Excerpts: Israel is the top terrorist.Protect youth from extremism.Saudi
aviation.Islam and terrorism. 11 September 2003
+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 11 Sept.'03:"Editorial: War on Terrorism"
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"The fear among American friends was that the anti-terror campaign would
inflict even greater casualties than the outrage which caused Washington to
launch it."
"slaughter of UN officials sent to help the country recover are also
legitimate goals for killers."
"As long as America supports brutal Zionist oppression with one hand, it
will be pumping air into the lungs of terrorism even while with the other
Washington is trying to strangle it."
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EXCERPTS:
... The destruction of New York's Twin Towers and the attack on the Pentagon
were crimes condemned by the whole world. The wicked acts brought Americans
face to face with a level of horror and violence that had largely bypassed
them and their shores. When President George W. Bush declared his global war
on terrorism, backing came from governments around the world. However, with
that backing came warnings that the US-led campaign against Al-Qaeda and its
satraps must be a joint effort. The white heat of American fury at the
outrages perpetrated within their borders should have been tempered by the
advice of many friendly countries which had long endured the barbarity of
terrorist attack. The fear among America's friends was that the anti-terror
campaign would inflict even greater casualties than the outrage that caused
Washington to launch it.
...Though significant successes have been won against Al-Qaeda and its
network, we have seen a continuation of deadly bombings. The invasion of
Afghanistan rooted out Al-Qaeda training camps and overthrew the supportive
Taleban regime, but it has not brought peace ... surviving Taleban and
Al-Qaeda elements are growing stronger ...part of the war against terrorism
has yet to be decided.
... Bush chose to make Iraq an anti-terror target when much of the world
community told him it should not be. ...by ousting Saddam the Americans have
unleashed the very waves of terror that their invasion was supposed to end.
...Because the failure of the US mission is the goal of Iraqi terrorists,
the murder of ordinary Iraqis, the disruption of their lives and slaughter
of UN officials sent to help the country recover are also legitimate goals
for the killers.
It is hard to share Washington's optimism about its ability to stabilize
Iraq. It is even hard to believe that Americans now believe this themselves.
Maybe now it is finally dawning on the Bush administration that there is
more to fighting terrorism than invasion and retribution. The injustices
which the killers use to justify their crimes and extract support cannot be
left unaddressed. The greatest of these injustices is the crime that has
been perpetrated for decades by the Israeli Zionists against the
Palestinians. As long as America supports brutal Zionist repression with one
hand, it will be pumping air into the lungs of terrorism even while with the
other Washington is trying to strangle it.
+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 11 Sept.'03:"Media Should 'Educate Youth Against
Extremism' ,Staff Writer -
QUOTES FROM TEXT:
"called on the press to use its influence to educate youth against
terrorism, saying the Kingdom's security was everyone's responsibility."
"warn against giving refuge to terrorists or those who cooperate or
sympathize with them."
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EXCERPTS:
JEDDAH, 11 September 2003 - Minister of Culture and Information Dr. Fouad
Al-Farsy yesterday called on the press to use its influence to educate youth
against terrorism, saying the Kingdom's security was everyone's
responsibility.
"The press has an important role in educating Saudi youth about the dangers
of terrorism and extremist ideas," the Saudi Press Agency quoted Al-Farsy as
telling editors in chief of Saudi newspapers and magazines.
The media should "warn against giving refuge to terrorists or those who
cooperate or sympathize with them," he said.
The Interior Ministry recently called on citizens to immediately report
missing children to protect them from being lured to criminal activity by
extremist groups.
[IMRA: What are the sources for instilling extremism in Saudi Arabia?
Check their official textbooks.]
+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 11 Sept.'03 "Israel's Pilot Claims 'Baseless and
Untrue' "
Mohamed Alkhereiji, Arab News Staff -
QUOTE FROM TEXT:
"Yaalon has been quoted as saying that the Al-Qaeda terrorist network
has wanted to recruit a Saudi pilot to launch an attack in Israel from the
Saudi military base of Tabuk"
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EXCERPTS:
JEDDAH, 11 September 2003 - Saudi Arabia yesterday dismissed as "baseless
and untrue" an accusation made by the Israeli chief of staff, Gen. Moshe
Yaalon, that Al-Qaeda tried to recruit a Saudi pilot for a major suicide
attack against Israel. The denial was issued by an unnamed official and
carried by the official Saudi Press Agency.
[IMRA: Yaalon is reliable.]
. . .
Yaalon has been quoted as saying that the Al-Qaeda terrorist network had
wanted to recruit a Saudi pilot to launch an attack in Israel from the Saudi
military base of Tabuk ... .
Yaalon also said that Israel was concerned Riyadh, which has no ties with
the Jewish state, had stationed F-16 fighter jets at a military base in
Tabuk not far from Israel's southern border.
. . .
Yaalon ... did not make clear whether there was any link with Tel Aviv
office blocks known locally as the twin towers.
Saudi Assistant Minister of Defense and Aviation Prince Khaled ibn Sultan
said in remarks published on Thursday that there had been no discussions
with Washington about withdrawing any Saudi jets deployed at Tabuk, which is
home to a major Saudi military base and is about 100 km from Jordan.
+++ARAB NEWS (Saudi) 11 Sept.'03:"A Message to the Kith and Kin of the
Victims of Sept.11"
Ibtissam Al-Bassam, academic advisor to the assistant director-general for
education, UNESCO, Special to Arab News -
QUOTE FROM TEXT:
"Military jihad is permissable only when waged in self-defense. Killing
is an unforgivable sin."
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EXCERPTS:
PARIS - On the second anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks ... religious
services will be held in different cities ... around the world. ... The
attacks were a universal tragedy. ... .
The perpetrators of the attack do not represent Muslims or Islam and the
attack is not a form jihad. Nowhere in the Qu'ran does Allah instruct
Muslims to kill, to promote hatred or to cause destruction. ...It is a
noble activity in which we all engage. The origin of the word "jihad" is
found in the word "juhd", which means effort or struggle. Jihad is a
struggle to preserve the purity of the soul and to promote peace,
prosperity, honesty, cooperation and justice in the world. ... Military
jihad is permissible only when waged in self-defense. Killing is an
unforgivable sin.
[IMRA: So those conducting military jihad don't kill?]
... terror cannot be fought with terror. Therefore, the second anniversary
of the Sept. 11 attacks should be an occasion for deep reflection and
soul-searching. We should ... assess our past and present actions, to
resolve our differences, to correct our mistakes, to resuscitate fading
friendships and to promote and support an effective international strategy
to fight terrorism ... .
. . .
It is therefore vital that we have ... a single, shared vision and unified,
clear, agreed-upon objectives.
.... We need ...clear definitions of words ... . Precise, internationally
accepted definitions of words such as "terrorists", "freedom fighters",
"terrorism", "state terrorism", "extremism", "fanaticism", "liberation" and
"occupation" will help us identify and defeat our common enemies ... .
[IMRA: Has no suggestions regarding definitions. The call for
definitions is standard mode in the Arab world to avoid facing issues.
Meantime, the Arab world uses words as it sees fit. So, they have the
concept that there is no limit on what Palestinians styled as "freedom
fighters" may do. Therefore, by definition, "liberation movements" are never
guilty of terrorism. Then, any action against such movements is "state
terrorism".]
... arresting suspects and filling prisons with innocent men, women and
children will always backfire. It will breed hatred, create divisions and
alienate many peace-lovers. It will destroy international unity and play
into the hands of terrorists and terrorism.
Sept. 11, 2003 should be an occasion for all nations and world citizens to
pledge loyalty and allegiance to justice, peace, prosperity, international
cooperation and the welfare of all humanity. If the blood shed in the Middle
East could be preserved and recycled, blood banks would have reached
saturation levels long ago. When we remember the victims of the Sept. 11
attacks, we should also remember the men, women and children who lost their
lives in Afghanistan, Iraq, Palestine, Israel, Chechnya, Kashmir, Liberia,
Algeria, the Sudan and in many other war-ravaged countries.
. . .
... , we should stop leveling unfounded accusations against each other. The
somber event is our opportunity to rebuild our mutual confidence and to
break the ice that has accumulated between us over the last two years.
As we search for information on world events in libraries and as we follow
the news in the media, we should be careful not to fall victims to
manipulation and indoctrination.
Objectivity is a virtue that is rarely observed in the presentation of world
events. It is a sad truth that the reporting of many journalists is
influenced by biases, prejudices, likes and dislikes. Journalists and
cameramen are mortals (as the events in Iraq sadly proved). They have their
weaknesses and their strength.
It is a pity that many interesting books are written by authors who are
either eager to prejudice us against each other or are keen to line their
pockets with hard currency. Such books are fraught with inaccuracies and
falsehood.
Dr. Joseph Lerner, Co-Director IMRA
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