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.
Mustafa Abdul-Jalil also told thousands of supporters at a ceremony on Sunday that Islamic Sharia law would be the “basic source” of legislation in the country and that existing laws that contradict the teachings of Islam would be nullified. In an address that set an Islamist tone for post-Gadhafi Libya, he said new banks would be set up to follow the Islamic banking system, which bans charging interest.
This is a big change from the days of Gaddafi’s green books and tribal rule. Will be interesting to see how the country evolves. Good luck to Libya as they plan their next steps as a country.
Both sides blame the military for the escalation: While protests had roots in a conflict around a Christian church, the violence reached unprecedented heights, with at least 24 killed and 213 injured, and gruesome photos (which are on AP, but we won’t publish) telling the story of a devastating scene. “What happened today is unprecedented in Egypt. 17 corpses crushed by military tanks,” tweeted human rights activist Hossam Bahgat. “I saw bodies missing hands and legs, heads twisted away or plastered to the ground.” This Al Jazeera English clip above does a pretty decent job of explaining what led to the protests — the worst since the fall of Mubarak. source
Herman Cain’s talkin’ bout Muslims: Let’s talk about Sharia Law guys!
The roots of Egypt’s sectarian violence: When Hosni Mubarak was in power, his influence repressed the salafis, a hard-line but influential Islamic sect in the country, ensuring they would not hold strong influence over the country’s militant Sunni Muslims. But with Mubarak out of power, they’re taking advantage of the opporutunity, most recently during the sectarian violence that engulfed two churches near Cairo. “There is no security in Egypt,” said Rober, a member of one of the churches that was destroyed in the conflict. “This is only the beginning. I’m afraid for my sister, for my mother, from the salafis.” Yasmine El Rashidi, a Cairo-based columnist for the New York Review of Books, recently described the scene as a counterrevolution, which might be a little strong, but nonetheless underlines the severity of what’s happening right now. Keep an eye on this. It could be bad. source
A round of sectarian violence: After a set of rumors suggested a woman was being held against her will in a Coptic Christian church in a suburb of Cairo, Muslims reacted by causing violence around the church in question — and setting fire to a nearby church. Around ten people were killed, with another 186 injured; the Egyptian government plans to try 190 people detained for the violence, which a couple of people in this video suggest was an attempt by the old regime to flare up tensions between Muslims and the Coptic Christian minority. source
I’ve made clear, just as President Bush did shortly after 9/11, that our war is not against Islam. Bin Laden was not a Muslim leader; he was a mass murderer of Muslims. Indeed, al Qaeda has slaughtered scores of Muslims in many countries, including our own. So his demise should be welcomed by all who believe in peace and human dignity.President Barack Obama • In his speech tonight, announcing that a U.S. special operation had killed Osama bin Laden in Pakistan. The President takes a very good tact here in distancing bin Laden and his organization from the Muslim community writ large. His reminder that bin Laden had himself killed many Muslims in service of his terror campaigns (and within our nation, as well, with many Muslims killed on 9/11) is an important one, too often lost in recent politicking. Even amidst what looks like broad jubilation domestically at the news, it’s important to keep the celebrating a positive thing, not something that turns at all ugly on our Muslim brethren. The President clearly wanted to short circuit that, as best he could, by emphasizing solidarity. source (via • follow)
…it is incumbent upon all Americans who love this nation and the values our Constitution protects to make it clear to defend the civil rights of our Muslim neighbors are as important as the rights of Christians, Jews and non-believers.Senator Dick Durbin • On his Senate hearings on anti-Muslim discrimination, broadly viewed as a counter-weight to Rep. Peter King’s hearings on radicalized Islam in the House. For what it’s worth, King’s anti-terrorism zeal wasn’t beyond the scope of his responsibility, nor could it not have been handled tastefully as a hearing on terrorism writ large. The standard of tacitly condemning an entire community for the actions of the very few, however, was and is unpleasant, and its given Durbin a chance to shine some light in the other direction. Also, isn’t it cool that non-believers get a shout out, too? The first time we can recall that was during Obama’s inauguration, and it’s a welcome and overdue addition to the public discourse on faith. source (via • follow)
Gimme extra cheese, anchovies, and bigotry on that: Not many political observers have given Godfather’s Pizza founder Herman Cain a shot at taking the GOP nomination for President (though it’s a credit to his initiative that he’s actually, you know, officially running). As it turns out, anybody who has a problem with religious litmus tests for federal appointments should be pleased about that. Cain’s silly justification, that he’s worried about the spread of Sharia in America, is a sad example of either earnest prejudice, or the lowest breed of political pandering. source
I was overwhelmed by the number of Muslims who, while under threat from misinformed sources, were ready and willing to connect with law enforcement to help keep the peace.Los Angeles County Sheriff Lee Baca • Speaking at Rep. Peter King’s totally effed-up hearings on radical Islam about the level of outreach he received from the Muslim community after Sept. 11, 2001. Baca, one of the four witnesses who spoke the hearing, called out the hearing’s entire premise as screwed up. You and everybody else, Lee. “This hearing is playing into Al Qaeda right now,” said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, a Texas Democrat who is exactly right. Basically, go back to what Keith Ellison said. It really nails it all. source (via • follow)
So yeah, this may perhaps be one of the reasons why this whole meeting was a mistake.
To summarize: A fake website about Muslims created by right-wing bloggers confirmed everything right-wing bloggers believe about Muslims.Salon reporter (and MoJo alum) Justin Elliott, breaking down “journalist” James O’Keefe’s latest attempt to take down NPR and Islamofascism. (via motherjones)
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