Kingdom will attend Cairo meet on Gaza

Arab News

JEDDAH: Saudi Arabia will participate in an international conference to be held in Cairo on March 2 to mobilize fund for the reconstruction of Gaza.

Foreign Minister Prince Saud Al-Faisal will lead the Saudi delegation, which will include Finance Minister Ibrahim Al-Assaf and Yousuf Al-Bassam, deputy chairman and managing director of Saudi Fund for Development.

“The Kingdom’s participation in the conference comes in line with its continuous support for the Palestinian cause,” an official source told the Saudi Press Agency. Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah has offered $1 billion for Gaza reconstruction.

Meanwhile, the US government plans to offer some $900 million to help rebuild the Gaza strip following Israel’s December-January military incursion, the New York Times reported yesterday.

The aid will be provided through United Nations and nongovernmental organizations, the Times reported, citing unnamed administration officials.

Washington considers Hamas, the group which has ruled Gaza since June 2007, a terrorist organization, and avoids any direct contact with them.

Islamic Studies Chair for Carolina Students

CAIRO — The University of North Carolina (UNC) is creating an endowed faculty chair in Islamic studies to meet the growing hunger for information on Islam and Muslims in the post-9/11 world.

"At Carolina, we're proud that our academic strengths include the study of diverse religions since that helps our students and the public better understand other cultures," Holder Thorp, the university chancellor, told the Herald Sun on Monday, January 26.

Along with money granted from the state tax, fundraising effort would be led by Cemalnur Sargut, president of the Turkish Women's Cultural Association in Istanbul.

"We're grateful that our distinguished friends from Turkey are providing a new opportunity to further enhance the university's expertise in Islamic studies," Thorp said.

Named after Turkish writer Kenan Rifai, who advocated women education and development in the 20th century, the chair aims to raise awareness about Islamic studies and the Muslim world.

"It's not teaching religion the way you might do it in Sunday school," notes Dee Reid, director of communications of the College of Arts and Sciences.

"It's not for a practitioner of Islam, it's for an expert in Islamic studies…for the academic study."

Chartered in 1789, the UNC was the first public university in the US and the only one to graduate students in the 18th century.

Today, it is a public, multi-campus university dedicated to the service of North Carolina and its people.

It encompasses 16 diverse constituent institutions and other educational, research, and public service organizations.

Growing Interest

The Islamic studies chair aims to meet the growing interest among American students for information about Islam and Muslims.

"There's increasing interest in this among students," explains Reid, the College of Arts and Sciences communications director.

"I think since 9-11 there's been tremendous interest in learning Arabic and learning about people who practice Islam in different parts of the world," added the official.

"It's an emerging field. Students are tremendously interested in going abroad because of this."

A recent Pew Research Center and the Pew Forum poll showed that the majority of Americans know very little about the practices of Islam.

The Islamic studies chair has drawn a "wait-and-see" stance from the Christian groups at the university.

"I'd really rather not comment on it until I have a chance to look into it and think about it," Lee Sullens, campus minister with Carolina Baptist Campus Ministry, told the newspaper.

"We would be interested in understanding it more," agreed Miles O'Neill, campus director of Cornerstone Campus Crusade for Christ.

"It's not the type of thing we're going to protest."

Source : IslamOnline.net & Newspapers

British Muslims for Darfur Peace

By Dina Rabie, Mustafa Ajbaili, IOL Staff

CAIRO — Understanding the complexity of the Darfur crisis and demonstrating support for Arab and Muslim efforts to resolve the conflict are two main goals for a group of prominent British Muslims, now on a regional tour.

"We went there to see for ourselves," Sir Iqbal Sacranie, the former head of the umbrella Muslim Council of Britain (MCB), told IslamOnline.net.

"Seeing what is happening on the ground, we have a moral duty; first as human beings and second as Muslims."

The five-member delegation visited the troubled region of Darfur last week as part of a Middle East tour that ends on December 23.

They visited refugee camps in Darfur and met international and Sudanese civil society to discuss the challenges on the ground.

* Darfur in US Elections
* Darfur & Foreign Hands

"The reason that we all wanted to come out to this region and do this trip was primarily so that we can understand the situation in Sudan and specifically the situation in Darfur," said Fatim Kurji, a lawyer and Director of the CATCH charity project.

"What we wanted to do…was to go out to Darfur and see for ourselves what the situation was like to make it almost an assessment."

The conflict in Darfur erupted in February 2003 when rebel groups attacked government targets accusing Khartoum of discrimination and neglect.

The UN says that 250,000 have died as a result of war, disease and malnutrition, but the Sudanese government has put the number at nearly 10,000.

No independent field-research accounts are available to date.

Complicated

"What each of us is committed to doing in our individual capacities is to drive the process forward in whichever way we can," Kurji told IOL.
After seeing the situation on the ground, the British Muslim delegates have become more aware of the gravity and complexity of the Darfur conflict.

"Many of our colleagues saw Darfur for the first time and witnessed firsthand with their own eyes," said Jehangir Malik, the fundraising manager for UK-registered Islamic Relief charity.

Malik, who has been to Darfur several times, noted that the conflict was becoming more complex and dire.

"Two fractions become four, four become eight, eight become sixteen…etc," he explained.

"At a time you don’t know who is killing who and for what purpose."

Kurji said the first-hand experience gave her a picture different from what she has long heard from the media.

"The situation in Darfur is very complex and the concerned parties are not just the Sudanese government and the opposition parties," she maintained.

"The issue has many parties involved and as people keep telling us these are increasing day by day."

Now after meeting representatives of the main players, Kurji believes it would not be correct to describe Darfur as "Arab vs. African" problem.

"It is very dangerous to break the conflict down into such simplistic judgment," she insisted.

"There have always been tribes in Darfur and they have always coexisted. Actually the problems are much more complex than that and we can’t allow that to steer us off."

Momentum

The delegation hopes their tour, which includes stops in Egypt, Saudi Arabia and Qatar and talks with the Arab League and the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC), would demonstrate British Muslim support for efforts to resolve the Darfur conflict.

"We are going to talk to the OIC and governments to use their influence to bring all concerned parties together," said Sir Sacranie, the former MCB leader.

Malik, the Islamic relief official, believes there has been a "greater momentum" for peace in Darfur lately.

He cites the Sudanese Peace initiative (SPI), a document produced by Khartoum and opposition parties last November, and the Qatari initiative, which will see a peace conference held in Doha by the end of 2008.

"We as British Muslims want to signify and lend our support to show that we all need to participate in keeping this momentum going."

The delegation members agree their mission starts with meetings with officials from Arab and Muslim governments and organizations during the tour, but won't end there.

"What each of us is committed to doing in our individual capacities is to drive the process forward in whichever way we can," said Kurji, the community activist.

"Once we return back to UK, we hope that we will be able to convey the views of our members individually and collectively and bring support to this very deserving cause," agrees Sacranie.

Source : Islam Online

Besieged Birmingham Muslims

CAIRO — Muslims in Birmingham, often considered the second city of the UK, feel imprisoned in their own city, with the very details of their lives put under a piercing microscope under the pretext of fighting extremism, a government-commissioned report concluded on Thursday, November 20.

"A number of respondents felt that the police and security services were watching their every move due to the focus on the Muslim community," Waterhouse Consulting Group, a leading management consultancy firm, said in a report cited by the Birmingham Post.

The group interviewed individuals and organizations across the city for an in-depth analysis of the government's 11 anti-terrorism projects planned under the Preventing Violent Extremism initiative (PVE).

Making its conclusion, the group warned that Birmingham Muslims feel virtually under siege because of the intense scrutiny imposed by police and security services.

The fear of being constantly monitored has affected Muslims' lives.

"They had to watch their every step, what they uttered, the clothes they wore, the people they associated with and the mosques they attended," said the report.

"Therefore, [they] felt imprisoned in their own city."

Britain has launched a £45m strategy to curb extremism following the 7/7 London terrorist bombings, with 200 projects in 70 towns and cities funded so far.

* Demonized

The government-commissioned report warned that Muslims feel demonized by the way violent extremism is routinely associated with Islam in the media and by those in authority.

"Central government and local authorities must understand the extent of the deep anger and concern among Muslims at grassroots level over the linkage of violent extremism with Islam," it read.

"This has helped to demonize and vilify Muslims in a climate where Islamophobia is already heightened."

Britain's two million Muslims have taken the brunt of anti-terror laws since 7/7.

They have repeatedly complained of maltreatment by police for no apparent reason other than being Muslim.

A Financial Times opinion poll has showed recently that Britain is the most suspicious nation about Muslims.

A government-commissioned study has also found that a torrent of negative and imbalance stories in the British media demonize Muslims and their faith by portraying them as the enemy within.

The Waterhouse report said that even the name given by the government to the £525,000 year-long PVE program in Birmingham has alienated the Muslim community.

It suggested abandoning the Preventing Violent Extremism title for a "more acceptable phraseology."

For most Muslims, terms like the war on terror and Islamic extremism suggest targeting their faith rather than those with an extremist ideology.

The Foreign Office has already told diplomats and spokespeople around the world to stop using the controversial "war on terror" phrase, which is offensive to Muslims worldwide.
Source: IslamOnline.net

What Makes a Radical?

An excerpt from the book Who Speaks for Islam? by John L. Esposito and Dalia Mogahed

Understanding extremists and the nature of extremism requires a global perspective that extends beyond conflicting opinions of experts or anecdotes from the "Arab street." What do Muslims polled across the world have to say? How many Muslims hold extremist views? What are their hopes and fears? What are their priorities? What do they admire, and what do they resent?

According to the Gallup Poll, 7% of respondents think that the 9/11 attacks were "completely" justified and view the United States unfavorably. Among those who believe that the 9/11 attacks were not justified, whom we'll call "moderates," 40% are pro-United States, but 60% view the United States unfavorably.

Analyzing and comparing the answers of the 7% with the moderate majority produced some surprising results. By focusing on the 7%, whom we'll call "the politically radicalized" because of their radical political orientation, we are not saying that all in this group commit acts of violence. However, those with extremist views are a potential source for recruitment or support for terrorist groups. This group is also so committed to changing political conditions that they are more likely to view other civilian attacks as justifiable: 13% of the politically radicalized versus 1% of moderates say that attacks on civilians are "completely justified."

What is the age and gender of those with extremist views? They are younger, but not substantially: 49% are between the ages of 18 and 29; 41% of those with moderate views are in the same age range. Contrary to what some might expect, while political radicals are more likely to be male (62%), 37% are female. In addition, a minority of suicide bombers have been women.

What Is the Link Between Terrorism and Poverty or Ignorance?

The Arab Development Report of 2005 and many other studies of Muslim countries well document the existence of significant poverty and illiteracy. These problems are found in Palestinian refugee camps and in the slums of Algiers, Cairo, Baghdad, and Jakarta as well as in many other non-Muslim developing nations. Poverty and lack of information and skills necessary for social mobility result from deep-seated economic and social problems that can generate broad-based discontent. But are lack of education and poverty key factors that distinguish those with extremist views from moderates? The data say no.

The politically radicalized, on average, are more educated than moderates: 67% of the politically radicalized have secondary or higher educations (versus 52% of moderates).

Radicals are not more economically disadvantaged: 65% of the politically radicalized say they have average or above-average income, versus 55% of moderates.

Based on the largest and most in-depth study of its kind, Who Speaks for Islam? What a Billion Muslims Really Think presents the remarkable findings of the Gallup Poll of the Muslim World, the first ever data-based analysis of the points of view of more than 90% of the global Muslim community, spanning more than 35 nations. Learn more Who Speaks For Islam?: What a Billion Muslims Really Think

Oil output talks ongoing with non-OPEC states: Iran

TEHRAN (Reuters) - Iran's OPEC governor said on Saturday talks were underway on cooperation between OPEC and producers outside the cartel to reduce oil output, following tumbling crude prices in recent months.

"Now there are negotiations that non-OPEC countries cooperate with OPEC to lower output to some extent because if they don't ... or if they increase output, they have neutralized OPEC's action," Mohammad Ali Khatibi said in an interview broadcast live on Iranian state television.

OPEC countries are calling for action to halt oil's slide as they face reduced revenues and a struggle to finance domestic projects. Oil prices have tumbled more than 60 percent from a record level of $147 per barrel in July.

"Considering that non-OPEC countries have an output of around 50 million barrels per day ... they will have to cooperate for market stability," Khatibi said.

"We believe they will also incur losses from the drop in oil prices. Therefore it is necessary that they will also cooperate and lower their output," he said.

Khatibi said OPEC Secretary General Abdullah al-Badri recently discussed cooperation with officials in Russia, which is not a member of the OrganisatiOrganizationon of the Petroleum Exporting Countries.

"We are hoping these negotiations will soon result in fruition so that they (Russia) would expand their cooperation with OPEC," Khatibi said.

OPEC members agreed in October to reduce supplies by 1.5 million barrels per day, or about 5 percent, from November 1 but that measure has failed to stop oil prices declining.

Iran, seen as a price hawk, has previously said OPEC could take action if oil prices fell more and an Iranian oil official said on Thursday that its members would meet in Cairo on November 29 for "consultation" on the oil market.

On Friday, U.S. crude fell $1.20 at $57.04.

Khatibi said that, according to his information, non-OPEC members would attend a meeting of the organization in Algeria in December. "But I'm not sure they will be taking part in the Cairo meeting," he said.

(Reporting by Zahra Hosseinian and Hashem Kalantari; writing by Fredrik Dahl; editing by Patrick Graham)