MEMRI...All Eyes East

Iraqi President Talabani Criticizes Syrian President Assad for Supporting Turkish Military Action in Kurdistan

"A Military Solution to the PKK Problem is Futile"

Jalal Talabani: "True, the Kurdistan Workers Party [PKK] can be accused of carrying out terrorist operations from time to time, but what is the result? Would a military solution guarantee an end to this problem? We are convinced that it would not. Moreover, there is an important question... I believe it was a certain Turkish official who said: 'The number of PKK members in Turkey is such-and-such, while in the Kandil Mountains [in Kurdistan], they number such-and-such.' So let them get rid of the ones in their own territory, if they can. Maybe they can move around more easily in the Kurdistan province. My desire to avoid Turkish and Kurdish bloodshed and to protect the interests of Turkey and the Kurdish people makes me believe that a military solution to the PKK problem is futile."

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In Letter to U.N. Secretary-General, Lebanese Prime Minister Accuses Syria of Being Behind Fath Al-Islam

In a harsh letter to U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-Moon and to Arab League Secretary-General 'Amr Moussa, sent on October 11, 2007, Lebanese Prime Minister Fuad Al-Siniora accused Syria of being behind Fath Al-Islam. Al-Siniora stated that, according to information obtained from Fath Al-Islam detainees, the organization leaders had been in direct contact with Syrian intelligence officers. He added that most of the organization fighters had infiltrated Lebanon illegally through the Syrian border, and that Syrian intelligence had used the organization to further its political and security aims in Lebanon.

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Iranian President Ahmadinejad Reiterates Proposal for "Zionist State" in Canada or Alaska, Suggests International Committee of "Truth-Seekers" Examine Holocaust, 9/11

Mahmoud Ahmadinejad: "The Western governments that bear the standard of secularism, anti-religion, and lack of respect for the rights of the peoples, and for the followers of all Abrahamic religions, themselves consider the defense of the Zionist regime to be the most sacred value in the world. Zionism and the existence of the Zionist regime are so important to them that they do not even allow the raising of questions about the preparations and pretexts that led to the establishment of this regime."

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Jihad Commander in Afghanistan Sheikh Al-Ustadh Yasser in New Al-Sahab Video: "The American is an Infidel Fighting the Muslims – Hence, the Muslims Must Fight Him Everywhere"

On October 21, 2007, the Islamist website Al-Ekhlaas, hosted by Layered Technologies, Inc. in Texas, USA, posted a 90-minute video, produced by Al-Sahab, featuring an interview with Afghani jihad commander Sheikh Muhammad Yasser (known as Sheikh Al-Ustadh Yasser). The sheikh was released from an Afghan prison in March 2007 in exchange for an Italian journalist abducted by the Taliban. According to the video, he served as a minister in the three governments that preceded the rise of the Taliban, and later resigned from politics to become a lecturer at the Da'wa and Jihad University in Peshawar. The video further states that he supported the Taliban when it came to power. The following are the main points of the video:

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Palestinian Researcher: Building Giant Mosques in Europe is a Provocation that Harms the Muslims

In an article, Palestinian researcher Dr. Khaled Al-Hroub criticized the Muslims in Europe for not condemning terrorist attacks and thereby harming the image of the Muslims. He also argued against building giant mosques in Europe, saying that this provokes the host societies and works to the Muslims' disadvantage.

The following are the excerpts from the article:(1)


The Silence of Europe's Muslims Following Terrorist Attacks Has Hurt Their Image

"There has been an ongoing debate in Britain regarding the plans of some Muslims, namely the Tabligh Group, to build a mosque in East London that would be the biggest in Britain, if not in Europe. Reports on the mosque plans indicate that it will hold 40,000 people, with an option for an extension that will increase its capacity to 70,000... Why are the Muslims in Europe insisting on building mosques of such extravagant size? And why is it that the building of such mosques arouses public and political protest in the societies that host the Muslims?

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I wish more folk would pay more attention to their surroundings.