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Showing posts from May 14, 2017

REVEALED: Imams Preaching Saudi-Imported Hate Texts In British Jails

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by   Donna Rachel Edmunds 19 Apr 2016 191 Jeff J Mitchell/Getty Images SIGN UP  FOR OUR NEWSLETTER Muslim chaplains working within Britain’s prison system have been routinely distributing Islamist hate literature, leaving extremist pamphlets preaching death to non-believers and hatred of the West within easy reach of inmates, a leaked review has revealed. The Ministry of Justice, who has oversight for chaplaincy appointments within prisons, is understood to have issued an urgent internal alert warning of “severe reputation damage” thanks to the extremist nature of the material. The compact discs (CDs) and leaflets, some of which were imported from Saudi Arabia, contain homophobic and misogynistic messages, as well as inciting hatred against non-Muslims and Western culture. Yet it was left by the Muslim chaplains on library bookshelves where inmates were free to come and peruse it,  The Times  has  reported . Lack of scrutiny inside the jails paired with weak cor

Canadian imams on ISIL hit list for preaching against extremism and steering Muslims ‘away from jihad’

Stewart Bell TORONTO — A Toronto imam said he would not be intimidated after ISIL included him on a hit list released Wednesday that called for the killing of more than a dozen Western imams it accused of opposing the terrorist group. “Yes, I take it seriously but I’m not going to stop doing the things I do,” said the imam, a founder of the Canadian Council of Imams who was rebuked by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant along with a second Canadian preacher based in the Persian Gulf. Both were named in the latest edition of the ISIL propaganda magazine Dabiq, which called them “obligatory targets” and urged followers to “make an example of them” in an article entitled, “Kill the imams of kufr (disbelief).” The accompanying images showed a hand holding a bloody knife, a beheading and a news photo one of the Canadian imams. The 69-page magazine was distributed on Twitter and Telegram, according to the SITE Intelligence Group. The fact that I’m on Daesh’s bad side mean

The Push to Ban Arabic Sermons in Europe's Mosques

Some politicians are calling for more “transparent” services for Muslims. Sigal Samuel Apr 12, 2017 In several Western European countries, some politicians want to force imams to deliver sermons only in the official language: In Germany, imams should preach in German; in Italy, in Italian; in Britain, in English; in France, in French. To justify this requirement, two rationales are cited. Some say it will function as a counterterrorism strategy. Others say it will promote the social integration of Muslims. A few appeal to both lines of reasoning. Germany’s Deputy Finance Minister Jens Spahn  called  last month for an “Islam law” that would make imams’ sermons “transparent,” saying that the authorities “had to know what happens in mosques.” He argued that imams should preach in German and that “imported imams lead to social disintegration.” Spahn, who also proposed an official registry for mosques, is a member of the executive committee of Chancellor Angela Merkel’s ruling C

Imam in Birmingham preaches against extremism at Friday prayers

An imam has told Muslim worshippers at Friday prayers in Birmingham that terrorism has no place in Islam. Dr Ather Hussain was talking at Ghamkol Sharif mosque in the city, where anti-Daesh leaflets were being handed out. Source:  http://www.bbc.com/news/av/uk-england-birmingham-39383516/imam-in-birmingham-preaches-against-extremism-at-friday-prayers

Group Behind Leak of Tools Used in Ransomware Attack Says Ready to Sell More Code

SEOUL — The hacker group behind the leak of cyber spying tools from the U.S. National Security Agency, which were used in last week's "ransomware" cyberattack, says it has more code that it plans to start selling through a subscription service launching next month. The group known as Shadow Brokers posted a statement online Tuesday saying the new data dumps could include exploits for Microsoft's Windows 10 operating system, and for web browsers and cell phones, as well as "compromised network data from Russian, Chinese, Iranian or North Korean nukes and missile programs." Shadow Brokers tried unsuccessfully last year to auction off cyber tools it said were stolen from the NSA. The WannaCry ransomware virus exploited a vulnerability in Microsoft's older Windows XP operation system. The company had largely stopped offering support such as security updates for Windows XP, but did release a patch to protect users against the attack that demanded

Hackers Mint Crypto-currency with Technique in Global 'Ransomware' Attack

Reuters SAN FRANCISCO — A computer virus that exploits the same vulnerability as the global "ransomware" attack has latched on to more than 200,000 computers and begun manufacturing digital currency, experts said Tuesday. The development adds to the dangers exposed by the WannaCry ransomware and provides another piece of evidence that a North Korea-linked hacking group may be behind the attacks. WannaCry, developed in part with hacking techniques that were either stolen or leaked from the U.S. National Security Agency, has infected more than 300,000 computers since Friday, locking up their data and demanding a ransom payment to release it. Researchers at security firm Proofpoint said the related attack, which installs a currency "miner" that generates digital cash, began infecting machines in late April or early May but had not been previously discovered because it allows computers to operate while creating the digital cash in the background. Proofpoin

Afghanistan's Deadly Poppy Harvest on Rise Again

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WASHINGTON — The world's number one opium-producing country, Afghanistan, is braced for an exploding poppy harvest this year, as farmers are cultivating the illicit crop in areas where it has never grown before. “Unfortunately, the narcotics production is on the rise this year,” Javed Qaem, Afghan deputy counternarcotics minister, told international donors in Kabul Tuesday. “We are concerned that narcotics would increase this year, including in areas and provinces where previously we had zero opium production.” Qaem's comments come amid growing international concern that the Taliban, who are fighting Afghan government troops in rural areas of the country, are fueling the poppy trade by engaging in trafficking and skimming hundreds of millions dollars in profit to fuel their militancy. Taliban insurgents, according to U.S. officials, net 60 percent of their war chest from narcotics. Director of National Intelligence Dan Coats speaks on Capitol Hill in Washington

Nigeria: Too soon to close camps for Boko Haram's displaced

This Sunday Aug. 28, 2016 file photo shows a general view of one of the biggest camp for people displaced by Islamist Extremist in Maiduguri, Nigeria. Camps for thousands of people displaced by Boko Haram will have to stay open beyond the end of this month as Nigeria's military continues to fight the extremists in so-called liberated areas, officials say. The governor of the northern state of Borno, Kashim Shettima, told reporters on Tuesday, May 16, 2017 that it is not yet safe to return people to their homes in many places across the region.   MAIDUGURI, Nigeria (AP) — Camps for tens of thousands of people displaced by Boko Haram will have to stay open beyond the end of this month as Nigeria's military continues to fight the extremists in so-called liberated areas, officials say. The governor of the northern state of Borno, Kashim Shettima, told reporters on Tuesday that it is not yet safe to return people to their homes in many places across the region. The gove

Spain: No IS links to migrant smuggling gang

A worker stands by the abandoned warehouses that for months have been a make-shift shelter for migrants from the Middle East and Africa in Belgrade, Serbia, Friday, May 12, 2017. Authorities have moved the migrants to asylum centers to demolish the warehouses and build a business and residential complex funded by a UAE company. (AP Photo/Darko Vojinovic) STOCKHOLM (AP) — The Latest on asylum-seekers and migrants in Europe (all times local): 2:45 p.m. Spanish police say that a criminal network that smuggled migrants into Europe over a decade has no known links to Islamic extremists. European Union police agency Europol says it helped break up the gang, and that seven alleged members, including its suspected leader, were arrested in Spain and one in Greece as a result of a coordinated series of raids on houses in late March. Spanish police say that gang chiefly helped traffic migrants from Syria, Iraq and Afghanistan to countries in northern Europe. A Spanish police

Germany considering Jordan, Cyprus for anti-IS base

FILE - In this Dec. 15, 2015 file photo Turkish, right, and German, left, airmen stand in front of fighter jets after the U. S. Defense Secretary Ash Carter visited the Incirlik Air Base near Adana, Turkey. Turkey has blocked a request for German lawmakers to visit their country's soldiers at the Incirlik air base, the German government said Monday, May 15, 2017, increasing the possibility that it might relocate planes supporting the campaign against the Islamic State group.   BERLIN (AP) — Germany's defense minister says her office has drafted a list of eight locations where it could move aircraft supporting the anti-IS mission if Turkey continues to block German lawmakers from visiting troops at the Incirlik base. Ursula von der Leyen said Wednesday a team is already in Jordan to assess a site there for its Tornado reconnaissance jets and a refueling plane, and Cyprus is also being considered. Nonetheless, she stressed talks with Turkey were still ongoing. Ge

Christian sect attacks Congo prison, frees leader, 50 more

Burned minivans are seen outside the main prison in Kinshasa, Congo, Wednesday May 17, 2017. Christian sect members stormed a prison in Congo's capital Wednesday, freeing the leader of their movement and 50 others, Congo's justice minister said. Bundu dia Kongo movement leader Ne Mwanda Nsemi is now on the run after a 4 a.m. attack on Malaka prison in Kinshasa, Justice Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba told local radio station Top Congo FM.   KINSHASA, Congo (AP) — Christian sect members stormed a prison in Congo's capital Wednesday, freeing the leader of their movement and 50 others, Congo's justice minister said. Bundu dia Kongo movement leader Ne Mwanda Nsemi is now on the run after a 4 a.m. attack on Malaka prison in Kinshasa, Justice Minister Alexis Thambwe Mwamba told local radio station Top Congo FM. Gunfire could be heard in the morning, but the justice minister said the situation is now under control. "Security force members who were sent as

Imam accused in Denmark of calling for murder of Jews

Copenhagen (AFP) - Denmark's Jewish community has filed a complaint over an imam accused of calling for the murder of Jews in a case sparking political opprobrium, it emerged Thursday. Imam Mundhir Abdallah preaches in the working class Copenhagen suburb of Norrebro at the Masjid Al-Faruq mosque, which media have previously linked to radical Islam. He stands accused of citing a hadith or koranic narrative on March 31 calling for Muslims to rise up against Jews. "Judgement Day will not come until the Muslims fight the Jews and kill them," begins Abdallah's address in footage on YouTube, according to a transcript of the original Arabic provided by US organisation the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI). Dan Rosenberg Asmussen, the head of the Jewish community in Denmark, urged police to open an investigation into a possible case of incitement to racial hatred. "We fear that weak and easily-influenced persons could interpret this kind of preach

A peace accelerator in the Mideast desert

When nations are at odds or even at war, sometimes peace can come quietly through a back door. China and the United States reconciled decades ago through a table tennis match. Serbia and Albania have edged closer after putting on a production of “Romeo and Juliet.” India and Pakistan have talked of joint research on Himalayan glaciers. South Korea, host of the next Winter Olympics, hopes to welcome a team from North Korea. The latest example of indirect peacemaking is the opening of the Middle East’s first scientific research center on May 16. Located in Jordan and nearly a century in the making, it is funded by nine countries in the region, some of which do not officially recognize each other. Yet now scientists from Israel will be working alongside Iranians and Palestinians. And even though Turkey does not recognize the Republic of Cyprus, their researchers will be talking a common language, that of science and math. The other countries are Pakistan, Egypt, Bahrain, and Jordan.

Indian Navy rescues merchant vessel from pirates in Gulf of Aden

INS Sharda which was 30 nautical miles at that time responded immediately. Manjeet Singh Negi Indian Navy patrol ship INS Sharda fought off pirates at the Gulf of Aden and rescued a merchant vessel, officials said today. The ship received a distress call yesterday from a Liberian registered ship, MV Mountbatten, 230 nautical miles South-West of Salalah in the Gulf of Aden, which is located in the Arabian Sea near Yemen. The vessel had reported an incident of attempted piracy by two suspicious mother vessels along with 7-8 skiffs. INS Sharda which was 30 nautical miles at that time responded immediately. The ship was deployed for anti-piracy operations since April 6 this year. Navy's MARCOS commandos with support of armed helicopter from the ship investigated the dhows and their skiffs by conducting search operations.  #WATCH : INS Sharda, an Offshore Patrol Vessel foils piracy attempt on MV Lord Mountbatten, by 2 mother ships & 8 skiffs, in Gulf of Aden  pic.tw