Inspire 12

Chicago targets in terrorist crosshairs, new al Qaeda magazine Inspire says | abc7chicago.com ""America is our first target" are the un-minced words in the Spring 2014 edition of Inspire, the first publication from al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) in nearly one year."

'Super flagger' status for government

Google gives UK government “super flagger” status for YouTube - 13 Mar 2014 - Computing News: based on the FT story (which is paywalled).  "

"Google has granted the UK security services privileged 'super flagger' status over YouTube videos, enabling the government to demand instant screening of videos it deems threaten national security." I am not sure whether this will make much of an impact - there are numerous alternative channels for distribution, or ways around the system. Such online sources have also been a source of 'intelligence', and could act as honeypots for gaining information on followers.

New Report: Whither Blogestan

New Report: Whither Blogestan: Evaluating Shifts in Persian Cyberspace | Digital Islam: The link to the PDF requires some registration for Annenberg School for Communication's Iran Media Program(me). So I haven't had a chance to take a look yet.

Couple jailed for YouTube videos

Couple jailed for YouTube videos glorifying Lee Rigby murder | UK news | The Guardian: "A couple were jailed on Friday for glorifying the murder of the soldier Lee Rigby in videos posted on YouTube that were "offensive in the extreme". Royal Barnes, 23, and his wife Rebekah Dawson, 22, of Hackney, north-east London, recorded and uploaded three videos shortly after the murder in Woolwich, south-east London, last May."

Zawahiri

jihadology.net, The Clairvoyant: The Guidelines: Measuring Zawahiri’s Influence "Over the past few years since the American operation against Usama bin Ladin in Pakistan, there has been much debate over the leadership capabilities and influence that Bin Ladin’s successor Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri still has over the global jihadi movement generally and al-Qaeda branches in particular. Endowing al-Qaeda franchise-status upon Harakat al-Shabab al-Mujahidin in Somalia, slow response to the Arab uprisings, and inability to resolve the conflict in Syria between the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS) and Jabhat al-Nusra highlight how many have become skeptical of Zawahiri’s importance or relevance. And while this is all certainly true, those within the movement that are still true believers in the cause and view Zawahiri and al-Qaeda’s general command (AQGC) in Pakistan/Yemen as the fountainhead of the jihad against the Zionists and Crusaders still heed Zawahiri’s advice."

Turkey unrest and social media

Reuters, Death of Turkish boy hurt in protests triggers fresh unrest, 11 Mar 2014 "Istanbul and Ankara have both seen protests in recent weeks against what demonstrators see as Erdogan's authoritarian reaction to the graft scandal, which has included new laws tightening Internet controls and handing government greater influence over the appointment of judges and prosecutors." social media is driving these protests.

Aga Khan on social media

providencejournal.com, Aga Khan, speaking at Brown, sees virtue in social media, Internet, 10 Mar 2014 "Speaking at Brown University on Monday, the Aga Khan — the spiritual leader for some 15 million Shia Ismaili Muslims worldwide — focused on the potential of social media and Internet-based technology to bridge cultural divisions."

Saudi man jailed for 10 years over Twitter messages

Reuters, Saudi man jailed for 10 years over Twitter messages, 10 Mar 2014 "A Saudi court sentenced a man to 10 years in jail and a 100,000 riyal ($26,700) fine for joining protests against the kingdom's rulers and using Twitter to urge people to do the same, state news agency SPA said on Monday.

 "SPA quoted Justice Ministry spokesman Fahd al-Bakran as saying the unidentified defendant had also retweeted messages against the monarchy, Muslim scholars and security services."

Killing of Palestinians strikes nerve online

AlJazeera, Killing of Palestinians strikes nerve online "As many mourn the deaths of six Palestinians in the occupied West Bank and Gaza, supporters are taking to social media to express concern and outrage over the treatment of Palestinians by Israeli forces."

The Shaykh and the F Word

Sana Saeed, theislamicmonthly.com, The Shaykh and the F Word "Niamatullah (who prefers to refer to himself as a teacher, not Shaykh or anything else) proudly boasts of his dark sense of humor. In fact, for those who follow his Facebook page (myself included), there’s nothing surprising about his penchant for sardonic perspectives and pushing the comfort parameters of those following him. His Facebook page is often filled with insightful commentaries on socially and politically relevant and poignant topics that offer spiritual frameworks – a approach that is often a refreshing departure from ideological and essentialist discussions (i.e. his recent commentary on activism and silence of scholars on political issues). Niamatullah often has received flack for his sense of humor which is often, in his own words, “subtle, dark, dry British”. At the same time, he’s been a bit irresponsible of his social media, seemingly unaware of the stature he’s been given through his work and his affiliations." Useful commentary on this issue

Social media is new weapon in war on British jihadis

Social media is new weapon in war on British jihadis - UK Politics - UK - The Independent "Fighters for al-Qa'ida-linked groups in Syria's civil war have proved adept at using social networks such as Twitter and Facebook to recruit foreign fighters, with messages and images exhorting young Muslims to join a holy war against Bashar al-Assad's brutal regime."

Gulf atheism in the age of social media

Gulf atheism in the age of social media - Al-Monitor: the Pulse of the Middle East "


"In a rare interview, a self-confessed Saudi atheist spoke of the need to maintain a semblance of belief in religion in front of others, telling the interviewer that he was “shocked by the number” of atheists. The interviewee went on to cite social media as tools that made it easier for atheists to find each other. Indeed, the advent of Twitter and Facebook saw a proliferation of self-professing Gulf atheist accounts usually with the word “atheist” or “humanist” in the name, virtually all of them anonymous."

First Ever Fatwa Issued Against Wildlife Trafficking

nationalgeographic.com, First Ever Fatwa Issued Against Wildlife Trafficking:


Let's hope others follow this initiative. "This unprecedented step by the Indonesian Council of Ulama, in the country with the world's largest Muslim population, declares illegal hunting or illegal trading of endangered species to be haram (forbidden)."

Anwar Ibrahim jailed

Malaysian politician Anwar Ibrahim jailed for five years on sodomy charge | World news | theguardian.com "A Malaysian court has sentenced the opposition leader Anwar Ibrahim to five years in jail on sodomy charges, overturning an earlier acquittal and ending his hopes of contesting a local election this month."

Turkish PM threatens to ban Facebook, YouTube

AP, Turkish PM threatens to ban Facebook, YouTube "Turkey's prime minister has threatened drastic steps to censor the Internet, including shutting down Facebook and YouTube, where audio recordings of his alleged conversations suggesting corruption have been leaked in the past weeks, dealing him a major blow ahead of this."

Jail Sentence in France Over ‘Cyber Jihad’

Jail Sentence in France Over ‘Cyber Jihad’ - NYTimes.com

How Mars Became Haram

How Mars Became Haram: A Guide to Freaky Fatwa News | MuslimMatters.org "I know what you're thinking- come on, it's just another one of those made-up fatwas, like last year's Great Syrian Sex Jihad and the Erotic Fruit and Vegetable Fatwa of 2011. Those were great fun for the media, and in all their journalistic glee, they forgot to check their stories. There is something to be said for journalistic integrity, unless there's a funny fatwa story. Then it's a free for-all."

Opinion piece

From fantastic to fanatic

From fantastic to fanatic: Radicalized Arab pop star Fadel Shaker - Al Arabiya News:

Top Saudi cleric calls for suing Google over anti-Islam Youtube film

Top Saudi cleric calls for suing Google over anti-Islam Youtube film - Al Arabiya News "Khaled al-Shaya, a top Saudi cleric, recently called on Islamic countries to ban and legislate against Google, after the internet search giant’s apparent “disrespect of Islamic beliefs” in continuing to display an inflammatory video against Islam, news website CNN Arabic reported on Saturday."

Egypt policemen sentenced to 10 years for Khaled Saeed's death

Egypt policemen sentenced to 10 years for Khaled Saeed's death - Al Arabiya News: