Author: Alejandro

“We think it’s crucial that the Muslim world realize that there are evangelical Christians in the U.S. in large numbers that want a fair solution.” – Ronald J. Sider, president of Evangelicals for Social Action Coalition of Evangelicals Voices Support for Palestinian State (New York Times) Chairman of the North American Fiqh Council, Muzammil Siddiqui,…

Gonzales’ testimony over “no disputes” about Big Brother NSA wiretapping program is contradicted by FBI chief Mueller: FBI Chief Disputes Gonzales On Spying (Washington Post) Suicide bombers attack neighborhood considered “safe” where Sunni and Shi’a Iraqis could live and spend time without fear of violence and sectarianism: Blast Kills at Least 25 in Long-Secure Baghdad…

Reagan-era appointees speak out against torture, denouncing it as immoral and against national interests: War Crimes and the White House: The Dishonor in a Tortured New ‘Interpretation’ of the Geneva Conventions (Washington Post) Five years after its peace plan was rejected by the opposite side, Arab League extend an olive branch to Israel–yet again: Arabs…

High stakes for the American Muslim community are involved as over 300 organizations and individuals are mentioned as “unindicted co-conspirators” as the Holy Land Foundation trial is finally set to begin after getting shut down more than seven years ago: Case Against Islamic Charity Opens (Washington Post) Iraqi Sunni bloc suspends government membership for a…

Panel of Muslim Scholars re-affirm military jihad as self-defense and opine that Muslims are free to choose to leave their faith if they want: Muslims Speak Out: What Islam Really Says About Violence, Human Rights and Other Religions (Washington Post) While the latest round of US-Iran-Iraq talks continue amid cool relations between Washington and Tehran,…

Pakistan goes from one extreme, letting Taliban supporters freely set themselves up in the Red Mosque, to another, having the authoritarian state appoint the mosque’s new Imam: Pakistan: PM to Choose New Imam for Lal Masjid (Adnkronos International) Recent bullish trends in Pakistan’s stock market have more to with the military’s manipulation of prices to…

Members of congress, latest US military action against sectarian policemen and Middle East analysts issue their respective rebuffs to Bush spin on recent Iraq report:  US House Votes for Troop Pullout (BBC News)  U.S. Troops Battle Iraqi Police, Gunmen (Reuters/Washington Post)  Al Qaeda Stronger, but is it the Major Factor in Iraq? (Christian Science Monitor) …

In the wake of the Red Mosque battle, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz promises no tolerance for extremism in religious schools and vows curriculum reform: Illegal Activities in Madressahs Not to be Tolerated: PM (The Dawn) As White House is due release “mixed results” Iraq benchmark report, CIA already gave dark assessment last year, saying, Iraq…

Alarmed by recent findings into Gonzales’ record on civil liberties, Washington Post editorial asks, “Why did it take an IG’s report and the span of two years before the attorney general became aware of the breadth and depth of violations that he ultimately deemed ‘a failure’ of law enforcement ‘to do our jobs’?”  Mr. Gonzales’s…