Headline News 27/10/2017

Headlines:

• Saudi Arabia Promises A Return to Moderate Islam
  Tillerson in Pakistan with a Tough Message on Safe Havens
  China Jails and Brainwashes Imams to Force Them to Give Up their Religious Beliefs

Details:

Saudi Arabia Promises A Return to Moderate Islam

Saudi Arabia's Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, has promised a return to "a more moderate Islam," as the Kingdom continues to push ahead with sweeping cultural and economic reforms. Speaking at Riyadh's Future Investment Initiative conference on Tuesday, Saudi Arabia's crown prince said he would be prepared to "destroy" extremist ideologies in order to put the country in unison with other nations around the world. "In all honesty, we will not spend 30 years of our lives dealing with extremist ideologies. We will destroy them today and immediately," he said. "Saudi was not like this before 1979. Saudi Arabia and the entire region went through a revival after 1979 … All we are doing is going back to what we were: a moderate Islam that is open to all religions and to the world and to all traditions and people," he said. The crown prince's reference to 1979 was likely a nod to a tumultuous year for the country, in which Riyadh jostled with Iran for leadership of the Islamic world. Saudi Arabia's Shiite minority also staged a deadly revolt in Al-Hasa province that same year. In response, the Saudi monarchy strengthened ties with the Wahhabi religious establishment and restored many of its hardline stances. Wahhabism is a form of Islam which emphasizes the absolute sovereignty of God, bans the mixing of sexes in public and places numerous restrictions on women. In 2015, King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al-Saud – alongside bin Salman – sought to introduce a new age of Saudi politics. And in June, the king promoted bin Salman to crown prince, making him heir apparent. The two have cracked down on religious incitement, sanctioned the first music concerts in decades and gradually granted women a growing number of rights — including the right to drive, which is set to take effect in 2018. [Source: CNCB].

Ever since its inception, Saudi Arabia has always been a cradle of Wahhabism. However, the problem is not Wahhabism, but the servitude of the Saudi family to serve western masters in their quest to subdue Islam all over the world.

Tillerson in Pakistan with a Tough Message on Safe Havens

US Secretary of State Rex Tillerson is in Pakistan to deliver a tough message on the importance of fighting extremists and driving them from hideouts on Pakistani territory. Tillerson arrived in Islamabad on Tuesday, a day after traveling to Iraq and Afghanistan in conditions of strict secrecy. He met with Pakistan's Prime Minister Shahid Khaqan Abbasi, Foreign Minister Khwaja Mohammad Asif and the heads of the army and intelligence services. Tillerson told Abbasi that Pakistan is “so important regionally to our joint goals of providing peace and security to the region and providing opportunity for greater economic relationship.” Abbasi said Pakistan is “committed in the war against terror.” “We have produced results and we are looking forward to moving ahead with the US and building a tremendous relationship,” he said. “The US can rest assured that we are strategic partners in the war against terror and that today Pakistan is fighting the largest war in the world against terror,” Abbasi said. “We appreciate the understandings that we agreed and we appreciate the engagement.” In Afghanistan on Monday, Tillerson had told reporters that Pakistan's cooperation on counter-terrorism is essential for a good relationship with the US. His comments echoed those of other top US officials who have been pressing Pakistan on the matter. He said Pakistan needs to “take a clear-eyed view” of its position and act. “Pakistan needs to, I think, take a clear-eyed view of the situation that they are confronted with in terms of the number of terrorist organizations that find safe haven inside of Pakistan,” he said. “So we want to work closely Pakistan to create a more stable and secure Pakistan as well.” Earlier this month, the campaign appeared to produce some success when Pakistani security forces assisted with the release of a Taliban-held US-Canadian family after five years in captivity. However, officials cautioned that action needed to be followed with additional steps. Tillerson, who will visit India after Pakistan, is in South Asia to outline the Trump administration's new strategy for the region, which is heavy on combating extremist groups. Last week, CIA director Mike Pompeo said that for the strategy to work, the Taliban must be convinced they have no hope of winning militarily in Afghanistan and that means making it impossible for them to cross the rugged Afghan-Pakistani border and hide inside Pakistan. “To do that you cannot have a safe haven in Pakistan,” he said. But he added that the US had low expectations. US officials have long accused Pakistan of turning a blind eye or assisting the Afghan Taliban and the allied Haqqani network. Pakistan routinely denies colluding with the militants. [Source: Dawn].

It is hard to believe that the Pakistani leadership has not developed a robust response to America’s familiar strong-arm tactics. After 16 years in fighting America’s war against Islam, one would have thought that the very least the Pakistani leadership could do is to fend off such tactics. Pakistan is more than capable of delivering a tough message to Washington, but this requires a brave new leadership under the shade of the Khilafah to teach the US a lesson she will never forget.

China Jails and Brainwashes Imams to Force Them to Give Up their Religious Beliefs

Authorities in north-western China have reportedly launched harsh restrictions on Muslim religious leaders by brainwashing and imprisoning those who refuse to accept new rules set by religious affairs officials. Officials in Xinjiang have been asked to ensure that 'nothing happens: not major incidents, not medium incidents, nor minor incidents,' in the run-up to the party congress in Beijing that opened earlier today, according to media reports. The tense region is home to a Muslim ethnic Uighur minority who China has blamed for forming separatist groups and fueling terrorism. China has vowed to crackdown on religious extremism and has stepped up it's security measures. In recent weeks, the Koran and other religious items have been banned and last week, a prominent Muslim bookshop in Beijing was closed down. An anonymous source told Radio Free Asia on Monday that the tough measures are based on a recent speech given last month by the region's Communist Party secretary Chen Quanguo. This soldier-turned-politician is unknown outside of China, but within China, he has initiated several harsh policies targeting the religious freedom of Uyghurs, including banning fasting during Ramadan. According to Radio Free Asia, he has ordered officials to keep close tabs on all detention and re-education centres, including those set up to re-educate so-called 'wild' imams who depart from government directives when preaching Islam. Among religious leaders imprisoned were those who continued 'religious activities', including preaching, after being sacked from their official posts. U.S.-based rights activist Suleiman Gu who confirmed reports of the alleged crackdown told the Mailonline: 'It's China's nationwide policy to redefine all religions by communist standards and brainwash all clerics. 'When I was a kid, I was taught Party was more important than God. They use their Big-Brother-approved theology to prove that.' Dilxat Raxit, a spokesman for the World Uyghur Congress group, told Radio Free Asia: 'The tightening of controls over these [detention centres and re-education centres] is a sign of how Uighurs are increasingly being targeted for persecution,' 'The wild imams are being subjected to full-on, forcible brainwashing right now, and re-education in a sealed environment, to persuade them to totally relinquish their religious beliefs,' he said. Raxit also said the government is also clearly worried about a violent backlash to the incarceration of Uighurs and other ethnic groups with overseas links in recent months. [Source: The Daily Mail].

The persecution of Muslim minorities continues unabated in Myanmar as well as China, and the rulers of the Muslim world are scared to speak against such atrocities. On the contrary, the rulers of the Islamic countries run after the Chinese and sign commercials deals. Where is their consciousness? Where is their love for Islam and the Ummah?