Textbook: `Jihad’ means doing good works

 

 

BRAVE NEW SCHOOLS Textbook: Islamic ‘jihad’ means doing good works Also includes Muslims fighting ‘to protect themselves from harm’ http://www.wnd.com/news/article.asp?ARTICLE_ID=59707 By Bob Unruh © 2008 WorldNetDaily.com An Islamic "jihad" is an effort by Muslims to convince "others to take up worthy causes, such as funding medical research," according to a middle school textbook used in California and other states. And even at its most violent, "jihad" simply is Muslims fighting "to protect themselves from those who would do them harm," says the "History Alive! The Medieval World and Beyond" book published by Teachers’ Curriculum Institute. But a parent whose child has been handed the text in a Sacramento district is accusing the publisher of a pro-Muslim bias to the point that Islamic theology has been incorporated into the public school teachings. "It makes an attempt to seem like an egalitarian world history book, but on closer inspection you find that seven (not all are titled so) of the chapters deal with Islam or Muslim subjects," wrote the parent, whose name was being withheld, in a letter to WND.   Sacramento’s students are being taught "jihad" is an effort to convince "others to take up worthy causes."   "The upsetting part is not only do they go into the history (which would be acceptable) but also the teaching of Islam," she said. "This book does not really go into Christianity or the teachings of Christ, nor does it address religious doctrine elsewhere to the degree it does Islam." She said the book’s one page referencing Jews "is only to convey that they were tortured by Crusaders to get them to convert to ‘Christianity.’ (It fails to mention that the biggest persecutors of Jews throughout history and still today are Arab Muslims). It gives four other one-liner references to the Jews being blamed for the plagues and problems in the land. It does not talk about the Jews as making a significant impact on the culture at large." "How can the writers of this text get away with this?" she asked. Bert Bower, founder of TCI, said not only did his company have experts review the book, but the state of California also reviewed it, and has approved it for use in public schools. He said the company tries to move history out from between the covers of a textbook and into students’ minds, and that is how the book was developed. "Keep in mind when looking at this particular book scholars from all over California (reviewed it)," he said. "We have our own scholars who created the program, California scholars look at the program and makes sure [it] is accurate." One of those experts who contributed to the text, according to the American Textbook Council, which released a scathing indictment of the project, is Ayad Al-Qazzaz. "Al-Qazzaz is a Muslim apologist, a frequent speaker in Northern California school districts promoting Islam and Arab causes," the ATC review said. "Al-Qazzaz also co-wrote AWAIR’s ‘Arab World Notebook.’ AWAIR stands for Arab World and Islamic Resources, an opaque, proselytizing ‘non-profit organization’ that conducts teacher workshops and sells supplementary materials to schools." The textbook council, an independent national research group set up in 1989 to review history and social studies texts in public schools, quoted directly from the book to provide evidence of its bias. The word jihad means "to strive." Jihad represents the human struggle to overcome difficulties and do things that would be pleasing to God. Muslims strive to respond positively to personal difficulties as well as worldly challenges. For instance, they might work to become better people, reform society, or correct injustice. Jihad has always been an important Islamic concept. One hadith, or account of Muhammad, tells about the prophet’s return from a battle. He declared that he and his men had carried out the "lesser jihad," the external struggle against oppression. The "greater jihad," he said, was the fight against evil within oneself. Examples of the greater jihad include working hard for a goal, giving up a bad habit, getting an education, or obeying your parents when you may not want to. Another hadith says that Muslims should fulfill jihad with the heart, tongue, and hand. Muslims use the heart in their struggle to resist evil. The tongue may convince others to take up worthy causes, such as funding medical research. Hands may perform good works and correct wrongs. Sometimes, however, jihad becomes a physical struggle. The Quran tells Muslims to fight to protect themselves from those who would do them harm or to right a terrible wrong. Early Muslims considered their efforts to protect their territory and extend their rule over other regions to be a form of jihad. However, the Quran forbade Muslims to force others to convert to Islam. So, non-Muslims who came under Muslim rule were allowed to practice their faiths." The council, in describing the text as a book written by "dictation from Islamic sources," said such passages "should put speculation to rest about what California’s seventh-grade students may learn about Islam. At the very least, the passages are incomplete. More precisely, they are dishonest." Such passages fail to explain "the essentially religious nature of the subject," the council said. "It ignores any challenge to international security and western-style law. The treatment is lyrical and loaded, echoing the language recommended by Islamist consultants." The Sacramento parent said she became suspicious because of the school’s decision to send a copy of the book home with her son and he started describing how it would teach students to write in Arabic. A review left her even more worried. "I was disturbed probably the greatest portion of this book is about Islam. It goes into the doctrine of Islam in detail," she said. "There are 35 chapters. Out of those, I counted at least seven [that focus] on Islam." She said she looked at the publication’s list of contributors, and found the name of Ayad Al-Qazzaz, whom she’d had herself for a class on Middle Eastern studies. "That was a big flag for me," she said. WND previously has reported on the influence of Islamic "consultants" on public school texts in the United States, as well as how other schools have included the "Five Pillars of Islam" among their required courses. The parent said she just wanted people to know of the agenda being taught. "After seeing Al-Qazzaz as one of the main contributors I began to put two and two together … about the extra book coming home only in this class and I questioned where this book’s money source came from – I still do not know," she said. "I am very troubled that in the name of tolerance and educating American children about the Muslim empire in history they get away with giving beginning Islamic teaching which may cause many to perhaps one day become Muslims," she said. "My son tells me that the students will even be using calligraphy to copy parts of the Quran in Arabic as an enrichment activity." Click here to continue reading this article.

 

 

Score a Victory for Free Speech

 

 

 

Visit our News page Score a Victory for Free Speech Last week, our colleague Joseph Shahda posted an article that was very disturbing. A terrorist web site Ekllaas, hosted by the Tampa-based Internet Service Provider HiVelocity, had circulated a rumored petition campaign to its members, to be spread across other terrorist forums, to try and knock off a Coptic Christian anti-Islamic Arabic language chat room from Paltalk. The leadership here at ACT! for America and American Congress for Truth, deeply concerned about this matter, decided to contact PalTalk to encourage them to dismiss this Islamist effort to stifle free speech. Today, in response to our letter, Paltalk confirmed to us that they are not going to ever submit to any petition directed against constitutionally protected freedom of speech. Further, they asserted they will never bow to the pressure of the petition submitted by Muslim activists to shut down a Christian chat room that criticizes Islam. In fact, Paltalk emphatically told us that the Muslim activists spread the false rumor about Paltalk closing the Coptic Christian room if 1 million signatures were obtained for their petition. This amounted to classic Islamic ‘taqiyyah’ – deception used to advance the cause of Islam. We are of course delighted to hear that Paltalk, the most prominent voice chat room service in the world, will not bow to Muslim activist pressure to shut down Christian rooms that these activists find “offensive.” We would like to thank Paltalk for their strong stand to protect Constitutional Free Speech Rights. One side benefit of this exchange: Palktalk said they would love to have Brigitte Gabriel host a weekly program on its large network. Islamist assaults on free speech have become a staple in their arsenal. As we reported last week, legislation has been introduced in the New York legislature to protect journalists, authors and publishers from intimidation lawsuits filed in foreign courts. Such efforts at intimidation have been dubbed “libel terrorism.” We will soon provide you an update on the status of this legislation and what you can do to help ensure its passage.

This Legal Jihad Must Be Stopped!

 

Visit our News page American Free Speech and Press Rights Under Assault This “Legal Jihad” Must Be Stopped! Imagine an America where no journalist, author, or speaker dared to write or speak out about militant Islam and Islamic terrorism. Imagine an America where books like Brigitte Gabriel’s Because They Hate were never published out of fear by the publishing company that they could be bankrupted by “libel” lawsuits. Sounds impossible in America, right? After all, this is the world’s beacon light of free speech and free press, right? Yes, but those rights are under very serious assault from another tentacle of Jihad – “Legal Jihad.” One of the tactics being employed by Islamists to intimidate critics and muzzle investigative reporting of Islamic militancy and terrorism is the use of lawsuits alleging defamation of character and slander. A particularly egregious example of this has ensnared Rachel Ehrenfeld, noted author on terrorism and related issues, and a member of the Advisory Board of American Congress for Truth, ACT! for America’s sister organization. Ehrenfeld was sued in a British court by Saudi billionaire Khalid Salim bin Mahfouz for detailing in her book how Bin Mahfouz, and some of his family, are allegedly tied to funding terrorist organizations. She lost the suit by default and was ordered to pay Bin Mahfouz over $225,000 in damages. Bin Mahfouz has used the British legal system to obtain more than three dozen such judgments affecting the U.S. media. His tactics have been so successful that several major American media companies and book publishing companies have chosen to pull books and issue apologies and retractions, rather than face the economic consequences of losing to him in British courts. Such legal assaults, if allowed to succeed, have chilling and far-reaching implications for our cherished freedoms of speech and the press so enormous that they threaten the very foundation of American liberty. It is no accident that our Founding Fathers placed freedom of speech and the press in the very first amendment of the Bill of Rights. They understood that without such freedoms, there cannot be a free people. Ehrenfeld rightly sought a court order and legal protection of her constitutional rights in the New York court system. Shockingly, a New York Court of Appeals has ruled that it cannot protect her from this lawsuit. The court ruled that it does not have jurisdiction to protect Americans – on U.S. soil – from a foreign defamation verdict!! This court ruling has stunned many in the legal, media and publishing community. The British court system’s legal standard for libel is much lower than that in the United States, which explains why litigants like Bin Mahfouz file lawsuits in Great Britain. They recognize they are unlikely to succeed with such lawsuits in America, so they use foreign courts in an attempt to intimidate and muzzle American authors and journalists. This is nothing more than “Legal Jihad” – and it must be stopped. Fortunately, a bi-partisan effort is now under way in New York to pass legislation designed to protect journalists, authors and publishers from lawsuits filed outside the U.S. by foreign nationals seeking to muzzle the First Amendment rights of American citizens, particularly those reporting on terrorism and its financiers. This Sunday, January 13th, at 10:30 a.m., on the steps of the New York Public Library, 42nd Street and Fifth Avenue, a bi-partisan news conference will be held by New York State Senate Deputy Majority Leader Dean Skelos and Assemblyman Rory I. Lancman, where they will announce the introduction of such legislation. The two lawmakers, Ehrenfeld, and members of the bar, will warn that without this legislation, not only are authors and journalists threatened, the contents of the New York Public Library could be subject to assault by foreign nationals seeking to silence public debate in America. They are to be applauded and supported for this effort. If you live in the New York area, you are invited to attend this news conference. Next week, once we have specific details regarding the legislation, we will launch a full-scale educational and lobbying effort to ensure its passage – so please watch for our alerts in your email boxes. Ladies and gentlemen, if Islamists are allowed to “court shop” around the world, seeking friendly judges who will issue court rulings and monetary judgments against anyone in America who dares to write or speak out against the assault of militant Islam, not only will our ability to resist this threat be dramatically imperiled. This will be a stake in the heart of American free speech and press rights. We cannot allow this to happen.   ——————————————————————————————- ACT for America P.O. Box 6884 Virginia Beach, VA 23456 www.actforamerica.org

 

FW: [Stopliberalmedia.org] Cordless Bungee Jumping–Shari’a-style

 

 

Cordless Bungee Jumping—Shari’a-style By Alyssa A. Lappen http://www.terrorfinance.org/the_terror_finance_blog/ As noted today in Pajamas Media, notwithstanding flashy headlines extolling Shari’a finance (Islamic banking) and Wall Street bankers jumping into the market, investing or participating in shari’a finance is akin to bungee jumping without a cord—or following lemmings over a cliff. But the banking industry has a short memory. In 1955, Citibank established the Saudi American Bank in Jeddah and added a Riyadh branch in 1966. But on February 12, 1980, Saudi Arabia confiscated Citibank’s business by royal decree, changed its name to Samba, and forced America’s premier bank to accept a subservient role, staffing its old bank—with a promise not to take any profits. Yet, Shari’a is “the path of Allah,” Nizam Yaquby told October conference-goers–although the purportedly “ethical” and “socially responsible” investing supports neither environmentalism nor “renewable” growth. A 20th century construct, without basis in Islamic history, it often funds destruction. This “invented tradition” empowers Islamic radicals, writes USC King Faisal Professor of Islamic Thought, Timur Kuran, in Islam and Mammon: “Neither classical nor medieval Islamic civilization featured banks in the modern sense, let alone ‘Islamic’ banks…” Consider its downside risks. With 19.99% of Nasdaq in hand, Bourse Dubai, the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) parent—certified for “Islamic ‘purity’” by Bahrain’s Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAIOFI)—now plans to “rebrand” America’s international over-the-counter market as Nasdaq-DIFX. What does this mean for presumably “unIslamic” Nasdaq companies (like Israeli generic drug giant, Teva)? Supposedly, Bourse Dubai will be “restricted to 5 percent voting rights” in Nasdaq. But in anticipation of Nasdaq-DIFX’s “rebranding,” DIFX named four new board members. Boards of directors generally call the shots. Meanwhile, Citgroup is receiving a second-generation, $7.5 billion Islamic-cash-bailout from the ultra-conservative United Arab Emirates (UAE) sheikdom, Abu Dhabi. Its initial, 1991 Islamic-rescue followed billions in bad loans, single-quarter losses of $855 million, and U.S. Federal Reserve Board concerns about Citibank’s potential failure. Suddenly, Citi’s then-Middle East business chief, Shaukat Aziz—fresh from seven years in Riyadh running Citi’s confiscated bank, and hobnobbing with Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal—convinced the latter to trade $600 million for shareholder-rights, Bangladesh’s Depardes reported in June 2004. 1 He now has 3.6%. Aziz later headed Citicorp Islamic Bank, and maybe initiated Citi’s supposedly prospering Shari’a finance business. But who controls whom? Today, doubling as Pakistan’s Finance and Prime Ministers, Aziz supports “Shariah compliant banking,” which the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in 2005 strategically planned to promote “as a parallel system.” He’s discussed its potential with Bahraini Bank Alsalam CEO, Yousif Taqi. Likewise, bin Talal wants to dominate U.S. businesses. Rather than boycott, “Arabs…stand more to benefit from maintaining trade ties with the US because the trade balance … is in our favor,” he told Saudi Arabia’s Arab News daily on May 1, 2002. Both men’s ideas fit the 1928 cloth of Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna, whose disciples tailor-made it into shari’a finance—specifically to supersede Western banks, markets and democracies through “parallel economic” and financial institutions. It rests on shari’a—the 7th Century Qur’anic legal code developed by Mohammed’s followers—which clerics consider one, indivisible package, by definition seeking global Islamic supremacy and law. With wife-beating, stoning women, dismembering thieves, hanging homosexuals, supremacist ideology and an annual head tax (jizya) on non-Muslim subjects—shari’a also commands Muslims to fund jihad (financial jihad—al Jihad bi-al-Mal). As in Qur’an 61:10-11, “strive for the cause of Allah with your wealth and your lives…” and Qur’an 49:15. “Financial Jihad [is]…more important…than self-sacrificing,” says Saudi cleric and Muslim Brother Hamud bin Uqla al-Shuaibi. The 1982 Muslim Brotherhood document, “Towards a Worldwide Strategy for Islamic Policy”—discovered by Swiss police in November 2001 and known as the Project—maps al-Banna’s plan. His successors, and author MB spiritual leader Yusuf Qaradawi, Swiss authorities say, order Muslims to engage “economic institutions adequate to support the cause financially” in directives covering roughly 14 pages, headlined “departure points.” Elsewhere, Qaradawi decrees, “holy war…is an Islamic duty… [F]ighting…is the Way of Allah for which zakat must be spent.” His 1999 “Fiqh az-Zakat” describes the “most deserving” zakat and jihad, “…to rebuild Islamic society and state and to implement the Islamic way of life in the political, cultural and economic domains.” Itself now partly owned by bin Talal, the Wall Street Journal in November 2007 ironically noted the tragedy that bad management and “blundering U.S. monetary policy” had again left Citigroup prey to Arab sheiks. Citi got its cash transfusion by granting “only” a 4.9% “minority stake”—and no board seats—magically for 0.1% under the 5% necessitating U.S. Federal Reserve Board approval. The Fed should intervene anyway—given the avid and ongoing, apparent UAE observance of zakat and jihad directives from Muslim Brotherhood leaders like Qaradawi: The UAE banks wired most of the funds for the 9/11 attacks. In 2006, UAE donated $100 million to house Palestinian Authority prisoners and suicide bombers’ families, named for the late father of the current UAE president, who over 30 years donated millions to PLO, Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror. Hamas in July 2005, thanked Al-Nahayan’s “sisterly UAE” for its “limitless [financial] support…,” and “aid for our Mujahid,” in other words, Hamas jihadist “charitable societies.” The Palestinian Authority in May 2005 itemized millions of additional UAE U.S.-dollar aid, including $3 million paid directly to the Al Aqsa Intifada Fund. UAE president Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahayan’s late, terror-financier father also “owned the infamous [global] Bank of Commerce and Credit International” (BCCI)—which bilked depositors of billions before being shuttered in 1991; funded terrorist groups, states and projects like Hezbollah, al Qaeda, Syria, Iran and Pakistani nuclear bomb manufacturing; and was created “to help the world of Islam, and [as] the best way to fight the evil influence of the Zionists,” as noted by Rachel Ehrenfeld in Evil Money (Harper Collins, 1992, pp. 160, 164-5, 169-70). In October 2007, Dubai violated World Trade Organization (WTO) rules—banning the Israelis from the Federation of International Freight Forwarders and Customs Clearing Agents world congress. Dubai Ports World and its government holding company prohibit trade with Israel. In 2003, the UAE established a federal agency specifically to collect zakat on government tax revenues from “companies listed on the Dubai Financial Market and Abu Dhabi Securities Market… oil-producing companies and branches of foreign banks,” obviously including U.S. oil companies and banks. This year alone, the UAE zakat tax agency collected an estimated $13.5 billion.

 

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Posted By Stop Liberal Media to Stopliberalmedia.org at 12/27/2007 09:46:00 AM

Cordless Bungee Jumping–Shari’a-style

Cordless Bungee Jumping—Shari’a-style By Alyssa A. Lappen http://www.terrorfinance.org/the_terror_finance_blog/ As noted today in Pajamas Media, notwithstanding flashy headlines extolling Shari’a finance (Islamic banking) and Wall Street bankers jumping into the market, investing or participating in shari’a finance is akin to bungee jumping without a cord—or following lemmings over a cliff. But the banking industry has a short memory. In 1955, Citibank established the Saudi American Bank in Jeddah and added a Riyadh branch in 1966. But on February 12, 1980, Saudi Arabia confiscated Citibank’s business by royal decree, changed its name to Samba, and forced America’s premier bank to accept a subservient role, staffing its old bank—with a promise not to take any profits. Yet, Shari’a is “the path of Allah,” Nizam Yaquby told October conference-goers–although the purportedly “ethical” and “socially responsible” investing supports neither environmentalism nor “renewable” growth. A 20th century construct, without basis in Islamic history, it often funds destruction. This “invented tradition” empowers Islamic radicals, writes USC King Faisal Professor of Islamic Thought, Timur Kuran, in Islam and Mammon: “Neither classical nor medieval Islamic civilization featured banks in the modern sense, let alone ‘Islamic’ banks…” Consider its downside risks. With 19.99% of Nasdaq in hand, Bourse Dubai, the Dubai International Financial Exchange (DIFX) parent—certified for “Islamic ‘purity’” by Bahrain’s Accounting and Auditing Organization for Islamic Financial Institutions (AAIOFI)—now plans to “rebrand” America’s international over-the-counter market as Nasdaq-DIFX. What does this mean for presumably “unIslamic” Nasdaq companies (like Israeli generic drug giant, Teva)? Supposedly, Bourse Dubai will be “restricted to 5 percent voting rights” in Nasdaq. But in anticipation of Nasdaq-DIFX’s “rebranding,” DIFX named four new board members. Boards of directors generally call the shots. Meanwhile, Citgroup is receiving a second-generation, $7.5 billion Islamic-cash-bailout from the ultra-conservative United Arab Emirates (UAE) sheikdom, Abu Dhabi. Its initial, 1991 Islamic-rescue followed billions in bad loans, single-quarter losses of $855 million, and U.S. Federal Reserve Board concerns about Citibank’s potential failure. Suddenly, Citi’s then-Middle East business chief, Shaukat Aziz—fresh from seven years in Riyadh running Citi’s confiscated bank, and hobnobbing with Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal—convinced the latter to trade $600 million for shareholder-rights, Bangladesh’s Depardes reported in June 2004. 1 He now has 3.6%. Aziz later headed Citicorp Islamic Bank, and maybe initiated Citi’s supposedly prospering Shari’a finance business. But who controls whom? Today, doubling as Pakistan’s Finance and Prime Ministers, Aziz supports “Shariah compliant banking,” which the State Bank of Pakistan (SBP) in 2005 strategically planned to promote “as a parallel system.” He’s discussed its potential with Bahraini Bank Alsalam CEO, Yousif Taqi. Likewise, bin Talal wants to dominate U.S. businesses. Rather than boycott, “Arabs…stand more to benefit from maintaining trade ties with the US because the trade balance … is in our favor,” he told Saudi Arabia’s Arab News daily on May 1, 2002. Both men’s ideas fit the 1928 cloth of Muslim Brotherhood founder Hassan al-Banna, whose disciples tailor-made it into shari’a finance—specifically to supersede Western banks, markets and democracies through “parallel economic” and financial institutions. It rests on shari’a—the 7th Century Qur’anic legal code developed by Mohammed’s followers—which clerics consider one, indivisible package, by definition seeking global Islamic supremacy and law. With wife-beating, stoning women, dismembering thieves, hanging homosexuals, supremacist ideology and an annual head tax (jizya) on non-Muslim subjects—shari’a also commands Muslims to fund jihad (financial jihad—al Jihad bi-al-Mal). As in Qur’an 61:10-11, “strive for the cause of Allah with your wealth and your lives…” and Qur’an 49:15. “Financial Jihad [is]…more important…than self-sacrificing,” says Saudi cleric and Muslim Brother Hamud bin Uqla al-Shuaibi. The 1982 Muslim Brotherhood document, “Towards a Worldwide Strategy for Islamic Policy”—discovered by Swiss police in November 2001 and known as the Project—maps al-Banna’s plan. His successors, and author MB spiritual leader Yusuf Qaradawi, Swiss authorities say, order Muslims to engage “economic institutions adequate to support the cause financially” in directives covering roughly 14 pages, headlined “departure points.” Elsewhere, Qaradawi decrees, “holy war…is an Islamic duty… [F]ighting…is the Way of Allah for which zakat must be spent.” His 1999 “Fiqh az-Zakat” describes the “most deserving” zakat and jihad, “…to rebuild Islamic society and state and to implement the Islamic way of life in the political, cultural and economic domains.” Itself now partly owned by bin Talal, the Wall Street Journal in November 2007 ironically noted the tragedy that bad management and “blundering U.S. monetary policy” had again left Citigroup prey to Arab sheiks. Citi got its cash transfusion by granting “only” a 4.9% “minority stake”—and no board seats—magically for 0.1% under the 5% necessitating U.S. Federal Reserve Board approval. The Fed should intervene anyway—given the avid and ongoing, apparent UAE observance of zakat and jihad directives from Muslim Brotherhood leaders like Qaradawi: The UAE banks wired most of the funds for the 9/11 attacks. In 2006, UAE donated $100 million to house Palestinian Authority prisoners and suicide bombers’ families, named for the late father of the current UAE president, who over 30 years donated millions to PLO, Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror. Hamas in July 2005, thanked Al-Nahayan’s “sisterly UAE” for its “limitless [financial] support…,” and “aid for our Mujahid,” in other words, Hamas jihadist “charitable societies.” The Palestinian Authority in May 2005 itemized millions of additional UAE U.S.-dollar aid, including $3 million paid directly to the Al Aqsa Intifada Fund. UAE president Sheikh Khalifa Bin Zayed Bin Sultan Al-Nahayan’s late, terror-financier father also “owned the infamous [global] Bank of Commerce and Credit International” (BCCI)—which bilked depositors of billions before being shuttered in 1991; funded terrorist groups, states and projects like Hezbollah, al Qaeda, Syria, Iran and Pakistani nuclear bomb manufacturing; and was created “to help the world of Islam, and [as] the best way to fight the evil influence of the Zionists,” as noted by Rachel Ehrenfeld in Evil Money (Harper Collins, 1992, pp. 160, 164-5, 169-70). In October 2007, Dubai violated World Trade Organization (WTO) rules—banning the Israelis from the Federation of International Freight Forwarders and Customs Clearing Agents world congress. Dubai Ports World and its government holding company prohibit trade with Israel. In 2003, the UAE established a federal agency specifically to collect zakat on government tax revenues from “companies listed on the Dubai Financial Market and Abu Dhabi Securities Market… oil-producing companies and branches of foreign banks,” obviously including U.S. oil companies and banks. This year alone, the UAE zakat tax agency collected an estimated $13.5 billion.

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Posted By Stop Liberal Media to Stopliberalmedia.org at 12/27/2007 09:46:00 AM

Hezbollah: Signs of a Sophisticated Intelligence Apparatus

Hezbollah: Signs of a Sophisticated Intelligence Apparatus

This Stratfor terrorism report reveals a compelling, chilling example of Cultural Jihad at work in America. Cultural Jihad is Jihad by means other than violent ones, whose purpose is to weaken and undermine a culture from within in order to eventually make that culture ripe for Islamic subjugation. Cultural Jihad is well-advanced in countries in Western Europe (see Londonistan, by Melanie Phillips) and books such as Infiltration by Paul Sperry document the degree to which Cultural Jihad is underway in America. The lesson for all of us is this – Islamofascism is about much more than overt acts of terrorism.

By Fred Burton and Scott Stewart

On Dec. 4, Samar Spinelli, a U.S. Marine captain, pleaded guilty in U.S. district court in Detroit to conspiring to commit citizenship and passport fraud. By pleading guilty, Spinelli admitted to having conspired with her former roommate, Nada Nadim Prouty, to fraudulently obtain U.S. citizenship. Prouty, a former FBI agent and CIA case officer, pleaded guilty in the same court in November to accessing a federal computer system to obtain information about the Lebanese-based militant group Hezbollah and conspiracy to defraud the U.S. government, among other charges. Spinelli’s other former roommate, Elfat El Aouar — Prouty’s sister — is serving an 18-month prison sentence for tax evasion. All three women were born in Lebanon.

The evidence, allegations and related cases suggest that Hezbollah has established a sophisticated intelligence apparatus that reaches into the United States. [emphasis added]. Moreover, it is possible — though certainly not proven — that Spinelli and Prouty used their positions in government agencies to provide Hezbollah with sensitive information. If these women were indeed Hezbollah plants, the magnitude of the information they provided to Hezbollah and Iran could be similar in importance to the information Robert Hanssen provided to the Soviets and Russians — and the damage could prove to be just as great.

The Web

Although the network of interpersonal relations and sham marriages muddle the story, the evidence appears as follows:

One of the three former roommates, El Aouar, is married to fugitive Talal Chahine, an alleged Hezbollah financial operative who is believed to be hiding in Lebanon. Chahine was charged in 2006 in the Eastern District of Michigan with tax evasion in connection with a scheme to conceal more than $20 million in cash received by a chain of restaurants he owns and routing those funds to “persons in Lebanon.” In October 2007, Chahine, along with a senior Immigrations and Customs Enforcement official in Detroit and several other people, was charged in a bribery and extortion conspiracy in which federal immigration benefits allegedly were awarded to illegal aliens in exchange for money that also apparently ended up in Hezbollah’s coffers.

According to court documents, Spinelli, whose maiden name was Khalil Nabbouh, entered the United States from Lebanon on a student visa in 1989. After her arrival, she lived in Taylor, Mich., with sisters Elfat El Aouar and Nada Nadim El Aouar (who would later become Nada Prouty). The El Aouar sisters also had entered the United States on student visas, and had failed to return to Lebanon once their studies ended.

On April 13, 1990, Spinelli entered into a fraudulent marriage with Jean Paul Deladurantaye in order to remain in the United States and obtain U.S. citizenship. On Aug. 9, 1990, Spinelli then facilitated Prouty’s fraudulent marriage to Chris Deladurantaye, the brother of Spinelli’s sham husband.

Spinelli enlisted in the U.S. Marines in 1990 and, after receiving her citizenship, divorced Deladurantaye and married a fellow Marine, Capt. Gary Spinelli, in 1995. Commissioned as a Marine officer in 1997, Spinelli rose to the rank of captain and was awarded several decorations. She reportedly was serving her second tour of duty in Iraq when she was called back to face the fraud charges.

Meanwhile, Prouty worked as a waitress at one of Chahine’s restaurants as she earned a bachelor’s degree from Detroit Business College. After gaining her U.S. citizenship in 1994, she moved to Pennsylvania to pursue an MBA at Bloomsburg University. While at Bloomsburg, she met and married Andrew Alley, who had served as a Marine during Operation Desert Storm. In 1997, the FBI hired Prouty as an agent and assigned her to the FBI’s Washington field office, where she worked on an extraterritorial squad investigating crimes against U.S. persons overseas — terrorism cases. As part of her duties, she investigated the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole and the 2002 assassination of American diplomat Laurence Foley, in Amman, Jordan. In 2000, Prouty divorced Alley and later married Foreign Service officer Gordon Prouty, who had served at U.S. embassies in Islamabad, Pakistan, and Cairo, Egypt.

Knowing Nada Prouty from her work as an FBI agent working terrorism cases, the CIA hired her in 2003, and she became an agency case officer. She reportedly was assigned to the U.S. Embassy in Baghdad, and participated in a number of interrogations of high-value suspects, including captured al Qaeda members. When the CIA learned of Prouty’s immigration fraud in December 2005, the agency reportedly moved her to a less sensitive language-training post.
Elfat El Aouar also was involved in a sham marriage in 1990 and, like her sister, went on to earn an MBA. She became the financial manager of the La Shish restaurants and married La Shish owner Chahine in 2000. She was convicted on tax evasion charges and sentenced in May 2007. A third sister, Rula Nadim El Aouar, also has been charged with immigration fraud as a result of her 1992 sham marriage to a man who worked as a dishwasher at a La Shish restaurant. It was the investigation into the activities of Chahine and El Aouar that eventually led authorities to Prouty and Spinelli.

The Potential Blowback

Although there is no evidence at this point that Prouty and Spinelli worked on behalf of Hezbollah, we cannot ignore the fact that the U.S. government has produced evidence that Prouty’s sister and Chahine attended an August 2002 Hezbollah fundraiser in Lebanon — during which Chahine was seated in a position of honor at the right hand of Hezbollah’s spiritual leader, Sheikh Muhammed Hussein Fadlallah.

Additionally, Prouty did admit in her guilty plea that in September 2000 she used the FBI’s computerized Automated Case System (ACS) without authorization to look up her own name, her sister’s name and that of Chahine. Prouty also admitted that in June 2003 she accessed the ACS to obtain information relating to an FBI national security investigation into Hezbollah — though she had not been officially assigned to work any Hezbollah cases.
To read the rest of this article, click here.

Jihadis Post Scenario for the Defeat of the United States

[http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2373415]

The story below is important to pass along for three reasons. First, as the last paragraph notes, it reveals the mindset and intent of al Qaeda and its allies. Second, we cannot afford to become complacent, no matter how calm circumstances may appear around us. And third, it is essential that, in next year’s elections, America chooses a President who understands the long-term threat arrayed against us and has the experience to deal with it. These are some of the key reasons why ACT for America plans next year to research candidate stands on national security and Islamofascism and to distribute voter information flyers to voters across the country. Jihadis Post Scenario for the Defeat of the United States By Abdul Hameed Bakier, Erich Marquardt http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2373415 On May 14, jihadi forum users Abu Kandahar and Roslan al-Shami posted a five-point scenario for the collapse of the United States and the rise of the Islamic ummah, entitled, “The Next Strikes in the Heart of America, When and How.” It appeared on the al-ommh.net forum, although at least one other jihadi forum, alhanein.com, reposted the scenario. The posting outlines a scenario for attacking the United States, although the sheer size of the operation suggests that it is jihadi propaganda and not an actual plan that could be operationalized. The alleged operation is dedicated to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the head of the Islamic State of Iraq. The first stage in the scenario involves multiple terrorist attacks on three major U.S. cities, preferably with nuclear weapons, using an unspecified number of trucks. The scenario places priority on attacking New York City because it is the central artery of the U.S. economy and it would prove that the mujahideen are capable of recurrent attacks on the same target. The second city to attack is Los Angeles, an important West Coast “atheist” city. The third “city” to be attacked is Florida because, they argue, it is an East Coast congregation city and has the Kennedy Space Center (considering the description, the statement’s authors probably meant Orlando). While those are the three primary cities for attack, the writers of the document suggest that if the mujahideen wish to expedite the collapse of the United States, they should also conduct attacks in Seattle since it is a strategic border city; Washington, DC, the political center of the United States; and cities in Texas, since the “biggest oil companies” are located there. According to the writers, the purpose of attacking these specific cities is to cause a sharp decline in the U.S. economy; mass amounts of casualties; the support for the mujahideen by anti-U.S. countries such as Cuba and Venezuela; a decrease in American support for their own government; the withdrawal of the “blasphemous” U.S. military from Islamic territories; mass military desertions; and the inability to fuel U.S. military fighter jets. The document also outlines how the fallout from such large-scale attacks would cause the U.S. military to return to the United States in order to conduct massive relief operations. They refer to the example of how Hurricane Katrina overburdened the U.S. National Guard, calling the hurricane a “Soldier of God.” After such attacks, they argue that the Islamic State of Iraq will seize the opportunity to launch mass strikes on the apostates in the Iraqi military and police, paving the way for the third stage of the scenario: the commencement of the golden era of the triumphant Islamic conquests that includes the implementation of Sharia, the liberation of the Arabian Peninsula, the removal from power of “the U.S. ruling family” in Jordan and, finally, the big march toward Palestine. In the end, even Washington, DC, will fall to the mujahideen and that will conclude the final stage of Islamic control of the globe. The scenario appears less of a planned operation than a hope for the fulfillment of a prophecy. The supposed factuality of the scenario is based on various verses in the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings. Nevertheless, some of the users on the forums who discussed the scenario asserted that all of the details to execute the operation had already been prepared. One such user, by the alias of Abu Nedal, said, “For your knowledge, the operations are ready and awaiting the orders from our leader Osama bin Laden, God protect him, to decide what he deems appropriate either to strike now or to wait.” Islamist extremists have always fabricated factitious scenarios for victory over the West based on their own interpretations of Quranic prophecies in times of crisis and defeat. Nevertheless, al-Qaeda has shown prior interest in acquiring nuclear materials for use in an attack, and it is necessary to take such forum postings seriously as they display the mindset and the intent, although perhaps not the capability, of al-Qaeda-affiliated militants. ——————————————————————————————- ACT for America P.O. Box 6884 Virginia Beach, VA 23456 www.actforamerica.org ACT for America is an issues advocacy organization dedicated to effectively organizing and mobilizing the most powerful grassroots citizen action network in America, a grassroots network committed to informed and coordinated civic action that will lead to public policies that promote America’s national security and the defense of American democratic values against the assault of radical Islam

Jihadis Post Scenario for the Defeat of the United States

The story below is important to pass along for three reasons. First, as the last paragraph notes, it reveals the mindset and intent of al Qaeda and its allies. Second, we cannot afford to become complacent, no matter how calm circumstances may appear around us. And third, it is essential that, in next year’s elections, America chooses a President who understands the long-term threat arrayed against us and has the experience to deal with it. These are some of the key reasons why ACT for America plans next year to research candidate stands on national security and Islamofascism and to distribute voter information flyers to voters across the country. Jihadis Post Scenario for the Defeat of the United States By Abdul Hameed Bakier, Erich Marquardt http://www.jamestown.org/terrorism/news/article.php?articleid=2373415 On May 14, jihadi forum users Abu Kandahar and Roslan al-Shami posted a five-point scenario for the collapse of the United States and the rise of the Islamic ummah, entitled, “The Next Strikes in the Heart of America, When and How.” It appeared on the al-ommh.net forum, although at least one other jihadi forum, alhanein.com, reposted the scenario. The posting outlines a scenario for attacking the United States, although the sheer size of the operation suggests that it is jihadi propaganda and not an actual plan that could be operationalized. The alleged operation is dedicated to Abu Omar al-Baghdadi, the head of the Islamic State of Iraq. The first stage in the scenario involves multiple terrorist attacks on three major U.S. cities, preferably with nuclear weapons, using an unspecified number of trucks. The scenario places priority on attacking New York City because it is the central artery of the U.S. economy and it would prove that the mujahideen are capable of recurrent attacks on the same target. The second city to attack is Los Angeles, an important West Coast “atheist” city. The third “city” to be attacked is Florida because, they argue, it is an East Coast congregation city and has the Kennedy Space Center (considering the description, the statement’s authors probably meant Orlando). While those are the three primary cities for attack, the writers of the document suggest that if the mujahideen wish to expedite the collapse of the United States, they should also conduct attacks in Seattle since it is a strategic border city; Washington, DC, the political center of the United States; and cities in Texas, since the “biggest oil companies” are located there. According to the writers, the purpose of attacking these specific cities is to cause a sharp decline in the U.S. economy; mass amounts of casualties; the support for the mujahideen by anti-U.S. countries such as Cuba and Venezuela; a decrease in American support for their own government; the withdrawal of the “blasphemous” U.S. military from Islamic territories; mass military desertions; and the inability to fuel U.S. military fighter jets. The document also outlines how the fallout from such large-scale attacks would cause the U.S. military to return to the United States in order to conduct massive relief operations. They refer to the example of how Hurricane Katrina overburdened the U.S. National Guard, calling the hurricane a “Soldier of God.” After such attacks, they argue that the Islamic State of Iraq will seize the opportunity to launch mass strikes on the apostates in the Iraqi military and police, paving the way for the third stage of the scenario: the commencement of the golden era of the triumphant Islamic conquests that includes the implementation of Sharia, the liberation of the Arabian Peninsula, the removal from power of “the U.S. ruling family” in Jordan and, finally, the big march toward Palestine. In the end, even Washington, DC, will fall to the mujahideen and that will conclude the final stage of Islamic control of the globe. The scenario appears less of a planned operation than a hope for the fulfillment of a prophecy. The supposed factuality of the scenario is based on various verses in the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad’s teachings. Nevertheless, some of the users on the forums who discussed the scenario asserted that all of the details to execute the operation had already been prepared. One such user, by the alias of Abu Nedal, said, “For your knowledge, the operations are ready and awaiting the orders from our leader Osama bin Laden, God protect him, to decide what he deems appropriate either to strike now or to wait.” Islamist extremists have always fabricated factitious scenarios for victory over the West based on their own interpretations of Quranic prophecies in times of crisis and defeat. Nevertheless, al-Qaeda has shown prior interest in acquiring nuclear materials for use in an attack, and it is necessary to take such forum postings seriously as they display the mindset and the intent, although perhaps not the capability, of al-Qaeda-affiliated militants. ——————————————————————————————- ACT for America P.O. Box 6884 Virginia Beach, VA 23456 http://www.actforamerica.org/ ACT for America is an issues advocacy organization dedicated to effectively organizing and mobilizing the most powerful grassroots citizen action network in America, a grassroots network committed to informed and coordinated civic action that will lead to public policies that promote America’s national security and the defense of American democratic values against the assault of radical Islam. HOW CAN I TELL OTHERS ABOUT YOUR ORGANIZATION? Send a personalized version of this message to your friends. HOW CAN I SUPPORT YOUR ORGANIZATION? Click here to give an online donation.

CAIR called ‘turnstile’ for terrorist suspects

 

The WorldNetDaily story below is a triumph of good investigative journalism. CAIR (The Council on American-Islamic Relations) repeatedly denies ties to terrorist organizations, but the evidence disputing those denials continues to grow. As the old saying goes, "where there’s smoke, there’s fire." In CAIR’s case, there’s so much smoke CAIR must be hoping that the smoke will blind our eyes from seeing the fire. HOMELAND INSECURITY CAIR called ‘turnstile’ for terrorist suspects ‘Proven record of senior officials being indicted, imprisoned, deported from U.S.‘     Posted: December 4, 2007 1:00 a.m. Eastern   © 2007 WorldNetDaily.com   As the Council on American-Islamic Relations lobbies Congress to help strike its name from a list of co-conspirators in a federal terror case, WND has learned the Muslim group’s ties to terrorism and extremism are far more extensive than first believed. Although CAIR is a nonprofit organization, it does not disclose complete directories of its staff or advisory boards, and even refuses to make its federal tax filings readily available to the public. But a review of federal criminal court documents, past IRS 990 tax records and Federal Election Commission records detailing donor occupations, reveals that Washington-based CAIR has been associated with a disturbing number of convicted terrorists or felons in terrorism probes, as well as suspected terrorists and active targets of terrorism investigations. "Their offices have been a turnstile for terrorists and their supporters," said one FBI veteran familiar with recent and ongoing cases involving CAIR officials. As previously reported, three CAIR officials have been linked to terrorism. But WND has learned that at least 11 other CAIR officials have been caught up in terror investigations, bringing the total to 14. Congressional leaders say they are warning lawmakers and other Washington officials to disassociate from the group due to its growing terror ties. "Groups like CAIR have a proven record of senior officials being indicted and either imprisoned or deported from the United States," said U.S. Rep. Sue Myrick, R-N.C., co-founder of the House Anti-Terrorism/Jihad Caucus. CAIR itself recently was named as an unindicted co-conspirator in an alleged scheme to funnel $12 million to the terrorist group Hamas. In the Holy Land Foundation case, federal prosecutors also listed CAIR as a member of the U.S. branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, a worldwide jihadist movement that gave rise to Hamas, al-Qaida and other terrorist groups. The government will retry the Holy Land case, which ended in a hung jury. "There was a lot of evidence presented at the recent Holy Land Foundation trial which exposed CAIR and others as front groups for the Muslim Brotherhood in the United States," Myrick said. Still, CAIR is lobbying House Judiciary Committee Chairman John Conyers and other sympathetic members of Congress to pressure the Justice Department to expunge its name from the case, arguing the negative publicity has hurt membership and fundraising. The federal judge during the trial refused a written request by the group to strike its name from the list of co-conspirators. The petition is still pending before the court. CAIR denies supporting terrorism and continues to claim to be a "moderate" voice for Muslims in America. The group says its critics are the extremists, including radio personality Michael Savage, whom the group is now attacking with a boycott campaign. So far it has convinced Wal-Mart, OfficeMax, AT&T, JCPenney and other companies to stop advertising on Savage’s popular show. In response, Savage last week filed a lawsuit against CAIR, accusing the organization of being a "political vehicle of international terrorism" that seeks to do "material harm to those voices who speak against the violent agenda of CAIR’s clients." Ibrahim Hooper, communications director for CAIR, told WND the group would not comment on Savage’s action until the document had been reviewed. CAIR, which runs 33 offices and chapters nationwide, also recently helped defeat an anti-terror plan by Los Angeles police to map the local Muslim community for extremist neighborhoods. Now it’s pressuring GOP presidential hopeful Mitt Romney to back down from his position against appointing a Muslim to his Cabinet. Critics counter that CAIR has no legitimate voice to make such complaints, because the group is itself an extremist organization that has employed or appointed to its boards of directors and advisers an inordinate number of radical co-conspirators, suspected and convicted terrorists, and other criminals. To read the rest of this article, click here.

 

 

 

 

CAIR Pressures Office Max to Stop Advertising on Michael Savage Program

CAIR Pressures OfficeMax to Stop Advertising
On Michael Savage Program !! ACTION ALERT !!

Please Call OfficeMax As Soon As Possible

Dear Mark,

The brief story highlighted below reports that CAIR (the Council on American-Islamic Relations) has successfully pressured OfficeMax to drop its advertising on the Michael Savage radio program. And notice the story says OfficeMax has “joined a growing list of companies” with its decision to stop advertising.

OFFICEMAX DROPS MICHAEL SAVAGE ADS OVER ANTI-ISLAM BIAS (WASHINGTON, D.C., 11/15/2007) – The Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) today announced that OfficeMax, a leading office products retailer, has joined a growing list of companies that have stopped advertising on Michael Savage’s nationally-syndicated radio program because of the host’s anti-Muslim views.

CAIR recently reported that Savage, whose “The Savage Nation” airs on more than 300 radio stations nationwide, screamed attacks on Muslims, Islam and the Quran, Islam’s revealed text, during his October 29, 2007, program

The decision by OfficeMax was announced the same day the Los Angeles Police Department announced it was dropping its proposed anti-terrorism program due to pressure from groups like CAIR.

This is just another example of why it’s so important that we build ACT for America into the nation’s most formidable grassroots organization. Look what’s happening! A tiny, tiny percentage of Americans are represented by CAIR, but because companies like OfficeMax don’t hear from anyone else, they cave in to CAIR’s demands.

We need to let businesses and communities know that we have a voice that is much, much larger than CAIR’s.

Please ACT! today. Here’s all you need to do:

1. Call the OfficeMax office headquarters at 630.438.7800, press “0″ when asked who you want to speak to, and when you get an operator, in a polite but firm manner, tell the operator you have heard about the company’s decision to stop advertising on the Michael Savage program because of the pressure from CAIR. Tell them you will no longer shop at OfficeMax until OfficeMax reverses this ill-advised decision.
2. If the 630-438-7800 number is busy, call the Customer Service line, 800-661-5931. It’s better to call the office line first, because if enough people call their phone lines will get clogged up and they’ll know right away that something is happening. Call the 800# only if you can’t get through on the 630.438.7800 line.
3. Some people ask about sending emails in a case like this. Phone calls are better. A barrage of phone calls will get immediate attention from the company.
4. Forward this email to everyone you know, with a short personal message asking them to place a call as well.

Next week, ACT for America will launch a petition that we will take to not only OfficeMax but other companies that have caved in to CAIR, as well as companies that CAIR is pressuring right now.

If CAIR can succeed in this effort to silence Michael Savage, consider the chilling effect this will have on every talk radio host in America. Enough is enough – let’s ACT now!

Brigitte Gabriel

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ACT for America
P.O. Box 6884
Virginia Beach, VA 23456
www.actforamerica.org

ACT for America is an issues advocacy organization dedicated to effectively organizing and mobilizing the most powerful grassroots citizen action network in America, a grassroots network committed to informed and coordinated civic action that will lead to public policies that promote America’s national security and the defense of American democratic values against the assault of radical Islam.