It’s truly alarming that this has happened. They torched all the important ancient manuscripts. The ancient books of geography and science. It is the history of Timbuktu, of its people.Timbuktu mayor Ousmane Halle • Expressing great frustration after rebels overtaking the country of Mali set ablaze a library including thousands of ancient documents. While some of the documents have been hidden or moved to protect their contents, others were not so lucky. The Islamist rebels in the country have set off on a major path of destruction, destroying ancient artifacts — including the tombs of ancient saints (such as the tomb of tenth-century saint Sidi Mahmoudou), saints which al-Qaeda officials say conflict with Islam by taking the focus off of Allah. source
We will never be subdued by the militants and their acts. Islam gives us the right to education and we will fight for our rights. We will never ever give up our mission. …This land needs us and we can only help Pakistan if we can complete our education.An anonymous teenager, who attended school with Malala Yousafzai • Speaking out against the Pakistani Taliban, who earlier this week attempted to murder the 14-year-old Yousafzai in retaliation for her anti-Taliban activism and blogging. The school Yousafzai attends has been closed since the attack, in which she was shot, but a contingent of her classmates showed up today to pray for her safety. Yousafzai currently remains in a coma, under the care of military surgeons. source
In Libya it’s only been a year and the idea of democracy and political parties is difficult for people to absorb. The people have not responded to this imported, packaged democracy. We don’t accept it. We have a religion that needs to be taken into accountAbdul Qader Azouz, former political prisoner in Libya • Expressing his, and many other eastern Libyans’, unhappiness with the state of the country one year after the fall of Muammar Gaddafi. Azouz was one of the few survivors of a massacre, targeting prisoners that Gaddafi believed to be dangerous Islamic fundamentalists, that claimed the lives of more than 1,200 people. Many like Azouz, who fought or lost loved ones (in many cases, both) to Gaddafi before/during the Libyan revolution, feel as if yet another Western-backed government is being installed which will ignore and/or oppress the community in eastern Libyan cities like Derna. source
We are not saying stop free speech. We are staying stop hate speech. …You have to see that there is a provocation. You should understand the psychology of people who revere their prophet and don’t want people to insult him.Ekmeleddin Ihsanoglu, secretary general of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation • Advocating for a global ban on denigrating the character of the Islamic faith’s prophet, Muhammad. This is a red-hot issue, as it was six years ago, when a series of Danish cartoons mocking Muhammad sparked worldwide protests and riots, seeing the assault and burning of multiple Danish embassies. The distinction between “hate speech” and “free speech” seems to be a sticking point, here — one which may illicit very different answers from different people, especially across the religious/secular divide. What do you think? source
Purported anti-Muslim film producer arrested in probation violation case
(Photo: NBC News)
LOS ANGELES — Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, the Cerritos man who many believe to be behind an anti-Muslim video that has inflamed the Islamic world, was arrested Thursday afternoon, the U.S. Attorney’s office in Los Angeles said.
It will be interesting to see how this case plays out.
Remember conservative blogger Pamela Geller? Oh yeah, her. Well, her organization released these ads all over the New York subway system to tell people how awful Islam is. (FWIW, the NYC subway system only allowed them to run after going to court over the ads.) Understandably, people reacted strongly, defacing them and covering them with stickers that say things like “RACIST.” You can see why they might do that considering the content of the ads. Well, it looks like these protests have led to an arrest — and it was actually someone sort of famous. Well-known Egyptian-American journalist and activist Mona Eltahawy was arrested for spraying graffiti on one of these ads Tuesday evening. “I’m an Egyptian-American and I refuse hate,” she said in a video of her arrest. (photo via Mondoweiss)
A California man convicted of bank fraud was taken in for questioning on Saturday by officers investigating possible probation violations stemming from the making of an anti-Islam film that triggered violent protests in the Muslim world.
Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, 55, voluntarily left his home in the early hours of Saturday morning for the meeting in a sheriff’s station in the Los Angeles suburb of Cerritos, Los Angeles County Sheriff’s spokesman Steve Whitmore said.
“He will be interviewed by federal probation officers,” Whitmore said. He said Nakoula had not been placed under arrest but would not be returning home immediately. “He was never put in handcuffs… It was all voluntary.”
First question: Why? (EDIT: As in: Why did he think this was a good idea? Sorry, our iPhone-typing fingers didn’t let us get more specific than that.)
In an effort to draw attention to the controversial YouTube video that has sparked major protests in the Middle East and may have led to the death of a U.S. ambassador, protesters have taken to a number of major news and celebrity Facebook pages to spam a variation of the above message — no matter on which post. The message here is from the Sky News page; other pages that have been hit include Reuters, The Washington Post, Barack Obama and Michael Phelps. The New York Times has more info on the controversial video that sparked these protests.
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Investigators from the FBI, Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, and Firearms, and Jasper County Sheriff’s Department have begun investigating the remains of the Islamic Society of Joplin Mosque for signs of arson. Officials have confirmed that surveillance equipment was destroyed in the fire, and it is unlikely that video evidence will emerge. Here’s some quick info on the rewards offered for information:
(Photo via Tonawanda News)
![Second fire completely destroys Islamic Center in Joplin, Missouri
After an act of arson carried out on July 4, 2012 caused minor damage to the Islamic Society of Joplin Mosque, a second blaze started that began early Monday morning has leveled the religious building. While authorities have not yet determined the fire’s cause, mosque leader Iman Lahmuddin has confirmed to local press that it did completely destroy the structure and everything inside. “But since we are people of faith, we just can remember that this is a thing that happened because God let it happen,” said Lahmuddin, continuing, “and we have to be patient, particularly in the month of Ramadan, [to] control our emotions, our anger.” (Photo via KSN) source
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After an act of arson carried out on July 4, 2012 caused minor damage to the Islamic Society of Joplin Mosque, a second blaze started that began early Monday morning has leveled the religious building. While authorities have not yet determined the fire’s cause, mosque leader Iman Lahmuddin has confirmed to local press that it did completely destroy the structure and everything inside. “But since we are people of faith, we just can remember that this is a thing that happened because God let it happen,” said Lahmuddin, continuing, “and we have to be patient, particularly in the month of Ramadan, [to] control our emotions, our anger.” (Photo via KSN) source
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