Tag: Syria

Feeling The Pinch, Malaysian IS Terrorists Long For Home

KUALA LUMPUR, April 13 ― The police have revealed that 57 of Malaysians who had joined jihadist group Islamic State (IS) in Syria have been trying to return home due to various pressures such as economic difficulties.

Bukit Aman’s Special Branch’s Counter-Terrorism Division’s principal assistant director Datuk Ayob Khan Mydin said police had received information that many militants ― including those from Malaysia ― were seeking to leave Syria and to send their families off from the area.

“Many do not know that going to Syria is not only to engage in battles but they also have to work to get their own income.

“Although they are with Daesh, they also have to work to get money to provide for their families and to survive there. But the job opportunities there are very limited,” he was quoted telling local daily Berita Harian, using the Arabic name for IS.

He said that Malaysians who in the past were able to earn RM890 per month there can now only earn around RM220 each month, adding that this has forced the militants there to ask for money from other Malaysians to be spent on food and Internet connection.

Berita Harian said it had last Monday reported that several Malaysian militants in Syria were allegedly gambling online for the claimed purpose of getting more funds to smuggle in more Malaysians there.

Source: www.themalaymailonline.com

April 13, 2017
Muslim Women Gather At Westminster Bridge To Remember Victims Of Terrorist Attack

Woman gathered at the scene of last Wednesday’s terror attack in Westminster and linked arms as a show of solidarity with its victims.

Wearing blue as a symbol of hope, the women said emotions were “overwhelming” as they stood on the bridge where pedestrians were mown down by 52-year-old terrorist Khalid Masood .

They formed a human chain by holding hands for five minutes as Big Ben chimed at 4pm.

People from a range of backgrounds joined the event, organised by Women’s March On London.

Three members of the public died and many more were injured after Masood sped along the bridge before storming the parliamentary estate and stabbing PC Keith Palmer to death.

Fariha Khan, 40, a GP from Surbiton, said: “The feeling of what happened here on

“We thought of the ordinary people who were here and were mown down, standing here like this, it was very overwhelming.”

She was joined by fellow Ahmadiyya Muslims who said they wanted to add to the condemnation of the violent attack and stand defiant in the face of terrorism .

Sarah Waseem, 57, from Surrey, said: “When an attack happens in London, it is an attack on me.

“It is an attack on all of us. Islam totally condemns violence of any sort. This is abhorrent to us.”

Being present for the demonstration shows people in the city are united in support of democracy, said Ayesha Malik.

The 34-year-old mother-of-two, also from Surrey, said: “As a visible Muslim I think it was important to show solidarity with the principles that we all hold dear, the principles of plurality, diversity and so on.”

Londoner Mary Bennett said she was present to make a “small gesture”.

The retired healthcare worker said: “I am here to show that in a quiet way we continue to go where we like and do what we like in London.

“This is my city. It’s a very small gesture but life is made up of small gestures.”

Source: www.mirror.co.uk

March 27, 2017
Don’t Be Fooled, Trump’s New Muslim Ban Is Still Illegal

President Trump’s executive order barring immigrants from seven Muslim-majority countries experienced nearly universal defeat in the federal courts. On Monday, he issued a revised version of that order, but it still suffers from a fundamental, and fatal, flaw: It constitutes unlawful religious discrimination.

On the surface, this revised order looks different from the first version. It explicitly exempts Iraq from the travel ban, thus reducing the number of affected countries to six, as well as lawful permanent residents (that is, green card holders) and people who have visas. It no longer categorically bars Syrian refugees or includes a religious test to determine which refugees may enter the country. And in a marked departure from the earlier order, it goes into effect in 10 days, so that the chaos that unfolded in airports around the world when the January order became effective presumably won’t happen again.

These changes are, no doubt, intended to address the due process concerns that led the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit to affirm a lower-court ruling that put a hold on part of the original order. But while these changes are important, they do not fix the core problem with the executive order: The administration is waging an all-out assault on Islam and Muslims.

That’s because anti-Muslim bias and bigotry that characterized the original travel ban remain in this revised version. The order is still limited to only Muslim-majority countries: namely, Iran, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria and Yemen. Residents of those countries — and only those countries — will be severely restricted in their ability to travel into the United States for 90 days. Left off are the predominately Christian countries that the State Department lists as “Terrorist Safe Havens” like Colombia, the Philippines and Venezuela.

The revised order also continues to traffic in bigoted and largely false perceptions: By requiring the government to compile occurrences of “honor killings” by immigrants, it gives official recognition to an inflammatory and misleading trope of Islam that is perpetuated by anti-Muslim hate groups.

President Trump has not been subtle in his intentions. We need look no further than his own words to figure them out. On the campaign trail, he constantly conflated the vast majority of peaceful Muslims with the small handful of violent Muslims.

After the Paris attacks in November 2015, Mr. Trump said that “we’re going to have no choice” but to close some mosques in the United States, where “some really bad things are happening.” The next month, after the attack in San Bernardino, Calif., he called for a “complete shutdown of Muslims entering the United States” and released a factually dubious statement that “large segments of the Muslim population” have “great hatred towards Americans” and favor Shariah law. Astonishingly, that statement is still posted on Mr. Trump’s website.

In December, when a reporter asked whether he had reconsidered his stance on Islam, President-elect Trump replied: “You know my plans. All along, I’ve been proven to be right.” This dark and wholly unsubstantiated worldview about Islam and the American Muslim community is shared by several of the president’s senior aides and advisers.

Let’s be clear: This revised order is a Muslim ban. All the countries he has excluded are more than 90 percent Muslim. Three of them — Iran, Somalia and Yemen — are more than 99 percent Muslim. Even though Mr. Trump tailored his order to survive legal challenges, as his former adviser Rudolph Giuliani conceded on national television, his objective is clearly to exclude Muslims.

The Trump administration argues that the ban protects the country. Yet by excluding Iraq from the order, Mr. Trump has cleared travel from one of the two countries from which Islamic State terrorists operates. Moreover, the Department of Homeland Security concluded last month that “country of citizenship is unlikely to be a reliable indicator of potential terrorist activity.” Former national security officials from Democratic and Republican administrations have made clear that the January order does not make our country safer. Instead, the bigotry that Mr. Trump spews at news conferences and on Twitter have been a boon for terrorists’ recruitment efforts.

The twisted worldview does not match reality. Muslims have been part of America for centuries, since the first slave ships arrived in the 17th century. Today, Muslims represent 1 percent of the United States population: They are our teachers, doctors, neighbors and co-workers.

American Muslims will suffer a particular harm from this executive order: Those who have ties to the banned countries won’t be able to see their family members and close friends. American Muslims will also be deprived of the instruction from the leading Islamic scholars who are from those countries.

Thousands of Muslim men and women serve in the armed forces; many have given their lives defending our nation and our ideals. They contribute to the diversity that has always been our nation’s pride and strength. President George W. Bush paid tribute to this in the weeks after the Sept. 11 attacks when he said, “There are thousands of Muslims who proudly call themselves Americans, and they know what I know — that the Muslim faith is based upon peace and love and compassion.”

President Trump and his top advisers would be wise to listen to President Bush. The Muslim ban and President Trump’s relentless attacks on Islam are not just an assault on thousands of patriotic, innocent Americans — they violate our Constitution and our most fundamental American values and beliefs.

Source: NYTimes

March 7, 2017
Ingin Bantu Pelarian Syria Harungi Musim Sejuk? Semua 70 Masjid S’pura Kumpul Dana Khas Mulai Jumaat Ini

Kita di Singapura, Malaysia dan Indonesia sedang mengalami cuaca dingin yang nyaman. Namun para pelarian Syria kini dibelenggu oleh cuaca amat sejuk, yang menggigit rantau Timur Tengah.

Bermakna, para pelarian Syria kini memerlukan lebih banyak bantuan dan kelengkapan bagi melindungi diri mereka, selain keperluan lain seperti makanan.

Lantaran itu, mulai Jumaat ini (3 Feb), semua 70 masjid di Singapura, dengan kerjasama Yayasan Rahmatan Lil Alamin (RLAF), akan mengadakan kutipan derma khas sempena musim sejuk, bagi membantu para pelarian Syria.

KERJASAMA RLAF, UNHCR & MAHASISWA S’PURA DI JORDAN

Konflik dalam negeri dan peperangan di Syria yang sudah berlarutan hampir enam tahun amat menjejas para penduduknya.

Lebih empat juta rakyat Syria sudahpun melarikan diri dari negara itu dan mendapatkan perlindungan di negara-negara asing seperti Eropah, Turki, Jordan, Lubnan, Iraq dan Mesir.

Di Jordan sahaja, terdapat 650,000 pelarian dan jumlah yang tinggi itu menjejas ke atas sumber-sumber di negara yang juga sedang berusaha memenuhi keperluan rakyatnya sendiri.

(Gambar: MOHAMAD ABAZEED / AFP)

Oleh itu, RLAF akan bekerjasama dengan UNHCR dan badan mahasiswa Singapura di Jordan untuk menghulurkan bantuan dalam program bantuan musim sejuk serta program-program pendidikan bagi kanak-kanak Syria.

KEMPEN KUTIP DANA BERLANGSUNG SELAMA SEMINGGU

Kotak-kotak derma RLAF akan diletakkan di semua 70 masjid dari Jumaat ini sehingga Khamis 9 Februari 2017 dan akan tertera tulisan “Special Winter Collection in Aid of Syrian Refugees”.

Orang ramai boleh menghulurkan derma mereka secara tunai ataupun menerusi cek. Semua derma menerusi cek perlu diberikan kepada “RLAF” dan ditulis “Special Winter Collection in Aid of Syrian Refugees” pada bahagian belakangnya.

Sumbangan wang tunai dan cek boleh dihantar ke Bangunan MUIS di Hab Islam Singapura, No 273, Braddell Road, Singapore 579702.

Selain itu, orang awam juga boleh menyumbang secara online menerusi https://zakat.sg/ePayment/donations.aspx.

RLAF PERNAH BANTU 4,000 KELUARGA SYRIA

Pada tahun 2014, RLAF dan masjid-masjid di Singapura berjaya mengumpulkan lebih $400,000 menerusi dua usaha mengumpul dana bagi para pelarian Syria.

Dana itu digunakan untuk mengagihkan makanan yang sudah dimasak, keperluan bagi lebih 4,000 keluarga Syria, peralatan sekolah bagi kanak-kanak pelarian Syria di tiga buah sekolah di Turki serta kit ubat-ubatan bagi klinik-klinik untuk merawat mereka yang cedera dan kurang upaya.

(Gambar: YASIN AKGUL / AFP)

Yang paling penting, RLAF dengan kerjasama Projek ASRIT (Bantuan untuk Pelarian Syria di Turki) berjaya menubuhkan Pusat Pendidikan Temasek di Kilis, selatan Turki yang mengambil 500 pelajar Syria dari peringkat tadika sehingga pos-menengah setiap tahun. Sehingga kini, pusat ini masih lagi beroperasi.

Source: BeritaMediacorp

February 2, 2017
Malaysian Radio DJ Johan Donated RM100,000 (S$31,900) To Victims In Syria

Bagi peminat pelawak negara, Johan dan isterinya, Ozlynn Watie dan sering ‘menjenguk’ Instagram pasangan ini, pasti sudah mengetahui rumah mereka selalu dikunjungi teman artis yang datang untuk menjamu selera.

Ekoran sikap pasangan itu yang bermurah hati mendapat reaksi dan komen positif daripada peminat yang sentiasa mendoakan agar keluarga mereka sentiasa dilimpahkan rezeki dek kerana sikap yang suka menjamu rakan artis lain.

Jadi, tidak mustahillah Johan atau nama sebenarnya Mohd Yazid Lim Mohamad Aziz, 32, berhasrat menyumbang sebahagian wang kemenangan dalam program Super Spontan Superstar 2016 kepada mangsa perang Syria.

Penderitaan dihadapi pelarian dari negara bergolak berkenaan, khususnya kanak-kanak, amat menyentuh hatinya membuatkan beliau menyalurkan sebahagian daripada wang kemenangan RM100,000 (S$31,900) program itu, Oktober lalu, kepada mereka.

“Saya percaya pemberian yang ikhlas juga akan membuatkan rezeki seseorang bertambah.”

“Buat masa ini, wang kemenangan berkenaan belum lagi saya terima, tetapi itulah niat saya jika ia diperoleh dalam masa terdekat,” katanya.

Tambahnya, beliau akan menggunakan saluran betul supaya sumbangan dihulurkan benar-benar sampai ke tangan pihak memerlukan.

Selain itu, penyampai Era FM ini juga memasang impian untuk membina masjid di kawasan yang memerlukan.

“Sejak dulu lagi saya membayangkan, alangkah bahagianya jika saya memiliki duit yang banyak kerana niat saya adalah untuk mencari keberkatan hidup.

“Begitupun, hanya orang yang kaya mampu membina sebuah masjid. Namun, saya tidak bermaksud orang miskin tak boleh beramal sama kerana walaupun sedikit sumbangan kita, ia tetap diterima Allah,” katanya.

Source: AgendaDaily

January 18, 2017