Dr Kaukab Siddique | Editor-in-Chief ---------------------------------------------------------
Muharram 14, 1426/February 23, 2005 #16
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Please scroll all the way down for case study of Steve Emerson, Zionist Jew camouflaged as "expert on terrorism."
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WAR NEWS:

IRAQ: 35 U.S. Troops Killed: January 31-Feb. 21

U.S. TV channels are phasing out the ongoing fighting and Islamic resistance in Iraq. If you watch TV carefully you would think only 7 U.S. troops were killed after the farcical "elections" till February 21. However, the news tickers and sources for totals of U.S. losses indicate that 35 U.S. troops have been killed by the mujahideen since January 31. The total killed for U.S. troops is now 1475, with nearly 11,000 wounded, many with arms and legs blown off.
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Jamaat al-Muslimeen News [Press Release]
P.O. Box 10881
Baltimore, MD 21234

MALCOLM X: Transformed All African-Americans into Potential Muslims
Understood the U.S. Power Structure: Opposed Integration into Oppression

February 21 was the day of tears when Malcolm X [Al-Hajj Malik Shabazz] was gunned down by his own people who were manipulated by the power structure. Foolish followers are much more dangerous than wise enemies. A small White minority in South Africa used Black people to keep the Black majority locked down under Apartheid in South Africa for decades. The great Native American chief Crazy Horse, who defeated the U.S. army, was murdered by a Native American. Malcolm's mind was his greatest asset. He was constantly moving towards liberation from the snares of America. Nothing could stop him from accepting the truth. It was as if Allah was drawing him steadily towards Makka. Even when he was not a Muslim in the formal sense, he questioned established authority. If Jesus is god [he asked], why is he White? He saw that integration was pointless. If two men can sit at the same table but one has a plateful of food while the other is starving, sitting together is a farce. At every step of his development we can see that Allah was preparing him for Islam and martyrdom. He stood for the rights of the Black people, for their dignity, for their right of self-defense. At that time Elijah Muhammad was the right mentor for him. But he moved on to the great truth that racism is only a a reflection of the ultimate reality of oppression, exploitation and hegemony. His spiritual dimension, his Islam, made him the one who could reject his established place of pride in Elijah Muhammad's inner circle. Africa drew him. It was a natural attraction. The central reality of Africa is Islam. By going to Africa, Malcolm was returning to Islam. Like Garvey, he was attracted by the RETURN concept. Later, Kwame Toure would actually do it. Malcom continued to challenge America and was never in any doubt that the White Supremacist power structure of this country, built on 400 years of slavery, was not acceptable. Very few in America can compare with him in moral courage, clarity of thought and its eloquent _expression. It's a shame to see flag wavers like W.D. Muhammad trying to claim him, or marxists trying to fit him into their straitjackets. If he had been alive today, he and Osama would have been friends. Imam Jamil al-Amin is one who has kept alive his tradition of open defiance of the ENTIRE system of exploitation prevalent in this country. Al-Hajj Malik Shabazz: African, revolutionary, self-critical man of the spirit, humble, lacking in property [the Sunnah of the Prophet, pbuh] and becoming ever better and moving forward. Beloved son of Islam, you belong to the Muslim Ummah. Allahu Akbar, wa lillahil hamd.
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SOWING THE WHIRLWIND: The Humiliation of the Pashtun People by U.S. Troops.
Raw, Strictly Objective Movie Captures Reality of U.S. Occupation of Afghanistan

"Taliban Country"-A Review +Meeting with Producer
By Nadrat Siddique

In this age of CNN and O'Reilly, "Taliban Country" is a documentary that restores dignity to the word "journalist." Carmela Baranowska, an Australian filmmaker, was originally embedded with U.S. marines in Afghanistan's remote Uruzgan Province. The mission of the marines is to "hunt for Taliban and Al-Qaida." They are under the command of Asad Khan--the only "Muslim" to have attained the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. military. Together with Jan Muhammad, a Pushtun warlord, who cooperates with U.S. troops, they regularly patrol Uruzgan villages.

Baranowska's camera effectively captures the tranquility of the Afghan village. Birds are singing, children are playing, and one can almost feel the breeze circulating through the sunny courtyards of the traditional Afghan clay houses. The viewer gets a sense of what (state) terrorism means, when the marines descend upon this quietly serene village, with submachine guns and RPGs drawn, breaking down doors, and violating the sanctity of households. I was struck by the similarity in the behavior of the U.S. military with that of the Red Army--with their infamous house-to-house searches during the Russian occupation of Afghanistan, also aimed at striking terror in the hearts of the Afghan population.

Still, in this scene, perhaps due to Baranowska's presence, the troops are relatively restrained. They find no Taliban, instead arresting a young local, named Janan, and confiscating only nine guns. Janan is turned over to warlord Jan Muhammad for questioning. His interrogation of the young man is little more than a steady stream of explicit Pashto epithets, capable of making the most seasoned hoodlum in the American inner city blush. Jan Muhammad, master of homosexual innuendo, is the quintessential U.S. approved/appointed Afghan "leader," in the Karzai/Dostum tradition: ego ridden, power hungry, and willing to sell out his people for a small price. The contrast between the arrogant and scurrilous speech of this Tom, and the humility of the soft-spoken Taliban leadership so demonized in the U.S. controlled media is inescapable.

The marines and Jan Muhammad, accompanied by Baranowska, visit a second village, called Passau. They sit down with the townspeople to discuss their concerns. Despite the threat posed by armed U.S. troops and by the ruthless warlord, a villager bravely tries to raise questions about abuses enacted by the U.S. military. He is quickly silenced, by the marines' translator, who condescendingly tells him his concerns are more appropriate as a post-evening-prayer topic.

Baranowska, a seasoned journalist with years of experience investigating atrocities in E. Timor and elsewhere, is immediately suspicions. She decides to return-unembedded--to the area, to find out what is really underfoot. She returns first to Janan's village of Masazai. Janan tells her that U.S. troops can't capture any Taliban fighters, so they make a show of nabbing innocent and helpless villagers like him.

She learns that militias like Jan Muhammad's exploit the U.S. presence in the region to gain the upper hand over their traditional tribal allies. Tribe I turns Tom, and falsely accuses their rival, Tribe II, of harboring Taliban. U.S. marines attack Tribe II based on false information provided by Tribe I. Atrocities are committed against Tribe II, which then vows revenge against Tribe I. Thus the exogenous U.S. presence fuels civil war, exacerbating conflicts which otherwise would be minimal and fought on equal footing. Imperialist instigated civil war is an old theme, common to many countries suffering from U.S. "democratization."

Baranowska returns to Passau, where the villagers had raised questions about U.S. troops' atrocities. The reason why this issue was censored during her previous visit immediately becomes apparent. In a raid conducted June 23, 2004, U.S. helicopters landed in the village fields and destroyed the crops, setting the stage for what was to come. According to the villagers, the troops broke china, pottery, and anything else they could find. They hacked through the mosque door, threw Qur'ans on the ground, and defecated in residents' living rooms. Thirty-five villagers were arrested, and taken away by helicopter to be interrogated by U.S. troops. Some were threatened that they would be taken to Guantanomo. The prisoners were tagged like animals before they were finally released.

The filmmaker finds that the villagers have been physically and sexually abused by the troops. Noor Muhammad Lala, a village elder wearing turban and traditional Afghan baggy pants and shirt, sorrowfully tells his story.
"They tied my hands and put me in a container," he says. He was then forced to take off all his clothes, and spread-eagled against the wall. Marines pulled at his testicles and jabbed at his anus. The elder had a bladder problem and became incontinent in front of his captors who stood laughing at his predicament. I could not help thinking of the resemblance to my own dear, elderly Afghan (ex-)father-in-law, his long white beard, gaunt face with hollow cheeks, and gentle manner. How would I feel if this were done to him?

Wali Muhammad, Noor Muhammad's son, was also held for questioning. The marines beat him, fingered his anus, and took pictures of him naked. There were twenty marines according to Wali Muhammad, and they stood around laughing and taking pictures of the nude captives. He and the others were held for three days, he says; they became hungry and repeatedly asked for food, but were denied it. An elderly woman, whose veil was removed and who was subjected to a body search, tells of the village women being pushed around by the troops. "We'd prefer death to this humiliation," the villagers tell Baranowska.

Back in Masazai, she learns that Major Cook, of the Civil Affairs Unit, has just visited. One of the village leaders tell her that Cook tried to give him medicines, corn seed, and a radio. Cook asked him if he needed anything. He told Cook, in a message that might have been the cry of the Afghan nation:

"We don't need anything. Don't humiliate us. Don't rob our country. Don't commit crimes. We don't need anything."

Before leaving Uruzgan, Baranowska returns to Passau a final time. The villagers tell her that "due to abuse and maltreatment by the marines," almost all of the families are gone. Of a village of two hundred, only fifteen or twenty people remain. How history repeats itself, I think to myself: During the Soviet occupation, too, millions of Afghans left their homes and possessions to escape life under occupation. Afghans are a dignified people for whom honor and respect are everything. Time and time again, they have chosen exile or death to life under occupation.

The film ends with a footnote that with the initial release of "Taliban Country," the army launched an inquiry into the abuses. They confirmed the detention of thirty-five villagers on June 23, 2004. Answering questions after the screening of her work at the University of Maryland, Baranowska told students that the inquiry had found the charges against the marines to be unsubstantiated; Lt. Colonel Asad Khan had been removed from his position; no others had been prosecuted. Baranowska has called for an independent inquiry.

MEETING AT UNIVERSITY OF MARYLAND

An audience member (at the U. of MD screening), who said she and her husband worked for an aid organization in Kandahar, tried to convince the predominantly student audience that the film was an unfair treatment of the U.S. military, and that a tiny minority of U.S. troops engaged in this sort of behavior. I wondered, "Do you think your aid would be needed over there, if the U.S. hadn't gone in and destroyed that country in the first instance?" I politely remarked to her that wartime atrocities by occupying troops are statistically underreported, not over reported, and that the numbers were probably much higher. The bar on war crimes was set early on in the Afghan War, with the U.S. refusal to prosecute members of the Dostum militia who massacred prisoners in Mazar-e-Sharif; and the U.S. troops who murdered Taliban by suffocation in metal boxes. I commended Baranowska for her courage and integrity in reporting the reality of the situation in Afghanistan. U.S. presence in Afghanistan violates the sovereignty of that country, and U.S. troops there, as in Iraq, are occupiers. Hence their behavior is not surprising.

Baranowska's findings cry out for a war crimes investigation.

For more information and U.S tour dates for Carmela Baranowska's "Taliban Country," or to arrange a screening for your group, go to:
www.TalibanCountry.com.
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[Ed. Note: Strongly recommended by New Trend. American audiences will be helped by this movie to understand why the Pashtuns are joining the ranks of the steadily growing Taliban resistance movement.]
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Montreal Perspectives
By Jalaluddin S. Hussain

POSITIVE ISLAMIC WORK BEING DONE IN CANADA: AMAL, CIC, CMJ

Canadian Muslims for Jerusalem website, worth visiting

In my last column the e-mail particulars of Nadira Mustapha, of Canadian Muslims for Jerusalem organization, had typographical errors. The correct particulars are: www.cmjerusalem.org and cmjerusalem@yahoo.ca. I am sorry. Readers are encouraged to go to her website and e-mail their sincere comments, to her. Nadira Mustapha is a doctoral student at the Islamic Studies Institute of McGill University, Montreal, and is doing her research in Islamic Law. We desparately need, in Canada, scholars and activists like her, particularly at the time when Muslims, as a community, are a particular target of attack and need to present Islam, to the mainstream and grassroots Canadians, in a correct manner.

Anti-Islamic tirade continues

In his second term, George Bush and his ultra-conservative political friends in Canada, are becoming more and more anti-Islamic. They are attacking the Muslims, in a subtle way, by branding many of them as "jihadiists", "extremists" and "fundamentalists". At this critical juncture all the Muslims - Arabs and non-Arabs alike - need to stand together and ward off, sometimes hidden, sometimes glaring attacks, of the ultra-conservatives and Christian Right forces.

Be proud of your Islamic identity

In Canada, we need to fully support all the reasonable elements in the Canadian Islamic Congress (CIC). We cannot afford to knock our own Islamic activists by labelling them as the non-Muslim enemies are doing. As Diaspora Muslims, hailing from different countries and societies of the world, we do need to integrate in the host society of Canada, gradually and should not lose our Islamic identity, in the process. In fact we should be proud of being Muslims. I am particularly mentioning this because, lately, evil forces have been sowing seeds of dissenssions, not only in Pakistan, Iraq and other Muslim countries, on the basis of sectarianism - as Shias, as Sunnis, as Wahabis, etc. but also in Canada. We need to strongly resist these divisive forces, who have come out in open, in the garb of discussing the applicability of Sharia laws in Canada and also of dicussing the pros and cons of entry/deportation of some so-called Muslim terrorists!

"Jews rule the world by proxy" - Is it racist remark by Mahatir?

All hell broke loose when, back in October 2003, the then Malaysian Prime Minister, Mahatir Mohamed declared, "Jews rule this world by proxy". The late Israel Asper's Canwest Global media empire, unitedly condemned him then for his" racist" remarks. At that time even a Muslim Montrealer, like Yahya Abdul Rahman, condemned the then Prime Minister for his "vile and inflammatory" remarks.

However, in all fairness to my pro-active Muslim friend, Yahya, I will still recommend, to my readers to visit his well-researched website: www.montrealmuslimnews.net , when they want to know more about Montreal's Islamic activiies. Yaha Abdul Rahman works very hard to keep his website uptodate. While condemning the "vile and inflammatory" fringe of Mahatir's taken-out-of-context remarks, he also condemned what the State of Israel was doing to the Palestinian people.

Mahatir's call for unity

The reverend and bold Mahatir has spoken once again. This time not against the Zionists and the Israeli expansionist State, but for the unity and reconciliation amongst Muslim communities and neighbours, themselves. The positive impact of Mahatir's reconciliatory speech will be a second chance for for outside Muslim labour force working in Malaysia. Bravo Mahatir!

Amal - a beacon of hope for Muslim Montrealers in distress

Amal - Center for Women/Centre pour Femme, of Montreal, organized a Fundraising Dinner, under the general theme, Successful families = Successful Communities, Finding the Formula. After the recitation from the Holy Quran , Sister Ruba Benini, gave a brief introduction, about the Amal organization. She explained that the word "Amal", in Arabic, means " hope" and her organization aims at providing hope, to those Muslim sisters and children, who are facing difficulties and problems. She acknowledged the cooperation of many individuals, businesses and mosques, in this project. They extended their hands of cooperation by donating generously and by giving their time and expertise. She also mentioned that sisters facing financial distress have been helped with food baskets, clothings and household appliances. Amal, she continued, is also helping families, facing marital problems and providing them with professional counselling.

We have enough Masajid, we need Amal!- Dr. Kassem

Dr. Muneer El-Kassem, in his usual forceful but pursuasive way, appealed for giving more help to Amal, through money donations and committment of time and voluntary services. The gathering was well-attended and more than 90,000 Canadian dollars were raised. During his speech, even at the cost of sounding controversial, he declared: We have enough Masajids , we now need more organizations like Amal. The participants seemed to agree.
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DIARY OF A Young BRITISH MUSLIM IN PALESTINE [#1]

[Exclusive to New Trend]
by Rizwan Nazir
Subject: diary from the torn holy land: end of Day 1
Date: Sun, 28 Nov 2004 19:47:45 +0000

Dear All,

Assalamu'alaikum warahmatullah wabarakatuh.

All praise is due to Allah (swt), Lord of the Worlds.

Sunday 28th November: Jerusalem's Old City (East Jerusalem)

Only got here a few hours earlier and alhamdolillah have had a very productive day.

In the morning I got introduced to the ISM (International Solidarity Movement) lot. The hostel is run by a guy named Hisham and he is a top bloke alhamdolillah. He has had his fair share over the years, what with being in jail allegedly 18 times here, and also in Lebanon and Syria I believe. Has been shot in the head and a rocket ripped open his stomach, was even electronically revived so was nearly over in the other side!

Makes our efforts look poor to say the least eh?!

Anyway, the general impression I get from the ISMers is they are the hippy type, long hair [I fit in nicely ;-)], save the world, peace, way-hey kinda lot, smoke, drink, feel important. Nah, some of them have impressed, for example they are truly an international bunch which shows comittment, Sweden, Japan, Denmark, France, England & Ireland, USA and Oz - Emma and Christian, a brother & sister from Oz have just travelled through Egypt, Jordan, Iran, Syria, Greece and Turkey before getting here! (his Israel VISA was stamped on the same page as the Iranian one - how ironic is that?!). Most of them are here for a few months and many come back time and again. And they make the effort to learn the lingual, I often hear Shukran and insha'Allah mentioned. Then there are people like us who make no concerted effort at all (I'm speaking for myself here but I got a 4 for standard grade French!)

Again, my 3 week stint looks pants, I know!

Prayed Zuhr and Asr in Al-Aqsa today, alhamdolillah. it truly was amazing. Have some nice pics to show you provided they don't get lynched during departure @ airport. Dome of the Rock was fab as well (also visited below al-aqsa where there is even more space than above to pray!).

The people are fantastic, very welcoming, open, friendly, giving hugs, etc. Do get the looks from a few though. Think its cos they think I am Italian or something! Actually, one brother thought that I was from Spain!! Its def the long hair, I know, I'll get it cut...!

Just before Asr I was sitting near the imam who was delivering a reminder in Arabic and a brother was kind enough to come sit next to me and translate the words!! How decent is that?!

He himself lives in the US now but spends a few months over here and has done for the past few years. Again, shows the commitment of these folk.

Also shows how necessary it is to learn Arabic fluently now or at least at our earliest convenience...NOW!!!

Non-muslims, although allowed into the al-aqsa compound, are not allowed into the two mosques. Even I was getting strange looks most of the day, and they'd ask "Muslim?" I'd reply Yes, from Scotland. And they'd say "oh you Scotch?". One guy even said English until I corrected him by saying No, Scotland and he said yes same thing, until I cleared up that matter for him!! I aint getting acussed of being from Enger-lund, not gonna stoop that low! On several occasions throughout the day, I recited the Qur'an, mainly Sural Al Fatiah to get re-admission. Poor pronunciation they must have thought.

Anyway, heard Sami Yusaf nasheeds a few times in the market (souk) which you go through to get to the mosque, which was unexpected.

The children here are sooooo cute, you just want to go over and give them a big hug!

On the down side today, was going to Al Aqsa again to pray Maghrib but a black soldier turned me away saying that it was closed. A guy went in just before me and another was following closely behind. I told him that I was only here to pray and he came marching down the stairs saying threateningly "Do you not understand English?". I just turned away and left, thought it would be best to de-escalate the sitution rather than confront. Thinking about it, these soldiers, many in their early twenties, must be bored beyond imagination, I mean the very same soldier let me in earlier in the day - they just man the same checkpoint all day, standing aimlessly (what a crap job that is!). Did think about going through one of the 6 other gates but decided against it and hence didn't go for Ish'a either.

In the evening, stayed in, tired now at time of writing...Hisham was kind enough to cook us a meal, rice, lentils, yoghurt, was yummy. Oh, and the chicken shawarma I had for lunch was delicious. I'm gonna come back a big bloater!

Forget the Beeb, remember you read it hear first! No seriously, the Palestinian plight continues...

Wa'salam,
Love, Ridwan
PS - weather wise, was nice and sunny in the afternoon but mornings and evenings its pure chankin' (i.e. baltic) - freezin!
Oh, before I forget, there is a magazine that the Palestinians read over here which it top for info. Website is www.newsfromwithin.org and subscription is available by e-mailing bryan@alt-info.org
Will be very cheap and informative to subscribe I suggest. On a lighter note, the hostel is only costing around 3.50GBP per day. Then again, my mattress is approx only 2 cm thick!!
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CASE STUDY:
STEVE EMERSON, ZIONIST JEW CAMOUFLAGED as an AMERICAN "EXPERT on TERRORISM"

Joe Scarborough
MSNBC TV

Dear Mr. Scarborough

It was a relief to see American Muslims on your show [February 22] talking about a case involving Abu Ali, an American Muslim. You do invite them once in a year which is quite helpful considering that you have to discuss Muslim-related issues almost every day.
However, you didn't want to bear the burden of listening to the other side of the story without help. So you brought on Steve Emerson to help you in this onerous task.
I noticed that Emerson had nothing to say about the case which was being discussed but spent his time attacking your Muslim guests, Mahdi Bray and attorney Nubhani. It appeared to me that Emerson needs help himself. He seems to think that people who differ with him are simply "terrorists." Here are the claims of Emerson aimed at your Muslim guests, along with my comments: Sincerely Kaukab Siddique, Ph.D.
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2005-02-23 Wed 18:53ct
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