dagblog - Comments for "Journalist James Foley Reportedly Beheaded By ISIS"

I would like to alter my

artappraiser — Wed, 17 Sep 2014 09:13:05 +0000

In reply to I thought of posting this,

I would like to alter my "cannon fodder" terminology. It should be "sicko young male violence junkies from around the world used as fodder." Anthony Burgess would no doubt think this a little too over the top to be believable; even Quentin Tarantino might think it too much::

ISIS Draws a Steady Stream of Recruits From Turkey
By Ceylan Yeginsu, New York Times, Sept. 15, 2014

ANKARA, Turkey — Having spent most of his youth as a drug addict in one of the poorest neighborhoods of Turkey’s capital, Can did not think he had much to lose when he was smuggled into Syria with 10 of his childhood friends to join the world’s most extreme jihadist group.

After 15 days at a training camp in the Syrian city of Raqqa, the de facto headquarters of the group, the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, the 27-year-old Can was assigned to a fighting unit. He said he shot two men and participated in a public execution. It was only after he buried a man alive that he was told he had become a full ISIS fighter.

“When you fight over there, it’s like being in a trance,” said Can, who asked to be referred to only by his middle name for fear of reprisal. “Everyone shouts, ‘God is the greatest,’ which gives you divine strength to kill the enemy without being fazed by blood or splattered guts,” he said.

Hundreds of foreign fighters, including some from Europe and the United States, have joined the ranks of ISIS in its self-proclaimed caliphate [...]

It doesn't matter if what the braggart says is true or not, it matters that he would brag about the high. The greatest gives you "divine" strength to get high on blood and guts with your homies. What ever happened to that Allah the all merciful and most merciful guy? I thought the greeting he inspired was peace be unto you not fear and loathing of be unto you?

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the

artappraiser — Tue, 09 Sep 2014 01:10:37 +0000

In reply to Journalist James Foley Reportedly Beheaded By ISIS

Zeid Ra'ad Al Hussein, the new United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights at the Human Rights Council 27th Session on Sept. 8:

[....] the Takfiris who recently murdered James Foley and hundreds of other defenceless victims in Iraq and Syria – do they believe they are acting courageously? Barbarically slaughtering captives? What virtue are they demonstrating exactly? They reveal only what a Takfiri state would look like, should this movement actually try to govern in the future. It would be a harsh, mean-spirited, house of blood, where no shade would be offered, nor shelter given, to any non-Takfiri in their midst. In the Takfiri world, unless your view is identical to theirs – and theirs is extremely narrow and unyielding - you forfeit your right to life. In the Takfiri mind, as we have seen in Nigeria, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Yemen, Kenya, Somalia, Mali, Libya, Syria and Iraq, and throughout the world where they have attacked innocent people, including on 9/11, there is no love of neighbour -- only annihilation to those Muslims, Christians, Jews and others (altogether the rest of humanity) who believe differently to them. [....]

The latest report by the Independent International Commission of Inquiry on the Syrian Arab Republic brings fresh evidence that this ancient civilisation has devolved into a slaughterhouse, where children are tortured in front of their parents or executed in public, amid wanton killing and destruction. That report will be fully explored in the course of an interactive dialogue during this session.

Spreading outwards from its initial anchorage in the chaos of the Syrian conflict, the Takfiri or so-called ISIL group that currently in effect controls large swathes of northern Iraq has demonstrated absolute and deliberate disregard for human rights. The scale of its use of brute violence against ethnic and religious groups is unprecedented in recent times, as the Special Session of this Council made clear last week.

I solemnly remind this Council that widespread or systematic attacks on segments of the civilian population because of their ethnic background or religious beliefs constitute a crime against humanity, for which those responsible must be held accountable. I would also like to stress that international law requires that both the State and armed groups take all measures to minimise the impact of violence on civilians, respect the principles of distinction and proportionality when carrying out military operations, and ensure that civilians can leave areas affected by violence in safety and dignity.

From a human rights perspective, it is clear that the immediate and urgent priority of the international community should be to halt the increasingly conjoined conflicts in Iraq and Syria. In particular, dedicated efforts are urgently needed to protect religious and ethnic groups, children – who are at risk of forcible recruitment and sexual violence – and women, who have been the targets of severe restrictions.

The second step, as my predecessor consistently stressed, must be to ensure accountability for gross violations of human rights and other international crimes. Impunity can only lead to further conflict and abuses, as revenge festers and the wrong lessons are learned. Accountability, and public acknowledgment of the wrongs that victims have suffered, is important to ensuring that crimes will not be repeated, and the only way to begin to repair a sense of common community in these devastated societies. Iraq, with its new prime minister, should consider accession to the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court [....]

That does not address my

rmrd0000 — Sat, 30 Aug 2014 01:29:51 +0000

In reply to It seems you want Washington

That does not address my point. Why would. I support any movement that would kill me because of my faith?

It seems you want Washington

Peter — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 19:15:52 +0000

In reply to It seems you want to replace

It seems you want Washington or Brussels to make these decisions for the People of the ME, when you parrot Western propaganda. The West has no concern for the people of the ME only our mercantile interests and control.

If you want to talk about death just revisit our last dance of the death cult in Iraq where we dispatched hundreds of thousands of innocents to their bloody doom.

It seems you want to replace

rmrd0000 — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 18:16:04 +0000

In reply to Where you see reasoned

It seems you want to replace one group of tyrants with another group of tyrants. Those who disagree with ISIS face death. Wow that's a great improvement.

Where you see reasoned

Peter — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 16:56:03 +0000

In reply to More:

Where you see reasoned opposition to the Islamic State I see panicked purveyors of the status quo, frightened talking heads and so called "Leaders" who will say and eventually do almost anything to save their heads. When these pundits do stoop to talk to people in the streets of the ME you get a much different perspective on the attitudes about life and the future of the ME.

These fools still think they can tell the people of the world what they want or should have but that dominance is a rapidly fading illusion. The Ruling Class of the ME is facing their battle of Armageddon but the US and the Western Powers may create a true Apocalypse.

artappraiser — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 06:04:37 +0000

In reply to support growing around the

SNC Head: IS more of a threat to Muslims than Christians
By Mohammad Nemr for An Nahar, translated by Al-Monitor, Aug. 28, 2014

[....] Muslims are the most affected

Everyone fears the danger that IS represents for minorities, especially after the Yazidis in Iraq and several tribes were forced to leave their homes; in addition, the Christians were forced to choose between converting to Islam, paying a jizya [tax] or being killed.

However, the head of the opposition Syrian National Council, George Sabra, thinks that “the fear that IS creates affects Muslims more than Christians. The proof is that the Sunni Muslims in Raqqa were the first to face IS and the first to become its victims.” [....]

The Islamic State and the regime

When speaking of the danger represented by IS, some believe that if dictatorship is not eliminated, there is no point in eliminating terrorism, especially since the second is inevitably the result of the first. It is important to eliminate a disease from its roots instead of simply cutting the branches off. Sabra agrees with this logic and believes that “terrorism cannot be divided.” He explained, “IS, which is spread across the Syrian and Iraqi lands, is one entity. It will not be logical for its presence in Iraq, and not Syria, to be a danger for the region, especially since the Syrians endured its danger first.”

On the subject of “terrorism is one,” Sabra believes that “the terrorism of the regime and its allies, in addition to the security, sectarian and military reinforcements it recruited from Lebanon and Iraq, represent a pressure on the Syrians’ lives, inciting violence, extremism and instability in the region.”

Source of terrorism

The Syrian opposition does not want the US role to be limited to fighting IS but to also include the Syrian regime, because, according to Sabra, “It is well known that the Syrian regime and the Iranian intelligence services have significantly contributed in establishing the Islamic State’s plan and supporting it.” He said, “Two years ago, IS occupied Raqqa and it is still present in the province’s headquarters. When the regime’s aircraft shell the schools and hospitals, they keep away from the headquarters. IS also used its military and terrorist expertise against the Syrians and the Free Syrian Army, but there were never any significant clashes with [Syrian President] Bashar al-Assad’s forces.”

The Syrian opposition addressed a letter to the US administration stating that Syrians are waiting to truly fight terrorism, and that it cannot be done unless the head of terrorism is eliminated, which is the Syrian regime [....]

Making sense of Isis
By Aijaz Zaka Syed, Print Op-Ed, News International (Pakistan), August 29, 2014

[....] After facing long years of Islam-bashing and being blamed for the crimes of Al-Qaeda and others, this is just what we needed. A grand PR nightmare and disaster for an already much demonised global community.

An Indian friend who has been enjoying the fruits of the good life in Norway and never stops singing paeans of the generosity and tolerance of the Scandinavian countries, talks of a sudden change in the way people view Muslims now. If this is the case in the Norwegian paradise, you can imagine the love and goodwill the faithful are showered with in mainland Europe or America.

The Islamic State and the so-called caliphate it promises is like our worst nightmare come true.

As Yvonne Ridley reasons, Isis has achieved in a matter of weeks what the US and its allies failed to do in 10 years of occupation. This hasn’t happened by accident; military victories on this scale take strategic planning and inside help. So who, exactly, is behind Isis?

More importantly, who stands to benefit from this carefully calibrated mayhem in the heart of the Middle East? The same folks who created Al-Qaeda and used it ingenuously and effectively for years until Osama and his baby had exhausted their uses and were past their sell-by date.

Look at the uncanny similarity in the methods used by Al-Qaeda and IS – from the chilling murder of Daniel Pearl to the barbaric beheading of James Foley this month, both US journalists incidentally. There is a method in the madness.

I hate to sound like a conspiracy theorist but the scepter of Isis – and all such groups – is evidently a grand conspiracy against Islam and its followers, just as Al-Qaeda had been. And you see the fingerprints of CIA, Mossad and their willing collaborators all over this baby.

As author Mahdi Darius Nazemroaya argues, the targeting of Christians and other minorities in Iraq and Syria and attempts to remap the Middle East are aimed at paving the way for the clash of civilisations that the likes of Samuel Huntington and Bernard Lewis have obsessed over for years.

So it is good that Arab and Muslim states seem to be waking up to the monster that is staring them in the face. The recent Arab ministers’ brainstorming in Jeddah and the Saudi-Iran confabulations seeking a common front against Isis are welcome. So are the strong denunciations by top Islamic scholars and ordinary Muslims [.....]

support growing around the

artappraiser — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 05:59:37 +0000

In reply to Journalist James Foley Reportedly Beheaded By ISIS

...support is growing around the world... -"Peter" upthread

IS defies Islamic values: Foreign Minister
Azuhaar Abdul Azeez, Haveeru Online (Maldives), Aug. 28, 2014

Maldivian Foreign Minister Dhunya Maumoon has declared that the acts of Islamic State (IS) in Iraq and Syria are out of context according to the values preached by Islam, and that the religion is being ridiculed globally because of their assumed caliphate and the havoc they have created.

Declaring so in a Foreign Ministry press release, the Minister said that the acts of IS are acts of terrorism and defied all Human Rights. She said that due to terror they were spreading, the moderate Islam and the Muslim community are losing its prestige globally.

“Accepting and maintaining peace, as preached by Islam and other basic principles of unity in our religion contradict with the organization’s behaviour. Because of their actions, our glorious religion is being tarnished worldwide”, the press release reads [...]

Jihadists anti-Islamic: exiled Brotherhood spiritual guide
Agence France Presse, Aug. 27, 2014

Doha (AFP) - The organisation of exiled Muslim Brotherhood spiritual guide Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi said Wednesday that the actions of "deviant groups" like the jihadist Islamic State were in violation of Islamic law.

Qaradawi's International Union of Muslim Scholars described as "criminal and unlawful" an offensive led by the group's fighters against non-Muslims in northern Iraq earlier this month.

The Egyptian-born cleric wields huge influence with the Brotherhood's supporters across the Arab world through his frequent appearances on Al-Jazeera television from his base in exile in Qatar.

His group said it "categorically prohibits the actions of some excessive and deviant groups, such as killing innocent Muslims and non-Muslims, under the cover of repugnant sectarianism one time, or under the name of the so-called Islamic State the other time."[...]

Syria rebels back US strikes against IS
Sky News, 28 August 2014

[....] 'We support US strikes against Daesh,' said Abu Al-Muqdad, a fighter in Aleppo with the Islamic Front, a rebel coalition, using the Arabic acronym for the Islamic State (IS).

'They have ravaged the country, oppressed the people, make no distinction between combatants and civilians, and slaughtered with knives,' he said.

'I hope they bomb them and not a single one is left. Those people are not Muslims, they are infidels,' added another rebel officer, who heads a special operations battalion within the Islamic Front coalition [....]

Syrian rebels initially welcomed jihadist fighters into their battle against Syrian President Bashar al-Assad.

But IS's insistence on dominating territory captured from the regime, its harsh interpretation of Islam, and abuses including decapitations have alienated many rebels and civilians [....]

But many rebels continue to see IS and the Syrian regime as two faces of the same coin.

'I'm in favour of American air strikes on the areas controlled by Daesh because they and the regime, they're one and the same,' said Jaber, who heads the Islamic Front's military police unit in eastern Aleppo city.

'The regime is bombing us with explosive barrel bombs and Daesh is killing our people with knives,' he said [....}

Activist Abdullah is equally eager to see IS militants targeted.

'Daesh is a new enemy that hides under the cover of Islam. It's totally unacceptable.'[....]

Future, Jamaa al-Islamiya back Army, reject extremism
Daily Star (Lebanon), Aug. 22, 2014

SIDON, Lebanon: The Future Movement and Al-Jamaa al-Islamiya, the Lebanese branch of the Muslim Brotherhood, voiced support Thursday for the Lebanese Army and security forces in their battle against terrorism, while rejecting any form of religious extremism [....]

Speaking to reporters after the meeting, Bassam Hammoud, Jamaa’s political representative in south Lebanon, said: “We affirm that terrorism and extremism are rejected by everyone. We reject all forms of extremism and all forms of killing by any party. We support the state project. We support the security forces and the Lebanese Army. But we also refuse that the so-called ‘Daesh’ be used as a pretext to muzzle the freedom of opinion and expression.”

He was referring to the Al-Qaeda splinter group, the Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria (ISIS), whose Arabic acronym is “Daesh.”[....]

IS Massacre Leaves Families of Victims Stunned

By Wassim Bassem, Iraq Pulse, translated by Al-Monitor, Aug. 28, 2014

[....] Saad Hussein, the director of the Martyrs Foundation in Hamza al-Gharbi, believes that disclosing the names of the victims and considering them martyrs would ease the pain of their families; he recalled the missing persons of the mass graves under Saddam Hussein’s regime, where families suffered greatly before the dead were recognized as martyrs.

Sabrin al-Khafaji, a psychological researcher said, “This incident left significant psychological scars within society, notably the belief that what happened is a sectarian liquidation, which greatly affects coexistence within society.

Reply downthread.

artappraiser — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 03:16:35 +0000

In reply to Recent events would seem to

Reply downthread.

You do understand that Egypt

Peter — Fri, 29 Aug 2014 02:21:10 +0000

In reply to Response to Peter from above

You do understand that Egypt is a secular Western style military dictatorship masquerading as a democracy. When it is incorporated into the Caliphate, Sharia Law will replace any of the institutions that are racist.

Cannon-fodder usually refers to conscripts wasted on a losing cause while volunteers make a Conquering Army.