Monday, February 28, 2005

The re-branded ISIM Review has a number of interesting articles in issue 15, including the following with specific net references: Natascha Garvin, Conversion and Conflict: Muslims in Mexico, ISIM Review 15 a discussion on the Murabitun movement in Mexico, includes interent research and background.

In Search of a Global Islamic Authority / Bettina Gräf, ISIM Journal 15 is an overview of al-Ittihad al-Alami li-Ulama al-Muslimin, and discusses Yusuf al-Qaradawi's role as "a global scholar", referring to his internet efforts. This is based on Gräf's forthcoming PhD in this area.

Roel Meijer, Jihadi Opposition in Saudi Arabia, ISIM Review 15 article on al-Qaida, includes references to Sawt al-Jihad and other sources.

Beshara Doumani, Academic Freedome Post 9/11, ISIM Review 15

Thomas Pierret, Internet in a Sectarian Islamic Context, ISIM Review 15 discusses the utilisation of the internet by the al-Ahbash movoement in Lebanon.
AP, Single Mother Shocks Egypt by Keeping Baby, 27 Feb 05 Hind el-Hinnawy's story has previously been blogged - here is the update.
Washington Post, Arab superheroes leap pyramids, 27 Feb 05 AK Comics' 'Zein' character featured here. Different from the Vinanarama comic mentioned earlier this month!
Toronto Star/arabherald.com, Inoculated against religious radicalism, Feb. 27, 2005 useful article on Indonesia
Study: Media Overstate Madrassa Enrollment, 28 Feb 05: "A World Bank-sponsored study has found that enrollment figures in Pakistani madrassas, or Islamic schools, have been exaggerated by the media and the U.S. commission report on the Sept. 11 attacks. Critics say the madrassas are used by militants to promote extremism." The report (PDF format) is entitled "Religious School Enrollment in Pakistan: A Look at the Data" authored by Tahir Andrabi, Jishnu Das, Asim Ijaz Khwaja, and Tristan Zajonc.
The New York Times > International > Middle East > Suicide Car Bomb Explodes in Hilla, Killing More Than 100
Wired 13.03: Adam Curry Wants to Make You an iPod Radio Star a further update on podcasting and ipodder - clear potential in the field of this blog, but I have no plans to start podcasting myself... ipodder.org's listing on religion does not include anything specific on Islam (yet)
International News Article | Reuters.com, European Islamic Militants Linked to Iraq - Garzon, 26 Feb 05: "Spanish High Court Judge Baltasar Garzon, who has been investigating Islamist militants in Spain since 1991, warned that groups such as the Algerian Salafist movement and the Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group were particularly dangerous for Europe."
BBC NEWS | Technology | Creator of first Apple Mac dies I was reading about Raskin (employee number 31) in Macworld this weekend.
BBC NEWS | England | Gloucestershire | Terror suspect admits plane plot refers to the case of Saajid Badat, from Gloucester: "He received training both in Afghanistan and Pakistan and had been given an explosive device designed to evade airport security and destroy an aircraft in flight, said Richard Horwell, prosecuting.

"Mr Horwell said Badat had sent an e-mail on 14 December, 2001, four days after his return, 'indicating he might withdraw'. "
Teen helping adults fight 'bad guys': "Soon after Sept 11, 2001 when Ankit Fadia was 14 years old, he was requested by a US international intelligence agency to decipher an encrypted message from Osama bin Laden's al-Qaeda network." He is now at Stanford Uni., also writing books such as The Unofficial Guide to Ethical Hacking and Network Security: A Hacker's Perspective.
International News Article | Reuters.com, Al Qaeda mocks reports of Zarqawi aides' arrests, 27 Feb 05: ""And who knows which aide was arrested and what lies they made up. This is a hopeless attempt on their part to raise morale," said the statement by Al Qaeda Organisation for Holy War in Iraq, posted on Islamist Web sites."
Should non-Muslims suppress their feelings? - Malaysiakini, 28 Feb 05 interesting letter from Malaysia

Sunday, February 27, 2005

Reuters/Wired, U.S. Planning Arab-Language TV Broadcasts to Europe, 27 Feb 05 "Officials say Alhurra has grown to reach about 25 percent of satellite TV owners in the Middle East and viewers increasingly find its newscasts credible and reliable."

Saturday, February 26, 2005

TheStar.com - Bin Laden link back in Canada, 26 Feb 05 "Now, the 25-year-old daughter of Ahmed Said Khadr, who intelligence officials say was an Al Qaeda financier and Canada's highest-ranking member of the terrorist organization, has returned to Canada." And she wants people to email their objections to her opinions.
news24.com, TV presenter found dead, 26 Feb 05: "Raiedah Mohammed Wageh Wazan was abducted on February 20 by several masked gunmen. Her corpse was found on Friday, said her husband, Salim Saad-Allah. She had been shot in the head ....
"An Arabic-language Internet bulletin board recently carried a statement from al-Qaeda's Iraq affiliate claiming responsibility for the mortar strike, but there was no way to verify the veracity of the claim."
CNN.com - Seven arrested in Tel Aviv bombing - Feb 26, 2005

Friday, February 25, 2005

The New York Times > Books > Books of The Times | 'Lipstick Jihad': As if the Mullahs Were All Young at Heart, 25 Feb 05: "She [Azadeh Moaveni] takes us to Ally McBeal nights in Tehran, to a 'post-revolutionary, posh health club,' to a Tehran fashion show and to a 'techno-Ashoura' party, held on the anniversary of the holy day when the prophet Muhammad's grandson Hossein was martyred in the seventh century. "
The New York Times > Technology > Circuits > On the Net, Unseen Eyes, February 24, 2005
: "With the proliferation of surveillance cameras in everyday life and Webcams at home computers, the ease with which unsecured cameras can be detected on the Internet has become an increasing cause of concern. Last month bloggers began reporting on the ability to tap into thousands of raw Webcam feeds with a few simple Google searches, and the Spanish police arrested a suspect on charges of developing a computer virus that can activate a Webcam without the owner's permission. "
PCWorld.com - UK Government Launches Free Virus Alert Site, 24 Feb 05: "The free service will be run by the National Infrastructure Security Co-ordination Centre (NISCC). Along with alerts, it offers advice on protecting personal data on both home and work computers, the Home Office announced Wednesday."
Wired News: Watchdogs Sniff Out Terror Sites, 25 Feb 05 update on Internet Haganah: "The forty-something native of New York describes Internet Haganah as a "small band of researchers, analysts, translators and consultants" around the globe dedicated to ferreting out websites linked to terrorist groups."
Monkeyfist.com: Technology, Democracy and Liberation: an interview with Darin Barney: "Barney is best known for taking on the notion that the internet is somehow inherently democratic, and arguing the exact opposite: in most cases, he says, new technology strengthens priorities which are already in place."
Asia Times Online :: Lebanon guided by the Nasrullah factor, 26 Feb 05
Asia Times Online, Crusader plants new seeds, 26 Feb 05 headline might be deceiving, but this is an interesting update on Daniel Pipes.
Asia Times Online, The remaking of al-Qaeda, 25 Feb 05 "An Asia Times Online investigation based on interviews with well-placed sources in Pakistan who have been in coordination with the US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) at a very senior level attempts to shed some light on today's threat from al-Qaeda." Detailed update/opinion re. al-Qaeda by Syed Saleem Shahzad
arabherald.com, Al Qaeda on the retreat in the Gulf?, 24 Feb 05
BBC NEWS | Technology | Global digital divide 'narrowing': "The 'digital divide' between rich and poor nations is narrowing fast, according to a World Bank report.

"The World Bank questioned a United Nation's campaign to increase usage and access to technology in poorer nations."

CNN.com - U.N. panel aims to end Web tug of war - Feb 21, 2005: "A U.N.-sponsored panel aims to settle a long-running tug of war for control of the Internet by July and propose solutions to problems such as cyber-crime and e-mail spam"
The Nation | Article | The Business of Jihad | David Enders, 22 Feb 05
Bradenton Herald | 02/25/2005 | Network helps Saudis slip into Iraq for jihad: "Network helps Saudis slip into Iraq for jihad"
SITE Institute: SITE Publications - Jihadi Message board Instructs Members to Use Jewish Names to Inconspicuously Register Fake Email Addresses, 24 Feb 05: "A popular jihadi message board, affiliated with al-Qaeda, had provided 'how-to' information on 'penetrating Jewish email addresses'. "
The Journal of Turkish Weekly, Military Rebellion and Islamism in Mauritania: "There were numerous charges of torture from the detainees which appeared to be verified by smuggled footage of beaten, starved and chained prisoners aired on satellite TV and the Internet. Medical attention was denied and protests by the prisoners' families were met with mass arrests."
It's Saviours' Day - FinalCall.com Special Coverage, 25 Feb 05 Nation of Islam coverage of "Saviours' day", which includes a webcast on 26 Feb.

Muslim WakeUp! An Islamic Renaissance?, 24 Feb 05: "Today, more than 1.3 billion Muslims are finding themselves at a crossroad. Should Islam be reformed? Does the current rise in violence by Muslims reflect a problem within Islam? Or is it a malpractice of Islamic doctrines found in religious Sharia laws?" critical questions from Souheila Al-Jadda.
zaman.com, Sheik Sefik Can: Mevlana (Rumi) is a Saint on the Path to Mohammed
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Rebels confess to beheadings on Iraqi TV, 24 Feb 05 "The broadcasts, which began earlier this week, appeared to be a government-backed initiative to cast the insurgents in the worst possible light and to accuse Syria, which the men claimed had trained and paid them, of masterminding the atrocities."
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | US takes to the airwaves in hunt for Bin Laden "The 30-second ads, broadcast in Pakistan's five main languages, also dangle a $25m (£13m) carrot before potential informers - one that might soon double thanks to a new law passing through Congress."

Thursday, February 24, 2005

muslimphilosophy.com, Ibn Taymiyah Pages with all the discussions on ibn Taymiyyah (1263-1328) that crop up in books , this represents a useful gateway into finding out more about the diverse perspectives associated with him.
USATODAY.com - Terrorists' use of Internet spreads, 20 Feb 05: "In dozens of incidents the past few months, groups linked to terrorism have stolen credit card numbers over the Internet, laundered money and hijacked Web sites, security experts say."
SITE Institute: SITE Publications - Al-Qaeda in IraqPosts Update of Fighting in Ninveh, Mosul, and Tala'afar, 22 Feb 05 update (detailed report requires subscription)
AFP, Tehran Denies Arresting Bin Laden, 22 Feb 05: "Iran denied yesterday suggestions on some local Internet sites that it arrested Al-Qaeda leader Osama Bin Laden, the Western world's most wanted man, on the border with Pakistan."
Iraqi Resistance Report for events of Tuesday, 22 February 2005 :: from www.uruknet.info :: news from occupied Iraq "A new organization called the Squadrons of the Lions of the Arabian Peninsula announced its responsibility for the strike in a communiqué entitled The Earthquake, a copy of which was received by Mafkarat al-Islam." This is an internet news perspective on Iraq, "compiled by Muhammad Abu Nasr, member, editorial board, the Free Arab Voice"
washtimes.com/UPI, Calling terror by its name, 23 Feb 05: "When is a terrorist not a terrorist? The question may seem simple enough yet so far there is no unanimous answer." terminology opinionis

Wednesday, February 23, 2005

IslamOnline - Chat Shows, Nashid Groups, and Lite Preaching, Egypt’s Air-Conditioned Islam, 16 Feb 05
There is a significant absence from the internet domain choices available at present: Iraq Blog Count, About The Iraq Internet Petition "The all-important ".iq" Internet domain for Iraq is currently unavailable even though it was designated in 1997 and briefly activated years ago. Without the identification of this "top level domain" Iraq cannot join other nations as a peer on the Internet." Campaign details and petition from the /dialoguechannel.com
Wired News: The Web Not the Death of Language, Feb 22 05 Citing David Crystal on language. The impact on Islamic discourse and Muslim languages is a key question for my next book.

"The prophets of doom emerge every time a new technology influences language, of course -- they gathered when printing was introduced in the 15th century," Crystal said.

But linguists should be "exulting," he said, in the ability the internet gives us to "explore the power of the written language in a creative way.
Hilton's T-Mobile Hack a Password Wake-Up password issues have a significance in cyber-Islamic environments too.
palmOne launches new Treo 650 smartphone into the Middle East advertorial
albawaba.com middle east news information::Rappers wrap Mid-East pains in new trend, 8 Feb 05
al Bawaba, Acer controls 26.6% of Saudi notebook market, 22 Feb 05 "In Saudi Arabia, Acer has been the number one notebook PC vendor for 15 consecutive months, recording annual growth of 264 per cent during 2004. Acer now accounts for one in every four notebooks sold in the Kingdom, with a 26.6 per cent market share."
crime-research.org, Singapore unveils 23 million plan to fight cyber terrorism: "Cyber terrorists could wreak havoc with a successful attack on critical high-tech systems, Singapore said on Tuesday in announcing plans to spend S$38 million (US$23.3 million) to bolster its defences."
Daily Times, US has paid Pakistanis $57m for Qaeda tips "Top Pakistan intelligence sources say the Al Qaeda leaders seem to avoid using modern communications equipment, relying instead on hand-carried messages. In addition, recent Al Qaeda videotape messages - broadcast by Al Jazeera, the Arab satellite TV channel - appear to have been taped indoors. Earlier videos were shot outdoors which gave hints to Bin Laden’s or Zawahiri’s geographical location. In the video of Zawahiri shown on Sunday on Al Jazeera, for example, he appeared before a plain brown backdrop.”

Tuesday, February 22, 2005

Q-News, Poster for a hip hop/rap/spoken word tribute to Malcolm X Al Hajj Malik El-Shabazz, 25 Feb 05 interesting in the context of this blog, as it has URLs of a variety of groups/sites with hip hop/Islam interests
Controversial Hip Hop Author Adisa Banjoko to Speak at Harvard University Feb. 28th 2005 this sounds very interesting - shame I cannot attend, but more info on Banjoko and his book can be found at www.lyricalswords.com
Internet! How to use it right, The Milli Gazette, Vol.5 No.20, MG114 (16-31 Oct 04) discussion on the application of the internet as a tool for enhancing knowledge of Islam, referring specifically to a Yahoo Group organised by Bint ul Islam from Karachi Pakistan, http://groups.yahoo.com/ group/islam_peace_and_understanding
This is a helpful article on blogging and Iran, with some interview material: AlterNet: MediaCulture: Building Blogs, February 22, 2005.: "Persian blogs represent a grassroots movement that is paving the way for Iran's political awakening. These thousands of online journals show their tyrannical government that social change is inevitable. 'If the Supreme Leader was a fan of reading blogs,' Derakhshan said, 'Iran would be a different country.' "

Monday, February 21, 2005

Committee to Protect Bloggers campaign calls for a day of action (22nd Feb 05) - here are the logos:




BBC NEWS | Technology | Global blogger action day called, 21 Feb 05: "The global web blog community is being called into action to lend support to two imprisoned Iranian bloggers.

"The month-old Committee to Protect Bloggers' is asking those with blogs to dedicate their sites on 22 February to the 'Free Mojtaba and Arash Day'."
Journalists Meutya Viada Hafid and Budiyanto are released: icWales - Iraqi militants free journalists: "'For reasons of suspicion, these two journalists were arrested,' the masked militant said, reading from a notebook. 'Based on the goodwill they showed, and respecting the feelings of brotherhood and Islam between the two countries, and respecting the Indonesian anti-occupation role, we decided to release the two journalists without any conditions or ransom.'"


BBC NEWS | Technology | The price paid for blogging Iran, 21 Feb 05: "Iran is becoming an increasingly dangerous place to keep an online diary.
Web logs have become a popular forum for dissent. And the Iranian government has responded by arresting dozens of bloggers." Update on this issue (previously discussed and blogged - see my article in Global Dialogue too ("Towards and Islamic Information Revolution?", in Global Dialogue, Vol. 6, No. 1-2, 2004, 107-117). Specific reference is made to imprisoned bloggers Arash Sigarchi and Mojtaba Saminejad. See Association of Iranian Blog writers (Penlog) for more on this issue.

Sunday, February 20, 2005

alt.muslim - Islam In The West: The Threat Of Internal Extremism, 17 Feb 05 article by Muqtedar Khan and John L. Esposito (via ISPU)
Wired News: Thinking Outside the Security Box, 18 Feb 05 RSA Cofference report
Words are weapons for Iranian bloggers - (United Press International), 17 Feb 05: "Today an estimated 75,000 Iranians maintain online Web logs, or 'blogs,' for short, that engage in a brisk virtual dialogue despite an Orwellian government that has a monopoly on public news media. "
PRWEB.Com, Leading Islamic Matrimonial Website MuslimIntro.com Offers All Services Free of Charge; Abolishes Subscription/Premium Service advertorial, but still contains some useful updates on muslimintro.com
The Daily Star - Opinion Articles - Riyadh's polls, a window into Saudi social dynamics, 18 Feb 05: "The six candidates' snubbing of the print media actually showed less disdain than faith in the power of an alternative media form: The candidates chose to campaign on the Internet and by sending text messages on mobile telephones. The use of cyberspace in Saudi Arabia is nothing new: Islamists have a significant presence on the web, which not only helps them spread their message, but is also a cost-efficient alternative when compared with the high fees charged by the print media."
Turks.US - E-Learning Defeats Israeli Restrictions, 20 Feb 05 important angle in relation to e-learning and research in Palestinian contexts.
village voice > news > The Essay by Patrick Radden Keefe, Digital Underground
Exposing the 'Darknet': Are Al Qaeda terrorists using your personal computer?
there's some useful material in this essay - including issues associated with tracking the Al Qaeda entity online: "Terrorists have become experts at identifying unguarded server space from which to upload material. Jihad videos were recently discovered on the servers of George Washington University and the Arkansas State Highway and Transportation Department. Some of the more sophisticated terrorist sites migrate from one server to another, often several times a day, in order to evade the authorities. 'Reverse proxy servers' allow a user to cloak his identity behind a 'front' computer, by transmitting material through that computer onto the Internet while making it appear that the front computer is in fact the server."
Fusion Power - By Mickey McCarter - Military Information Technology discussion on "sense-making tools" applied to interpret the hits on a search-engine in a military context. This is based around a technology(-ies) called Horizontal Fusion. The article inlcudes the following note from Tommy Meeker, a contractor from Decisive Analytics: "Al Qaeda uses the Internet more effectively than we do to fight a terrorist war against us."

USNews.com: General Abizaid looks to Iraq's future (2/28/05)Abizaid interview includes reference to the net: "In the recent past there has been an acceleration of extremist thinking that I think is largely accelerated by the sophisticated way they use modern communications to convey their message. . . . When [the extremist movement] is empowered by the Internet, it moves with the speed of light, as opposed to the way communist or fascist ideology moved."
SUNY Oswego tries to ban Muslim speaker for - The Daily Orange - News: "Some members of SUNY Oswego's Student Association were concerned about claims in an Internet article claiming Yousuf has ties to Al-Muhajiroun, an extremist Islam group that has been linked to terrorist activity in other countries.

"Fahad Samad, president of SUNY Oswego's Muslim Student Association, said the claims are false."
arabnews.com, Internet Abuse in Workplaces Costs Businesses Dear: Survey "Internet abuse by employees is costing Saudi businesses millions of riyals per year, according to a survey conducted in the Kingdom. Some 30 percent of small and medium enterprises (SMEs) are losing more than a day’s work each week due to employees’ misuse of the Net."
Qatar Government, investment fatwa clash, 20 Feb 05. implications for electronic fatwas, perhaps, in this dispute based around the juristic opinion preventing deals with riba-based banks?
CNN.com - Shiite holy day attacks kill at least 16 - Feb 20, 2005
PNA International Press Center, A Ramallah Conference Tackles Arab Media Concerns "Several Palestinian media professionals from the West Bank tackled yesterday various concerns regarding the Arab media, in an attempt to work out new horizons in the shadow of a tremendous information technology, Palestine News Agency (WAFA) reported."
BBC NEWS | World | Americas | American media vs the blogs blogwars in US media (based on comments made by CNN's Eason Jordan about journalists killed in Iraq - and subsequently blogged - there was an interesting article by Iain Duncan Smith (former Tory leader) on related blogging issues in The Guardian yesterday. Never thought I'd be citing him in this blog...
BBC NEWS | Technology | Ink helps drive democracy in Asia that's UV-visible ink, used for the election in the Kyrgyz Republic
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | US al-Qaeda ads 'give new leads' "The adverts, however, are being broadcast in Pakistan's four main languages - Urdu, Pashto, Sindhi and Baloch - suggesting that the Americans believe the 14 key al-Qaeda suspects featured could be anywhere in Pakistan."

Thursday, February 17, 2005

ABC News: A 'pragmatic' Islamist for Iraq: "brahim Jaafari, a stern and careful Iraqi doctor whose Islamist activism began in his youth and continued during a 20-year exile, is pulling ahead of his rivals in the race to lead Iraq's first elected government since World War II."
MercuryNews.com | 02/17/2005 | U.S. fails to deal with threat of cyberattack, expert says: "The U.S. government should heed warning signs of a large-scale electronic attack against the nation's computer systems, said Richard Clarke, the former White House head of counterterrorism."
Yahoo News, What's in a name? Concordia grad makes film about men named Osama "Kaabour began looking for men paying the price for sharing his name.

"Despite sending out several e-mails, putting up posters on notice boards across the city and placing an ad in the classified section of every paper, no Osama came forward."
Investigators uncover dismal data disposal | The Register: "An investigation into the disposal of computer equipment has uncovered psychological reports on school-children, confidential company data and even details of an illicit affair on hard drives that should have been wiped clean. Universities, schools and global businesses are routinely breaking the Data Protection Act by disposing of computers without removing personal data, researchers found."
Guardian Unlimited | Special reports | Shias gain majority in Iraq assembly
Investigators uncover dismal data disposal | The Register: "An investigation into the disposal of computer equipment has uncovered psychological reports on school-children, confidential company data and even details of an illicit affair on hard drives that should have been wiped clean. Universities, schools and global businesses are routinely breaking the Data Protection Act by disposing of computers without removing personal data, researchers found."
Reporters sans frontieres - World Summit on the Information Society - bloggers and cyber-dissidents offer advice
, 17 Feb 05

Wednesday, February 16, 2005

AP/IBN, Muslim basketball player overcomes doubters, 16 Feb 05 not a tech piece, but some interesting thoughts on names and identity.
slate.msn.com, Radical Sheik - An elegy for radical lawyering. By David Feige, 14 Feb 05


BBC NEWS | World | Europe | Italy hostage shown in video plea: "A little-known militant group, Islamic Jihad Organisation, has said it kidnapped Ms Sgrena and is demanding that Italy withdraw its troops from Iraq."
slate.msn.com, Radical Sheik - An elegy for radical lawyering. By David Feige, 14 Feb 05
Reuters/Khaleej Times Online, Iranian cleric blogs for free expression, 16 Feb 05: Mohammad Ali Abtahi appears again in this blog. You can find his pages here and also in the Islamic Blogosphere (left hand column of this site). I think he may have subtly changed the URL recently, so I have updated it accordingly.
egypttoday.com, Minister of Communication and Information Technology Tarek Kamel has plans to steer the ministry into a brighter future overview/political perspective on Egyptian IT sector
egypttoday.com, President of Al-Azhar University, advocate of moderation and tolerance, former Mufti discusses introduction of computers and internet access into Al-Azhar
ICEJ News , ristians targeted by Galilee Druze, February 14, 2005 Allegations from Galilee: "A 16-year-old boy from Israel's Druze minority admitted Monday to spreading a rumor that sparked violent weekend clashes between Arab Christians and Druze in the mixed Galilee village of Maghar, Haaretz reports ...

" ... Dozens of Christian businesses were burned to the ground and many Christian families fled after violent riots erupted on Thursday evening as rumors spread that Christian youths had placed pornographic pictures of Druze girls on the Internet. "
webpronews.com, Yet More Signs For Podcasting Growth: "MP3 players are still the gadget of choice for younger adults. Almost one in five US citizens aged under 30 have one. People are beginning to use them as instruments of social activity - sharing songs and taking part in podcasting - the [Pew] survey found." I haven't tracked any Islamic podcasting yet ...
Scotsman.com News - Latest News - Cat Stevens Welcomes Damages over 'Terrorist' Slur

Tuesday, February 15, 2005

The Daily Star - Politics - Hariri murdered in bomb attack
BBC NEWS | In Pictures | In pictures: Lebanon mourns

BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Syria under pressure after bomb
arabherald.com, A possible end to Egypt's Islamic jihad: "The decline of the militant Islamic movement in Egypt has ironically boosted the strength of the broader international movement coalescing around Osama Bin Laden." Article by Khalil Gebara.
arabnews.com, The EasyNet Era Is Upon Us: "EasyNet Internet service has been up and running since the early hours on Thursday. The service was launched as a means to increase Internet penetration rates in the Kingdom, which remain pitifully low." Also see arabnews.com, How to Use EasyNet Internet Service
Christian Science Monitor/ABC News: Koranic duels ease terror "When Judge Hamoud al-Hitar announced that he and four other Islamic scholars would challenge Yemen's Al Qaeda prisoners to a theological contest, Western antiterrorism experts warned that this high-stakes gamble would end in disaster."
AP/nynewsday.com, 9-11 Suspects Face 74,000 Years in Prison, 14 Feb 05
The New Nation, Opinion: Valentine's Day from Islamic perspective
Canada NewsWire Group, Six Internet Hate sites in Canada pulled, because of Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center alert, 14 Feb 05: "Six Internet Hate sites in possible violation of the Criminal Code and/or sections of the Canadian Human Rights Act have been pulled, based on an alert from Toronto-based Friends of Simon Wiesenthal Center." These are (according to the report): www.shareeah.org, www.islaam-online.net, www.Jewstoislam.com, www.Worldofislam.us, newsuncovered.org, www.al-thabaat.com Expect to see them re-emerge in the next week or two...
Reuters.com, U.N. terrorism panel urges lost passport crackdown Results of a report to the UN Security Council, which doesn't specify a methodology for implementation of net restrictions:

"Finally, the U.N. council should consider restrictions on the use of the Internet to lure people 'onto a terrorist path,' the experts said.

"These could range from 'stemming the distribution of extremist material inciting to violence' to requiring Internet service providers to verify who their customers are to adding to the U.N. list any Internet firm providing services 'designed to promote acts of terrorism,' the panel said. "
Reuters.com, 'Qaeda' Says Jihadists Didn't Kill Hariri -- Web: "A statement attributed to al Qaeda and posted on the Internet on Tuesday denied Islamists had killed former Lebanese Prime Minister Rafik al-Hariri, saying Lebanese, Syrian or Israeli intelligence were behind the attack."
FrontPage magazine.com :: Valentine's Day Enrages Jihadists by Dr. Walid Phares opinion piece on Valentine's Day and related references in jihadi chat-rooms: "On the internet, Arab, Persian, Kurdish, Aramaic, and other love and music chat rooms attract ten times the al-Ansar-crowded rooms. There, you read and hear discussions of love; they seek, not decadence, but the early stages of a romantic revolution."
in.rediff.com, The Importance Of Sania Mirza This article about the Indian tennis star has a reference to the web: "The forces of secularisation and modernity are gaining strength among Indian Muslims.

"A new awareness is growing about the importance of modern education as the key to the professions and government jobs. The Siasat daily of Hyderabad has done pioneering work in running teacher training courses, operating clinics, coaching students in science, medicine and engineering, and training young women for call centre jobs. Siasat has become the first Indian daily to set up its own Internet web site."
More on the terrorism conference in Saudi Arabia, this time from Peter Bergen: nationalreview.com, Letter From Riyadh, Are we witnessing a Saudi glasnost?, 14 Feb 05: "The Saudis are also turning one of al Qaeda's key weapons, the Internet, against the group. For the past several years al Qaeda's Saudi arm has maintained two web-based magazines, Al Battar and Sawt-al-Jihad, where one can find training tips about how to clean AK47s and strategic advice urging attacks on economic targets. Now Saudi clerics are using the Internet to persuade al Qaeda sympathizers that they have strayed from the path of true Islam. Islamic Affairs minister Saleh al-Sheikh told reporters at the terrorism conference, 'We conducted a dialogue with 800 of them and more than a quarter were convinced.' It is not easy to assess the validity of such claims, but a similar dialogue between clerics and al Qaeda sympathizers in neighboring Yemen has yielded positive results."

Sunday, February 13, 2005

Qantara.de - Mohsen Kadivar - Adapting to Contemporary Islam
Qantara.de - Mohammad Shabestari - Faith, Freedom, and Reason: "Can there be such a thing as Islamic human rights? Do the commandments set forth in the Koran have eternal validity, or can they be modified according to the demands of reason? Iranian clergyman Mohammad Shabestari has devoted his life to exploring these issues in modern religious and political Islamic thinking."
Qantara.de - Emran Qureshi and Heba Raouf Ezzat - Are Sharia Laws and Human Rights Compatible?
CNN.com - Al-Sistani well-positioned to�impact�Iraq's future - Feb 13, 2005: "Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani, the revered Shiite cleric whose unrivaled political power belies his image as a frail, white-bearded man devoted solely to spiritual pursuits, is well-positioned to have a lasting impact on his adopted country."
News24, Clashes over 'naked women', 12 Feb 05: "Police intervened to quell the violence which was sparked by rumours that photographs of naked Druze women had been posted on the internet."
AP/Boston.com / News / World / Middle East / Kuwaiti government mounts an offensive against militants, 12 Feb 05: "Security in this tiny desert emirate has been ratcheted up since a series of government raids in recent weeks against Islamic militants. The government also has begun blocking Internet sites espousing jihad, and police have seized radical books from mosques and warned teachers not to preach intolerance."
Newly released memo warned of al Qaeda threat, 11 Feb 05
Reuters/Big News Network, Gulf Arabs Turn to Top Technology for Security, 12 Feb 05
AP/Arab Times Online, Al-Qaida in Iraq Criticizes Al-Jazeera for Wrongly Reporting Its Statement, 13 Feb 05: "A statement in the name of the al-Qaida in Iraq terror group posted Saturday on the Internet accused Arab satellite network Al-Jazeera of trying to win U.S. favor by reporting false information about an attack the group had claimed responsibility for ...

" ... After we posted a statement (claiming responsibility) ... we found that Al-Jazeera tried to alter the facts and attributed to us (something) we didn't say," said the statement that appeared on an Internet site used as a clearing house for extremist Islamic material.

"We didn't say in our statement that we targeted the mosque, but that we targeted the infidel guards, and we hit them directly."

Friday, February 11, 2005

Guardian Unlimited | Arts news | New take on life in Bradford: "Forget Superman, Wonderwoman and even the Incredibles. The new kid on the block from one of America's 'big two' comic publishers is a teenage Muslim from Bradford, where his father runs a successful chain of corner shops." Non-tech, but definitely worth a mention, given the previous work of Grant Morrison, this announces the arrival of the 3-part comic Vimanarama. More details from DC Comics website which describes the miniseries as "a romantic action story with an operatic twist." Examples of the artwork can be found here (PDF). This is probably the first time I have had a chance to mention comics in this blog ...
Student Collapses After Thesis Vanishes "A master’s degree student collapsed after suffering a nervous breakdown when she discovered that a data entry operator had accidentally ruined her thesis papers, thus wasting years of her efforts, Al-Madinah reported."
CNN.com - 9/11 commission: FAA had al Qaeda warnings - Feb 10, 2005: "The Federal Aviation Administration received repeated warnings in the months prior to September 11, 2001, about al Qaeda and its desire to attack airlines, according to a previously undisclosed report by the commission that investigated the terror attacks."
The Jakarta Post - Toying with democracy: Tha main challenge for Middle East leaders: "Hundreds of angry Web sites have cropped up, the most extreme preaching the ideology of al-Qaeda and its ilk. Spurred by unemployment, political uncertainty, and falling living standards, young Saudi men are easily recruited by extremist groups."
CBS 11: Jihadist Web Mag Linked to N. Texax Brothers, 7 Feb 05 This report has been picked up elsewhere too, and relates to allegations associated with a monthly journal published by the Centre for Islamic Studies Birmingham on alsunnah.org.

"The monthly journal, alsunnah.org and its publisher in Birmingham, England, the Centre for Islamic Studies, have come under international condemnation and investigation for allegedly soliciting suicide bombers to attack American and coalition troops in Iraq, as well as Israelis. The internet magazine, banned in some countries, including Saudi Arabia, routinely carries vitriolic anti-American articles that have cited the need for violent Jihad to replace Judeo-Christian civilization with a global Islamic state, according to translations commissioned by CBS-11.

Report is accompanied by photos.

Thursday, February 10, 2005

Mahmood's Den :: Blog, The lesser of two evils, 10 Feb 05 "I am at a loss in trying to reconcile his effective edict, for a very renowned scholar, a supposedly learned person, how can things be so black and white in his mind?" Mahmood presents his opinion on statements made by Yusuf al-Qaradawi recently (on al-Jazeera tv).
MEMRI, Special Dispatch Series - No. 861, Egyptian Media Organization Created to Counter MEMRI: 'We will Publish an Ethical Code for the Arab Press', 9 Feb 05 this relates to Arabs Against Discrimination (AAD).
BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Saudis' first exercise in democracy
Islamic Ijara Mortgages by HSBC and Other Banks (www.sunnahonline.com) This was published in December 04, but I thought it relevant to bring into the blog, as an interesting example of an approach to a contemporary issue being articulated online (this is clearly more than one approach to this issue). The opinion starts as follows: "Many people have enquired about the permissibility under sharî'ah of the so-called Islamic ijâra mortgages recently announced by banks such as HSBC. As it is in the interest of all Muslims to have a current and accurate understanding of the issues involved here, I have concluded the following judgement based upon the Qur'ân and sunnah in accordance with the understanding of the main school of thoughts." The opinion is by Shaykh Haitham Al-Haddad.
MSNBC - Virtual Jihad, Feb. 9 2005 as discussed in Islam in the Digital Age
Arabherald.com, Teenagers Sinking Their Teeth Into New Technology, 10 February 2005 Bluetooth 'abuse' issues emerge in Saudi Arabia and elsewhere.
Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Extremist leaders ousted from north London mosque
AP/USATODAY.com - Kuwait blocks sites that incite violence, 8 Feb 05: "Kuwait is blocking Islamic Web sites that incite violence as part of its all-out war on terror following recent clashes with fundamentalists who allegedly planned to attack Americans and the country's security forces, a senior official said Monday."

Wednesday, February 09, 2005

CNN.com - The Internet war - Feb 8, 2005
World Peace Herald, Riyadh proposes terror intelligence center: "Apart from sharing intelligence, the kingdom also has been working behind the scenes to crack down on Saudi money finding its way into the hands of al Qaeda-linked groups, changing the curriculum of Saudi schools to revise textbooks that encourage hatred, and re-educating terrorists on the Internet to become peace-loving Muslims. "
AFP/TechCentral: Story, Fated: Budding cyberlove ends in divorce: "A budding romance between a Jordanian man and woman turned into an ugly public divorce when the couple found out that they were in fact man and wife, state media reported Sunday. "

Monday, February 07, 2005

BBC NEWS | Technology | Digital guru floats sub-$100 PC Negroponte introduces Linux-based computer
MSNBC - Iraq rebel Web sites useful to U.S., as well, 4 Feb 05
Controversial Issues: Music, Prophet's Birthday, etc.
Issues also covered in my research: Al-Qaida on the Internet: How Islamic Extremists Are Turning the Web into Terror.com - International - Spiegel Online, 7 Feb 05: "But one lesson the terror groups have learned well is that media interest generated by an Internet posting and the ensuing publicity is only possible if observers and reporters can be relatively certain of a given posting's authenticity. And because such postings have become vital to the terrorists' cause, they attach great value to remaining easily and unmistakably recognizable. Distinctive letterhead is often used and characteristic sayings are frequently spelled out using recognizable fonts. The Saudi al-Qaida group's trademark on its communiques is a logo saying 'the voice of the Jihad' and often includes a white horse logo as well. Another strategy is that used by al-Zarkawi. Postings in his name always come from the same forum username -- Abu Maisara al-Iraqi -- which, because the sites he uses require user registration, makes it difficult for others to hijack his identity."

Sunday, February 06, 2005

BBC NEWS | UK | Guantanamo man 'suing government'
CNN.com - The online battle for Iraq - Feb 4, 2005: "When a toy soldier with a gun to its head on a Web site briefly tricked the world into believing a U.S. soldier was in Iraqi rebel hands, the glare of public attention shined once again on one the Internet's darkest corners."
AP/CNN.com - Report: Al Qaeda-linked Web site based in Canada - Feb 6, 2005: "A Web site with links to al Qaeda is operating through a server in western Canada, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology's Technology Review magazine's February edition reports." This links to Supporters of Shariah, and Abu Hamza al-Masri (currently detained in Belmarsh, UK) whose work has been previously discussed by this writer.
Some interesting data on the Ayatollah al-Sistani (previously discussed in this blog and my writings): MSNBC/Newsweek - What Sistani Wants, 6 Feb 05: "One of his sons-in-law runs an Internet company with 66 employees in the Iranian city of Qom, and Sistani's own office is one of the best-wired in Iraq. The interim government installed a T-1 connection to the Internet, so his representatives can stay in touch by e-mail. When he has new visitors, his staff Googles them and prints out a briefing paper. When folks in Baghdad, 90 miles north, need to call his office, they dial a local number that patches through. And he may refuse to have his photo taken, but he doesn't object to his followers' plastering the few available grainy shots on campaign posters and mosques around the country."
More on this unusual story of Saudi Arabian ministerial 'outreach' on the net: Analysis: Islamic tradition and the Web - (United Press International): "Furthermore, the anonymity of the Web makes it impossible to authenticate the identity of the 800 interlocutors the Saudi Religious Affairs Ministry is reportedly engaged in dialogues with. Nor is it possible to identify which countries the anonymous correspondents were interacting with the ministry from, nor for that matter if they were indeed whom they purported to be."
FP/Khallj Times, , Islamists group sets 48-hour deadline for Italian hostage in Iraq, 6 Feb 05 "The group, calling itself the Organisation for Jihad in the Countries of Mesopotamia, posted the threat on the internet, saying an announcement of an Italian troop withdraw must be issued by Monday night."
BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Saudis 'reform militants' on web: "The Saudi government has told an anti-terrorism conference in Riyadh that it has reformed Islamist militant sympathisers through the internet.

"
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Lahore's kite festival kicks off non-(high-)tech
BBC NEWS | World | Middle East | Video shows 'Iraqi troop deaths': "The video, released by the Army of Ansar al-Sunna, shows seven men being interrogated and then shot as they kneeled outdoors with their eyes bound."
CA, Microsoft Arabia Team Up on Security
AAP/Big News, Lack of Arabic translators: Interpol

Friday, February 04, 2005

Today, I spent some time updating my feeds - and consequently have introduced some new materials to the Islamic Blogosphere (see side-bar) as well as souping up my research resources. Given I spent several hours a week (under-estimate) trawling the web for various materials - a small percentage of which end up in my research - I continually strive to locate tools that will help me search/sift/analyse just a little bit faster. The dangers of information overload become more acute month-by-month. I received some feedback at a conference last weekend, and was pleased to find out that there are others embarking on related research.
The Daily Star - Special Reports - Survey sheds new light on Arab views of West: "The survey, entitled 'The Arab Street Revisited: Research from Within,' revealed important new insights into how Arabs differentiate between political and cultural values in the West, and also among the different leading states of the West. The surveyed Arabs also differentiate between Western political values which they admire and covet (democracy, justice, rule of law, etc.) and Western foreign policies in the Middle East, which they generally reject and criticize."
My blog's in Cambridge, but my heart is in Accra : Ethan's Weblog translation (by 'Saudi Jeans' a.k.a. Ahmed) of al-Hayat's article by Amina Khairy, 'An American Promotes Arabic Blogs as Alternative to the Lost Democracy'. This makes for interesting reading.
Saudi Jeans, 1 Feb 05: "Finally, another Arabic newspaper is paying attention to blogging. Today's Asharq Al-Awsat published a short how to guide to start a blog with Blogger. I think this will encourage more people to start blogging, especially in Saudi Arabia, or at least I hope so." As discussed in my article for Global Dialogue last year - incidentally the Asharq Al-Awsat link in this Saudi Jeans blog is broken ...
Raed in the Middle notes that the screen shot for the Pentagon site "is not Arabic".
albawaba.com middle east news information::Egyptian government, Microsoft sign new deal: "Nazif noted that cooperation with Microsoft will help enhance education in Egypt by introducing modern technology into the educational process such as electronic education and videoconference."
Reuters/Arab Toys, Iraq group killed 29 in Thursday police ambush-Web
CNN.com - Pentagon�sites: Journalism or propaganda? - Feb 4, 2005
Saddam used as worm lure - ZDNet UK News "Photos of a "dead" Saddam Hussein are the lure for a new mass-mailing worm, Sophos warned on Thursday, in the latest instance of attackers using well-known figures as bait."
Best Arab Blogs Awards™ :: Results: 2004 Best Arab Blogs Awards and the winners are ...
Muslim WakeUp! Let Them Be Scandalized: An Egyptian Woman Challenges Society's Ideas of Dishonor: "This is the time to celebrate Hind el-Hinnawy, a 27 year-old Egyptian costume designer who with one bold gesture scandalized a religiously conservative society wallowing in its own schizoid hypocrisy and had her baby in that ambivalent zone of civil (urfi) marriage, going on to file a paternity suit against the famous, or by now infamous, actor, Ahmed Al-Fishawy." opinion piece, by the high-fiving Finan Rauf [via the equally celebratory Mahmood's Den].

Xinhua - EnglishXinhua, Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani: "Although his life remains simple and minimal, his word is spread through both a network of spokesmen and even the Internet."
Shaukat calls for restructuring of OIC to meet global challenges - PakTribune: "The website of the OIC which had remained static, needed to be updated on a 24x7 basis, so that it became the best internet and international resources for the comprehensive projection of the true enlightened and moderate face of Islam, which would assist in building bridges of co-existence and cooperation and banish apprehensions of confrontation."
Islam Online- Chechen Leader Champions Unilateral Ceasefire "The Chechen fighters' Kavkaz center Internet site published a statement attributed to Basayev in which he called on his fighters “in Chechnya and Russia” to observe a ceasefire until February 22, according to Reuters."
alt.muslim - BTW, WR THRU: Divorce By SMS Considered, Rejected
Muslim Networks from Hajj to Hip Hop Edited by miriam cooke and Bruce B. Lawrence I have a chapter in this forthcoming volume (out March 05).

aina.org, FBI Looks At Radical Islam Site in Coptic Family Massacre "The site, barsomyat.com, monitored an Internet chat room at PalTalk.com where Christians and Muslims, including the father in the murdered family, often participated in angry discussions about religion.

"Barsomyat.com also tracked and posted information about the Christian posters on PalTalk, according to a report published in the New York Sun."

Thursday, February 03, 2005

Guardian Unlimited | The Guardian | Search and you shall find more on searching the net, including an interview with Sherry Turkle, a long time writer/observer on the net based at MIT.
Guardian Unlimited | Online | Space setter Review of MSN Spaces.
TCS: Tech Central Station - Toy Soldiers
Iran's bloggers get caught in crossfire of 'war on terror', csmonitor.com "Iran's dissenting and liberal voices, reeling from a crackdown in cyberspace by their country's old guard, now worry about a new challenge from an unexpected quarter: America."
Jihad Unspun - Al-Qaida's Dr. Ayman al-Zawahri Says Holy War Is Path To Reform, Feb 03, 2005
Islam Online, Young Arab Engineers: Against All Odds "Growing intolerant to the current state of the high technology sector in the Arab region, three young Arab engineers are seeking to sow the seeds of change. Hence, Handasa Arabia (or Arabic Engineering), a non-profit, open-source organization, was born."

Wednesday, February 02, 2005



Photo of DAM - relates to the story below on Middle Eastern rap:
BBC - Radio 3 - Andy Kershaw - 30 January 2005 I've included this here for the inclusion of Palestinian rap group DAM [previously blogged], who provide a session and very interesting interview with references. You can listen to this broadcast (not sure for how long). Tracks are "Born Here" - single - dur: 3.27, "There Is Still Goodness In Life" - dur: 3.47, "A Stranger in my Own Country" dur: 3.42, "Freestyle" dur: 4.17 . "Born Here" is in Hebrew. More information on DAM can be found on their website. I have a long-term interest in rap, by the way, although I no longer wear a baseball hat back-to-front.
Telegraph | News | Alert over Islamic terrorists who tried to kill bin Laden: "Al-Takfir originated as a peaceful Islamic movement in Egypt in the early 1970s but turned to violence and was implicated in killing two government ministers. It operates as a largely unstructured entity with only loose links to al-Qaeda and with no identifiable leadership structure. The report says it 'exists as a web incorporating scattered groups of militants, separated by geography, connected only by radical ideology''." more on al-Takfir.
icSouthlondon - Mosque is too full for its own good: "The mosque is one of only a handful in the country that pray in English. It also houses a counselling service and out-of hours national curriculum classes for youngsters. "
:::- ARAB TIMES - Web threat: Jihad 'til Judgement DayGot most of them ... we'll get the rest :::: "An Islamist group identifying itself with Saudi militants warned Kuwait in a statement posted on the Internet Tuesday that it faced a fierce war unless US forces left the country."
Straits Times, Zealous religious cops trigger Muslim backlash - Feb 2, 2005 more about attitudes than techology ...
Islamist group may hit Europe, Jane's warns - Feb 2, 2005: "Takfir wal Hijra, whose name means 'Anathema and Exile', features high on the European Union's blacklist of terrorist organisations which was compiled in 2001 in the wake of the Sept 11 attacks in the United States. " [subscription site]
Xinhua - Egyptian intelligence chief meets Islamic Jihad head on ceasefire: "Egypt's intelligence chief Omar Suleiman on Tuesday met with Ramadan Shalah, secretary general of the Palestinian militant group Islamic Jihad (holy war), to discuss an end to anti-Israeli violence."
Black Britain | News | Daily News and Sport: "Sheikhs and Imams from countries in the Horn of Africa will meet in Djibouti to disavow any Islamic backing of the widespread and harmful practice of female genital mutilation." Here is the No Peace Without Justice conference website for this significant issue.
Aljazeera.Net - European imams to receive funding
BBC NEWS | Entertainment | Film | Festival show for Baghdad Blogger: "A film based on the internet musings of the 'Baghdad Blogger' has been shown at the Rotterdam Film Festival." I look forward to seeing this in due course. Salam Pax also featured on a BBC3 comedy show last week, "The Comic Side of 7 Days", which I happened to catch. It was a sharp and funny programme (shame about the ponderous title), nestled in the BBC comedy schedule alongside Little Britain ...
AP/Boston.com, Islamic Web site claims U.S. soldier captured; but report not immediately confirmed: "Islamic Web site claims U.S. soldier captured; but report not immediately confirmed "
FrontPage magazine.com :: A Muslim Scholar Takes on CAIR by Jamie Glazov Interview with Prof. Khaleel Mohammed, Assistant Professor at the Department of Religious Studies at San Diego State University, whose opinion is that : "...the more I surf the internet, the more I see 'Islamic' sites that seek to mask the problems within contemporary Islam, and lay the blame on outsiders." Certainly some controversial discussion points here.
File share blunder leaks military docs to blogger - silicon.com "According to web blog Geenstijl, the problem occurred when an administrator within the military's border control division took unencrypted documents home to work on them and somehow managed to drop the files into the shared folder he used to swap content with other Kazaa members."

Tuesday, February 01, 2005

CPILive.net, Sun Microsystems at Cairo ICT
CPILive.net, Pan Arab Web Awards draws region-wide entries "“Internet penetration in the Arab world is fast approaching a saturation point. All sections of society and economy in the region has realised the power of Web and IT in increasing productivity, competitiveness and creating employment opportunities for the young people who are entering the job market. The award has been envisioned to boost the creative and technical excellence of the Web designers, software coders, engineers and entrepreneurs,” said Jawad Al Redha, Co-Chairman, BSA ME." I'm interested to see the entries for this one.
NewsNow: AFP/tucsoncitizen.com, Islamic Web site claims U.S. soldier captured, threat to behead him "Our mujahadeen heroes of Iraq's Jihadi Battalion were able to capture American military man John Adam after killing a number of his comrades and capturing the rest," said the statement, signed by the "Mujahedeen Brigades."
The Counterterrorism Blog: Christians on PalTalk Chat Service Tracked by Radical Islamic Web Site "A radical Islamic Web site systematically tracks Christians on PalTalk.com, an Internet chat service on which a New Jersey man received a death threat two months before he and his family were murdered. The password protected Arabic Web site, at the address www.barsomyat.com, features pictures and information about Christians who have been particularly active in debating Muslims on PalTalk."
Free Babar Ahmad I was interested to read about this website in Q-News. It contains background information to the Babar Ahmad case, including photographs of alleged police brutality. The website supports Babar Ahmad, seeking:

"1) To act as an information resource providing case facts, excerpts of legal documents and medical reports, photographs and news relating to the case.

"2) To humanise Babar Ahmad and to show him as a normal, professional and kind human being rather than a "terrorist".

"3) To enable the public to form a more balanced and fair opinion on the case of Babar Ahmad."

Ahmad remains in custody in the UK, and is fighting extradition to the USA.
Crosswalk.com - Saudis Accused of Spreading 'Hate Propaganda' in US allegations based on an extensive report from the Center for Religious Freedom. This is available as a PDF from here
Scotsman.com News - International - Newspaper claims tsunami was retribution for area's sex trade: "An article in Attajdid, the newspaper of Morocco's moderate Islamic Justice and Development Party (PJD), claimed that the disaster was brought on the area by God displeased with its promotion of sex tourism. "
Aljazeera.Net - Bashir: Bali bombing not jihad Latest on Abu Bakr Bashir : "Referring to the Bali nightclub and Marriott hotel bombings, he said: "I disapprove, if they were regarded as jihad, because they were executed in peaceful or non-conflict zones."
BBC NEWS | World | South Asia | Bangalore faces e-waste hazards
AFP/turkishpress.com, Video purports to show downing of British plane in Iraq: Jazeera
inform.kz, Will M. Shakhanov wake up Moslems of Kazakhstan?, 1 Feb 04: "Ecclesiastic directorate of Moslem people of the Volga region (Russia) has got its own Internet site where one can get much interesting information about Islam in the Russian Federation." Background and opinion regarding Islam in Kazakhstan. Interesting material here (no direct link to the website discussed).
Gulf Daily News, Al Qaeda warns of more attacks: "Al Qaeda's group in Iraq last night vowed to continue its 'holy war', slamming historic elections seen as a success by the US-allied government as an 'American game', according to an Internet statement."
washingtonpost.com: In Netherlands, Anti-Islamic Polemic Comes With a Price "Sometimes the threats come by e-mail. Other times, warnings show up on Internet chat sites. Occasionally they are short video clips. The latest has a soundtrack of Arabic song and automatic-weapons fire, and a photograph of the intended target -- a Dutch lawmaker, Geert Wilders."
Asia Times Online, The Homeland Security State, Feb 2 2005 "Under provisions of the USA Patriot (Uniting and Strengthening America by Providing Appropriate Tools Required to Intercept and Obstruct Terrorism) Act, the Department of Justice has been collecting e-mail and IP (Internet protocol, a computer's unique numeric identifier) addresses, without a warrant, using trap-and-trace surveillance devices ("pen-traps"). Now, the FBI, Justice's principle investigative arm, may be monitoring the web-surfing habits of Internet users - also without a search warrant - that is, spying on you with no probable cause whatsoever." article by Nick Turse, originally in TomDispatch