Monday, April 29, 2013

www.virtuallyislamic.com

My research hub has been revamped, and now (hopefully) works better on mobile devices. There's still some work to do to restore links (usually I'd prefer to be doing all the coding, this time I have gone with another system).  Anyway, take a look at the latest version of www.virtuallyislamic.com and let me know what you think.

"What's in the Internet videos posted by Tamerlan Tsarnaev?"

The following article includes a few comments from myself:

John Thorne, Christian Science Monitor, What's in the Internet videos posted by Tamerlan Tsarnaev?, 28 Apr 2013 "The videos do not show ties to any specific group, but do hint at a deeper yearning in the alleged Boston Marathon bomber for a heroic jihadi persona."

Thursday, April 25, 2013

Trial verdict

Mail Online, Only Allah can judge me': Muslim convert Richard Dart refuses to stand in dock as he is sentenced to six years in prison for terrorism offences, 25 Apr 2013 "Three London-based Islamic extremists, including a white Muslim convert and a former police community support officer, have been jailed for terrorism offences today." Net linkage to this trial

Friday, April 19, 2013

Suspects described as brothers from Russian Caucasus

CNN, Suspects described as brothers from Russian Caucasus

Yalla Italia

Yalla Italia | il blog delle seconde generazioni Yalla Italia provides an example of how blogging can be utilised in relation to Muslim communities in minority contexts.

Moroccan high school runner is wrongly linked to Boston bombings after photograph of him at finishing line sweeps the internet

Mail Online, 'I'm NOT a terrorist... I was just watching the marathon:' Moroccan high school runner is wrongly linked to Boston bombings after photograph of him at finishing line sweeps the internet

Suicide Bombing: The Cultural Foundations of Morocco’s New Version of Martyrdom - Journal of Religion and Popular Culture - Volume 25, Number 1 /2013 - University of Toronto Press

Suicide Bombing: The Cultural Foundations of Morocco’s New Version of Martyrdom - Journal of Religion and Popular Culture - Volume 25, Number 1 /2013 - University of Toronto Press

Washington Imam marries gay Muslim couples despite backlash

alarabiya.net, Washington Imam marries gay Muslim couples despite backlash "“We had to ask all our guests to do a social-media blackout of our wedding. No Facebook, no Twitter no Instagram,” said M.Q., the Muslim partner, “our relatives could be killed, their homes could be destroyed…if our wedding was on the internet.”"

Monday, April 15, 2013

What Best Explains Successful Protest Cascades?

What Best Explains Successful Protest Cascades? ICTs and the Fuzzy Causes of the Arab Spring Hussain 2013 International Studies Review Wiley Online Library  MM Hussain, PN Howard - International Studies Review, 2013 "It has been 15 years since the last wave of democratization. But as a region, North Africa and the Middle East were noticeably devoid of popular democracy movements—until the
early months of 2011. Democratization movements had existed long before technologies ..."

Thursday, April 11, 2013

'The Fatwa Show'

John Thorne, Christian Science Monitor, 'The Fatwa Show': Moroccan journalist tells clerics to just have some fun, 10 April 2013

"'The Fatwa Show' satirizes Islamic legal opinions, and is one of the most popular features on the new Arab world news and commentary website Free Arabs."

You'll find a brief quote from myself in this article.


Monday, April 08, 2013

Queering Middle Eastern Cyberscapes

Volume 8, Number 3 (Fall 2012) | JMEWS "Volume 8, Number 3 (Fall 2012)
SPECIAL ISSUE: Queering Middle Eastern Cyberscapes

Adi Kuntsman and Noor Al-Qasimi, Guest Editors

"In this special issue of the Journal of Middle East Women’s Studies, entitled “Queering Middle Eastern Cyberscapes,” guest editors Adi Kuntsman and Noor Al-Qasimi fill in the gap in current scholarship where “queer,” “digital” and “Middle East” are seldom considered together. Five full-length articles and a unique Interventions section examine, empirically and theoretically, the conjunctions between sexuality and technology, queerness and the Middle East, and transformative politics and colonial and imperial legacies."

Bangladesh protesters demand blasphemy law - Central & South Asia - Al Jazeera English

Bangladesh protesters demand blasphemy law - Central & South Asia - Al Jazeera English

High-Fashion and Islam:'Hijabinistas On the Rise'

High-Fashion and Islam:'Hijabinistas On the Rise' | MEP, Middle East Perspectives from Dubai to Rabat

Imam Sulaiman Wang and Islam in Hong Kong

Imam Sulaiman Wang and Islam in Hong Kong | MuslimVillage.com "The Chinese that want to become Muslims, a lot of times it starts from a friend. Now what we are seeing is that a lot of brothers and sisters are coming to Islam just through the internet. They see the religion online and then they become interested, they find our center online and they come to visit us. We had a person who when he came to the center to enquire about Islam he already knew how to pray and how to fast and he never even entered a masjid yet – all of this from the internet."

Zawahiri urges establishment of Islamic state in Syria to help return of Caliphate :.

.:Middle East Online::Zawahiri urges establishment of Islamic state in Syria to help return of Caliphate :.

Turkish Muslim community in Austria against children toy: “Anti-Islamic” | Diritto di critica

Turkish Muslim community in Austria against children toy: “Anti-Islamic” | Diritto di critica "The Turkish Islamic community is celebrating its victory for having a children toy removed from the market. The giant Danish company Lego has decided to withdraw a Star Wars toy, “Jabba’s Palace”, after major protests on behalf of the Community which accused Lego of featuring a mosque-like building and an alien smoking hookah."

Four Italian journalists abducted in north Syria by ‘rebel group’

Four Italian journalists abducted in north Syria by ‘rebel group’ - Alarabiya.net English

Friday, April 05, 2013

AQIM Creates Twitter Account

allAfrica.com: North Africa: AQIM Creates Twitter Account "Al-Qaeda in the Islamic Maghreb (AQIM) joined Twitter last month, spreading the terror group's jihadist propaganda on the popular micro-blogging site."

F*** your morals: topless Femen protesters call for jihad action

F*** your morals: topless Femen protesters call for jihad action | News.com.au "Femen protester Amina Tyler caused controversy last month by posting topless photos of herself on Facebook, with the slogans "F*** Your Morals" and "My Body Belongs To Me, And Is Not The Source Of Anyone’s Honor," written across her body.

"In response to this members of an Islamic hacker group added new images to the Femen facebook page, replacing her text with that of the Quran."

Maghreb youth answer al-Qaeda call

Maghreb youth answer al-Qaeda call | Magharebia "The new foot soldiers from the Maghreb have gathered behind al-Qaeda propaganda campaign aimed at transforming the Republic of Syria into another Iraq and turning the Republic of Mali into a new Afghanistan."

Morocco at a crossroad

Morocco at a crossroad | Magharebia "Some young people fall into the hands of radicals and terrorists in prisons, places of worship and neighbourhoods where fundamentalism has taken root. Others start the self-radicalisation process via the internet."

Thursday, April 04, 2013

U.S. retreats after Egypt Twitter flap

U.S. retreats after Egypt Twitter flap | Internet & Media - CNET News "A retweet by someone in America's Cairo embassy pointing to a "Daily Show" episode becomes a new source of friction in U.S.-Egyptian relations."

Stealthy BaneChant Trojan

Stealthy BaneChant Trojan Lurks in Word File, Relies on Multiple Mouse Clicks | threatpost "Researchers at FireEye spotted the malware in a malicious document that translates to “Islamic Jihad.doc,” a title that suggests the malware is targeting governments via spear phishing attacks in the Middle East and Central Asia, according to a post on the company’s blog by Chong Rong Hwa yesterday."

Hacktivist Attacks

Hacktivist Attacks: Freedom Fighters or Freedom ViolatorsTalk Radio News Service "Using a technique called denial-of-service attacks, hackers overload the targeted site with Web activity from infected computers until the site is saturated with activity and shuts down. With the recent bank site attacks, the hackers used commercial data centers infected with complex malware to simultaneously fire Web traffic at each bank, which resulted in massive technological assaults."

Morocco rap

Cellebrating El Haqed’s Freedom: Soundtracking resistance - Music - Arts & Culture - Ahram Online  "El Haqed, a Moroccan rapper who just served a one year jail sentence for his critical lyrics in "Dogs of the State" is an example of how the country's repressive laws are used to crackdown on free expression."

UAE Ongoing Trial

Gulf (Regional Issues) : UAE: Unfair Mass Trial of 94 Dissidents - FIDH [opinion and analysis] "The 94 defendants, eight of whom are being tried in absentia, face sentences of up to 15 years in prison for allegedly violating article 180 of the Penal Code, which prohibits founding, organizing, or operating a group that aims to overthrow the country’s political system. The detainees include the prominent human rights lawyers Mohamed al-Roken and Mohamed al-Mansoori, as well as judges, lawyers, teachers, and student leaders. Among them are Judge Mohammed Saeed al-Abdouli and Dr. Hadef al-Owais, a jurist and university professor."

Stop hounding Muslims and mosques over terrorism

Stop hounding Muslims and mosques over terrorism: Siddiqui | Toronto Star "Religion is but one of several factors galvanizing mostly alienated youth to militancy, according to studies by security services in Canada, the U.S. and across Europe. Often their inspiration was no farther than a click away on the Internet. Their biggest motivation has been revenge for the occupation of Muslim lands and the killing of civilians in Iraq, Afghanistan and elsewhere."

Malaysia's Fresh Elections Offer Striking Choice

Malaysia's Fresh Elections Offer Striking Choice - WSJ.com "The date remains to be set by Malaysia's Election Commission after Mr. Najib dissolved Parliament on Wednesday."

Wednesday, April 03, 2013

al-Qassam hacking

Infosecurity - American Express joins the ranks of US banks attacked by al-Qassam group: "On Thursday last week the American Express website went offline for a couple of hours during a DDoS attack by the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Cyber Fighters in pursuance of their ongoing protest against the Innocence of Muslims video."

Tuesday, April 02, 2013

Mapping Gaza

IPS – Now for a Vacation in Gaza, Maybe | Inter Press Service, 2 Apr 2013 "The map, also available on the Internet, is a cheery rendition of Gaza City’s highlights, and also optimistically depicts fishing boats in Gaza’s sea, an irony for Palestinian fishers daily targeted with shooting, shelling and abductions by the occupying Israeli navy."


Cyberspace and mischief

Cyberspace and mischief | Opinion | DAWN.COM: "Many of the violent extremist groups operational in the country display strong media management skills, disseminating videos and other details about their unspeakable crimes with regularity, issuing press releases, hit lists and threats as the case may be.

Opinion piece by Hajrah Mumtaz

Net in Indonesia

BADRIYAH FAYUMI: Protecting children | The Jakarta Post: refers to internet issues in Indonesia

"A system to protect children is a must because crimes against children have changed. Perpetrators are not only adults, but also children.

"“This is difficult because children should be protected; now they are perpetrators and victims as well. This is my jihad area now,” she said, laughing.

"She also believes there is a problem in the ease of access to pornography via the Internet. The situation is exaggerated further as Indonesians neglect to educate their children about sex."

Rap Music in Gaza

The Real News' report on rap music in Gaza