Turkey renews shelling Syrian forces
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- Published on Thursday, 04 October 2012 13:19
- Written by BC & Agencies
Turkish artillery have hit targets near Syria's Tel Abyad border town for a second day, killing several Syrian soldiers according to activists and security sources, after a mortar bomb fired from the area killed five Turkish civilians.
Palestinian groups back Mahmoud Sarsak, tell FC Barcelona to reject "complicity with Israeli crimes"
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- Published on Wednesday, 03 October 2012 19:18
- Written by BC & Agencies
Palestinians have offered strong support to Palestine footballer and ex-prisoner Mahmoud Sarsak in his refusal of an invitation by FC Barcelona to attend a match at the same time as an Israeli soldier.
In addition, a prisoners' support group in Gaza has strongly condemned Palestinian Authority officials for accepting the invitation in the first place.
Makkah summit spreads message of global peace
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- Published on Wednesday, 15 August 2012 11:43
- Written by BC-Stuff
MAKKAH: The holy city — the direction the world's 1.5 billion Muslims turn to five times daily to pray — had a festive air last night for two major reasons. One, the night preceding Ramadan 27 is considered highly significant in the Islamic calendar. And, two, almost all the heads of state of Muslim states from across the globe gathered for a summit called by the King Abdullah to unify and strengthen the crisis-riven Muslim world.
Turkey's Abdullah Gul, Egypt's Muhammad Mursi, Jordan's King Abdallah, Iran's Mahmoud Ahemdinejad, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa Al Thani, Yemen's Abdo Rabbi Mansour Hadi, Palestine's Mahmoud Abbas, Malaysia's Najib Razak, Sudan's Omar Bashir, Afghanistan's Hamid Karzai, Tunisia's Moncef Al-Marzouki, Pakistan's Asif Ali Zardari, Bangladesh's Mohammad Zillur Rahman, all of them are here to discuss, plan and implement a policy that puts focus on finding denominators that are common to all Muslims. The king personally received them in a display of traditional Saudi hospitality.
Turkish court orders Internet access to anti-Islam film blocked in Turkey
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- Published on Thursday, 27 September 2012 02:07
- Written by BC & Agencies
An Ankara court ruled on Wednesday to block Internet access within Turkey to an anti-Islam movie which attacks the Prophet Muhammad and which has sparked outrage across the Middle East, leading to deadly protests throughout the region.
King Abdullah urges Islamic unity vision
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- Published on Monday, 13 August 2012 21:39
- Written by Faheem Al-Hamid and Muhammad Al-Mukhtar Al-Faal
Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah last month emphasized the need to strengthen Arab and Islamic unity.
"I am servant of you and of the Arab and Islamic world without any discrimination. You are brothers and true brothers of the Arab Islamic nation," he said.
King Abdullah made this comment while addressing Islamic scholars and other prominent personalities who came to greet him on the seventh anniversary of his accession to throne.
"Saudi people are brothers of the Arab and Islamic nation. We consider them as our brothers. We expect the same love, sincerity and unity from our brothers in the Arab and Islamic world," he added.
Why Are Muslims So Concerned with Muhammad?
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- Published on Saturday, 15 September 2012 14:46
- Written by Haroon Moghul
Following the recent violence in Libya and the storming of the U.S. embassy in Egypt, many media outlets will report that Muslims find portrayals of the Prophet Muhammad—images, videos, movies—to be blasphemous and offensive.
While many Muslims (especially Sunnis) find portrayals of the Prophet Muhammad, and other sacred religious figures (Jesus, Mary, Moses, etc.) to be offensive in and of themselves, this doesn't quite explain the degree of offense Muslims feel when the Prophet Muhammad is mocked. As was the case in "The Innocence of Muslims," that film that is supposed to offend me but, based on the 14-minute trailer, only embarrasses me... and leads me to ask two desperate questions: How is it that a $5 million budget can buy you so little? And, who produces a 14-minute trailer? That's just offensive.
Victimized Bulgaria Muslims
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- Published on Wednesday, 08 August 2012 09:58
- Written by BC-Stuff
A deadly attack that killed five Israeli tourists in Bulgaria is leaving Bulgarian Muslims feeling victimized over a plethora of media reports linking the sizable minority and their faith to violence.
"Days of the terrorist attack in Burgas, the Bulgarian media irresponsibly keep publishing opinions about a potential link of the Bulgarian Muslims and their cooperation in the conducting of the terrorist attack and a threat of new similar actions," the office of Bulgaria's Chief Mufti Mustafa Hadzhi said in a statement cited by Sofia News Agency.
"We are deeply worried by the fact that these unfounded media insinuations are occurring during the Holy Month of Ramadan."
Diversity Of Islam Highlighted In New Pew Report
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- Published on Saturday, 25 August 2012 16:53
- Written by Chris Lisee
Nearly all Muslims can agree on the basic beliefs of Islam: There is one God, Muhammad is God's prophet, Muslims should fast during the holy month of Ramadan and give alms to the poor.
Yet beyond these central pillars of the faith, Muslims worldwide vastly differ as religious convictions are shaped by cultural and social contexts, according to a new report by the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life.
"The World's Muslims: Unity and Diversity" draws on 38,000 face-to-face interviews in 39 countries, and finds that Muslims differ sharply over questions of faith like who counts as a Muslim and what spiritual practices are acceptable.
Rohingya Muslims: A brief history of centuries-long persecution
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- Published on Saturday, 04 August 2012 22:28
- Written by Syed Zubair Ahmad
The recent ethnic clashes between the Rohingya Muslims and the Buddhist community in the Rakhine (or Arakan) province of Myanmar have attracted global attention though late – the latest is the UN’s decision to probe into the killings and human rights violation there. An ugly incident of rape and murder of a Buddhist woman allegedly by three Rohingya Muslims in the end of May this year turned into a disaster for Rohingya Muslim community in Myanmar.
There are more than 800,000 Rohingyas residing in Burma, mostly in the province of Rakhine. According to several UN reports, Rohingyas are one of the most persecuted minorities in the world. The military Junta striped Rohingyas off all the rights of a citizen through a law called Citizenship Law in 1982, thus making Rohingyas the only stateless community of the world.
Saudi Arabia to Build All-Women City
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- Published on Sunday, 19 August 2012 11:05
- Written by BC & Agencies
Saudi Arabia is planning to build a city exclusively for women, who will be permitted to pursue their desired careers. Land has reportedly been allocated near Hofuf and al-Ahsa airport in the eastern province.
The idea behind the new city is to establish a balance between work and life for Saudi women who follow strict Islamic practices.
The construction of the city is expected to begin in 2013. Thousands of jobs are likely to be created in textiles, pharmaceuticals and food-related industries which will also be run by women.
The Saudi Industrial Property Authority (Modon) will be responsible for building the women-only city.
Global travel industry gears up for Muslim tourist boom
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- Published on Saturday, 04 August 2012 05:45
- Written by Martin Abbugao
From halal spas to prayer rooms at airport terminals, the global tourism industry is gearing up for a projected boom in Muslim travel over the next decade, experts say.
Their growing number and affluence means Muslims — especially from the oil-rich Middle East — are travelling like never before, and it is a trend that looks set to gather pace.
Spending by Muslim tourists is growing faster than the global rate and is forecast to reach $192 billion a year by 2020, up from $126 billion in 2011, according to a study by two companies specializing in the market.
The study, made available to AFP, was conducted in 47 countries by Singapore-based halal travel specialist Crescentrating, along with DinarStandard, a US-based firm that tracks the Muslim lifestyle market.
