MEMRI Daily: April 28, 2011 -
Al-Jazeera Host: Israel Less Brutal than Arab Regimes;
Farrakhan Doubts 9/11:
America Looking for New Pearl Harbor;
Pakistan's ISI Accused of Supporting 'Test-Tube Politician' Imran Khan
The following is research published today from MEMRI’s Special Dispatch Series and the MEMRI TV Project.
Special Dispatch No. 3794—Inter Arab Relations/Palestinians/Syria
Al-Jazeera Program Host: 'Israelis Are Very Much Less Brutal [Than Arab Regimes]... Israel Can Always Claim It Is Facing An Enemy, Whereas Arab Dictators Are Facing Their Own People'
In his April 27, 2011 column in the UAE-based Gulf News, titled "Outdoing Israel in Brutality," and sub-headed "Zionist crimes pale in comparison with the manner in which some Arab regimes have cracked down on their own people for merely seeking change," Dr. Faisal Al-Qassem favorably compares Israel's treatment of the Palestinians with the Arab regimes' treatment of their own people, noting that "Israelis are very much less brutal."
Al-Qassem, whom Gulf News describes only as "a Syrian journalist," is a Syrian Druze who hosts the "Opposite Direction" program on Al-Jazeera TV. On April 25, 2011, ennaharonline.com reported, citing various websites and Arab newspapers, that Al-Qassem had resigned from Al-Jazeera due to its biased coverage of the Arab revolutions. Other websites, such as the Lebanese Al-Akhbar, reported that he had returned to Al-Jazeera but would be hosting a different program, not "Opposite Direction."
To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5236.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 3793—U.S. and the Arab & Muslim World/Conspiracy Theories
Nation of Islam Leader Louis Farrakhan on Al-Jazeera Doubts 9/11: America Was Looking for a New Pearl Harbor
Following are excerpts from an interview with Louis Farrakhan, leader of the Nation of Islam, which aired on Al-Jazeera TV on April 24, 2011.
To view this clip on MEMRI TV, visit http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/2902.htm.
Louis Farrakhan: "Naturally, there is anger in the Muslim world over the condition of Muslims. Even some Christians... namely, Franklin Graham, the son of a very wonderful evangelist, Billy Graham, has said that Islam is a religion of violence and is of the devil."
To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5235.htm.
Special Dispatch No. 3792—South Asia Studies Project/Pakistan/Taliban/Afghanistan/Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor
Pakistan's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI) Accused of Supporting 'Test-Tube Politician' Imran Khan, Engaging Him in ISI's Peace Talks With Taliban
On April 25, 2011, in an unusually sharp criticism of the Pakistani military's Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, opposition leader in the National Assembly (the lower house of the Pakistani parliament), said that Pakistan intelligence agencies are providing support to a few political parties in the country.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan, who belongs to the Paksitan Muslim League (PML-N) party, alleged that the intelligence agencies are behind sit-ins and protests in the country. The reference was to a series of protests organized by Imran Khan, the cricketer-turned-politician who leads the Paksitan Tehreek-e-Insaf (PTI) party, in Peshawar on April 23 and 24 against the U.S. drone attacks in the Pakistani tribal region.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan said that he has made it clear to Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Kayani and Lt.-Gen. Shuja Pasha, the chief of the Inter-Services Intelligence (ISI), that his party would not tolerate the army's role in politics, according to a report in the Urdu-language dailyRoznama Jasarat. He asked Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani to take notice of the military-sponsored sit-ins and protests, or else his government would be in danger. The opposition leader also demanded of the government that the army be told to perform its role prescribed by the Pakistani constitution and not violate its limits by meddling in the country's politics.
Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan went on to say that a "test-tube politician" who could not win the seat of mayor in a small town is holding sit-ins in the country on a major scale, apparently with the support of the military. Although he did not mention any names, the reference to "test-tube politician" is clearly to Imran Khan. Annoyed by the ISI's move to support Imran Khan, Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan urged the parliament to conduct an audit of the funds of the Pakistani intelligence agencies. The PML-N, a center-right party, is worried that the ISI's support to Imran Khan may undermine its own public support. Chaudhry Nisar Ali Khan went on to allege that some senior members of his own party are tied to these intelligence agencies and are conspiring against the democratically elected government in the country.
Now, a new report sheds light on the ISI's moves to foster reconciliation with the Taliban. A report titled "Imran Khan in Taliban Peace Spotlight" and published by the website of ARY News television channel (arynews.tv) notes that the military leadership of Pakistan has roped in the cricketer-turned-politician to engage the Taliban in peace talks. The report also notes that there are plans by the ISI to catapult Imran Khan to the prime minister of Pakistan by advancing the 2013 general elections. The report says: "While no formula was finalized, according to sources, general elections scheduled for February 2013 could be brought forward and a political alliance engineered [by the ISI] that would result in a simple majority under which Khan would be installed as prime minister. Another scenario would be for Khan to take the lead in an interim government."
The report follows the landmark April 16 talks in Kabul, where Pakistani Prime Minister Yousuf Raza Gilani, Pakistani Defense Minister Chaudhry Ahmad Mukhtar, Pakistani Interior Minister Rehman Malik, and Pakistani Junior Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar held talks with their counterparts in the Afghan government. The talks were led by Afghan President Hamid Karzai, while Pakistan Army chief General Ashfaq Kayani and ISI chief Lt.-Gen. Shuja Pasha also participated in the talks. At the end of the day-long talks, it was agreed to set up a two-tier joint Afghanistan-Pakistan commission on which General Kayani and Lt.-Gen. Shuja Pasha will sit. United by their opposition to the United States, President Karzai and Pakistani leaders are forging bilateral relations, while the U.S. concerns over the ISI's support for the Taliban militants in Afghanistan remain ignored.
To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/5234.htm.
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