(Selected) Opinions from Israel

David Sheen, Storify, Terrifying Tweets of Pre-Army Israeli Teens "On Thursday, July 10, I entered the Hebrew word for "Arabs", ARAVIM, into Twitter and searched for uses of the word over the previous few hours. What I found was young Israelis proclaiming their desire for all Arabs to die and in some cases be tortured to death."

Also see Mira Bar Hillel, Independent, Why I'm on the brink of burning my Israeli passport, 11 Jul 2014 "Ayelet Shaked represents the far-right Jewish Home party in the Knesset. This means she is well to the right of Benyamin Netanyahu, just in case you thought such a thing was not possible.

"On Monday she quoted this on her Facebook page: “Behind every terrorist stand dozens of men and women, without whom he could not engage in terrorism. They are all enemy combatants, and their blood shall be on all their heads. Now this also includes the mothers of the martyrs, who send them to hell with flowers and kisses. They should follow their sons, nothing would be more just. They should go, as should the physical homes in which they raised the snakes. Otherwise, more little snakes will be raised there.”"

Essential reading

Muslim life in the UK

The Guardian, What is it like to be a Muslim in Britain today? "We asked Muslim bloggers to tell us their experiences of living as a Muslim in the UK today. Do you agree? Share your thoughts and experiences."

Israel / Palestine Conflict animation

filmsforaction.org, I've Never Seen the Israel / Palestine Conflict Illustrated More Uniquely Than This "Nina Paley created this (extremely brief) animated history of the land that was at one time called Israel, Palestine, Canaan and the Levant. She even created this viewer's guide to make sense of what's happening."

Singapore concerned over returning Syrian jihadists

Singapore concerned over returning Syrian jihadists - Al Arabiya News "Singapore on Wednesday expressed concern at the risk of militant attacks posed by local and foreign jihadists returning to Southeast Asia after fighting in Syria."

Can’t win if you sin! Cleric tweets on Brazil loss

Can’t win if you sin! Cleric tweets on Brazil loss - Al Arabiya News: "His post was ridiculed by many on Twitter, with one user sarcastically replying that Germany had won because they were “busy praying Taraweeh, (special night prayers during the Islamic holy month of Ramadan).”

"

Imam of Mosul mosque executed before 'caliph' gave sermon

smh.com.au, Imam of Mosul mosque executed before 'caliph' gave sermon, 8 Jul 2014: ""Here a Sunni movement is executing Sunni religious leaders. That should make us think," said Heiner Bielefeldt, the UN's special rapporteur on freedom of religion or belief. "It's important to focus more attention on these particular killings, because here we are not talking about Sunnis versus [Shiites]. This is a very clear case of atrocities committed against their own people, against religious leaders from Sunni Islam who probably have a less simplistic understanding of what Islam means."

Twin Girls Flee UK to Join Isis Jihadi Fighters in Syria

ibtimes.co.uk, Twin Girls Flee UK to Join Isis Jihadi Fighters in Syria "The girls' parents found their beds empty at 8am last Thursday and called the police. Counter-terrorism forces were subsequently alerted when the girls contacted their family from Syria, where their elder brother is believed to be jihadi fighter."

Blogs of War - ISIS/ISIL: Jihadists Go for the Lulz

Blogs of War - ISIS/ISIL: Jihadists Go for the Lulz: "ISIS, although far more dangerous and disturbing, has swept into the public consciousness in much the same way as LulzSec. Their spectacular success on the ground has been augmented by a clever, well-orchestrated, social media campaign. More importantly, its members and supporters speak the language of social media, and are able to build campaigns around it, in a way that few other groups have. They get snark. They understand the quirky humor and leverage it to their advantage. They know how to make their message move and how to trigger a response. They even have technical resources to help them do that. All of it would be unremarkable, actually, if not for their mission and the surrealness of unspeakable brutality juxtaposed with the odd kitten and AK-47 pic."

Prominent scholars declare ISIS caliphate 'null and void'

middleeastmonitor.com, Prominent scholars declare ISIS caliphate 'null and void' "The International Union of Muslim Scholars, led by influential Sunni cleric Dr Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, released a statement on Friday concerning the recent declaration of a "caliphate" by the Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIS). The union said that the caliphate declaration is "null and void" and "lacks any realistic or legitimate standards." It warned of serious consequences of the declaration on both Sunni Muslims in Iraq and the revolution in Syria."

Islamic State's 'caliph' lauds Iraq rebellion

Islamic State's 'caliph' lauds Iraq rebellion, Al Jazeera English "In a video posted on social media, the newly elected 'caliph', Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, delivers a Friday sermon and leads prayers in the grand mosque of Mosul."

Imams' Letter

Imams Online, Over 100 UK imams unite to sign open letter urging British Muslims not to travel to Syria and Iraq This is the link to the letter.



Channel 4, Imams' plea to British Muslims: don't go to Syria or Iraq, 4 Jul 2014 "An open letter signed by more than 100 imams from across major theological backgrounds and cultural groups urged British Muslim communities "to continue the generous and tireless effort to support all of those affected by the crisis in Syria and unfolding events in Iraq", but to do so "from the UK in a safe and responsible way"." Also see

British jihadist calls for 'flag of Islam' over Downing Street and Buckingham Palace

Independent, British jihadist calls for 'flag of Islam' over Downing Street and Buckingham Palace, 4 Jul 2014

ISIL calls for killing of The 99 creator

arabianbusiness.com, ISIL calls for killing of The 99 creator, 4 Jul 2014 "In response, Al Mutawa tweeted: “My work has glorified Islam from the US to China for the past ten years. I really do not believe in ISIL and Qaeda…I don’t care about them”."

Syrian rebel leader

Independent, Syrian rebel leader gives speech to Islamist militants with Hello Kitty notebook, 4 Jul 2014 "A jihadist rebel leader fighting in the Syrian War has been filmed giving an impassioned speech to a group of armed militants with a Hello Kitty notebook in front of him."

Hackers hit IDF account

alarabiya.net. Hackers take over Israel army Twitter account "Internet hackers briefly took over an Israeli army Twitter account, the military said Friday, posting an alarming message that a nuclear facility had been hit by rocket fire."

Enjoy a virtual iftar this Ramadan

Enjoy a virtual iftar this Ramadan | The National "If you can’t make it home from work for iftar, why not break your fast with your family virtually over the internet?"

Twitter launches Ramadan 'hashflags'

Twitter launches Ramadan 'hashflags' | Technology | theguardian.com:

"Twitter has introduced its second set of "hashflags" for users observing Ramadan and celebrating Eid, following from the state-specific flags introduced during the world cup."

Phone apps aid Genxt Muslims in India during Ramadan

Phone apps aid Genxt Muslims in India during Ramadan (Technology Feature) | Mizo News:

Anti-terror police arrest and bail teenager in Cardiff

BBC News - Anti-terror police arrest and bail teenager in Cardiff: "In an online conversation with a reporter from BBC Wales' Week In Week Out programme, he  [Aseel Muthana] described seeing "martyrs" to militant group Isis's cause and said he would be "willing to die" for the cause."

The State of the 'Caliphate' Is... Meh

J.M. Berger, Intelwire.com: The State of the 'Caliphate' Is... Meh: "Apparently, no matter how awesome the power of social media, you can't just announce that you're the boss of everyone and expect people to fall in line."