News and Analysis (12/3/16)

Feds say the leader of one of New Jersey’s largest mosques should have called detention and harassment suffered at the hands of the Israelis a “conviction,” but Qatani insists that he “was never told that he was convicted of anything”:

• Muslim Cleric Heads Back to Court to Fight off Deportation (AP /abc News)

“Nobody even offered to help an 18-year-old girl,” he said. “That means something. Her phone was dying. You offer help — it doesn’t matter the race, religion, or the country” — the victim’s father:

• Drunk Men Screaming Trump’s Name Try to Rip Off Muslim Student’s Hijab as Straphangers Stand Idly by on East Side Subway, Cops Say (NY Daily News)

The good news is that Eric Trump says Muslims will not need to carry IDs, but then he ordered the pork chop for dinner that he never ate, causing the Allah Made Me Funny tour vet to ask, “Are you trying to mess with me here?”

• This Muslim Comedian Sat Next To Donald Trump’s Son On A Plane To Scotland (Buzzfeed)

Islamic teaching both promotes and benefits from women’s rights, forbids forced conversions, “requires Muslims to respect the Bible and the Torah, and … preaches universality and tolerance for all cultures and traditions”:

• The 4 Essential Facts About Islam You Really Need to Know (Mic)

Persecuted in both the East and the West, the Ahmadis, in whose religious beliefs the return of Jesus (pbuh) plays a central role, are not allowed to call themselves Muslims in Pakistan and are denied a Christmas booth in Germany:

• Muslims ‘Forced to Leave Christmas Market After Setting Up Islam Information Stand’ (Metro97M)

Rather than tear up the agreement, Foreign Relations Committee and a rumored candidate for secretary of state under Trump Sen. Bob Corker (R-TN) , would prefer making the Iranians adhere to the agreement to keep our allies on board:

• Why Iran’s Nuclear Program Is Back on US Agenda (Christian Science Monitor)

Small world? When Elizabeth I “sent a Lancashire blacksmith, Thomas Dallam, to Constantinople in 1599 with a [gift] … for the sultan … his Turkish guide turned out to be “an Englishman, borne in Chorley in Lancashire” named Finch:

• Queen Elizabeth I’s Islam (NY Times)

If Keith Ellison becomes DNC chair, will the number of Muslims in Congress drop by 50%?

• Is Keith Ellison the Future of the DNC? (Christian Science Monitor)

“The reshuffles affected the country’s top religious body known as the Council of Senior Scholars composed of 21 members … [and] the 150-member Shura Council,” of which thirty members remain women:

• Saudi King Shakes up Top Religious, Advisory Council (AP /abc News)

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