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Tag: Islam

  • EU Court Ruled For Hamas To Be Removed From EU’s Terrorist List

    EU Court Ruled For Hamas To Be Removed From EU’s Terrorist List

    BRUSSELS – The Palestinian Islamist group Hamas should be removed from the European Union’s terrorist list, an EU court ruled on Wednesday, saying the decision to include it was based on media reports not considered analysis.

    In its ruling, however, the bloc’s second highest tribunal said member states could keep Hamas’s assets frozen for three months to give time for further review or for an appeal.

    The EU’s foreign policy arm said the bloc continued to view Hamas as a terrorist group. “This was a legal ruling of the court based on procedural grounds. We will look into this and decide on appropriate remedial action,” spokeswoman Maja Kocijanic said.

    The United States urged the European Union not to change its stance.

    “We believe that the E.U. should maintain its terrorism sanctions on Hamas,” U.S. State Department spokeswoman Jen Psaki told a regular news briefing.

    Israel, which has clashed repeatedly with Europe in recent years over Palestinian statehood ambitions, demanded Hamas remain blacklisted and said the ruling showed “staggering hypocrisy” toward a Jewish state founded after the Holocaust.

    “It seems that too many in Europe, on whose soil six million Jews were slaughtered, have learned nothing. But we in Israel, we’ve learned,” Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said. He branded Hamas “a murderous terrorist organization”.

    Hamas holds sway in the Gaza Strip and its founding charter calls for the destruction of Israel. It has regularly battled Israel, most recently in a 50-day war this summer.

    Most Western countries say it is a terrorist organization, pointing to years of indiscriminate rocket strikes out of Gaza and waves of suicide attacks, primarily between 1993 and 2005.

    HAMAS BUOYED

    Hamas says it is a legitimate resistance movement and contested the European Union’s decision in 2001 to include it on the terrorist list. It welcomed Wednesday’s verdict.

    “The decision is a correction of a historical mistake the European Union had made,” Deputy Hamas chief Moussa Abu Marzouk said. “Hamas is a resistance movement and it has a natural right according to all international laws and standards to resist the occupation.”

    The EU court did not ponder the merits of whether Hamas should be classified as a terror group, but reviewed the original decision-making process. This, it said, did not include the considered opinion of competent authorities, but rather relied on media and Internet reports.

    It said if an appeal was brought before the EU’s top court, the European Court of Justice, the freeze of Hamas funds should continue until the legal process was complete.

    In a similar ruling, an EU court said in October the 2006 decision to place Sri Lanka’s Tamil Tigers on the EU list was procedurally flawed. As with Hamas, it also said the group’s assets should remain frozen pending further legal action and the European Union subsequently filed an appeal.

    The European Parliament has approved a non-binding resolution supporting Palestinian statehood. The text was a compromise, representing divisions within the EU over how far to blame Israel for failing to agree peace terms.

     

    Source: www.todayonline.com

  • Teenage Muslim Weddings In Malaysia

    Teenage Muslim Weddings In Malaysia

    KLUANG (THE STAR/ASIA NEWS NETWORK) – A 15-year-old boy ended his bachelorhood early when he married his 17-year-old girlfriend here after dating for about two months.

    Muhd Muaz Mislan, 15, and Nur Izzati Amiera Ishak, 17, tied the knot on Nov 30 and captured the attention of social media after the newlyweds posted photos and a video of their akad nikah (solemnisation ceremony) on Facebook.

    In his posting, Muhd Muaz said he wanted to marry the girl to make their relationship legal after receiving both families’ nod.

    “Young marriage will stir talk from others; but I am ready,” he added.

    Muhd Muaz, who is believed to be waiting for his Form 3 Assessment result, is said to have decided to discontinue his studies next year.

    The video footage showed that Muhd Muaz and Nur Izzati’s marriage was solemnised with a wedding dowry of RM22.50 (S$8.40).

    Nur Izzati has just completed her Sijil Pelajaran Malaysia (SPM) examinations.

    For Muslims, the legal age of marriage for is 18 for males and 16 for females. With the permission of the syariah court, however, Muslims can marry at any age.

    In Malacca, 15-year-old Nurulain Mohammad married businessman Zulhelmi Kaharudin, 21, at a mass akad nikah (solemnisation of marriage) ceremony at the Malacca International Trade Centre in Ayer Keroh on Sunday.

    Nurulain and Mr Zulhelmi, 21, had the blessings of their respective families. From the start, their love story was not a secret.

    Mr Zulhelmi, who runs a restaurant business, said he was brought up in a strict family.

    “Neither of us dared to meet secretly.”

    The eldest of three siblings said he encouraged his new bride to study right up to tertiary education level. “Only after that will we have children,” he said.

    “She is still a girl but I will guide her with the right values,” he said.

    The couple saw each other while walking around the neighbourhood. Mr Zulhelmi said it was love at first sight.

    “She was walking back from school a few days later when I said ‘I love you’. To my surprise, she said the same back to me.”

     

    Source: www.straitstimes.com

  • 15 Year Old Girl Intent On Joining IS Stopped At Heathrow Airport

    15 Year Old Girl Intent On Joining IS Stopped At Heathrow Airport

    LONDON (AFP) – London police stopped a plane on the runway at Heathrow Airport to remove a 15-year-old girl intent on joining Islamist fighters in Syria, a report said Wednesday.

    Counter-terrorism officers rushed to Europe’s busiest airport and stopped the plane, which was bound for Istanbul, the London Evening Standard newspaper reported.

    They ordered the plane to turn around as it taxied down the runway.

    The girl, from Tower Hamlets in east London, had secretly saved up to buy a ticket.

    The incident happened earlier this month. The girl has returned to her family, the Standard reported.

    “On Dec 6, police received reports of a 15-year-old girl from Tower Hamlets missing from home,” a Scotland Yard spokesman said.

    “Police were able to locate her and she has since returned home safely.”

    Heathrow Airport declined to comment when contacted by AFP.

    The Standard said the incident would heighten concern about the number of girls and young women travelling to Syria and Iraq.

    An estimated 500 Britons have travelled abroad to become Islamic militants, many with the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS) extremist group.

    In August, Britain’s terror threat level was raised to severe, the second-highest of five levels, meaning that a terror attack is considered highly likely.

    It came against a backdrop of increasing concerns over aspiring British militants travelling to Iraq and Syria to learn terror “tradecraft”.

    Several teenagers are among those who have gone abroad to join fighters with ISIS and other extremist groups.

     

    Source: www.straitstimes.com

  • Pusat Pendidikan Temasek Ditubuh Di Turkey Bagi Kanak-Kanak Pelarian Syria

    Pusat Pendidikan Temasek Ditubuh Di Turkey Bagi Kanak-Kanak Pelarian Syria

    SECEBIS sumbangan Singapura dalam bentuk sebuah sekolah kini wujud di Turkey untuk kanak-kanak pelarian Syria.

    Diberi nama Pusat Pendidikan Temasek, sekolah yang ditubuhkan hasil sumbangan warga Singapura itu telah dirasmikan minggu lalu di bandar Kilis di tenggara Turkey dekat sempadan Syria.

    Pembinaan sekolah itu merupakan sebahagian daripada Projek Bantuan bagi Pelarian Syria di Turkey (Asrit), yang diterajui pusat pendidikan setempat SimplyIslam dan Rangkaian Ekspatriat Muslim (MEX), sebuah divisyen Angkatan Karyawan Islam (AMP), dan disokong pelbagai badan Islam di Singapura, termasuk Yayasan Rahmatan Lil Alamin (RLAF).

    Bangunan sekolah empat tingkat itu telah dibeli pada harga $350,000 hasil sumbangan masyarakat Islam Singapura – antaranya melalui kutipan yang diadakan RLAF.

    Sekolah yang mempunyai lima bilik darjah dan sebuah makmal komputer itu boleh menampung 400 pelajar, iaitu di peringkat menengah dan prasekolah.

    Sejak beroperasi September lalu, sekolah itu mempunyai sekitar 150 pelajar sejauh ini.

    Sekolah itu diiktiraf lembaga pendidikan di Syria, yang bermakna pelajar boleh meneruskan pengajian mereka di institusi di Syria sekembalinya mereka ke sana.

    Majlis perasmian sekolah itu pada 9 Disember lalu turut dihadiri Ketua Projek Asrit, Encik Mohamed Nassir Abdul Sukkur; anggota lembaga pengamanah Yayasan Rahmatan Lil Alamin (RLAF), Encik Zainul Abidin Ibrahim; dan Pengarah (Masjid) Muis, Encik Mohamad Helmy Md Isa.

    “Pusat itu juga menyediakan tempat selamat bagi kanak-kanak itu berinteraksi, jauh daripada trauma dan pengeboman yang mereka alami, dan yang telah menyebabkan mereka lari dari Syria,” ujar Encik Nassir, yang juga pengarah urusan SimplyIslam.

    Encik Zainul pula berkata usaha Asrit dan RLAF tidak akan berhenti dengan perasmian sekolah itu.

    “Kami akan membawa belia daripada masjid, madrasah dan institusi pengajian tinggi di Singapura ke sekolah ini untuk pelbagai program, seperti pembinaan perpustakaan yang lebih baik dan program seperti terapi muzik dan terapi seni untuk memberi kekuatan kepada kanak-kanak di sini,” ujar Encik Zainul, yang juga Pengarah Pendekatan Strategik di Muis.

    Perpustakaan di sekolah itu sekarang mempunyai buku yang didermakan oleh Madrasah Al-Irsyad Al-Islamiah dan Sekolah Menengah Tampines di Singapura.

    Asrit dan RLAF bergabung tenaga dengan Kimse Yok Mu, badan kemanusiaan antarabangsa berpangkalan di Turkey yang berpengalaman mengendalikan sistem persekolahan, bagi penubuhan sekolah tersebut.

    Selain itu, Asrit dan RLAF turut memanfaatkan sumbangan warga Singapura bagi membeli barang keperluan untuk pelarian Syria di Kilis dan di Sanliurfa – satu lagi bandar dekat sempadan Syria – serta makanan panas yang disiapkan setiap hari untuk pelarian.

    Remaja dari Aleppo, Syria, Hajar Sheikh Muhammad, 17 tahun, meluahkan penghargaannya atas sumbangan rakyat Singapura.

    “Kami akan sentiasa terhutang budi kepada anda. Terima kasih Singapura,” ujarnya.

     

    Source:http://beritaharian.sg/

  • Islamophobia Driving Expectation On The Need For Muslims To Openly Deplore Terrorist Acts?

    Islamophobia Driving Expectation On The Need For Muslims To Openly Deplore Terrorist Acts?

    There’s a certain ritual that each and every one of the world’s billion-plus Muslims, especially those living in Western countries, is expected to go through immediately following any incident of violence involving a Muslim perpetrator. It’s a ritual that is continuing now with the Sydney hostage crisis, in which a deranged self-styled sheikh named Man Haron Monis took several people hostage in a downtown café.

    Here is what Muslims and Muslim organizations are expected to say: “As a Muslim, I condemn this attack and terrorism in any form.”

    This expectation we place on Muslims, to be absolutely clear, is Islamophobic and bigoted. The denunciation is a form of apology: an apology for Islam and for Muslims. The implication is that every Muslim is under suspicion of being sympathetic to terrorism unless he or she explicitly says otherwise.

    The implication is also that any crime committed by a Muslim is the responsibility of all Muslims simply by virtue of their shared religion. This sort of thinking — blaming an entire group for the actions of a few individuals, assuming the worst about a person just because of their identity — is the very definition of bigotry.

    It is time for that ritual to end: non-Muslims in all countries, and today especially those in Australia, should finally take on the correct assumption that Muslims hate terrorism just as much as they do, and cease expecting Muslims to prove their innocence just because of their faith.

    Bigoted assumptions are the only plausible reason for this ritual to exist, which means that maintaining the ritual is maintaining bigotry. Otherwise, we wouldn’t expect Muslims to condemn Haron Monis — who is clearly a crazy person who has no affiliations with formal religious groups — any more than we would expect Christians to condemn Timothy McVeigh. Similarly, if someone blames all Jews for the act of, say, extremist Israeli settlers in the West Bank, we immediately and correctly reject that position as prejudiced. We understand that such an accusation is hateful and wrong — but not when it is applied to Muslims.

    This is, quite literally, a different set of standards that we apply only to Muslims. Hend Amry, who is Libyan-American, brilliantly satirized this expectation with this tweet, highlighting the arbitrary expectations about what Muslims are and are not expected to condemn:

    This ritual began shortly after September 2001. American Muslims, as well as Muslims in other Western countries, feared that they could be victims to a public backlash against people of their religion. President George W. Bush feared this as well and gave a speech imploring Americans to embrace Muslim-Americans as fellow citizens. But while the short-term need to guard against a backlash was real, that moment has passed, and the ritual’s persistence is perpetuating Islamophobia rather than reducing it, by constantly reminding us of our assumption that Muslims are guilty until proven innocent.

    The media has played a significant role in maintaining this ritual and thus the prejudiced ideas behind it. Yes, that includes openly Islamophobic cable news hosts like those in the US. But it also includes even well-intentioned media outlets and reporters who broadcast Muslims’ and Muslim organizations’ condemnation of acts of extremist violence, like the hostage crisis in Sydney.

    There is no question that this coverage is explicitly and earnestly designed to combat Islamophobia and promote equal treatment of Muslims. No question. All the same, this coverage ends up cementing the ritual condemnation as a necessary act, and thus cementing as well the racist implications of that ritual. By treating it as news every time, the media is reminding its readers and viewers that Muslims are held to a different standard; it is implicitly if unintentionally reiterating the idea that they are guilty until proven innocent, that maybe there is something to the idea of collective Muslim responsibility for lone criminals who happen to share their religion.

    Instead, we should treat the assumptions that compel this ritual — that Muslims bear collective responsibility, that they are presumed terrorist-sympathizers until proven otherwise — as flatly bigoted ideas with no place in our society. There is no legitimate reason for Muslim groups to need to condemn Haron Monis, nor is there any legitimate reason to treat those condemnations as news. So we should stop.

    We should treat people Haron Monis as what he is: a deranged lunatic. And we should treat Muslims as what they: normal people who of course reject terrorism, rather than as a lesser form of humanity that is expected to reject violence every time it happens.

     

    Source: www.vox.com