Free Republic

SUCH is the underlying suspicion and fear of Arabs and Islam in the US that if this paper or any voice of Arab opinion were to state a clear preference for either of the candidates in the US election, it would do them no good. It is especially so for Barack Obama, who has been subject to a crude smear campaign of which the Nazis would have been proud, suggesting that he is a secret radical Muslim and therefore soft on Al-Qaeda and terrorism. It is encouraging that so many ordinary Americans have seen through the sewer politics of those...

In a groundbreaking meeting, King Abdullah of Saudi Arabia recently hosted talks between the Afghan government and the Taliban militant group, according to a source familiar with the talks. The historic four-day meeting took place during the last week of September in the Saudi city of Mecca, according to the source, who spoke on the condition of anonymity due to the sensitivity of the negotiations. King Abdullah broke fast during the Eid al-Fitr holiday with the 17-member Afghan delegation -- an act intended to show his commitment to ending the conflict. Eid al-Fitr marks the end of Ramadan, the Muslim...

Barack Obama & Khalid Al-Mansour (VIDEO)

Taliban leaders are holding Saudi-brokered talks with the Afghan government to end the country's bloody conflict -- and are severing their ties with al Qaeda, sources close to the historic discussions have told CNN. The militia, which has been intensifying its attacks on the U.S.-led coalition that toppled it from power in 2001 for harboring Osama bin Laden's terrorist network, has been involved four days of talks hosted by Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah, says the source. The talks -- the first of their kind aimed at resolving the lengthy conflict in Afghanistan -- mark a significant move by the Saudi...

Sheikh says women’s modesty laws not stringent enough, revelation of both eyes causes ‘corrupt behavior, conflicts with Islamic principles’

A Muslim cleric in Saudi Arabia has called on women to wear a full veil, or niqab, that reveals only one eye. Sheikh Muhammad al-Habadan said showing both eyes encouraged women to use eye make-up to look seductive.

Please, forgive me for presenting this article with my highlights. (I could highlight everything actually). I knew I like Michael Totten, but in this article he exceeded my high expectations. Follow the link to the original to bypass my highlights. Senator Barack Obama said something at the presidential debate last week that almost perfectly encapsulates the difference between his foreign policy and his opponent’s: “Secretary of Defense Robert Gates himself acknowledges the war on terrorism started in Afghanistan and it needs to end there.” I don’t know if Obama paraphrased Gates correctly, but if so, they’re both wrong.If Afghanistan were...

YouTube has deleted Pat Condell’s latest video, for “terms of use violation.” Which apparently means, “criticism of Saudi Arabia.” So here it is again.

Today we look at the latest moves from Al Qaeda, Pakistan sacks its Pro-Taliban ISI boss and finally a look at the role that Sharia Banking may be playing in the home mortgage crisis in America. That plus the latest in the Somalia Piracy Case, including the latest in the mysterious Iranian frigate-- does it have a nuke on board, plus the latest from the world of transnational gangs and Border Security. Running time 60 Minutes.

A young woman in Saudi Arabia who defied ultra-conservative kingdom's ban on women driving was injured when the car span out of control and plunged into a stream, a newspaper reported on Tuesday. The unnamed woman in her 20s "stole" her brother's car on Sunday, picked up a female friend and drove at high speed through a town in the Eastern Province before losing control of the vehicle, Al-Riyadh said. The car hit an electricity pole and plunged into an irrigation channel. Both the driver and her friend were taken to hospital in serious condition, the paper said. There have...

Iranian Research Center: Saudi Arabia Seeks to Topple Iranian Regime An article published by Iran Diplomacy, [1] an international relations and foreign policy research center headed by former Iranian ambassador to France (2002-2005) Mohammad Sadegh Kharrazi (brother of Iranian Foreign Relations Steering Council head Kamal Kharrazi [2] ), accused Saudi Arabia of seeking to topple the Iranian regime and to attain regional hegemony. The article also accused Saudi Arabia of suppressing its Shi'ite minority, "for whom Iran is a source of inspiration," and warned about the possibility of an intra-Muslim war in the region. Following are excerpts from the article,...

Top oil exporter Saudi Arabia has trimmed oil supplies to international majors and U.S. refiners since the start of September, industry sources said on Monday. "They were marketing their crude very aggressively from June through August, but they slowed it down for September and October," said one industry source at an oil major on condition of anonymity. The kingdom had already throttled back on supplies even before it signed up to an OPEC deal earlier this month to trim output that exceeded the producer group's targets, industry sources said. Saudi supply to international oil majors was down around 5 percent...

Riyadh - A Saudi court will next month hear a plea for divorce from an eight-year-old girl married off by her father to a man in his fifties, the Arabic-language daily Al-Watan reported. It said the girl’s mother had filed the divorce case with the court at Unayzah 220 kilometres (135 miles) north of Riyadh, and cited lawyer Abdullah Jtili as saying the father had arranged the marriage without telling the girl. "She doesn’t know yet that she has been married," added Jtili of the girl who is about to begin her fourth year at primary school. Al-Watan said relatives...

YouTube - aljazeera channel is an example of racism in the ARAB WORLD...http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p94t2YkoGQo This Arab admits on video that: "the Arabs are the most racist people in the world".  

Back in May 2006 Nina Shea, director of Hudson Institute’s Center for Religious Freedom wrote in the Washington Post, “Saudi Arabia’s public schools have long been cited for demonizing the West as well as Christians, Jews and other ‘unbelievers.’ But after the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001—in which 15 of the 19 hijackers were Saudis—that was all supposed to change.” In fact major changes were announced publicly. Shea cites a Saudi embassy spokesman who said in 2005, “We have reviewed our educational curriculums. We have removed materials that are inciteful [sic] or intolerant towards people of other faiths.” This was...

The wonders of clicking on "Stumble" from the stumble-upon-it tool bar brings us internet charm such as this: braingoodbye.com: American Idol Uses goats In The Mecca Version They should have brought Anthony Bourdain and the travel channel to see that show, I wonder what would the viewers think about Saudi Arabia then. Oh - those Islamophobes are just trying to give Arabs a bad name, by reporting the truth. BTW, next week airs the show with Bordain in Egypt. Looking forward to count Coptic Christian Egyptians telling us how wonderfully tolerant that place is.

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia — Arabs across the ideological spectrum, from secular-minded liberals to Muslim hard-liners, are denouncing a top Saudi cleric's edict that it was permissible to kill the owners of satellite TV stations that show "immoral" content. Many expressed worry the recent comments by Sheik Saleh al-Lihedan — chief of the kingdom's highest tribunal, the Supreme Judiciary Council — would fuel terrorism, encouraging attacks on station employees and owners.

The Prince Alwaleed Bin Talal Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding Edmund A. Walsh School of Foreign Service Georgetown University cmcu.georgetown.edu _________________________________ The Prince Alwaleed Center for Muslim-Christian Understanding will be hosting a conference -- "Is There a Role for Shari'ah in Modern States?" -- at Georgetown University on October 23rd, 2008. The conference will be taking place from 9:30am to 5pm. A tentative schedule can be found below. --- 10:45am --- Panel 1: Rethinking Islam? Myths and Realities of Islamic Law Nathan Brown, "Shari'ah and Constitutional Reform" Sherman Jackson, "Can Shari'ah be Reformed?" Jonathan Brown, "Shari'ah Meets Reality: Giving Fatwas in...

Saudi Cleric Muhammad Al-Munajid saying Mickey Mouse should be killed.

Mickey Mouse is a corrupting influence and must die, a Muslim cleric has declared. Sheikh Muhammad Munajid claimed the mouse is "one of Satan's soldiers" and makes everything it touches impure. But he warned that depictions of the creature in cartoons such as Tom and Jerry, and Disney's Mickey Mouse, had taught children that it was in fact loveable. The cleric, a former diplomat at the Saudi embassy in Washington DC, said that under Sharia, both household mice and their cartoon counterparts must be killed. Mr Munajid was asked to give Islam's teaching on mice during a religious affairs programme...

Saudi Arabia walked out on OPEC yesterday. It said it would not honor the cartel's production cut. It was tired of rants from Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and the well-dressed oil minister from Iran. As the world's largest crude exporter, the kingdom in the desert took its ball and went home. As the Saudis left the building the message was shockingly clear. According to The New York Times, “Saudi Arabia will meet the market’s demand,” a senior OPEC delegate said. “We will see what the market requires and we will not leave a customer without oil." OPEC will still have...

Saudi Arabia walked out on OPEC yesterday, saying it would not honor the cartel's production cut. It was tired of rants from Hugo Chavez of Venezuela and the well-dressed oil minister from Iran. As the world's largest crude exporter, the kingdom in the desert took its ball and went home. As the Saudis left the building, the message was shockingly clear. “Saudi Arabia will meet the market’s demand,” a senior OPEC delegate told the New York Times. “We will see what the market requires and we will not leave a customer without oil." OPEC will still have lavish meetings and...

Hours after suffering a rare setback in a negotiating session at OPEC’s headquarters, Saudi Arabian officials assured world markets on Wednesday that they would ignore the wishes of other cartel members and continue to pump plenty of oil. The late-night bargaining session ended early Wednesday morning with a surprise declaration that OPEC would cut production to shore up sagging prices. Saudi negotiators publicly endorsed that position, but then spent much of Wednesday privately spreading the word that they did not feel bound by it. The back-and-forth illustrated new pressures and power politics at play in the group that controls 40...

Saudi Arabia, Egypt seek new attack, utility helicopters By Craig Hoyle Two Middle Eastern nations have requested purchases worth a combined $774 million to boost their inventories of US-sourced utility and attack helicopters. Saudi Arabia wants to buy 12 Boeing AH-64D Apache Longbow attack helicopters and related equipment worth up to $598 million, with the aircraft to join 12 A-model Apaches already in its inventory. Announced by the US Defense Security Cooperation Agency on 9 September, the request also covers the provision of General Electric T700-701D engines and Lockheed Martin Arrowhead modernised target acquisition designation sight/pilot night vision sensors, plus...

 Saudi Columnist to Religious Police: Revoke Ban on Selling Cats and Dogs The Saudi religious police recently demanded that the Jeddah municipality ban pet shops from selling dogs and cats, on the grounds that Islam forbids it because of the concern that displaying the animals in shop windows could be exploited by young people for courtship purposes. [1] The ban dumbfounded Arab columnists, provoking several articles on the subject. In an August 5, 2008 column in the Kuwaiti daily Awan, Saudi columnist Samar Al-Muqrin wrote that there should be a distinction between stray cats and house cats, and called...

New evidence has emerged that Democratic presidential candidate Barack Obama was closely associated as early as age 25 to a key adviser to a Saudi billionaire who had mentored the founding members of the Black Panthers.

I think you will enjoy this gentleman's take on the encroaching Islamofascism and Islamification of Europe, especially the United Kingdom. Click the video to watch.

In the early Church, Masses were sometimes celebrated in the catacombs to hide from the authorities. In post-Reformation England, priests would disappear into Catholic homes and dispense the sacraments in secret. On a recent trip to the Persian Gulf, I met with a priest who also ministers secretly — in modern day Saudi Arabia. For his own security and that of his flock, we cannot name him, give his precise location or his nationality. Yet, he was happy to reveal an interesting insight into his ministry in Saudi Arabia, a country in which no churches are allowed. In hidden ways,...

A court in Saudi Arabia is reported to be preparing to hear a plea for divorce from an eight-year-old girl who has been married off to a man in his 50s. The Saudi newspaper al-Watan said the girl had been married off to the man by her father without her knowledge. The child's mother is thought to be pushing for the marriage to be annulled - though the father opposes the move. In April, a court in neighbouring Yemen annulled the arranged marriage of another eight-year-old girl. She had been married to a 28-year-old man. Child-protection groups say children are...

THE grand mufti of Saudi Arabia, in recent press statements, has rightly warned parents against marrying their young daughters to men who are older than them by 50 and 60 years or more. He described such practices as an indication of lack of conscience on the part of the parents. He also said such marriages will not protect the chastity of the girls and may drive them toward sinful acts. The mufti stressed that the young girl will be living in agony while her parents enjoy the comforts her dowry can buy them. I cannot agree more with the mufti....

We need help from the connected global community to “smoke out “ an underreported item in the world press regarding former Saudi Ambassador Prince Bandar bin Sultan’s recent deal with Russia and possible American collusion or silent consent in this month’s Russian rape of Georgia. It’s a complex issue that needs some explanation. When Bandar bin Sultan was in Moscow on July 14th, he and Prime Minister Vladimir Putin signed a large and historic Saudi-Russian arms agreement between the world’s top two oil producers in return for a Russian pledge to cease support of Iran, among other things (see John...

Saudi trade officials are warning against what they claim to be cancerous products made in Israel and other countries that are allegedly being smuggled into the kingdom. The Riyadh Chamber of Commerce and Industry said smugglers are bringing in the products through Djibouti, Yemen and Somalia. The chamber was urging importers and traders to be watchful regarding this merchandise. The products, said to be manufactured in Israel, China and Taiwan, include pesticides, agricultural fertilizers, children's toys, canned foods, perfumes, cigarettes, juices and candy. Israel and Saudi Arabia have no diplomatic relations. Last month the Saudi Interior Ministry said it had...

Saudis use cash and counseling to fight terrorism About 3,200 former militants have completed the ambitious program aimed at persuading them to disavow violent Islamist ideologies. By Caryle Murphy | Correspondent of The Christian Science Monitor from the August 20, 2008 edition Riyadh, Saudi Arabia - Khalid al-Hubayshi's career as an Islamic warrior came to an end with the siege of Tora Bora in Afghanistan. Ordered to retreat, he walked through snow for six days. He was captured by Pakistani forces, delivered to the Americans, and relocated to a cage in Cuba. The young Saudi's break with militant jihadi ideology...

Meet Saudi Arabia's mad motorway skaters An incredible video shows what has become the latest dangerous craze to hit Saudi Arabia: street skating.The footage appears to be genuine... The three boys cling onto the car as they appear to 'skate' along the road's surface As the car drives down the motorway at high speed the boys, who look no older than teenagers, open the doors, step outside in their white robes and then proceed to 'skate' along the tarmac as it speeds beneath their sandalled feet. At one point all three of the car's doors, all but the driver's, are...

A federal appeals court on Thursday ruled Saudi Arabia could not be held liable for the September 11 attacks against the United States despite charitable donations that ended up in the hands of Al-Qaeda. Upholding a 2006 decision by a lower court, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Manhattan ruled inadmissible a lawsuit in which families of victims of the 9/11 attacks charged that Saudi Arabia, four Saudi princes, a Saudi charity and bank had given material support to Al-Qaeda. The plaintiffs in the case cited Saudi donations to Muslim charity groups that were later transferred to the Al-Qaeda...

ISLAMABAD (AFP) — Saudi Arabia's intelligence chief dashed to Pakistan for talks with the government over its plans to impeach President Pervez Musharraf, a senior official in Islamabad said Saturday. The visit of Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz came as a minister from the ruling coalition pressed Musharraf to stand down within two days and avoid putting the country through a destabilising impeachment battle. "Yes, Saudi intelligence chief Prince Muqrin bin Abdul Aziz did visit Pakistan on Friday and met senior government officials," a senior coalition official told AFP on condition of anonymity.

A federal appeals court today rejected lawsuits by victims of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks against Saudi Arabia and senior members of the Saudi royal family, alleging that they helped foster al-Qaeda and other Islamist terrorist groups. The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, ruling in Manhattan, said Saudi Arabia and members of its royal family were protected from being sued because the State Department had not officially designated the desert kingdom as a supporter of terrorism. Under the Foreign Sovereign Immunities Act, foreign governments are immune from such lawsuits unless the State Department finds in advance that...

Saudir Arabian Muslim father cut out his daughter's tongue and lit her on fire upon learning that she had become a Christian. The child became curious about Jesus Christ after she read Christian material online, the Gulf News reported. Her father read of her Internet conversation, detached her tongue and burned her to death "following a heated debate on religion," according to an International Christian Concern report...

Her crime? Converting to Christianity. "Saudi man kills daughter for converting to Christianity," by Mariam Al Hakeem for Zawya, August 13:Riyadh: A Saudi man working with the Commission for Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice recently killed his daughter for converting to Christianity. According to sources close to the victim, the religious police member had cut the tongue of the girl and burned her to death following a heated debate on religion. The death of the girl sent shockwaves and websites where the victim used to write with various nick names have allocated special space to mourn her, while...

Saudi Arabia is to build five modern prisons in the kingdom to replace US Guantanamo detention facility, a new report has revealed. Jordanian daily quoted unnamed sources as saying that US Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) and Saudi officials are cooperating to construct the prisons which are to replace Guantanamo and US secret prisons in Europe. Riyadh is to spent about two billion Saudi Rials for the project which can accommodate up to 18000 inmates, they added. Bin laden firm and with the help of German engineers will build the prisons in the Saudi cities of Mecca, Haer, Demmam, and Qasim....

Muslims are establishing Mosques all over America ranging from the ostentatious, such as in Washington D.C., to academically-cloaked university Islamic centers, to innocuous storefronts and even prison chapels. One and all have the same aims: Hold the faithful in line, recruit as many new adherents by any and all means, and indoctrinate one and all in the imperative of Islamic conquest. It is in these Islamic places that the impressionable young and the fanatical adults are drilled with the duty to carry out Jihad against the Dar ul Harb ("land of war"-anyplace not completely under the rule of Islam.) Operating...

Aggressively pursuing its so-called "nuclear rights" with thousands of new gas centrifuges now online, Iran is concentrating on producing the weapons-grade material it needs to build nuclear bombs and warheads. While this is the "final push" in their nuclear weapons program, they have been on this track since the 1980s and have absolutely no intention of changing direction, despite their conciliatory language from time to time. Sound familiar? The Iranian model emulates the same kind of hosing down given us by North Korea's "Little Kim." The Iranians watched the North Koreans jerk us around (first the Clinton administration and then...

Last update - 12:21 06/08/2008 Israeli TV ad poking fun at oil sheikhs draws Saudi ire By Haaretz Staff and Channel 10 Saudi Arabia's MBC TV began its Sunday night news edition not with Syrian President Bashar Assad's trip to Iran, nor with Palestinian infighting in Gaza - but with an outraged report on an Israeli TV commercial. The advertisement shows wealthy Arab oil barons enraged that a Nissan car is so fuel efficient.

Saudi Arabia's MBC TV began its Sunday night news edition not with Syrian President Bashar Assad's trip to Iran, nor with Palestinian infighting in Gaza - but with an outraged report on an Israeli TV commercial. The advertisement shows wealthy Arab oil barons enraged that a Nissan car is so fuel efficient.

More than a dozen Christians in Saudi Arabia who were accused by government officials of worshipping in their homes have been ordered deported. According to a report from International Christian Concern, the Christians will be expelled tomorrow for one specific home worship service in Taif in April.

The Washington-DC based human rights group, International Christian Concern (ICC) www.persecution.org has learned that Saudi Arabia is deporting 15 Christians on Tuesday, August 5th, for holding private worship meetings in a house in the city of Taif. On Friday, April 25, twelve Saudi Arabian police raided a house where 16 Christians were holding a prayer meeting. The first officer to enter the house after breaking down the main gate pointed a pistol at the Christians and ordered them to hand over their resident permits and mobile phones. The other 11 police followed quickly and started searching the entire house. They...

In Isi Leibler's "Candidly Speaking" (July 29), we read the same myths regarding the kingdom of Saudi Arabia; sweeping statements are presented as immutable fact. In 2005, one of my closest professional partners (as well as closest friends) and I planned for and created a model for a Saudi-sponsored interfaith dialogue to be ideally hosted by King Abdullah in Spain. We worked on the concept in Riyadh, where I live. (For the record, she is Jewish and visits the kingdom frequently.) We submitted the business plan to specific members of the royal family, and three years later the dialogue materialized...

A Turkish soap opera featuring an independent fashion designer and her amazingly supportive and attractive husband is emptying the streets whenever it's on and has more than doubled the number of Saudis visiting Turkey this summer. Millions of people -- especially women, apparently -- are tuning in nightly to find out whether the couple will stay together or be torn apart by jealousies and old flames. But "Noor," the story of a multi-generational, upper-class Turkish family, has also sparked a backlash. The show has become the subject of angry Friday sermons in this strict Islamic kingdom, and the country's chief...

Groups take stand against Saudi Arabia - Afteraction report Yesterday a diverse group of patriotic Americans involved in the anti-jihad Resistance from many different organizations took a strong and firm stand against Saudi Arabian influence in America. During a protest a group of individuals brought a Saudi flag and threw it on the ground in front of the Saudi consulate in Los Angeles. Individuals, including women and children, proceeded to stomp on the flag. Emotions were high since the latest spike in petroleum costs has only further enabled the Saudi government to fund the spread of radical Islam throughout the...