Tag Archives: Sharia Law

Thousands rally in Malaysia to back Islamic penal code bill

Man walks past Malaysia billboard at airport

KUALA LUMPUR (Reuters) – Tens of thousands of Malaysians rallied in the capital on Saturday to support the adoption of a strict Islamic penal code, a proposal religious minorities fear could infringe their rights.

Prime Minister Najib Razak has thrown his weight behind the contentious bill, which seeks to incorporate parts of the Islamic penal code, or “hudud”, into Malaysia’s existing Islamic legal system.

Najib, who is currently embroiled in a corruption scandal, is hoping to burnish his Islamic credentials in order to boost his chances in national elections that must be held by August 2018.

Critics of the bill warn that it could pave the way for full implementation of hudud, which prescribes punishments such as amputations and stoning, and disrupt the fabric of Malaysia’s multi-cultural and multi-religious society.

“The so-called ’empowerment’ of the Shariah Court will only exacerbate the unequal treatment of Muslims and non-Muslims before the law,” said Bebas, an NGO that organized a smaller counter-rally.

No official figures were available on how many people attended Saturday’s peaceful support rally in Kuala Lumpur, but estimates were in the tens of thousands.

Tuan Ibrahim Tuan Man, deputy president of the hardline Islamist opposition Parti Islam-se Malaysia (PAS), one of its organizers, said 100,000 people were expected to attend.

The PAS presented the bill in parliament last year but later withdrew it in order to fine tune the legislation. It is now expected to be reintroduced in the next parliamentary session, in March.

Najib, who has resisted calls to resign over a scandal at state fund 1Malaysia Development Berhad (1MDB), where he was an adviser, backed the bill despite the anger of members of his own United Malay National Organisation (UMNO) ruling coalition.

Lawsuits filed by the U.S. Justice Department in July last year said nearly $700 million of the misappropriated funds from 1MDB flowed into the accounts of “Malaysian Official 1”, who U.S. and Malaysian officials have identified as Najib.

Najib has denied any wrongdoing.

Presidents of three parties representing the Chinese and Indian ethnic groups in Najib’s ruling Barisan Nasional (BN) coalition have threatened to quit their cabinet posts if the bill passes.

For decades, PAS has been pushing for Malaysia to adopt hudud in the northeastern state of Kelantan that is governed by the party, arguing that it is the responsibility of the country’s Malay-Muslim majority to support Islamic law.

Criminal cases are currently handled by federal law in Malaysia, where Malay Muslims account for more than 60 percent of the 30 million population.

The Shariah courts come under the jurisdiction of each state and are limited to family law covering issues such as divorce and inheritance.

Supporters of the legal reform said Saturday’s rally also aimed to allay the fears of minority groups.

Ismail Borhan, 33, an engineer who attended the rally, said the objective of the bill was to allow commensurate action that can act as a deterrent to wrongdoing.

“Those opposed to the bill have a lack of understanding and exposure (to Islam), simply opposing for the sake of opposing,” he said.

(Reporting by Joseph Sipalan; Writing by Praveen Menon; Editing by Clarence Fernandez and Helen Popper)

Islamic State: Dhaka Cafe slaughter a glimpse of what’s coming

Policemen sneak a look inside the Holey Artisan Bakery and the O'Kitchen Restaurant as others inspect the site after gunmen

By Ruma Paul

DHAKA (Reuters) – Islamic State has warned of repeated attacks in Bangladesh and beyond until rule by sharia, Islamic law, is established, saying in a video last week’s killing of 20 people in a Dhaka cafe was merely a glimpse of what is to come.

Five Bangladesh militants, most from wealthy, liberal families, stormed the upmarket restaurant on Friday and murdered customers, the majority of them foreigners, from Italy, Japan, India and the United States, before they were gunned down.

“What you witnessed in Bangladesh … was a glimpse. This will repeat, repeat and repeat until you lose and we win and the sharia is established throughout the world,” said a man identified as Bangladeshi fighter Abu Issa al-Bengali, in the video monitored by SITE intelligence site.

Bangladesh has rejected the Islamic State’s claim of responsibility for the Friday attack and blamed it on a domestic militant group.

It was one of the deadliest attacks in Bangladesh, where Islamic State and al Qaeda have claimed a series of killings of liberals and members of religious minorities in the past year. The government has also dismissed those claims.

The IS video began with pictures of recent attacks in Paris, Brussels and Orlando in the United States that the Middle East-based militants have claimed.

The fighter in the video, who spoke in both Bengali and English, said Bangladesh must know that it was now part of a bigger battlefield to establish the cross-border “caliphate” the group proclaimed in 2014.

“I want to tell the rulers of Bangladesh that the jihad you see today is not the same that you knew in the past,” he said from a busy street in the militant group’s de facto capital of Raqqa, in Syria.

“The jihad that is waged today is a jihad under the shade of the Caliphate.”

Though Bangladesh has rejected the IS claim of responsibility for Friday’s attack, police said they were stepping up security in response to the video threat.

“We are taking this issue seriously. All our concerned units are working tirelessly,” said deputy police inspector general Shahidur Rahman.

Police believe the domestic Jamaat-ul-Mujahideen Bangladesh, which has pledged allegiance to Islamic State, played a significant role in organizing the band of privileged, educated young men who carried out the attack.

Police have said they are hunting for six members of the group suspected to have helped the attackers.

But foreign security experts say the scale and sophistication of the attack on the Holey Artisan bakery cafe pointed to some level of guidance from international militant groups.

Officials in Dhaka said on Tuesday police commandos had mistakenly shot dead a restaurant chef during the operation to end the siege.

H.T. Imam, a political adviser to Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, also said security officials had seen online warnings about an impending attack on Friday and ordered major hotels and restaurants in the neighborhood of the cafe shut.

But they missed the actual target, he said.

(Writing by Sanjeev Miglani; Editing by Robert Birsel)

Latest Boko Haram attack in Niger Forces thousands to flee

Nigerian refugees and other people displaced by the Boko Haram insurgence stand in queues after arriving in Nigeria, at Geidam, Nigeria

By Nellie Peyton

DAKAR (Reuters) – An estimated 50,000 people have fled Boko Haram attacks in southeast Niger since Friday, the U.N. refugee agency said on Tuesday, adding to a humanitarian crisis caused by the spread of violence in the region.

The Islamist group first took the town of Bosso near the Nigerian border on Friday in an attack in which 30 soldiers from Niger and two from Nigeria were killed. It was the deadliest assault in Niger by Boko Haram since April 2015.

A UNHCR statement said on Tuesday that civilians fleeing Bosso are mainly walking toward Toumour, about 30 km (18 miles) to the west. Some are continuing on to the town of Diffa and north toward Kabelawa, where a camp for the refugees is already near capacity with 10,000 people.

They are part of a growing crisis in the Diffa region near lake Chad, where Cameroon, Chad, Nigeria, and Niger meet and where Boko Haram has conducted more than 30 attacks this year, according to the United Nations.

In May, the Niger government estimated that there were more than 240,000 displaced people in the region.

“The welfare of these people and others forced to flee the violence in Bosso is of great concern,” UNHCR said. “Insecurity and lack of access have long hampered humanitarian operations in parts of the Diffa region, though Bosso is the only area where we do not implement projects directly.”

Clashes have continued in Bosso in recent days as both sides seek to retain control of the town. Niger troops briefly regained control of Bosso on Saturday morning, according to the defense ministry, but the militants retook it on Sunday night, Bosso Mayor Mamadou Bako said.

Reuters was unable to independently verify who had control of the town on Tuesday.

Boko Haram has been trying to establish an Islamic state adhering to strict Sharia law in northeast Nigeria since 2009. About 2.1 million people have been displaced and thousands have been killed during the insurgency.

(Reporting By Nellie Peyton; Editing by Edward McAllister and Tom Heneghan)

Texas Senate Advances Bill Banning Sharia Law

The Texas Senate has advanced a bill that would prohibit family courts in the state from considering Sharia Law when it conflicts with state law.

While the law itself does not mention Sharia Law by name, the intent of the bill from Senator Donna Campbell is to keep Sharia law from overriding federal or state Constitutions.  There had been concerns of non-Constitutional sources being used in family courts and dealing with marriage and divorce matters.

“A ruling or decision of a court, arbitrator, or administrative adjudicator under this title may not be based on a foreign law if the application of that law would violate a fundamental right guaranteed by the United States Constitution or the constitution or a statute of this state,” the bill states.

The Bill passed the Senate 20-11 after passing a House committee 5-1 last week.

“Sen. Campbell has done a great job in leading senators to advance the laws that protect our basic rights from infringement,” commented Lt. Gov. Dan Patrick in a statement. “SB 531 upholds Texas morals from foreign laws that contradict or violate our laws and our beliefs.”

An Islamic tribunal formed in North Texas earlier this year to arbitrate disputes between Muslims such as divorce proceedings.

“All our decisions point back to the Koran and Sunna … and what the prophet Mohammed left to us,” Dr. Taher el-Badawi, Islamic Tribunal judge, told KEYE TV.

Texas City Stands Up To Sharia Law

The city government of Irving, Texas is standing up and saying sharia law is not going to be legal within the bounds of their city.

A Sunni mosque in Irving had announced earlier this year they were forming an Islamic Tribunal to provide mediation of disputes in the Muslim community according to Sharia Law.  Now, the city has passed a resolution backing a Texas House Bill that would forbid the use of “foreign law” to decide issues within the city.

Irving Mayor Beth Van Duyne has been the subject of hate from the Muslim community because of her bold stand against Sharia Law.

“As Mayor of the City of Irving, I took an oath to uphold the laws of the State of Texas and the Constitution of the United States,” Duyne wrote earlier this year. “American citizens need to remember that their rights are guaranteed by the Constitution and I believe no one should subjugate themselves to anything less.”

However, she says this new law is not aimed at religion of any kind.

“This bill does not mention at all Muslims, sharia law, Islam, even religion,” Duyne stated.

Duyne said that she would work to fight for anyone whose civil rights is violated in any way by people connected to the “Tribunal”.

ISIS Disfigures 15 Women With Acid

Fifteen women who were not wearing a niqab have been disfigured with acid at the hands of the ISIS Female Police.

The women were abused in the Mosul neighborhood of Salamiya according to Kurdish officials.

They have implemented this punishment so that other women in the city will never consider removing or not wearing the niqab,” a Kurdistan Democratic Party official in Mosul, Saed Mamuzini said.

ISIS issued a warning in July to all women in Mosul that if they were caught without a full face veil they would be punished.

“This is not a restriction on freedom but to prevent her from falling into humiliation and vulgarity or to be a theater for the eyes of those who are looking,” The Islamic State said in its warning statement. “Anyone who is not committed to this duty and is motivated by glamour will be subject to the accountability and severe punishment to protect society from harm and to maintain the necessities or religion and protect it from debauchery.”

The Female Police unit has been caught using medieval torture devices to abuse and mutilate women who violate their regulations.

ISIS Issues All-Female Manifesto

A new “manifesto” for girls under the rule of ISIS has been issued telling them they can be married to a Jihadist as young as 9 and that they are to remain “hidden and veiled” to “serve their masters”.

The manifesto, “Women in the Islamic State: Manifesto and Case Study” was uploaded to a Jihadist forum used by ISIS and is written by the all-female Al-Khanssaa Brigade.  The same group is the one that beats and stones women and girls who do not follow strict Sharia Law.

The document focuses on Sharia law and a rebuttal of “western civilization” that includes human rights and equality for women.

“It is considered legitimate for a girl to be married at the age of 9. Most pure girls will be married by 16 or 17, while they are still young and active,” it says.

The document tells women to be covered from head to toe at all times, to stay inside their homes to cook, clean and take care of their husbands and that it’s acceptable for women to be locked inside their homes by their husbands.  Western women who join ISIS are encouraged to immediately marry a Jihadist and begin duties as a wife.

ISIS tells the women that it is fundamental women have a sedentary lifestyle and that it is her “divinely appointed right” to stay inside and care for husbands except in “narrowly defined circumstances.”

The document also justifies the enslavement of “infidel” women as sex slaves.

“Hamas & Sharia Law Have Taken Over UC Davis”

Anti-Semitism is on the rise at the University of California Davis as one Islamist is claiming victory at forcing Sharia law on the campus.

Jewish students were threatened and harassed as they were speaking out against a student government resolution to divest from Israel as part of the anti-Israel Boycott, Divestment and Sanctions movement.

The anti-Semites waved Palestinian flags in the face of the Jewish students before the 8-2 vote in favor of the anti-Semitic movement.

The pro-terrorists in the audience yelled “Allahu Akbar!” following the vote.  The vote was pushed by the pro-Hamas terrorist organization Students for Justice in Palestine.

Immediately after the vote, swastikas were spray painted on a Jewish fraternity’s home.

The celebration among Islamists on campus was loud and immediate.  Azka Fayyaz, who is a member of the University of California Davis student senate, posted on Facebook following the vote: “Hamas & Sharia law have taken over UC Davis.”

ISIS Steps Up Violent Recruitment of Children

ISIS is now the world’s biggest user of children as forces for their terrorist army.

ISIS calls the children forced into fighting “cubs of the Islamic State” and see them as key to taking over the Middle East.  They believe that using social media to promote the use of child fighters is a way to gain more young teens into the extremist groups.

ISIS is taking the children to special “indoctrination camps” where they are forced to convert to Islam, learn the details of the ISIS brand of Islam and then be trained on weapons and war tactics.

The children are also forced to attend executions and torture of people who violate ISIS version of Sharia Law.

ISIS recently sent on social media pictures of two children they described as “martyrs” for the cause after they were killed in U.S. airstrikes on ISIS bases.  One of the children, identified as Abu Ubaida, was described as the “youngest fighter in Islamic State.”

They also shared videos of children re-enacting the beheading of American journalist James Foley and changing “Allahu Akbar” while carrying about the “head” of their fake Foley.

Meriam Ibrahim’s Islamic Relatives Trying To Return Her To Jail

The Islamists family members of persecuted Christian Meriam Ibrahim are attempting to get the death sentence against her reinstated by trying to prove she was “born a Muslim.”

The family contends that because she’s a Muslim, her marriage to a Christian man is illegal under Sudan’s Sharia Law.

The lawyer hired by the family says they are going to ask Khartoum Religious Court to review the case and declare Meriam Ibrahim “belongs” to the men in her family.

Ibrahim is in hiding at the U.S. Embassy in Khartoum with her American husband and two children.  She has been unable to leave the country because of the government’s special police charging her with using illegal documents to leave the country.

Ibrahim’s lawyer Mohanem Mostafa said that the court has not officially notified her of the lawsuit but that he believes the court will dismiss the case.