Middle East/North Africa: The other face of Islam
The International Director of Barnabas Fund comments on an IS magazine now being produced in English and other languages. It’s called Dabiq. Dabiq is prophesied by Muhammad to be an end times battle when Muslims conquer Christians then take over the world. Muslims believe Jesus (who they call Isa) will descend via a minaret in Damascus, and from there he will lead armies to destroy every cross, kill every Jew and pagan, and either convert every Christian to Islam or kill them. This apocalyptic dimension is now shaping IS as it sees itself fighting an end time battle. The first issue of Dabiq addressed the ‘return of the Caliphate. The second issue links Noah and the flood to IS removing ‘polluted ideologies affecting the world and condemns the idea of leaving people to choose for themselves what to believe. We are asked to pray against radical Islam with ideologies propagated by Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey, funded by their vast oil resources, and now effectively reshaping Islam.
Ukraine's Poroshenko agrees 'ceasefire process' with Putin
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko says he has agreed with Russian President Putin by phone on a ‘ceasefire process’ for the east. His office initially reported that a ‘permanent ceasefire’ had been agreed but later revised its statement. The earlier version of the statement on the Ukrainian presidential website read: ‘Their conversation resulted in agreement on a permanent ceasefire in the Donbass region [the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk].’ However, this has now been changed to: ‘Their conversation resulted in agreement on a process for ceasing fire in the Donbass region.’ The statement adds that the two presidents ‘reached a mutual understanding on steps leading to peace’. More than 2,600 civilians and combatants have been killed and more than a million people have fled their homes since fighting erupted in eastern Ukraine in April, when pro-Russian separatists there declared independence.
Ukraine's Poroshenko agrees 'ceasefire process' with Putin
Ukraine's President Petro Poroshenko says he has agreed with Russian President Putin by phone on a ‘ceasefire process’ for the east. His office initially reported that a ‘permanent ceasefire’ had been agreed but later revised its statement. The earlier version of the statement on the Ukrainian presidential website read: ‘Their conversation resulted in agreement on a permanent ceasefire in the Donbass region [the regions of Donetsk and Luhansk].’ However, this has now been changed to: ‘Their conversation resulted in agreement on a process for ceasing fire in the Donbass region.’ The statement adds that the two presidents ‘reached a mutual understanding on steps leading to peace’. More than 2,600 civilians and combatants have been killed and more than a million people have fled their homes since fighting erupted in eastern Ukraine in April, when pro-Russian separatists there declared independence.
Norwegian Muslims organise mass protest against Islamic State
Several thousand people - many of them from different walks of life and faiths, but all organised by a group of Norwegian Muslims - rallied on Monday evening in Oslo against the Islamic State militant group, which has recently spread terror and committed atrocities in Iraq and Syria. The rally was also aimed at groups in Norway that have voiced support for IS. Co-organiser Yousuf Gilani said the protest was ‘an initiative of young, terrific Muslims’ and described the initiative as ‘historic’. ‘We do not accept terrorism in the name of religion,’ he said, adding that protesters rejected the Norwegian Islamist group Prophet‘s Ummah, which earlier this month expressed support for the Islamic State. Protesters gathered in the inner city area of Gronland - known for its diverse, multi-ethnic immigrant population - before marching to the parliament building. Faten Mahdi Al-Hussaini, 19, who had called for a rally against Islamic extremism, was the first speaker. ‘It is important that the Norwegian society can see the difference between ordinary Muslims and people who call themselves Muslims, but lack Muslim views,’ she said. Norwegian Prime Minister Erna Solberg, the last speaker at the rally, said, ‘We are gathered against extremism, violence, and killings’.
