed to avoid a power vacuum in Syria after the U.S. withdrawal. “President Erdogan invited President Trump to visit Turkey in 2019. While nothing definite is being planned, the president is open to a potential meeting in the future,” a White House spokesperson later said on Monday evening. Erdogan’s spokesman Ibrahim Kalin told reporters on Monday that a U.S. military delegation would arrive this week to “discuss how to coordinate (the withdrawal) with their counterparts.” A Turkish foreign ministry delegation would go to Washington for talks early January, he added. Trump stunned the U.S. political establishment and allies last week with his decision, days after Erdogan had warned that Ankara would soon launch an offensive in northern Syria. Critics of Trump’s decision fear that thousands of Islamic State (ISIS) group extremist members are still thought to be in Syria, despite Trump’s claim of having defeated ISIS. The U.S. leader tweeted that Erdogan had told him Ankara would “eradicate” the last IS elements. And Kalin vowed that there was “no question of a step backwards, vulnerability or a slowdown in the fight against Daesh (ISIS).” He added: “Turkey will show the same determination against Daesh. To beat Daesh, we don’t need the PKK or the YPG. We can bring peace to this region.” The Turkish military convoy with howitzers, artillery batteries and several units of the armed forces, was deployed to the border district of Elbeyli in Kilis province, state news agency Anadolu reported on Monday. WASHINGTON, December 24 -- The order to withdraw American troops from Syria has been signed, the US military said Sunday, after President Donald Trump and his Turkish counterpart agreed to prevent a power vacuum in the wake of the controversial move. The announcement that US troops would leave the civil war-racked country -- where they have been deployed to assist in the multinational fight against the Islamic State (ISIS) jihadist group -- shocked global partners and American politicians alike. "The execute order for Syria has been signed," a US military spokesperson said when asked about the withdrawal order, without providing further details. Turkey was a rare ally that lauded Trump's momentous decision on Syria, a country where it will now have a freer rein to target US-allied Kurdish fighters who have played a major role in the war against IS but are deemed terrorists by Ankara. Trump and President Recep Tayyip Erdogan spoke by telephone on Sunday and "agreed to ensure coordination between their countries' military, diplomatic and other officials to avoid a power vacuum which could result following any abuse of the withdrawal and transition phase in Syria," the Turkish presidency said in a statement. Late Sunday, Trump tweeted that Erdogan had assured him that any remaining IS fighters in Syria will be eliminated. "President Erdogan of Turkey has very strongly informed me that he will eradicate whatever is left of ISIS in Syria," Trump said in a Tweet around midnight Sunday, using another acronym for the jihadist group. Repeating a pattern of admiring comments towards global strongmen, Trump added that Erdogan "is a man who can do it." The US president concluded: "Our troops are coming home!" |
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