Sigd: Unity, Joy and Hope

The Ethiopian Sigd (סיגד in Hebrew) festival falls on the 29th of the Hebrew month of Cheshvan.

It is the 50th day, starting with Yom Kippur (analogous to counting 50 days from Pesach to Shavuos), and is a festival unique to the Beta Israel community.

The holiday symbolizes the acceptance of the Torah. Some see it as a commemoration of the revelation at Mount Sinai however the Kessim have also maintained a tradition of the holiday arising some time in the 15th Century CE as a result of the persecution of Christian Amhara kings. The Kessim retreated into the wilderness in order to appeal to God for His mercy. Additionally they sought to unify the Beta-Israel and prevent them from abandoning the Haymanot (laws and traditions of Beta Israel) under persecution. So they looked toward the Book of Nehemiah and were inspired by Ezra's bringing of the "book of the law of Moses" before the assembly of Israel after it had been lost to them due to Babylonian exile. Traditionally in commemoration of the appeals made by the Kessim and consequent mass gathering, the Beta Israel would make pilgrimages to Midraro, Hoharoa, or Wusta Tsegai (possibly marking locations of resting places from Christian persecution) every year to reaffirm themselves as a religious community.

This year the holiday is a National Holiday for the first time in Israel.

Thousands of members of the Ethiopian community participate in 'Sigd' festivities in Jerusalem.
Photo: Ariel Jerozolimski

Singing, dancing and reveling in the fulfillment of years spent yearning for a return to Jerusalem, thousands of Ethiopians from all over the country descended on the capital's Haas promenade in Armon Hanatziv Thursday to celebrate Sigd, the annual Beta Israel festival commemorating the revelation on Mt. Sinai and the acceptance of the Torah.

Young and old, secular and religious Ethiopian-Israelis from as far off as Haifa and Ashdod arrived on chartered buses just before noon, passing by make-shift booths which sold everything from ice cream to books of psalms written in Amharic, their native tongue. The Kesim, or Ethiopian rabbis, led the crowd in communal prayers, bestowing blessings upon the masses as the crowd responded by continually twitching their hands - bringing the air of holiness towards them.

Older men with white turbans walked past high-school age youths, their hair done up for the occasion in spikes and large afros. The girls, also dressed to a T, sauntered back and forth, chatting and giggling with their friends.

"We're here to celebrate the Sigd," said one girl, Tehilla, shy and smiling. "But it's not just about Sigd, it's also about unity. Look around: Today all the Ethiopians in Israel are standing together as one."

In addition to the holiday's theme of receiving the Torah, Sigd is also seen as a time of personal reckoning for the Ethiopian community, as members fast and use the holiday for introspection.

Before their arrival in Israel, Ethiopians had also looked upon Sigd as a time for reflecting on the ultimate goal of returning to Jerusalem.

But with over 80 percent of the Ethiopian Jewish community - more than 120,000 - living in Israel today, the holiday has taken on a more national undertone.

"It's true that this is a holiday that celebrates the Torah and the holiness of Jerusalem," said Yisraela, who was dressed in a long skirt, her hair covered by a sequined purple scarf. "But because we're here now, the spirit of the holiday has changed for us.

"When we were in Ethiopia, part of Sigd was to pray that we would merit coming to Jerusalem. Now that we're here, we're living in Israel, the soul searching that I think we need to do is about how we can succeed in Israeli society, and how we can truly fulfill the pilgrimage to Jerusalem, in its fullest sense."

While many of the people milling around on Thursday afternoon told The Jerusalem Post that the dream of immigrating to Israel had now been fulfilled, their commentary on the Ethiopian experience in Israel differed greatly.

"It goes both ways," said Dago, a soldier in uniform who had arrived from Netanya. "The fact that I'm in the army means that on some level, I've already been accepted into Israeli society," he said. "But it depends on the situation. I grew up around Ethiopians, but when I wasn't around them, sometimes I felt like an outsider. You're always in your group, you know, Morrocans are Morrocans, Russians are Russians, and Ethiopians are Ethiopians. But in the army, there's none of that," he said. "There's no Ethiopian and there's no Russian. You're a soldier and a warrior, and that's were it ends."

Full Story

What started off as a trickle in the 1970's became a flood in the 1980's with Operations Moses and Solomon. Israel brought, and integrated 120,000 Jews from Ethiopia, incurring all the expenses themselves. But this in itself is nothing new. For from its very beginnings, Israel has always traveled to bring a Jew home.

From the first groups coming from the ruins of Europe and the pogroms of the Arab World, to today where groups of Jews arrive from all over the Earth, Israel has found a way to integrate them into their society, and build a strong nation.

Now why can't the Arab nations integrate the Palestinian refugees into their nations?

Why? The Answer.

Yesterday I posted Why? Very few of my posts have comments related to them that warrant me to post them here. But these 2 comments have.

Ben:

Don’t ask Why; ask “What In Hell Will You Do About it?!”. The origin of Islamic terrorism is well known and easily accessible.

3:151.We shall cast terror into the hearts of those who disbelieve, because they joined others in worship with Allah, for which He had sent no authority; their abode will be the Fire and how evil is the abode of the Zalimun (polytheists and wrong­doers).

Allah sanctified terrorism. Examine this quote from Ibn Kathir’s tafsir of this ayeh.

Allah next conveys the good news that He will put fear of the Muslims, and feelings of subordination to the Muslims in the hearts of their disbelieving enemies, because of their Kufr and Shirk.

Allah commanded terrorism in Surah Al-Anfal.

8:12. Remember) when your Lord inspired the angels, “Verily, I am with you, so keep firm those who have believed. I will cast terror into the hearts of those who have disbelieved, so strike them over the necks, and smite over all their fingers and toes.”

Does Allah mean what he said? Ibn Kathir has the answer.

Ibn Jarir commented that this Ayah commands, “O believers! Strike every limb and finger on the hands and feet of your (disbelieving) enemies.”

Did Allah cast terror?

33:26-27. And those of the people of the Scripture who backed them (the disbelievers) Allah brought them down from their forts and cast terror into their hearts, (so that) a group (of them) you killed, and a group (of them) you made captives. And He caused you to inherit their lands, and their houses, and their riches, and a land which you had not trodden (before). And Allah is Able to do all things.

How did Allah cast terror?

59:13. Verily, you (believers in the Oneness of Allah - Islamic Monotheism) are more awful as a fear in their (Jews of Bani An-Nadir) breasts than Allah. That is because they are a people who comprehend not (the Majesty and Power of Allah).

Did Moe exemplify terrorism?

Bukhari Volume 4, Book 52, Number 220:
Narrated Abu Huraira:

Allah’s Apostle said, “I have been sent with the shortest expressions bearing the widest meanings, and I have been made victorious with terror (cast in the hearts of the enemy)

Why attack Jews?

9:29. Fight against those who (1) believe not in Allah, (2) nor in the Last Day, (3) nor forbid that which has been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger (4) and those who acknowledge not the religion of truth (i.e. Islam) among the people of the Scripture (Jews and Christians), until they pay the Jizyah with willing submission, and feel themselves subdued.

Why: the damnable doctrines of Islam enshrined in Surat Al-Anfal & Al-Taubah, not poverty, ignorance, disease, illiteracy, repression, suppression nor occupation. Allah’s Gd’d commands & Moe’s Gd’d example enshrined in Qur’an, hadith, sira & Sharia. Nothing else!

Since Islam is perfected, and his word can not be changed, Jihad, genocide & terror are immutable intrinsic sacraments of Islam; Islam can not be reformed, nor can it be rendered anodyne.

Until Islam is eradicated from the earth, there will be neither peace nor security. This is the fatal fact which none dares contemplate. What in Hell Will You Do about It? I will continue to expound these fatal facts as long as I live or until my fellow citizens join me in loudly, disrespectfully & effectively demanding the eradication of the enemy which plagues civilization.

From Gary Fouse:

I was going to wait until the tragedy in Mumbai (formerly Bombai) India was over before writing my thoughts down, but I couldn't wait. As I write this, it is said that over 150 people are dead. The courageous Indian commandos are still fighting their way through the Taj Hotel clearing out the remaining terrorist murderers and still rescuing hostages. The exact group that is responsible for this mass atrocity is still unclear, but one thing is clear; they are Muslims. Their targets were Westerners, British, Americans, and yes, Jews. One of the locations raided was Chabat House, a Jewish center. According to news reports, hostages, including Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife,Rivki, were murdered in cold blood as commandos closed in. (Their two-year-old son miraculously escaped.) I am outraged, and I am fed up with the excuses. It is long overdue, but we need to call a spade a spade and demand that the Muslim world rise up and remove this evil from its house.

By any means necessary.

Mumbai is now India's 9-11. We have suffered ours. We reacted, and at least, we can now say that two murderous regimes have been driven from power. Spain had their own 9-11. They reacted and elected a cowardly government that promptly pulled their forces out of Iraq. Britain had theirs and now prostrates itself at the feet of a hateful Muslim minority that spits in the face of British society as they demand Shariah law.

This latest incident is pretty much the final blow for me personally in trying to appeal to decent Muslims to take a stand. It is not easy. I know decent Muslims. I teach Muslim students, mostly from Saudi Arabia, who seem quite nice. I listen to the words of American Muslim leaders who speak of moderation and say they condemn terrorism. I have heard President Bush describe Islam as a religion of peace as he meets Muslim leaders. One of those leaders, whom he has invited to the White House, is Imam Muzammil Siddiqi, former head of the Islamic Society of North America and now head of the Islamic Society of Orange County-himself an Indian.

Last week, I attended a joint Jewish-Muslim discussion at Chapman University, where Dr Siddiqi spoke for Islam. (See post of last week). Dr Siddiqi is considered a "moderate Muslim", who decries terror. Yet, he has made statements in the past regarding Jihad and Shariah that many Westerners might find troubling. In the 1990s, he hosted the "Blind Sheihk" Rahman at his mosque. Let's just say I wasn't convinced at Siddiqi's words last week.

I have just checked the websites of CAIR, the Islamic Society of North America, and the Islamic Society of Orange County. Only the Islamic Society of North America has a statement on Mumbai, condemning the attacks and offering prayers for the victims. That is all well and good, but nowhere-nowhere is there any mention of the fact that the perpetrators were Muslims. There is also no mention of the attack on Chabat House. This is insufficient. As for CAIR and the Islamic Society of Orange County, there is nothing on their websites about Mumbai (as of this writing). What will they eventually say? What will the Muslim Student Associations at our US universities say about Mumbai when they have their next "Islam Awareness Week"? Will they continue to claim that they are not anti-Jewish, only anti-"Zionist"? That is the constant disclaimer they use, yet the raid on Chabat House puts the lie to that. It is clear that the killers wanted to include Jews (in India) among their targets. Why?

Because they hate Jews.

So what is it that Muslims in America must say and do, you ask? What is needed is for them to stand up and publicly condemn the MUSLIMS who are carrying out these atrocities in India and around the world in the name of Islam. Muslim leaders need to tell their congregations and members that if they sympathize with these actions, they are not welcome in their midst. They must give the FBI the names of those in their communities who they suspect to be involved in subversive activities. They must publicly proclaim to the world that they are Americans and will stand with America and defend her against ISLAMIC terror.

A few, of course, have stood up and condemned the actions of terrorists acting in the name of Islam. Nonie Darwish and Ayaan Hirsi Ali are a couple that come to mind. They have gone beyond bland statements about "condemning terrorism and that Islam is really a religion of peace". They call it what it is, and as a result, they will spend the rest of their days-in Western countries even-living with bodyguards and dealing with threats to their lives because they are considered apostates.

You see, people like Darwish and Ali have crossed the line. They have spoken out against Islamic doctrine itself. They have said what people in CAIR and Siddiqi cannot say; that so much of what is in the Qu'ran is nothing more than an incitement to hate, shun and murder those who are not Muslims.

You will not hear these Muslim leaders, even if they are "moderates", say that the very words of the Prophet Mohammed are wrong, and that they are not appropriate in the modern world. The problem is that the Prophet Mohammed was a warrior. That is an undeniable fact. Mohammed was not a mythical figure who may or may not have existed. He, indeed, existed, and he spread Islam at the point of a sword. As a result, thousands of people died in the Holy Land. The words in the Qu'ran are his words. If there are conflicts and contradictions, then the latest writing takes precedent.

Mohammed stated that Muslims should not take unbelievers as friends. Almost every page and Sura in the Qu'ran speaks of non-believers burning in Hell, a point constantly reinforced. There, of course, is the famous and oft-quoted Hadith that speaks of trees and bushes saying, "there is a Jew hiding behind me. Come and kill him."

There is the principle of Shariah law, which no Western democracy could ever allow to be adopted; honor killings, stonings, limited rights for women and non-believers, taxes for dhimmis, death for the "crime of apostasy", and on and on. Islam is a belief system that is designed to control every aspect of life including the very law itself.

You see, there is a limit as to what the Muzammil Siddiqis of the world can say when they "condemn terrorism". There is a line they cannot cross. How can they engage in a theological debate with the so-called "extremists"? Is it not the "extremists" who are following the teachings of Mohammed-to the letter? Thirty years ago, we were calling them "fundamentalists"-for a reason. We seemed to have dropped that term. Why? Because it would mean that they are merely following the teachings of Mohammed and Islam.

I think the time is long since past when we in the non-Muslim world wake up and recognize the unavoidable fact; that our enemy is not just a group of a few thousand fanatics around the world-it is an idea. It is an idea that can be found within the covers of a book written by a man who had no concept of a larger world outside the region where he lived and fought.

It could be argued that Islam was in a centuries-long slumber-from which it is awakening with a vengeance. And it is growing. In mosques and hadrassas all over the Muslim world-and in many cases in Western countries as well, children are being taught that according to the Qu'ran, they have mortal enemies-non-believers and especially Jews. Many young Muslims in Western countries are being taught that their mission is to spread Islam until the day comes when Islam will rule that country-and indeed the world.

I have heard many say that Islam needs a Reformation. A nice thought, but it would require more than just "reform". Martin Luther, in his Reformation, was rebelling against a corrupt Vatican that had lost its way. He was not rebelling against the Bible or the teachings of Jesus Christ. To reform Islam would requiring rejecting many passages in the Qu'ran and many of the teachings of Mohammed as simply not being applicable to a modern world-and as being morally wrong. But how do believers decide that their religion does not contain Eternal Truth? That is a big leap.

Meanwhile, so many in the West delude themselves into thinking that this phenomena we call terrorism does not represent true Islam. They insist that Islam is a religion of peace, and that we who bring up the inconvenient facts about the life and teachings of the Prophet Mohammed, the words in the Qu'ran and the words of so many Muslim clerics, are somehow Islamophobes, and that Islamophobia must be fought with the same vigor as anti-Semitism, racism and homophobia. Last week, I listened to a respected rabbi, a decent man who only desires peace and understanding, say that very thing at Chapman University.

Let me set this straight. Aside from the fact that the word "Islamophobia" itself means "fear of Islam", an understandable feeling given world events, I do not believe that individual Muslims should be persecuted. They have a right to practice their religion (indeed, there are some aspects of Islam I find admirable) as long as it does not conflict with the rights of others and local laws. Certainly, there are many Muslims who are used to living around non-Muslims and have no desire to be engaged in violence in any way. Surely, many older Muslims have spent their lives picking and choosing which parts of the Qu'ran they choose to obey. Yet, many are afraid to speak out because of the fear of violent retribution. I have long resisted the temptation to repeat the mocking statement of others when these events happen as, "the religion of peace strikes again." Yet, what other phrase is appropriate?

Yes, it has reached the point where Muslims must take a stand if they want to be accepted by the rest of the world. It is not just in America or Britain or India. Thai Muslims must stand with the majority and reject Muslim insurrection in that country's south. Filipino Muslims must do the same. This is not a call for persecution of innocent Muslims. But how can they be accepted by the larger societies in which they live as minorities if they remain silent? Do they really want to live isolated from the larger society? Some, I believe, actually do.

Meanwhile as the 9-11s, the Londons the Madrids now Mumbais continue to add up, more and more people can only turn against Islam and become "Islamophobes". And fewer and fewer people will be able to insist that Islam is really "a religion of peace".

gary fouse
fousesquawk

As Gary says "the 9/11's, the Londons, the Madrids, now Mumbais continue to add up." And yet our leaders say we must not insult or condemn Islam. It is wrong. Ben wrote: "Until Islam is eradicated from the earth, there will be neither peace nor security. This is the fatal fact which none dares contemplate." And yet nothing will be done by the so-called Moderate Muslims to change their faith.

For years we have said that Islam is the problem. And for years we have been called racists. When we repeat the words of the Koran and Hadith stating the violent nature of Islam, we are told that we have taken those words out of context, that the Bible is filled with as much violence, that we are racists.

I am not an Islamophobe! Nor am I a racist. I am a Jew. And the Religion of Peace has said time and time again that they want to kill all the Jews in the world. That makes me a prime target for them as it makes every Jew in the world. When someone tells me that they are going to kill me, when they have shown in the past that they have the means to do it, when they teach their children to hate me because of my faith, I believe them! I don't need someone to tell me that it is wrong to believe what they say because they have told the authorities that they really don't mean it, that it is only propaganda for their congregation.

It is not a sin in Islam to lie to non-believers. It is allowed and acceptable under the tenets of Islam.

In Islam:

• There are no 10 Commandments.
• Muhammad did not preach Love to his followers.
• The true nature of Jihad is war against the infidel. It does not become a personal struggle until the whole world is under the Sword of Islam.
• Animals are treated better than women.
• The punishment for Homosexuality is Death.

Islam is not the Religion of Peace, it never was.

Islam is the Religion of War and Death.

And Still The Rockets Fall

While for the last few days the world has been riveted to the news coming out of Mumbai, the Western Negev has been under rocket fire from Gaza. While rocket fire isn't as a glamorous news story as terrorist attacks, they are just another form of violence from the Religion of Peace.

Eight IDF soldiers were injured Friday when a barrage of mortar shells was fired from Gaza towards an army base near the southern town of Nahal Oz.

Two of the soldiers were seriously wounded, and one of them suffered a head injury. The other six were lightly to moderately injured. All eight were evacuated to hospitals in Ashkelon and Beersheba.

Two of the mortars landed inside the base. One fell on the officers' quarters and another fell on the female soldiers' quarters. According to international reports, the Popular Resistance Committees (PRC) claimed responsibility for the attack.

Two others landed in nearby open spaces, in Shaar Ha Negev Regional Council. Another two landed in the vicinity of Netiv Haasara, but no injuries or damage were reported.

The security coordinator in Nahal Oz, Benny Sela, told Ynet that the barrage could be heard throughout the area. "I immediately ordered the kibbutz members to take cover in their shelters," he said.

"We searched for fallen shells, but luckily for us they didn't fall in the kibbutz but rather in the nearby base. The army told us to stay near the bomb shelters."

Hamas spokesman Fawzi Barhoum said the mortar fire came in response to an earlier clash between IDF soldiers and gunmen attempting to plant an explosive device near the border fence.

"We have said from the beginning that any Israeli breach will be met with a response, and this was a response," Barhoum said.

Full Story

The Israelis wouldn't be closing the border crossing and firing into Gaza if Hamas would just stop the rocket attacks. It is that simple. But Hamas won't stop. It will continue to attack Israel then cry to the world that the Israelis are firing back. And the world believes Hamas. For PalArabs are to be treated as if they are an oppressed people. Yet they are causing damage to Israel, both physically and mentally.

Psychological Trauma Increasing in Sderot

By Anav Silverman - Sderot Media center

In a recent study conducted by NATAL (Israel Trauma Center for Victims of Terror and War), researchers discovered that close to 56% of Sderot residents have suffered in some way from Palestinian rocket attacks. According to report, presented by Natal Community Staff Director, Dr. Roni Berger in Beersheva on November 24, nearly half of Sderot's population has been either physically or emotionally damaged by Palestinian rocket fire.

Over 4, 000 Sderot residents are suffering from symptoms of post-traumatic-stress disorder (PTSD) while one third of Sderot children, ages 13 to 18, have trauma-related learning disorders.

PTSD is a severe and ongoing reaction to a terrifying ordeal that involved physical harm or the threat of physical harm to the person, according to the National Institute for Mental Health. People who develop PTSD may have witnessed a loved one who was harmed in a traumatic event or were victims themselves.

Symptoms of PTSD usually begin three months after the ordeal but can also emerge years afterward. Some people can recover within 6 months while others have symptoms that last for much longer. For some people, the condition becomes chronic.

"The initial symptoms of shock include an accelerated heart rate, dry mouth, limbs 'falling asleep,' a sense of fainting, or seeming paralyzed or emotionally detached," says Gabi Schreiber chief of psychiatry at Ashkelon's Barzilia hospital.

Dr. Adrianne Katz, head of the Sderot Mental Health Center says that the shock impacts the victim's ability to function for months after the experiencing a Palestinian rocket explosion. "Many rocket terror victims suffer from depression, sleepless nights, severe anxiety, and have trouble going back to a regular routine," she says.

The NATAL study showed that almost 50% of Sderot residents know someone who has been killed in a Palestinian rocket attack, while 65% personally know someone wounded in an attack. Over 90% of Sderot residents have experienced a Palestinian Qassam explosion at some point-whether it be in a neighborhood, home, school, business or other residential setting.

Dr. Mina Zemach and the Dahaf Polling Institute conducted the research in order to compare Sderot to other communities outside of Palestinian missile range. Sderot residents made up the test group, while residents of Ofakim, a town of similar socio-economic makeup to Sderot but not under rocket attack, served as the control group.

Photo by Noam Bedein

The study revealed that three times as many Sderot residents had gone to a spiritual counselor (such as a rabbi), and a family doctor than did Ofakim residents.

Dr. Roni Berger explained that there were several reasons why Sderot residents suffered from higher degrees of trauma than residents other Israeli communities within rocket range. "The fortifications in Sderot are poorer, and the population is weaker as well. The social unity is smaller. It's a population who felt, and still feels, abandoned."

In addition, 45% of the Qassam rockets fired from the Gaza Strip target Sderot according to IDF intelligence.

Although adults in Sderot showed significantly higher levels of trauma and stress in the study than adults living in other Gaza vicinity communities, children of Gaza vicinity communities did not fair so differently from Sderot children. Close to 75% of children living in Gaza vicinity communities, ages 12-14 suffer from symptoms of
PTSD compared to 86.6% of Sderot children.

"Only a minority of those suffering from PTSD actually seek help," Dr. Roni Berger told Sderot Media Center. NATAL, a non-government organization seeks to reach out those Sderot residents who otherwise would receive help. "NATAL's staff has been going door to door for the past two years in our mobile units, visiting Sderot families and offering them social support," says Dr. Berger. "We teach these families how to cope with the stress and panic that result with each rocket attack."

"In a way, this is much more effective then simply providing residents with a psychological diagnosis," adds Dr. Berger. "NATAL health professionals give Sderot residents the skills to relax. One of the most important things is for the residents to learn to talk about their experiences [with rocket attacks]."

"Unfortunately those residents who don't know how to cope, become worse," says Dr. Berger. "Those who do cope 'well' are also not immune to trauma symptoms-they also pay some sort of psychological price for living under Palestinian rockets and it may manifest itself in strained family relationships or tension at work."

The constant downplay of the psychological impact of Palestinian rocket fire in the international and Israeli media has unfortunately shifted important focus from the reality on the ground--Sderot residents after eight years of Qassam fire are gradually becoming psychologically crippled by the constant trauma of Palestinan rocket attacks. One of the most ironic phenomenas is that the concept, post trauma is not even relevant to Sderot residents. The constant renewal of rocket attacks has not allowed Sderot children and families to recover from past Qassam barrages. This constant state panic and stress that plagues Sderot residents is a continuing ordeal that remains theirs alone.

Again I ask my reader to donate to the Sderot Media Center. The funds go directly to those effected by the daily attacks by Hamas.

Why?

That is the question being asked today. Why did over 150 people have to die with hundreds more wounded. Why did a group of savages attack 2 hotels, a hospital, a train station and a Jewish Center? Other than instill terror into the nation of India, what did they hope to accomplish? Did they achieve their aims and goals? Were they able to release just one of their compatriots from prison? No! But they killed and maimed just the same.

Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka

Rabbi Gavriel and Rivka Holtzberg, the beloved directors of Chabad-Lubavitch of Mumbai, were killed during one of the worst terrorist attacks to strike India in recent memory.

Their toddler son, Moshe, managed to escape with his nanny some hours before Indian commandos stormed their building, known as the Nariman House, in the popular touristy neighborhood of Colaba. The Associated Press reported that the boy was unharmed, but was wearing blood-soaked pants.

"Gabi and Rivky Holtzberg made the ultimate sacrifice," said Rabbi Moshe Kotlarsky, vice chairman of Merkos L'Inyonei Chinuch, the educational arm of Chabad-Lubavitch. "As emissaries to Mumbai, Gabi and Rivky gave up the comforts of the West in order to spread Jewish pride in a corner of the world that was a frequent stop for throngs of Israeli tourists. Their Chabad House was popular among the local community, as well as with visiting businesspeople.

"For five years, they ran a synagogue and Torah classes, and helped people dealing with drug addiction and poverty," continued the statement. "Their selfless love will live on with all the people they touched. We will continue the work they started."

Gavriel Holtzberg, 29, was born in Israel and moved to the Crown Heights section of Brooklyn, N.Y., with his parents, when he was nine. A prodigious student, Holtzberg was a two-time champion in a competition of memorizing the Mishnah, a compendium of rabbinical laws and enactments redacted in the second century C.E.

He studied at yeshivas in New York and Argentina, and as a rabbinical student served communities in Thailand and China under the Summer Rabbinical Visitation Program run by Merkos L’Inyonei Chinuch, the educational arm of Chabad-Lubavitch.

His 28-year-old wife, born Rivka Rosenberg, is a native of Afula, Israel. Chayki Rosenberg described her sister as dedicated to helping Jews.

Two years ago, the Holtzbergs raised funds to purchase the current location of the Chabad House, a five-story building in Mumbai’s Colaba market area known as Narimon House. A trained ritual circumciser and slaughterer, the rabbi also conducted weddings for local Jewish couples in addition to teaching Torah classes and visiting with tourists.

His last known phone call was to the Israeli Consulate to report that gunmen were in his house. In the middle of the conversation, the line went dead.

The Holtzbergs joined the more than 125 people who were killed in the Wednesday night through Friday attacks, which saw dozens of suspected Islamic terrorists come ashore in Mumbai near the Gateway of India monument. The terrorists, carrying assault rifles and grenades, quickly fanned out to a central train station, the Chabad House and other tourist locations, including several popular hotels.

According to security services, the Chabad House was a pre-selected target.

Full Story

All 9 people at the Chabad house were murdered because they were Jews. This is and has always been the reason for the last 2000 years. They are Jews! And yet, it is not condemned by the world. It is celebrated in Muslim nations as a good thing. A blessing to kill Jews.

Little Moshe Holtzberg will turn 2 tomorrow. The Religion of Peace has already given him their birthday gift, 2 murdered parents. You can do better. Please donate to the Chabad of Mumbai Relief Fund. Consider it a special gift for this sad, little boy.


Cross posted from Monkey in the Middle

Mumbai: Days of Terror and Death

For the last 2 days the world has seen the true face of The Religion of Peace at work. Attacks on innocent civilians carried out by members of the Deccan Mujahideen, a new group to the already long list of terror groups. With over 150 people murdered and almost 400 people wounded, this is shaping up to become one of India's worse acts of terror ever.

These were no random acts of violence. They were well planned, financed and coordinated attacks. The targets were carefully chosen to attack not just Indian civilians, but American, British and Jewish tourists. Hotels, a railroad station, a hospital, a Jewish community center, a restaurant frequented by tourists. American, British and Jewish civilians were singled and killed.

Who are the Deccan Mujahideen? They have just come onto the scene. No one has ever heard of them. Are they a new group or a new name (pseudonym) for another group?

These attacks took over a year of planning and thousands of dollars in cost. The terrorists knew the layout and security details of each hotel attacked. They knew the layout and details of the hospital attacked. And they knew the location of the Chabad center. A small splinter group would not be able to do this, for they wouldn't have the resources to plan and carry out such attacks.

Reports from Indian intelligence are that the terrorists were speaking Punjabi, a dialect of Pakistan and there are teams of British intelligence in India checking to see if any of the terrorists are British of Asian Pakistani origin. I will also speculate that we are seeing the hand of Pakistani intelligence in these attacks. India and Pakistan have been at odds with each other since their independence from Great Britain in 1947. What an easy way to attack your enemy and still have plausible deniablity at the same time.

Reports that Israeli or British commandos were aiding the Indians, but both nations deny this. Search and Rescue and Medical teams from Israel were sent to India to help with this crises.

2 Americans are confirmed dead as I write this. My prayers go out to the family of Alan Scherr, 58, and his daughter Naomi, 13. Murdered by members of The Religion of Peace.

It also seems that Rabbi Gavriel Holtzberg and his wife Rivka of Chabad House were murdered and are among the 5 dead there. Their 18 month old son is now with his grandparents who flew out from Israel to claim him. My prayers go out to their families too.

Are we seeing the start of a new round of terror attacks? Attacking in other nations to target Americans? I certainly hope not? But fear that we just might be seeing the start of this.

Thanksgiving Day

I have many things to be grateful for.

1. A loving family.
2. A wonderful bunch of friends.
3. A free nation.

I thank God for the blessings of liberty that this nation has afforded me. For the men and women here and abroad who keep us free while serving far from home and loved ones. And I give thanks to God for allowing me to live in a nation that grants each and every citizen the right to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

These are the blessings that I have to be thankful for.


The first American Thanksgiving was celebrated in 1621, to commemorate the harvest reaped by the Plymouth Colony after a harsh winter. In that year Governor William Bradford proclaimed a day of thanksgiving. The colonists celebrated it as a traditional English harvest feast, to which they invited the local Wampanoag Indians.

Days of thanksgiving were celebrated throughout the colonies after fall harvests. All thirteen colonies did not, however, celebrate Thanksgiving at the same time until October 1777. George Washington was the first president to declare the holiday, in 1789.

By the mid–1800s, many states observed a Thanksgiving holiday. Meanwhile, the poet and editor Sarah J. Hale had begun lobbying for a national Thanksgiving holiday. During the Civil War, President Abraham Lincoln, looking for ways to unite the nation, discussed the subject with Hale. In 1863 he gave his Thanksgiving Proclamation, declaring the last Thursday in November a day of thanksgiving.

The year that is drawing toward its close has been filled with the blessings of fruitful fields and healthful skies. To these bounties, which are so constantly enjoyed that we are prone to forget the source from which they come, others have been added which are of so extraordinary a nature that they can not fail to penetrate and soften even the heart which is habitually insensible to the ever-watchful providence of Almighty God.

In the midst of a civil war of unequaled magnitude and severity, which has sometimes seemed to foreign states to invite and to provoke their aggression, peace has been preserved with all nations, order has been maintained, the laws have been respected and obeyed, and harmony has prevailed everywhere, except in the theater of military conflict, while that theater has been greatly contracted by the advancing armies and navies of the Union.

Needful diversions of wealth and of strength from the fields of peaceful industry to the national defense have not arrested the plow, the shuttle, or the ship; the ax has enlarged the borders of our settlements, and the mines, as well as the iron and coal as of our precious metals, have yielded even more abundantly than heretofore. Population has steadily increased notwithstanding the waste that has been made in the camp, the siege, and the battlefield, and the country, rejoicing in the consciousness of augmented strength and vigor, is permitted to expect continuance of years with large increase of freedom.

No human counsel hath devised nor hath any mortal hand worked out these great things. They are the gracious gifts of the Most High God, who, while dealing with us in anger for our sins, hath nevertheless remembered mercy.

It has seemed to me fit and proper that they should be solemnly, reverently, and gratefully acknowledged, as with one heart and one voice, by the whole American people. I do therefore invite my fellow-citizens in every part of the United States, and also those who are in foreign lands, to set apart and observe the last Thursday of November next as a day of thanksgiving and praise to our beneficent Father who dwelleth in the heavens. And I recommend to them that while offering up the ascriptions justly due to Him for such singular deliverances and blessings they do also, with humble penitence for our national perverseness and disobedience, commend to His tender care all those who have become widows, orphans, mourners, or sufferers in the lamentable civil strife in which we are unavoidably engaged, and fervently implore the imposition of the Almighty hand to heal the wounds of the nation and to restore it, as soon as may be consistent with the divine purpose, to the full enjoyment of peace, harmony, tranquillity, and union.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand and caused the seal of the United States to be affixed.

Done at the city of Washington, this 3d day of October, A.D. 1863, and of the Independence of the United States the eighty-eighth.

Abraham Lincoln

By the President:
William H. Seward,
Secretary of State.

In 1939, 1940, and 1941 Franklin D. Roosevelt, seeking to lengthen the Christmas shopping season, proclaimed Thanksgiving the third Thursday in November. Controversy followed, and Congress passed a joint resolution in 1941 decreeing that Thanksgiving should fall on the fourth Thursday of November, where it remains.

Some fun facts about the Turkey:

• At one time, the turkey and the bald eagle were each considered as the national symbol of America. Benjamin Franklin was one of those who argued passionately on behalf of the turkey. Franklin felt the turkey, although "vain and silly", was a better choice than the bald eagle, whom he felt was "a coward".
• According to the U.S. Department of Agriculture, more than 45 million turkeys are cooked and eaten in the U.S. at Thanksgiving—that's one sixth of all turkeys sold in the U.S. each year. American per capita consumption of turkeys has soared from 8.3 pounds in 1975 to 18.5 pounds in 1997. Ten years later, the number has dropped slightly in 2007 to 17.5 pounds.
• Age is a determining factor in taste. Old, large males are preferable to young toms (males) as tom meat is stringy. The opposite is true for females: old hens are tougher birds.
• A turkey under sixteen weeks of age is called a fryer, while a young roaster is five to seven months old.
• Turkeys are the only breed of poultry native to the Western Hemisphere.
• Turkeys have great hearing, but no external ears. They can also see in color, and have excellent visual acuity and a wide field of vision (about 270 degrees), which makes sneaking up on them difficult. However, turkeys have a poor sense of smell (what's cooking?), but an excellent sense of taste.
• Domesticated turkeys cannot fly. Wild turkeys, however, can fly for short distances at speeds up to 55 miles per hour. They can also reach speeds of 25 miles per hour on the ground.
• The nation that eats the most turkey in a year (per person) is Israel.

Happy Thanksgiving!

Flight 93: No, the Mecca-orientation of the Crescent of Embrace is NOT a product of the landform

No, the Mecca-orientation of the Crescent of Embrace is NOT a product of the landform

Defenders of the Flight 93 memorial repeatedly insist that the Mecca orientation of the giant crescent HAS to be a coincidence. It is completely determined, they insist, by the landform, the path of Flight 93, and the impact point, leaving no room for intent to enter.

Of course it is crazy to think that, so long as it is just an unfortunate coincidence, there is nothing wrong with planting a giant Mecca-oriented crescent (the central feature of a mosque) on the graves of our murdered heroes. About as crazy, actually, as thinking that the Mecca-orientation of the giant crescent could really be a coincidence. First architect Paul Murdoch just innocently comes up with a half mile wide Islamic-shaped crescent to honor the victims of Islamic terrorism, then he innocently places the Sacred Ground Plaza between the tips of the giant crescent, in the position of the star on an Islamic crescent and star flag, then he innocently just happens to point this entire crescent-and-star-flag configuration at Mecca (and on and on and on).

When the nation saw the second airliner hit the Trade Towers , everyone immediately knew that the first impact was no accident. The more airplanes that Paul Murdoch flies into the Flight 93 memorial, the more the Memorial Project thinks it HAS to be an accident. Its just TOO OUTLANDISH to think that an Islamic enemy could attack us out of the blue and unawares in such a henious way. What precedent is there for thinking that such a thing could even be possible? (Knock, knock, knock.) And so the more evidence they are confronted with, the more impossible it seems, and the more they insist that Murdoch HAS to be innocent.

Okay, so they are WILLFULLY blind. Even so, they still need an excuse to hang their willful blindness on, and part of Murdoch's evil genius is to supply these excuses. That is where this trope about the crescent design being dictated by the landscape comes from. It comes from Murdoch, and is actually one of his most brilliant deceptions.

Murdoch' PRELIMINARY DESIGN actually can be seen as dictated by the landform, the flight-path, and the point of impact

Before any designs were submitted, the Memorial Project gave all the design contestants a site organization map that labeled the "the ridgeline," "the bowl," "the crash site," and "the flight path." Architect Paul Murdoch claims that all he did was combine these elements by having the flight path symbolically "break" the circular bowl shape, creating the giant Crescent of Embrace design. If you start a crescent at the point where the flight path crosses the ridgeline, and follow the rim of "the bowl" around the ridgeline to create a crescent that "embraces" the Sacred Ground where Flight 93 crashed, then you get the Crescent of Embrace design. Since this procedure uniquely determines the orientation of the crescent, there is no room for the orientation to be determined by anyone's intent. If it faces Mecca , it HAS to be a coincidence.

This argument actually works, but only when applied to Paul Murdoch's ORIGINAL Crescent of Embrace design, which did NOT point to Mecca . Take a look:



Click for larger image.

The site organization map (left), shows "the bowl," bordered by "the ridge," along with the flight path and the crash site. Murdoch's preliminary Crescent of Embrace design (right), uses the point where the flight path crosses the ridge/bowl as the end point for a crescent that has the Sacred Ground centered between its crescent tips. Resulting orientation: 11.1°. clockwise from north, which is 44.1° north of Mecca .

The explanatory notes in the preliminary design are perfectly accurate when they describe the crescent as focused on the Sacred Ground:

A curving arc of maple trees along a walkway unites the ridge and forms an edge to the bowl, with a focus on the Sacred Ground.

It is also correct to say that this crescent and its orientation are uniquely determined (to within 5° or so) by the landform, the flight path and the crash site. If the crescent arc were extended much further then it would no longer point to the Sacred Ground. (The amount of curve between the end points of the crescent does not matter. Murdoch established the curve of his original crescent by smoothing the curved shape of the ridge line.)

If THIS crescent is uniquely determined by the combination of landform, flight path and crash site, then the final Crescent of Embrace design, rotated 42.3° further to the east, obviously CANNOT be determined by these factors. By extending the crescent in his final design to match the full Islamic crescent shape (covering about 2/3rds of a circle of arc), Murdoch created a crescent that no longer points to the Sacred Ground:



The bisector of the crescent in Murdoch's final Crescent of Embrace design points approximately 1.8 ° north of Mecca (marked "qibla"). Notice that the bisector of this Mecca-oriented crescent does not even touch the Sacred Ground, but crosses through the upper portion of the Sacred Ground Plaza that sits up the flight path from the Sacred Ground.

While the crescent no longer points to the Sacred Ground, Murdoch still PRETENDS that it does. Asked last summer about the orientation of the crescent, Project Superintendent Joanne Hanley and architect Paul Murdoch both claimed that it points to the Sacred Ground:

Further, [Hanley] added, it is still unclear exactly where on the landscape the memorial will even be situated. It could move as much as 200 yards, she said, discounting the idea that it faces Mecca .

"The only thing that orients the memorial is the crash site," she said.

Mr. Murdoch reinforced that idea.

"It's oriented toward the Sacred Ground," he said. "It just couldn't be clearer."

Hanley may be honestly duped, but Murdoch knows full well that the crescent does not point to the Sacred Ground. Such an orientation would ruin his mosque design, not just because a Sacred Ground oriented crescent would no longer point to Mecca , but also because it would place the graves of the infidels in the location of the star on an Islamic flag, leaving them inside the symbolic Islamic heavens. Blasphemy!

Murdoch has a very different symbolism in mind for the star on his giant crescent and star flag. In the top third of the Sacred Ground Plaza, centered on the bisector of the giant crescent, in the exact position of the star on an Islamic flag, sits a separate upper section of Memorial Wall, inscribed with the 9/11 date. The date goes to the star on the Islamic flag. The date goes to the terrorists.

The duping of David Beamer

At this August's public meeting of the Memorial Project, David Beamer (father of Flight 93 hero Todd Beamer) came out to counter Tom Burnett Sr.'s protests against the crescent design.

Mr. Beamer declared that he had performed several months of due diligence investigating the warnings about the crescent design, by which he presumably meant that he had checked at least a few of our factual claims, like the Mecca orientation of the giant crescent (now called a broken circle). But instead of reporting the results of his fact-checking, Beamer changed the subject. He did not say a single word about the accuracy of any of our claims, but only reported how he had met with architect Paul Murdoch and was satisfied that Murdoch's design properly honors his son and the other murdered heroes of Flight 93.

If he actually did any fact checking, then he is fully aware that the giant crescent DOES point within 2° of Mecca , in which case there is only one plausible explanation for Beamer declaring the design innocent. Murdoch must have convinced him that the crescent orientation is determined by the landform, the flight path and the crash site, so that its orientation on Mecca HAS to be coincidence.

If Mr. Beamer had bothered to talk to the person who has been warning of an enemy plot then Alec Rawls would have explained to him that no, these physical facts about the crash site do NOT yield a Mecca-oriented crescent. They yield a crescent that points 44° north of Mecca . It is a very strange concept of due diligence to trust the assurances of the person one is being warned is an enemy operative while refusing to talk to the person who is issuing warnings

Very strange too, to think that just because one is convinced that the Mecca orientation of the crescent is a coincidence, that somehow makes it okay to deny the Mecca orientation when speaking to the press and the public, as several Project spokesmen have now done. The fact that Beamer and Hanley and other Project Partners have been duped be Murdoch"s explanations would be of little consequence if they just let the public know what they know, so the American people can decide for themselves whether the fact that it might be a coincidence makes it okay to plant the world's largest Mecca-direction indicator on the Flight 93 crash site.

Obviously the answer would be "NO!" and this nightmare would be over. It is the lying that is the problem. Hanley et. al. can be a bunch of dupes if they want, but they have no right to deceive the public about what they know.

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Rampage in Mumbai

Warning Graphic Pictures!

Hostages were rescued from the Taj Hotel in Mumbai, India, after attacks in the Indian financial capital left at least 78 dead and hundreds wounded.

Mumbai, formerly known as Bombay, is the capital of the Indian state of Maharashtra and the financial capital of India. With an estimated population of thirteen million, it is one of the most populated cities in the world. Along with the neighboring suburbs of Navi Mumbai and Thane, it forms, at nineteen million, the world's fifth most populous metropolitan area. Mumbai lies on the west coast of India and has a deep natural harbour. Mumbai's port handles over half of India's maritime cargo. The commercial and entertainment centre of India, Mumbai generates 5% of India's GDP and accounts for 25% of industrial output, 40% of maritime trade, and 70% of capital transactions to India's economy.

Evidence of Mumbai's history dates back to 250 BCE and has been continually inhabited since then, although its founding can be considered at a much earlier date.

A very lovely and lively city.

But not today. Today it is the scene of carnage, mayhem and death caused by the Religion of Peace aka Islam.

Full Story

Several sites in Mumbai, India's financial capital, were hit Wednesday night by a wave of terror attacks, reportedly aimed at Americans and Britons, that left dozens dead and hundreds injured as Indian forces battled with terrorist gunmen to free hostages from two luxury hotels.

There were varying reports of at least 50 and as many as 100 people rescued from the Taj Mahal where a fire had broken out, and India's NDTV reported Thursday morning that authorities had the scene under control. Meanwhile, police continued to evacuate people through the Oberoi hotel's basement, and gunmen reportedly had taken hostages elsewhere in the city.

Casualty figures varied, with most media reporting at least 80 dead and 200 injured. Of the gunmen, four were dead and nine arrested.

It isn't clear yet what motivated the attacks, which also targeted a popular tourist attraction and a crowded train station, though eyewitnesses said gunmen were heard shouting questions about who American and British passports.

Mumbai has frequently been targeted in terrorist attacks blamed on Islamic extremists, including a series of bombings in July 2007 that killed 187 people.

A little-known organization calling itself the Deccan Mujahideen claimed it was behind attacks.

A man injured in a gun battle is carried to a hospital in Mumbai, India.

"The terrorists have used automatic weapons and in some places grenades have been lobbed," Maharashtra Police Commissioner A.N Roy said.

A British citizen who was dining at the Oberoi hotel told Sky News television that the gunmen who struck there singled out Britons and Americans.

Alex Chamberlain said a gunman, a young man of 22 or 23, ushered 30 or 40 people from the restaurant into a stairway and ordered everyone to put up their hands. He said the gunman spoke in Hindi or Urdu.

"They were talking about British and Americans specifically. There was an Italian guy, who, you know, they said: 'Where are you from?" and he said he's from Italy and they said 'fine' and they left him alone. And I thought: 'Fine, they're going to shoot me if they ask me anything — and thank God they didn't," he said.

Chamberlain said he managed to slip away as the patrons were forced to walk up stairs, but he thought much of the group was being held hostage.

Early Thursday, several European lawmakers were among people who barricaded themselves inside the Taj, a century-old seaside hotel complex and one of the city's best-known destinations.

"I was in the main lobby and there was all of a sudden a lot of firing outside," said Sajjad Karim, part of a delegation of European lawmakers visiting Mumbai ahead of a European Union-India summit.

The scene in the train station after the attack.

As he turned to get away, "all of a sudden another gunmen appeared in front of us, carrying machine gun-type weapons. And he just started firing at us ... I just turned and ran in the opposite direction," he told The Associated Press over his mobile phone.

Hours later, Karim remained holed up in a hotel restaurant, unsure if it was safe to come out.

The British Foreign Office said it was advising all British citizens in Mumbai to stay indoors.

Britain's foreign secretary, David Miliband, strongly condemned the attacks. "Today's attacks in Mumbai which have claimed many innocent victims remind us, yet again, of the threat we face from violent extremists," Miliband said in a statement.

India has been wracked by bomb attacks the past three years, which police blame on Muslim militants intent on destabilizing this largely Hindu country. Nearly 700 people have died.

Since May a militant group calling itself the Indian Mujahideen has taken credit for a string of blasts that killed more than 130 people. The most recent was in September, when a series of explosions struck a park and crowded shopping areas in the capital, New Delhi, killing 21 people and wounding about 100.

This story is still on going with more deaths to be expected. That the terrorist were using automatic weapons and grenades, the scale of the attack, and the number of attackers, leads me to the conclusion that this wasn't the work of some splinter group, but the work of a major terrorist group. It is just too large of a scale to be done with such precision and timing by a small splinter group.

Deccan Mujahideen may have taken credit for this, but I do believe that the real forces behind these attacks are Indian Mujahideen and Al Qaeda. Only they have the means, money and power to plan and execute such an attack.

Are Israeli Children Legitimate Military Targets?

Following are excerpts from a TV debate featuring Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi, introduced on the program as director of the London Center for the Study of Terrorism, and political analyst Dr. Nabil Yassin. Dr. Hilbawi is also former spokesman of the international Muslim Brotherhood in the West.(1) The debate aired on BBC Arabic TV on October 17, 2008:

To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/1922.htm .

Al-Hilbawi: "I Believe That Every Israeli Civilian is a Future Soldier... Even If He Is a Child"

Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi: "I condemn the targeting of any civilian, but incidentally, I believe that every Israeli civilian is a future soldier."

Interviewer: "He is what?"

Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi: "A future soldier."

Interviewer: "Even if he is two years old?"

Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi: "Even if he is a child. A child born in Israel is raised on the belief that [the Arabs] are like contemptible sheep, and that this is a land without a people, and they are a people without a land. They have very strange concepts. In elementary school, they pose the following math problem: 'In your village, there are 100 Arabs. If you killed 40, how many Arabs would be left for you to kill?' This is taught in the Israeli curriculum. What would you say about that? Should a child studying this be considered a civilian? He is a future soldier."

[...]

Dr. Nabil Yassin: "What Kamal said is very dangerous. He is familiar with the case of the Kharijites. He takes us back to the Azariqa, the Kharijites who were most lethal to Muslims. They used to cut open the bellies of pregnant women, because they believed that the child would become an enemy of the Kharijites."[...]

Yassin: "I Do Not Condemn the Child, Who Still Doesn't Know How He Will Kill the Arabs in 20 Years' Time, When He Becomes A Soldier"

"If we, as Arabs and Muslims, condemned every operation targeting civilians anywhere, we would be able to demand that all parties – not only the U.S. – commit themselves to the same position. I condemn the Israeli governments for teaching children such things, but I do not condemn the child, who still doesn't know how he will kill the Arabs in 20 years' time, when he becomes a soldier. We should differentiate... These things lead us back to the root of the problem: Who is a civilian, and who is a soldier, who is being targeted, and who is targeting me? We must not include civilians in the list of military targets."

[...]

Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi: "We must first ask ourselves, with regard to the Polish or Russian Israeli, who came with his children to occupy a land and a home that are not his, expelling the Palestinians to America, Britain, France, and Lebanon – what is his status according to international law?"

Interviewer: "We don't want to limit the show to the Palestinian cause and the Arab-Israeli struggle, we are talking about terrorism in general."

Al-Hilbawi: "In My View, Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi is One of the People Responsible for the Development of Religious Violence"

Dr. Kamal Al-Hilbawi: "Allow me. I absolutely do not condone the killing of civilians. But those responsible for the killing of these civilians are sometimes their own relatives and their own country.

[...]

"In my view, Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi is one of the people responsible for the development of religious violence, I'm sad to say."

Interviewer: "Dr. Nabil, we don't want to..."

Dr. Nabil Yassin: "Let's be clear on that... Religious scholars issued fatwas..."

Interviewer: "We are not here to pass judgment on Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi or anyone else."

Yassin: "Jurisprudents... Fuel the Phenomenon of Religious Violence"

Dr. Nabil Yassin: "We need to be realistic. For 1,400 years, we've been speaking in the name of Islam, while concealing the facts of reality. There is a movement among the clerics – and I don't believe in clerics, because there is not supposed to be any clergy in Islam... There is a group of clerics, or religious jurisprudents, who fuel the phenomenon of religious violence, provide religious justifications [for terrorism], and allow people to go to Paradise and marry the black-eyed virgins, by killing themselves and others, some of whom are Muslims."

Endnote:
(1) Al-Sharq Al-Awsat (London), February 17, 2006.

From Monkey in the Middle:

Palestinians and their supporters will say what they really think on Arabic Television Networks believing that only Arabic-speaking peoples will hear it. Thank God that MEMRI does and continues to translate what Palestinians really believe and say.

In your village, there are 100 Arabs. If you killed 40, how many Arabs would be left for you to kill?

This is not taught in any Israeli classroom. It is taught in Palestinian class rooms only how many Jews would be left for you to kill. But the Moonbats in Europe and the US actually believe the lie of the Palestinian and not check out the truth of the matter.

Expelling the Palestinians to America, Britain, France, and Lebanon

Historically this is incorrect. the Israelis expelled no one. The Palestinians ran from their homes and villages when they were told to by the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem. He promised them that if they left, they would not be in the way of the victorious Arab Armies. That was 60 years ago. I guess that they are still waiting for those victorious Arab Armies to liberate them.

there is not supposed to be any clergy in Islam

In Islam there is suppose to be no clergy, no ministers. There was suppose to be teachers, military leaders and judges, but not a clergy. Muhammad was very specific on this point. But hey! Why listen to what Muhammad said. We will do our own thing, right?

It is strange that Palestinians are allowed to target Israeli children because they will one day become soldiers, but if Israelis targeted Palestinian children, the Moonbats of the world would scream bloody murder. After all, Palestinian children will one day grow up to be terrorists, right?

Missing: Somali Men

Hat tip to Jihad Watch

With the problems Swift and other meat packers are having with Somali immigrants, comes good news in a way.

Young Somali men are vanishing off the streets of the Twin Cities. More than 20 have left in the last few months, and the community fears they’ve gone back to Somalia to fight in a holy war.

They’re known in the Somali community simply at The Missing. More than 20 young Somali men, between the ages of 17 and 22, who have left the Twin Cities in the last few months, without a single word to their families.

The families and community leaders believe the men have gone back to fight in a bloody civil war, in which Al Quiada is a major player.

Full Story

View Video Here

Holy War? Not likely. Piracy you bet! Why bother make a living when you can hijack a ship and hold it for ransom. That is a lot easier than working in a meat packing plant, driving a taxi or working in retail. Ok, I'll give everyone 2 out of 3.

If these men want to return to the US, we should say no. And leave it at that. You cannot fight against the US and then want to return to it. Of course under the Obama administration, they will not only be allowed back in, but will be allowed to bring their multiple wives with them. All to go onto welfare.

Two Weeks From Hell

Today was not a good day.

In the past two weeks, four people--four very dear people--have become seriously ill. Two are family members, one is a former family member and the fourth is a blogging family member.

The youngest is my grandson. He just turned 3 months old. He was losing weight and there was no explanation why. So he was hospitalized for testing. After much prodding and poking, reviewing feeding procedures with my daughter, seeing how well this child ate, they finally came to a preliminary diagnosis. Cerebral Palsy. A very mild form, will not affect him in his mental development, is not expected to become worse over time and will only mildly hamper his motor development.

Next is my nephew. He just turned 15. A Texas boy. A star athlete and always in trouble with his mischief. Last Tuesday, he was playing basketball and hurt his leg in the game. It was still hurting so my sister took him to the doctor. I found out today he has osteosarcoma-bone cancer. My sister is in extreme denial, thinking the surgery next week will be simple and non-invasive. After doing some research tonight, I know it's probably going to be exploratory to determine the size and features of the tumor (calcium malignant, attached at the site) and treatment options. There is a very good chance he will lose part of his leg--if not his life. The exploratory is prior to chemo starting as well.

Then my ex father-in-law. Frankly, I would dance on the graves of my ex and his family. But not him. Out of the entire clan, he was the only one who was ever decent to me. He is in his late 70's and is suffering from heart failure. He's been very ill for quite some time, but he has given up. He has been brought home from the hospital to die, and makes no bones to the grandkids he will be spending Christmas with Santa Clause. He isn't expected to live past Thursday. This once robust, hearty man is a mere shell of himself and it's heartwrenching to see. He's worked his whole life for a family full of ingrates, who always put him down because he wasn't a "book learned" man--although he found a way to put four children through private schools, supported a wife from hell who expected him to cater to her (she refused to even drive a car) while all she could do was denigrate him. He did it quietly, with dignity. When he was out of work from the mines, he worked side jobs and always paid the bills--in cash. He loved his grandchildren, each as they came along. He was the only one in the family to welcome me when I married into it and for that I will always be grateful. While the hellspawn of his family can take a long walk off a high cliff, I do not wish a holiday death on anyone. Having lost both of my parents, it's hard and it will only hit them just how special this man is after he is gone. And it will be too late for them to say a simple "thank you".

Last, but by no means least, is our friend Roger Gardner from Radarsite. He is also fighting for his life, but better bloggers than I have addressed Roger and his trials. However, we have good news on Roger--his prognosis is getting better and better each time we hear from him, and we thank God for that.

Two weeks from hell. Four very dear people, ranging in age from 3 months to early 80's. Obama wants to talk Main Street. I got your Main Street right here. And mine is real--it's not a fantasyland concocted in the wild dreams of a meglomaniac.

Sorry, Stinky--my priorities are far and away more important than your fantasies.

You will just have to wait until you royally screw up--and then you will most definitely hear from me on your so-called change which is nothing more than recycled Clinton. Yeah--you're "green"--green from the stench of decay.

I have my family and friends to worry about. Maybe you should get in touch with real Main Street Americans and what is on our minds--not your ice cream dreams and lollipop sundaes.

Two weeks from hell.

Durban II: An Early test of Obama's Mid-East Intentions

The 2001 UN World Conference against Racism, Racial Discrimination, Xenophobia and Related Intolerance in Durban quickly became a disgusting display of anti-Semitism and anti-Israel Propaganda. Much of the hatred took place in a six-day NGO Forum in a large cricket stadium attended by six thousand representatives of close to two thousand NGOs. It is there that the "Durban Strategy" was formulated, that is delegitimize the Jewish State via branding it as a racist entity. To his credit Then Secretary of State Colin Powell walked out of the conference.

Last month the United Nations released the draft statement for the follow-up conference scheduled for Geneva in April 2009. This conference is planned to be worse than the first one, It is an Anti-Jewish, Anti-America and Anti-Freedom HATE FEST. There are even sections which will restrict freedom of speech. Other nations have announced that they will not attend.

On Jan. 23, the Canadian foreign minister made the clear statement of principle that "Canada will not participate in the 2009 conference." A week later, 27 senators sent a letter to Rice asking her to do the same. Having had no response, on Feb. 13 during a Senate hearing, Sen. Norm Coleman asked Rice point-blank, would she make the same statement and refuse to "provide credibility to this process by participating?" Rice answered: "No, we've not made that statement. ... We have not tried to make a final decision on this."

The Secretary of State had decided to punt it to the NEXT administration.

The United States should show leadership and morality. President-elect Obama should announce immediately that we will NOT attend this hate fest. His decision to attend or not will be an early test of his true intentions regarding the Middle-East, as well as the appeasement of Islamo-fascism and anti-Semitism.

Read the rest here.

From Monkey in the Middle:

While European nations will attend, Canada and of course Israel will not be attending. The United States should be taking the lead in this, but will not. If history is any indication of what this kangaroo court will be like, then you can expect the UN aka Tower of Babel, to condemn Israel and Judaism. We can expect these purveyors of hatred to force the world into silence on Islam and to announce Islam as the world's only true religion.

I also expect that Barack Hussein Obama, being true to his Muslim background, will not only have the US attending Durban II, but will lead the charge against Israel.

And that is his idea of Change. God help us!

Holy Land Foundation Is Not So Holy

The Holy Land Foundation was the largest Islamic charity in the United States. It was formerly known as Occupied Land Fund. It had its assets frozen by the European Union and U.S., and shut down by the U.S. government following accusations of funding Hamas.

The organization's web site (now defunct) stated:

Our mission is to find and implement practical solutions for human suffering through humanitarian programs that impact the lives of the disadvantaged, disinherited, and displaced peoples suffering from man-made and natural disasters.

Their primary area of focus was with the Palestinian refugees in Jordan, Lebanon, and the Palestinian territories.

But in reality their goal was to funnel money to Hamas and other terrorist groups.

Today Justice has been served against the organization:

A jury on Monday determined that the Holy Land Foundation and five men who worked with the Muslim charity were guilty of three dozen counts related to the illegal funneling of at least $12 million to the Palestinian terrorist group Hamas.

The unanimous verdicts are a complete victory for the government, which streamlined its case and worked hard to carefully educate jurors on the complex, massive evidence presented in the trial. Guilty verdicts were read on 108 separate charges.

108 charges! And Guilty was the verdict on all of them.

It was the second trial where the government attempted to convict the men and the now defunct Richardson-based Holy Land Foundation itself. It took the jury eight days of deliberations to reach its decisions — less than half the time it took jurors to deadlock end up with an almost complete mistrial last year on the first go-around.

By late afternoon, jurors were back in the jury room to determine if $12.4 million in defendants’ assets should be forfeited to the government because of several convictions on money laundering charges related to the case.

"The issue is not whether they made money. The issue is whether the money went to Hamas,” said prosecutor Barry Jonas, addressing defense attorney arguments that their clients did not benefit from any of Holy Land’s business transactions just before the jury went back into deliberations.

Opening statements at the Earle Cabell Federal Courthouse in downtown Dallas began Sept. 22. Over the past two months, prosecutors attempted to prove that five former charity organizers used Holy Land, once the largest Muslim charity in the U.S., to funnel an estimated $60 million to the militant group — most of it before 1995.

Hamas was designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. in 1995, and the trial centered on the $12 million the government said Holy Land and supporters funneled to the group after that date.

Defense attorneys argued that the foundation was a legitimate, non-political charity that helped distressed Palestinians under Israeli occupation. They accused the government of bending to Israeli pressure to prosecute the charity, and of relying on old evidence predating the 1995 designation.

Holy Land was formed in the late 1980s, and was shut down by U.S. government regulators in December 2001. The case was indicted in 2004.

Last year’s trial of the same five defendants ended in a hung jury Oct. 22, 2007. Jurors deliberated for 19 days before they deadlocked.

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What they did was in violation of US Law. They should have had good legal council to tell them that when they first proposed doing it. That they didn't showed that they were going to break the law any way.

Another group was not indicted. That is Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR). Although not indicted in the Holy Land Foundation scandal, they are facing legal troubles of their own.

Four clients of the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) have filed a federal civil complaint alleging criminal fraud and racketeering against CAIR, a self-described public interest civil rights law firm. The lawsuit also names CAIR’s national leadership as individual defendants.

The defendants were served with the complaint and summons to appear while attending the CAIR 14th Annual Dinner Sunday night in Arlington, Virginia. Congressman Ellison (D-Minn) was a guest speaker at this affair.

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The lawsuit, filed in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia, alleges that Morris Days, the “Resident Attorney” and “Manager for Civil Rights” at the now defunct CAIR MD/VA chapter in Herndon, Virginia, was in fact not an attorney and that he failed to provide legal services for clients who came to CAIR for assistance and who had paid for CAIR legal services.

According to the complaint, CAIR failed to conduct a background check on Days prior to hiring him and when they did discover his massive fraud, they immediately set about to cover it up. CAIR officials purposefully concealed the truth about Days from their clients, law enforcement, the Virginia and D.C. state bar associations, and the media. When CAIR did get irate calls from clients about Days’ failure to provide competent legal services, CAIR fraudulently deceived their clients about Days’ relationship to CAIR, suggesting he was never actually employed by CAIR, and even concealed the fact that CAIR had fired him for criminal fraud.

“The evidence has long suggested that CAIR is a criminal organization set up by the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas to further its aims of stealth Jihad in the U.S.,” Mr. Yerushalmi said referring to the fact that CAIR has been named by the federal government as an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation terror financing trial.

“But our investigation and this complaint make clear that CAIR’s criminal activities know no bounds,” Yerushalmi continued.

“According to the facts as carefully laid out in this complaint,” Yerushalmi explained, “CAIR has engaged in a massive cover-up of a criminal fraud in which literally hundreds of CAIR clients have been victimized and because of the CAIR cover-up they still don’t realize it. The fact that CAIR has victimized Muslims and non-Muslims alike demonstrates that CAIR is only looking out for CAIR and its ongoing effort to bilk donors out of millions of dollars of charitable donations thinking they are supporting a legitimate organization.”

The complaint also alleges that in addition to covering up the Days fraud scheme, CAIR officials in D.C. forced angry clients who were demanding a return of their legal fees to sign a release that bought the client-victims’ silence by prohibiting them from informing law enforcement or the media about the CAIR-Days fraud. According to the agreement, if the “settling” clients said anything to anyone about the fraud scheme, CAIR would be able to sue them for $25,000.

This enforced code of silence left hundreds of CAIR client-victims in the dark such that to this day they have not learned that Days is not an attorney and that he had not filed the legal actions on their behalf for which Days and CAIR publicly claimed credit.

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I doubt that Barack Hussein Obama's administration will investigate CAIR, but it should. Meanwhile justice is being met out on those who would force the 7th Century on the United States.