Author Archives: Guest

Why aren’t judges protecting us from terrorists?

By Guest | Published: October 5, 2009

This is a guest post by Shiraz Maher from the Standpoint blog, Focus on Islamism

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Blogging about the law is not really my remit – not least because my fellow blogger here at Standpoint, Joshua Rozenberg, is the resident expert. That said, I couldn’t help but comment on the news from yesterday’s Sunday Times that about thirty ‘high risk’ terrorist suspects are due for release soon. I’ve long been opposed to our sentencing guidelines which, it seems to me, impose only the weakest of tariffs for some quite horrendous crimes – but that’s a different topic for a different day.

For now, the issue must be why we’re releasing terrorists who adopt an ideological hatred of our country and its people. These are not individuals engaged in crimes of opportunity where they just happened to chance upon an open door. These are men who believe they have divine sanction to launch terrorist attacks against this country.

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Posted in Your View | 2 Comments

Syed Qutb: The Philosopher of Militant Islamism

By Guest | Published: October 2, 2009

This is a guest post by Raziq

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What’s wrong with Syed Qutb? I’ve heard this said many times by different people. Some see him as a hero, others the inspiration behind terrorist movements like al-Qaeda. There are even those, like Inayat Bunglawala, who see him as nothing more than a little controversial.  In this article I will be taking a brief look at Qutb’s life and ideas, and why he is still admired by militant Islamist movements today.

Early Career

Syed Qutb was born in 1906 in Musha in the Asyut province of Upper Egypt.  In his early twenties he moved to Cairo and worked as a teacher for the Ministry of Public Instruction. During this period he was also interested in literature and became known as a literary critic. It is noted that Qutb was liberal in the early part of his life, at one point he even advocated nudism:

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Posted in History, Islamism, Your View | Tagged | 13 Comments

Shut Down Blood & Honour

By Guest | Published: October 1, 2009

Cross posted from Harry’s Place

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Dear Home Secretary

I am writing following reports on 18 September 2009 of the activities of the group ‘Blood & Honour’.

The reports suggest that Blood & Honour is currently distributing material, including music CDs, which encourage and glorify hatred and acts of terror against ethnic minorities.   The reports also quote the group’s “Field Manual” as stating that those who carry out actions in the name of neo-Nazism ‘must be respected rather than condemned’ and that ‘Die-hard ‘Nazis’ not comfortable in any watered-down, democratic outfit, still have an option through leaderless resistance and direct action. [...] These lone white wolves must be respected and left alone to stalk the worst enemies of our race. They expect no support and assistance but they deserve acknowledgement and understanding’.

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Posted in Anti Fascism | Tagged , , | Leave a comment

Paying for Political Islam

By Guest | Published: September 30, 2009

This piece by Alexander Meleagrou-Hitchens is cross-posted from the Standpoint blog, Focus on Islamism

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This November, the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) will be holding its course on political Islam and, like the last one, it is not without its controversial speakers.

I don’t have many fans in the SOAS political Islam Course; this is mainly because the think tank for which I work was instrumental in preventing the entry into the UK of one of its prominent invitees, Ibrahim el Moussawi.  Moussawi, the head of Hezbollah’s propaganda station al Manar TV, was due to address the same course in March of this year until the Home Secretary refused him an entry visa at the last minute.  SOAS, for their part, were more than happy to play host to a man who heads a TV channel which is banned in most of Europe because of its extreme antisemitism and promotion and incitement of violence.

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Posted in Islamism, Your View | Tagged , , , , | 22 Comments

Women: Cover up and shut up

By Guest | Published: September 30, 2009

This is a guest post by Ibn Khaldun

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niqabi robberThe Times recently gave space to Fatima Barkatulla to present a hopelessly misleading defence of the niqab (or, as the Times fawningly describes it, “[a]n insider guide to common misconceptions”). Fatima attempts to address seven issues that have been raised around the Niqab.

The piece is here for all to see. I would like to respond to her points one by one.

1) The Niqab is a symbol of female subjugation.

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Posted in Fashion, Your View | Tagged | 45 Comments

Is the Home Office Creating a ‘Student’ Immigrant Underclass

By Guest | Published: September 29, 2009

This is a guest post by Eastender
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I got a phone call the other day. Unknown number, at my workplace. I picked up the phone and a strange voice says to me, in Bengali:

- Hello bhaiya, how are you?

- I’m good thanks, who’s this?

- My name is Nazrul. You won’t know me, but my sister is a tenant in your family’s house in Dhaka.

- Oh I see. Are you calling from London?

- Yes, I just arrived here last week.

- Student visa?

- Yes.

- So how did you get my number?

- Your mother gave it to me before I left.

- Okay, no worries. You settling in okay?

- Well, I went to the college today and filled up my registration papers.

- Where’s the college?

- In Whitechapel?

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Posted in Immigration | 23 Comments

Should we engage with non-violent Islamists?

By Guest | Published: September 28, 2009

This is a guest post by Ishtiaq Hussain

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Last week on CIF Martin Bright discussed possible grounds for engagement with non-violent Islamists.  This was in response to a suggestion that the FCO needed to engage with non-violent Islamist parties like Hamas.  A recent IPPR report also suggested that this type of engagement was the way forward.  An important question to ask, however, is what kind of engagement is possible with non-violent Islamists?

It worries me when some commentators call for this kind of engagement. The problem with non-violent Islamists is that although they won’t commit violent actions themselves they believe the use of violence for political goals is justified.  And is Hamas really a non-violent organisation? The European Union and United States have classified it as a terrorist organisation.  Hamas’s original founding charter called for the destruction of the State of Israel.  They have participated in suicide bombings that have killed innocent people, Israeli and Palestinians alike.  Bearing all this in mind what kind of engagement can we expect to have with groups like Hamas?

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Posted in Islamism | 13 Comments

The BNP: Guilty

By Guest | Published: September 25, 2009

This is a message from Nick Lowles from Hope Not Hate
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Over the past few years, we’ve known about the secret strategy, pursued by Nick Griffin and the BNP, to lie in order to whip up fear in our communities. And for the first time we have clear, definitive and undeniable proof.

Guilty

Guilty

Richard Barnbrook – the BNP’s third highest elected official – has been exposed fabricating two murders in a high profile BNP campaign. He has been found guilty of bringing both the Greater London Authority and the Barking and Dagenham Council into disrepute – his lies show the depths the BNP are willing to stoop to in their vile propaganda war.

And now I need your help to make sure that the communities Barnbrook represents know the truth. We urgently need to raise £5000 to deliver 150,000 targeted leaflets across London. And I need your help to make this happen.

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Posted in Anti Fascism | 3 Comments

Degrees of Stupidity

By Guest | Published: September 23, 2009

This is a cross-post by habibi of Harry’s Place
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On Saturday the “Stop the War Coalition” held an Israel hatred meeting at the University of London Union.

Here’s the video of Shamiul Joarder. At one minute in, he says:

“There is absolutely no room for anyone with antisemitic views in the Free Palestine movement”.

That’s quite funny coming from the head of public affairs of Friends of al Aqsa, which is led by Ismail Patel.

Perhaps Mr Joarder, in his position as head of public affairs for Friends of al Aqsa, thinks backing a blood libel by Swedish newspaper Aftonbladet is not antisemitic? This is the section of an article entitled “Is the Zionomedia Kingdom Invincible?”, originally published on September 18, that was subsequently quoted by his organisation:

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Posted in Antisemitism, Obscurantism | 24 Comments

New IPPR report: ‘Fuck the Arabs’

By Guest | Published: September 22, 2009

This is a guest post by Al-Qanaas Al-Masri

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During the last few years, the left-leaning Institute of Public Policy Research (IPPR) think tank has built up an unenviable reputation on the tricky subject of engaging with Islamists. And for good reason. Previous IPPR papers have argued that hard-line British Islamists from groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood are our best allies against al-Qaeda because ‘shared interests, if not ideologies, are paramount: it is not in our interests or theirs for terrorists to mount another attack.’

The most troubling aspect of IPPR’s previous calls for the empowerment of Islamists has however been IPPR’s underlying argument that, in order to stop jihadists blowing up middle-class white people on planes, trains and buses in western capitals, governments should sell out their own Muslim citizens to religious fascists by empowering Islamists who want to dictate every aspect of ordinary Muslims’ social, political and spiritual lives.

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Posted in Islamism, PVE | 7 Comments

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