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The following is research published today from MEMRI’s Special Dispatch Series, and the MEMRI TV Project.
*Special Dispatch Series
Special Dispatch No. 2836 –Urdu-Pashtu Media Project
In Speeches and Meetings in Pakistani Towns, Clerics and Jamaat-e-Islami Leaders Justify Martyrdom, Say: Jihad in the Path of Allah is the Only Way for Islam's Domination Over the World; 'There are 486 Verses in the Koran that are Called Jihadi Verses'; 'An Islamic Living is Incomplete Without the Craving for Jihad'
During recent meetings and speeches in different Pakistani towns, several Pakistani clerics have justified the concept of martyrdom in Islam. These religious leaders include Maulana Talha Al-Saif, Jamaat-e-Islami chief Syed Munawwar Hasan and Afshan Navid, who is a leader of the Jamaat-e-Islami's women's wing.
The statements of Maulana Talha Al-Saif were reported by the Urdu-language weekly newspaper Haftroza Al-Qalam. The Urdu weekly owes its allegiance to the Al-Qaeda-linked Sunni militant organization Jaish-e-Muhammad, which is led by Maulana Masood Azhar, a militant commander who was released by India in exchange for the passengers of Indian aircraft hijacked from Kathmandu to Kandahar in Afghanistan in 1999.
As Jaish-e-Muhammad is outlawed in Pakistan, many of the writers in Haftroza Al-Qalam do not identify themselves, sometimes writing under pen names. The report in the weekly magazine does not mention details about Maulana Talha Al-Saif. His speeches were delivered to mark the birthday of the Prophet Muhammad, which was officially marked across Pakistan on February 27, 2010.
The statements of Syed Munawwar Hasan and Afshan Navid, who lauded the martyrdom of a Karachi-based militant in Indian Kashmir, were published by the Urdu-language daily Roznama Jasarat. The newspaper owes its allegiance to the Jamaat-e-Islami Pakistan.
To read the full dispatch, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4007.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 2835—Syria/Europe and the Arab & Muslim World
Syrian Daily Al-Watan: France Has Turned Towards Syria, Away from Israel
Nicolas Sarkozy's rise to power marked the opening of a new chapter in Syria-France relations. After three years of considerable tension between the two countries in the wake of the assassination of former Lebanese prime minister Rafiq Al-Hariri, President Sarkozy wished to thaw the ice and draw closer to Syria. His policy has contributed greatly to ending the international isolation of Syria, and to the improvement of its status in the Middle East.
Sarkozy's policy towards Syria has earned him much praise in the Syrian press, especially in the Al-Watan daily, which is close to the Syrian regime. In the past months, this daily published several articles on France's Middle East policy. The articles credited Senator Philippe Marini, head of the Syrian-French Friendship Association in the French parliament, with promoting the rapprochement between the two countries. They also stated that along with the change in France's attitude towards Syria, there has been a change in its attitude towards Israel, and that Sarkozy is now inclined to accept Israel as the source of the problems in the Middle East.
To read the full dispatch, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4006.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 2834—Democritization and Reform In the Arab and Muslim World/Inter-Arab Relations
Iraqi MP Ayad Jamal Al-Din: Saddamists with Blood on Their Hands Should Be Killed; Iraq Should Destabilize Countries that Destabilize Its Own Security
In two recent TV interviews, Iraqi MP Ayad Jamal Al-Din, whose Ahrar Party is competing in the March 7, 2010 parliamentary elections, warned about foreign – and especially Iranian – intervention in Iraqi domestic affairs, saying that if he came into power, he would "use the same methods to destabilize the domestic security" of "any neighboring country that tries to destabilize Iraq." This, he said, includes "giving a free hand" and "training the militias" of opposition groups, such as the Mojahedin-e Khalq in Iran, in an effort "to fend off Iranian interference in Iraqi affairs."
The interviews touched upon a wide range of topics, including Jamal Al-Din's vision of secularism in Iraq, which, he said, differed from the Western secularism that rejects religion as backward ("I'm not saying that religion is backward. I consider religion to be a gem"). He drew a distinction between the Shi'ite jurisprudents, "90% of [whom] are for the establishment of a secular state" in Iraq, and the Shi'ite political parties. About the latter, he said: "If anyone dares to criticize the Rule of the Jurisprudent, they destroy him completely... They would be prepared to harm not just Iraqi Ayatollah Al-Sistani [who opposes the Rule of the Jurisprudent], but the Prophet Muhammad himself," he said.
Jamal Al-Din talked about U.S. influence in Iraq, saying that it differs from Iranian influence in that "the U.S. is a civilized, developed country that does not deal with religion... [but] cares only about its economic interests." In response to a question regarding his campaign funding, he denied receiving any financial support from the U.S., saying that his campaign was funded by businessmen who support his ideology and political vision. His campaign managers, he said, had worked with several Western leaders, including U.S. President Barack Obama, Australian PM John Howard, and former British PM Tony Blair.
Jamal Al-Din also touched upon the issue of the ban on Ba'thists with links to the former Saddam regime from running for elections. "What does it mean to prevent [a killer] from running in the elections?" he asked. "A killer should be killed – not merely prevented from running... If I become prime minister, I will kill every Ba'thist killer, even if he clings to the Ka'ba."
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2400.htm.
For another interview with Jamal Al-Din, which aired on Al-Fayhaa TV earlier this month, visit
http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/2379.htm.
For more on Ayad Jamal Al-Din, visit http://www.memri.org/subject/en/821.htm.
To read the full dispatch, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4005.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 2833—Egypt/Minorities in the Middle East
Expressions of Solidarity with Egyptian Copts in Wake of Nag Hammadi Christmas Murders
On January 6, 2010, the eve of Coptic Christmas, three armed Muslims fired indiscriminately into a group of Coptic Christian civilians exiting a church in the city of Nag Hammadi in Upper Egypt. The shooting left six Copts and one Muslim dead, and numerous others wounded. Officials in Egypt, including President Hosni Mubarak and the Sheikh of Al-Azhar, were quick to denounce the incident, emphasizing the importance of maintaining national unity, as well as equality and lack of discrimination among citizens, while assuring that those responsible for the shooting would be dealt with harshly. The Egyptian authorities consistently maintained that the shooting was not motivated by sectarian hostility, but was an act of vengeance for the rape of a Muslim girl by a Copt in the nearby city of Farshut in November 2009. The parliamentary Human Rights Committee concluded that the crime was not facilitated by outside funds, nor was it the result of incitement, and that the accused had no connections with any foreign elements.
In the Egyptian government press, several writers demanded the incident not be covered up, and called to respond with more than mere rhetoric and to acknowledge the atmosphere of hate, tension, and social discrimination that exists between Muslims and Copts in the country, and which is likely to bring about further incidents such as this.
To read the full dispatch, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/4004.htm.
*From MEMRI TV
MEMRI TV Clip No. 2376
Lebanese Journalist Hassan Hamada: US Artificially Caused Haiti Earthquake
To view this clip, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2376.htm
MEMRI TV Clip No. 2370
Syrian TV and Organ Transplant Experts: Israel Reminiscent of Shylock, Engages in Organ Trafficking in Haiti and Worldwide
To view this clip, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2370.htm.
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