Based on an article from the BBC
See also English Translation of Figaro Article

France's anti-terrorism authorities have launched an enquiry into death threats against a philosophy teacher who wrote an article criticising Islam. Robert Redeker has been forced into hiding after writing about the violence of Islam

Since publishing the article, he has been under police protection and forced to move between safe houses. Redeker says that his personal details and home address are now available on Islamist websites.

His article was entitled "In the face of Islamist intimidation, what is the world to do?" and was written in reaction to Muslim protests following remarks made by Pope Benedict XVI.

In the article, published on 19 September, the French teacher describes the Koran as a "book of extraordinary violence" and Islam as a religion which "exalts violence and hate".

On Friday, the Paris prosecutor's office said it had opened a preliminary investigation into the threats to see if they were linked to terrorist activity.

French Prime Minister Dominique de Villepin described the threats as "intolerable": We are in a democracy, everyone has the right to express his views freely - of course while respecting others.

Redeker says that he fears he will not be able to come out of hiding for the immediate future: The Islamists have succeeded in punishing me on French territory as if I were guilty of a speech crime.

13th Jan 2007 Update: Arrested

A man has been arrested because of a hate mail he sent to columnist Redecker. With the collaboration of international police, a 20 years old man has been arrested today in Morocco.

From the Washington Post, By Bashir Goth, the first Somali blogger

Even worse than the official censorship is censorship imposed by the community, which then becomes self-censorship. Friends, colleagues and even ordinary acquaintances all impose strict censorship rules on me under the guise of being concerned about my personal safety or honor. They demand that I tone down my strong views about sensitive issues.

Freedom of the press in the Muslim world cannot be separated from freedom of expression in general. Journalists, due to their conspicuous public role, risk their lives everyday. They have been targeted and killed in Iraq, Iran, Afghanistan, Pakistan, Palestine, Somalia, Sudan and other countries. The Muslim world is not a friendly place for freedom of speech at all.

Journalists, creative writers and artists all share the same fate. The writer in a Muslim society is in shackles. Every time I put pen to paper it is a struggle against the tyranny of community-imposed self-censorship. Nowhere is Rousseau's statement that Man is born free; and everywhere he is in chains, truer than in the House of Islam.

Everything is a taboo. Whenever a Muslim writer takes up a pen he starts tiptoeing in a minefield. You have to follow the flag signs of religious, cultural and social taboos. You should tread carefully avoid shame, social estrangement or even death.

The beheading of the Sudanese journalist Mohamed Taha Mohamed Ahmed in early September was the latest example of community punishment of a journalist/writer.

Writers have to endure internet blockages and black ink splashed on their art magazines and school textbooks. One of the most bizarre censorship actions I have ever seen was the blotting out of the sexual organs of a historical picture of donkey standing in an old Arabian market.

In the House of Islam, you cannot have a principle other than that of the community. Every thing you do is referred to Islam. The mantra is that's stupid BUT...But we cannot do this because we are Muslims. One hears this expression ad nauseam. In the Islamic world you cease to be a human being. You become only a Muslim, whatever that entails.

You are not allowed to be a person with vices and virtues, you cannot follow your own reasoning, and you cannot be unpopular or defend an unpopular idea. You cannot go out of the circle. To express yourself freely means to risk death. And death indeed if you change your faith. Invention itself is considered as an act of blasphemy.

I am obliged to remind my readers however that Islam had its good days of freedom of speech in the middle ages when the Mutazilites and Asharites debated in public and in the royal courts about sensitive issues such as the creation of the Koran. This golden period has since been buried in the thick dust of history. With the rise of Islamic extremism in the present age, one can only hope for the return of such rationale.

With Somalia now under the grip of extremist Islamists who have already banned all kinds of artistic works and dissenting voices, freedom of press is their last priority.

Censorship in the Islamic world is instilled at childhood. Children are taught that there are two angels sitting on the shoulders of every person entrusted with the task of monitoring every good and bad deed the person does or says. This has prompted me to write in a piece of fiction about the character of a little boy who dived into a pond and vented out his demons under water where no angels or people could censor his words.

To survive in such unfriendly atmosphere like this, journalists in the Muslim world have become like parrots that only echo the official line. Torn between the call of professionalism and that of censorship, they have to always adhere to the call of the latter. If it takes a village to raise a child in Africa, it takes a community to kill a writer, artist and a journalist in the Muslim world.

Therefore, to talk about how to promote freedom of the press in the Muslim world may be a question that could trigger another clash of civilizations.

From Stop Honour Killings

A survey carried out by the UN Turkey bureau in six cities around the country showed that the people of the southeastern city of Sanliurfa were the least respectful of women's rights.

The study, called Protection and Development of the Human Rights of Women and Girls, aimed to find out about the state of women, their needs and demands.

The study showed that while most women know about their legal rights, the relationship with their family is dominated by traditional rules and values. More than 90% of women questioned in the five provinces, apart from Sanliurfa, said 'honor' killings were inhumane, while in Sanliurfa, 27% of women and 31% of men said they approved of them. Some who knew that honor killing was a crime, chose to remain silent when asked how a woman should be punished if she violated tradition.

The concepts of violence and abuse also mean different things in different provinces. While in Sanliurfa belittlement and prevention from earning a living are accepted as part of their daily lives, in other provinces such acts were described as pressure and violence.

One-fifth of women who answered the questions said they were abused at home, with 73% facing abuse from their husbands and 27% from their families.

The study showed that a man's level of education was no impediment to accepting violence, with university graduates supporting traditional ways in the same proportion as men with no education.

From Stop Honour Killings

Indian police have arrested four brothers for allegedly throwing their 95-year-old mother on to their father’s funeral pyre, in an old, now illegal Hindu custom that persists in rural pockets of the country.

The incident took place in the village of Baniyani in the central Indian state of Madhya Pradesh.

The brothers and villagers initially said the woman, Kuria Devi, climbed into the flames by herself, committing sati, as the ritual suicide is known. Sati has been banned for nearly two centuries. But police investigating the death said she was too old and frail to have clambered up alone. Even if she did, none of the 20 people at the funeral stopped her, and would therefore be arrested for abetting sati, local police chief Chanchal Kumar told the Hindustan Times newspaper.

India has struggled in recent decades to end sati. While rare, the practice persists mainly in rural regions where widows are often shunned because of a belief they will bring bad luck and tragedy to the community.

Under Indian law, promising financial or spiritual benefits to a woman’s family for committing sati can be punished by a life prison sentence. Even standing aside as a woman throws herself on a funeral pyre can attract a life term.

The brothers involved in Wednesday’s incident persuaded the other villagers to back up their story with the promise of an auspicious sati temple in their village. The Asian Age newspaper quoted the brothers as saying they had no idea sati was illegal and they regarded it as an act of honour.

From the Daily Mail

An opera company in Berlin has cancelled a Mozart production of his work Idomeneo fearing a scene in which the prophet Mohammed's decapitated head is rolled on stage could trigger an Islamic backlash.

The decision by the Deutsche Oper, one of the world’s most celebrated opera houses, shows how deep-rooted the fears now are in Europe’s artistic community about offending Muslim sensibilities.

It was an incalcuable security risk for the production to be staged at this time, warned city security experts and police and so the show has been pulled from forthcoming productions.

Mohammed is not the only figure to be decapitated in the opera – the heads of Jesus, the Greek God Poseidon and Buddha are also rolled on to the stage. But it is the symbol which city officials fear could trigger rioting and bloodshed.

Police said they could not gurantee the safety of the Deutsche Oper building if it went ahead.

Enthusiasts of the arts said they felt fear of Islam was now restricting the freedoms taken for granted in the west.
 

From the Daily Mail

Germany's conservative Chancellor Angela Merkel yesterday led political and arts world uproar at the scrapping of a Mozart opera that features the head of the prophet Mohammed rolling across the stage.

The performances were cancelled amid fears the scene could trigger violence among the nation’s Muslim community.

But Merkel denounced self-censorship out of fear as unacceptable, reflecting a mood of national indignation that was not limited to the arts set but cut right across all social lines.

And last night there were hopes that increased government pressure might get the show put back on.

An "integration" summit between government ministers and leaders of Germany's three million Muslims held yesterday could lead to the production being staged at a later date. Interior minister Wolfgang Schaeuble said all present had agreed that the shelved opera Idomeneo should go ahead - and they might even all go together to see it.

Hours before Schaeuble’s statement the gulf between western liberalism and Islamic intransigence appeared as wide as ever as the leader of Germany's Islamic Council welcomed the ban, saying a depiction of Mohammed with a severed head could certainly offend Muslims.

Definition from Wikipedia

Gonzo Pornography is both a category, and filming style of, "adult video." This filming style often tries create the illusion of placing the viewer directly into the scenes. Gonzo puts the camera right into the action -- often with one or more of the participants both filming and performing sex acts -- unlike conventional porn, which usually depicts less-intense sexuality. Deeply influenced by the spartan, more intimate style of amateur sex videos, basic gonzo porn tends to use far fewer full-body/wide shots, and more close-ups. The loose and direct camera work often includes "tight" shots of the lower genitalia, unlike much of traditional porn.

Gonzo videos tend to focus far less on the plots, entended dialog, elaborate costumes/sets, and artistic camerawork commonly found in conventional or "features" porn. However, due to the explosive growth in its popularity since the mid-1990's, gonzo has attained mainstream popularity; several individually distinct styles of no-frills, filmed pornography can be labeled "gonzo" porn.

Depending on the producers and intended audience, gonzo porno may include "rough sex"-type simulated violence, extraordinary sexual techniques, domination and submission play, and/or humiliation of one or more of the performers. Some of the most common sexual acts are double penetration (typically vaginal/anal, or double-vaginal), male or female ejaculation or urination onto fellow performers, heavy bondage, S&M, differing degrees of auto-erotic asphyxiation (i.e., "choking"), spitting, deep throating, and simulated rape.

Based on an article from The Times

Former naval chaplain Reverend Mark Sharpe tells why a culture of hardcore pornography drove him from the service.

Trainee officers who shared his 30-man mess on HMS Albion, an amphibious assault ship, entertained themselves with a supposedly endless stream of hardcore pornography. Some had laptops where they watched films showing bestiality, he says. Even if he could not see the offending action, the cramped conditions meant that he could not avoid hearing “the grunting and groaning”.

Last week Sharpe settled a compensation claim against the Ministry of Defence (MoD) for a reported £50,000. He won’t disclose how much he got, but says he ended up with rather less than that to end the “sexual harassment” case he brought as a result of his exposure to hardcore porn as a “routine part of life”.

I’m not a prude, Sharpe said he had no problem visiting a topless bar in Florida... BUT next morning I found hardcore porn on my bed.

It was of a genre known as gonzo porn: images of extreme sexual violence towards women. This was not just some nasty stuff they had found and decided to tease the vicar with: they used the mags and the films constantly, he says: The chap in the bunk opposite me, who was about 20, was formally appointed the ‘porn librarian’.

On his next ship, the destroyer Manchester, the big screen TV in the recreation area of his mess showed porn more or less continually: One day I came in and they were watching Sky News. It was such a relief.

People who get hooked on sexual violence think it’s normal for people to like it.” As an example of the damage it can cause, he mentions Jane Longhurst, killed by Graham Coutts to fulfil internet porn-inspired fantasies. Her mother has won a campaign to get such material banned.

Refusing to follow the advice of his superiors on Albion to “just ignore it” — like the young Kuwaiti Muslim who quietly made himself scarce when the laptop porn was booted up — he insisted on leaving the ship after two weeks. He lasted a week longer on Manchester, where the porn was supplemented by “naked mess” — boozed-up sailors, stripped to their socks, licking lager from each other’s genitals .

I said, you have a culture of institutionalised violence and abuse. But the organisation says: we do a peculiar and tough job so we can act in a peculiar way. If you can’t handle it, get out.

What the top brass do not realise, claims Sharpe is the drastic shift in the hardcore nature of the pornography. It is not just the way the internet has made porn more easily available, it’s the kind of stuff that is now routinely circulated among the sailors. Even a former stoker was shocked, telling him never in my day did we get anything like this.

It is not just the Royal Navy. Sharpe recently came across some academic research into the psychology of hardcore pornography: It found that scenarios acted out by American soldiers at Abu Ghraib jail in Baghdad — not all of which were disclosed to the media — bore close similarities to the humiliating and violent scenarios of gonzo porn.

The MoD says “action was taken against three ratings” and it is now reviewing its regulations on pornography.

From Relief Web

The government of Nigeria's northern state of Jigawa has imposed a night-time curfew on the state capital, Dutse, following a sectarian violence which left many injured and several houses and churches burnt, the local media reported.

Wednesday's violence in the predominantly-Muslim state was triggered by an alleged blasphemous comment by a Christian lady, during an altercation with a Muslim.

Some reports linked the altercation between the two to the raging controversy over the Pope's alleged blasphemy against Prophet Mohammed.

As angry youths rampaged through the capital city, they looted shops, burnt homes and churches and hunted down Christians and non-indigenes, many of whom escaped to the police barracks in the city. No life was lost in the riot.

The youths were said to have stoned the vehicle of the state governor, Saminu Tauraki, when he went to the central Mosque in the city to pacify them.
 

From World Net Daily

An investigation has revealed that the Muslim riots that destroyed 18 Christian churches, 20 homes owned by Christians and dozens of Christian shops in the Nigerian city of Dutse happened after a Christian girl rejected a Muslim boy's advances.

The riots erupted after the boy accused the girl of "blasphemy" to the prophet Muhammad.

Now word comes from Voice of the Martyrs that the investigation shows nearly 5,000 Christians were displaced and 40 Christian shops destroyed in the capital city of Jigawa state.

After an Islamic young man made several unsuccessful advances on Jummai, a female Christian, he angrily reacted by calling her a fake Christian who follows a 'useless Jesus. Jummai responded by telling the boy he followed a 'useless prophet – Muhammad', the report said. Furious, the Muslim boy raised alarm through the town by proclaiming that a Christian lady blasphemed Muhammad. She was quickly taken to the local police station where she was kept in custody to diffuse the potentially volatile situation.

After several hours, the Muslim returned to the police station with a "militant band of friends" and incited them to attack police by alleging the woman wasn't being punished after her "insult" to Muhammad.

At least six Christians were injured in the resulting riots that destroyed churches, homes, vehicles and shops, officials said.

The government ended up imposing a nighttime curfew and deploying soldiers in tanks and trucks to deter further mayhem, officials said.

'Civilisations' is not really quite the right word is it?

From The Telegraph

John Reid, the Home Secretary, came face to face with the intolerance of militant Islam yesterday as he urged Muslim parents to stand up to the extremists and keep their children from being "groomed" to be suicide bombers.

During a speech in east London he was shouted down by Abu Izzadeen, a well-known fundamentalist who has been linked to a now banned organisation.

The speech had been trailed by the Home Office and protesters were waiting at a youth centre in Leytonstone waving placards with the slogans ''John Reid go to Hell" and ''John Reid you will pay".

Izzadeen, dressed in a long white robe and turban, told Mr Reid: How dare you come to a Muslim area when you have arrested so many Muslims in this area? I am furious. I am absolutely furious — John Reid should not come to a Muslim area. We do not want to see him. Shame on all of us for sitting down and listening to him. He shouted: "John Reid, Tony Blair and George Bush's crusade can all go to Hell."

The outburst lasted about five minutes before the heavily built Izzadeen was ushered out of the building to continue his demonstration in the street.

Reid was addressing a small group of Muslims about the dangers of fundamentalism, while praising the commitment of the majority to the ''shared values" of equality and justice.

Reid said he was used to being heckled but was angered by the suggestion that he should not be in "a Muslim area". He said there were no places in Britain where a home secretary could not go: We must never allow ourselves to be intimidated or shouted down. There will always be people who are not prepared to take part in a dialogue… They are not confined to the Muslim community.

Reid dismissed the idea of "a clash of civilisations" between the West and Islam, a debate that has been renewed since Pope Benedict's comments last week. Reid said the perception of Islam had been hijacked by activists who used religion to cloak their militancy. He said they were not Muslims "in the true sense of the word" but were waging a violent and indiscriminate war.

Reid was then interrupted by Anjem Choudary, a leading Islamic militant, who held up a placard and shouted: "Enemy of Islam and the Muslims."

Choudary said later that he objected to the insinuation that Muslim children might be brainwashed: Muslims do not need British values. We believe that Islam is superior; we believe Islam will be implemented one day.

From The West

Non-Muslims should practise self censorship to avoid triggering violent reactions, a prominent Perth Muslim says.

In the wake of violent attacks over a speech by Pope Benedict XVI that linked the Prophet Mohammed's teachings to violence, Perth academic Samina Yasmeen said religious and community leaders should stop speaking about Islamic icons to avoid causing offence.

Associate Professor Yasmeen, director of the University of WA's centre for Muslim states and societies, accused the Pope of deliberately provoking the aggression by inviting criticism of Mohammed. She said the Pope and other religious leaders had the same responsibility as Islamic clerics to avoid encouraging violence by followers.

Previous emotive reactions, such as the violence following the publication of cartoons depicting Mohammed and Salman Rushdie's 1988 novel The Satanic Verses, should have warned people not to criticise Islam. Professor Yasmeen denied that the first reaction of many Muslims to perceived insults was violence, despite calls by some clerics to kill those who insult Islam and the murder of an Italian nun in Somalia.

I am not supportive of people killing and blowing things up, ...BUT... people need to start looking at self censorship, she said.

From The Age

The NBC television network in the US is still making up its mind about whether it will allow pop star Madonna to stage a mock crucifixion on its airwaves as part of her upcoming prime-time concert special.

Madonna has made the crucifixion stunt, in which she performs while suspended on a giant cross wearing a crown of thorns, a centrepiece of her global "Confessions" tour.

Executives at NBC will wait for makers of her concert special to submit the production for review before deciding whether to allow the mock crucifixion to air.

In July, when the network first unveiled plans for the Madonna concert special, NBC Entertainment President Kevin Reilly gave mixed signals about how much artistic freedom Madonna would be given. The mock crucifixion was known then to be a central part of her stage act.

From Stop Honour Killings

A Pakistani woman and her daughter were allegedly abducted and gang-raped for 12 days because the daughter got university education against the wishes of some leaders of their Mirali tribe.

The mother and daughter from Chak Sher Khan village in Multan earned the wrath of the tribesmen when it became known that Ghazala had passed her Masters in education from Bahauddin Zahariya University on August 25. The girl's father Mohammad Hussain, a retired armyman, was also beaten up.

The report hinted at the involvement in the incident of "a minister of state". Despite being informed by villagers, police acted only after 12 days, it alleged, even then favouring the accused. While three accused managed to escape, the villagers prevented a car carrying the two women from driving away. Kabirwala's police chief Daud Hussain has been quoted as denying the incident. The police reportedly clarified that the two women had run away from their home "on their own". However, the newspaper said a hospital confirmed that the two women had been raped.

Based on an article from World Net Daily

Somali Christian sources report Ali Mustaf Maka'il, a 22-year-old college student and cloth merchant who converted from Islam to Christianity 11 months ago, was shot and killed in the Manabolyo quarter of Mogadishu. The gunman was said to be loyal to the Union of Islamic Courts, the Islamist organization that took power in Mogadishu in early June and now controls much of southern Somalia.

The report states the gunman shot Ali in the back Sept. 7 after he refused to join a crowd chanting Quran verses in honor of the lunar eclipse. Solar and lunar eclipses are significant in Islam and are accompanied by special congregational prayers. The Union of Islamic Courts confiscated Ali's body for 24 hours before delivering it to the grieving family, the report said.

The Barnabas Fund pointed out the leader of the Union of Islamic Courts, Hassan Dahir Aweys, promised to implement Sharia, or Islamic law, in all areas he controls.

According to Sharia, the group explained, apostates – those who leave Islam for another religion – must be killed. Union of Islamic Court leaders even have threatened to kill as apostates Muslims who are lax in their prayers, claiming this is commanded by Sharia.

Based on an article from the BBC

Muslim anger grows at Popal speech made during a visit to Germany The Pope quoted a 14th Century Christian emperor who said Muhammad had brought the world only "evil and inhuman" things.

The emperor's words were: Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached.

The head of the Muslim Brotherhood said the Pope's remarks aroused the anger of the whole Islamic world.

The Vatican said the Pope had not intended to offend Muslims. It is clear that the Holy Father's intention is to cultivate a position of respect and dialogue towards other religions and cultures, and that clearly includes Islam, said chief Vatican spokesman Federico Lombardi in a statement.

The Pope's "hostile" remarks drew a demand for an apology from a top religious official in Turkey. Ali Bardakoglu recalled atrocities committed by Roman Catholic Crusaders against Orthodox Christians and Jews, as well as Muslims, in the Middle Ages.

In Egypt, Muslim Brotherhood head Mohammed Mahdi Akef said the Pope's words do not express correct understanding of Islam and are merely wrong and distorted beliefs being repeated in the West. He was: astonished that such remarks come from someone who sits on top of the Catholic church which has its influence on the public opinion in the West.

Sheikh Youssef al-Qardawi, a prominent Muslim cleric in Qatar, rejected the Pope's comments, in remarks reported by Reuters: Muslims have the right to be angry and hurt by these comments from the highest cleric in Christianity. We ask the Pope to apologise to the Muslim nation for insulting its religion, its Prophet and its beliefs.

The 57-nation Organisation of the Islamic Conference also said it regretted the Pope's remarks, and news agencies reported a furious reaction on Islamic websites.
 

Based on an articles from the BBC, The Guardian & The Independent

An Italian nun living in Somalia died after being shot in the back by gunmen in the capital, Mogadishu. Unconfirmed reports suggested that the attack was prompted by local tensions between Muslims and the Catholic church in response to the Pope's comments.

Two churches in the West Bank were attacked as the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem travelled to Nablus to calm tensions between Palestinian Christians and Muslims. On Saturday, five churches, one of them Catholic, were attacked with firebombs and gunfire.

Based on an article from The Independent

The Pope is "extremely upset" that his comments on Islam and jihad have upset Muslims, the Vatican said yesterday. It was not, however, the personal apology many Muslims wanted from Pope Benedict XVI.

Protests continued around the world, with some leaders accusing him of reviving the mentality of the Crusades. Churches were fire-bombed and shot at in the West Bank and Gaza. The government of Morocco recalled its ambassador to the Vatican, and an important papal trip to Turkey appeared in danger of cancellation when the Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan called for the Pope to "correct his error immediately".

Erdogan said: I believe it is necessary for him to take back the ugly, unfortunate statements he has made and to apologise to the Islamic world and Muslims. Asked if the visit planned for November would be cancelled, Erdogan said dismissively: I wouldn't know.

Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, the Vatican secretary of state, said the Pope was extremely upset that some portions of his speech were able to sound offensive to the sensibilities of Muslim believers and have been interpreted in a way that does not at all correspond with his intentions". Pope Benedict believed, he said, that the church "esteems Muslims, who adore the only God.

The Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt was not satisfied. We feel he has committed a grave error against us and that this mistake will be removed only through a personal apology, said deputy leader Mohammed Habib.
 

Based on an articles from The Independent & The Guardian

An Italian nun living in Somalia died after being shot in the back by gunmen in the capital, Mogadishu. Unconfirmed reports suggested that the attack was prompted by local tensions between Muslims and the Catholic church in response to the Pope's comments.

Two churches in the West Bank were attacked as the Latin Patriarch of Jerusalem travelled to Nablus to calm tensions between Palestinian Christians and Muslims. On Saturday, five churches, one of them Catholic, were attacked with firebombs and gunfire.

Meanwhile Pope Benedict XVI has used his first public appearance since returning to Italy from Germany to try to defuse the crisis that has overtaken him since he quoted a Byzantine emperor who described Islam as "evil and inhuman" .

Speaking to pilgrims from the balcony of his summer residence at Castelgandolfo he said he was deeply sorry for the reactions to a brief passage considered offensive to the feelings of Muslim believers.

He went on: These were, in fact, a quotation from a medieval text which does not in any way express my personal thought. I hope this is sufficient to placate the spirits and to clarify the true meaning of my address which in its totality was and is an invitation to a frank and sincere dialogue, with mutual respect.
 

Based on an articles from The Telegraph & The Guardian

Ayatollah Ali Khamenei yesterday accused the Pope of committing the world's biggest Christian church to what he claimed was a "crusade" launched by President Bush against Islam.

The Iranian leader's words represented a setback to more than 25 years of Vatican diplomacy aimed at distancing Roman Catholicism from the west many Muslims regard as hostile and decadent. In his first comment on remarks on Islam made by Pope Benedict last week, the Ayatollah said they formed the latest link in the chain of a crusade against Islam started by America's Bush.

The Iranian leader's remarks increased concern for the safety of Roman Catholics in the Middle East. As even moderate Muslims deplored the Pope's comments, tensions remained high across the Islamic world.

Meanwhile in the UK, police patrols have been increased around churches and mosques because of fears that the Pope's comments about Islam could provoke violence.

Clergy in the London area have been visited by officers or have been asked to contact their local stations urgently to discuss security.

Scotland Yard has launched an inquiry into complaints about offensive protests by Muslim extremists outside Westminster Cathedral on Sunday. A well-known extremist, Anjem Choudary, who was accompanied by scores of demonstrators from a group called Muslims of the UK, was reported to have called for the Pope to be "executed".

Muslims gathered outside Westminster Cathedral, in protest to the pope's remarks about the Prophet Mohammed, are confronted by members of the public
The protesters chanted and waved placards as worshippers left morning Mass. Some of them wore camouflage gear; others wore dark glasses and covered their faces.
 

Based on an article from The Times

The former Archbishop of Canterbury Lord Carey has issued his own challenge to “violent” Islam in a lecture in which he defends the Pope’s “extraordinarily effective and lucid” speech.

Lord Carey said that Muslims must address “with great urgency” their religion’s association with violence. He made it clear that he believed the “clash of civilisations” endangering the world was not between Islamist extremists and the West, but with Islam as a whole.

We are living in dangerous and potentially cataclysmic times, he said. There will be no significant material and economic progress [in Muslim communities] until the Muslim mind is allowed to challenge the status quo of Muslim conventions and even their most cherished shibboleths.

Lord Carey himself quoted a contemporary political scientist, Samuel Huntington, who has said the world is witnessing a “clash of civilisations”.

Arguing that Huntington’s thesis has some “validity”, Lord Carey quoted him as saying: Islam’s borders are bloody and so are its innards. The fundamental problem for the West is not Islamic fundamentalism. It is Islam, a different civilisation whose people are convinced of the superiority of their culture and are obsessed with the inferiority of their power.

Lord Carey went on to argue that a “deep-seated Westophobia” has developed in recent years in the Muslim world.

He went on to defend the Pope’s fundamental thesis, that reason and religious faith can be compatible: The actual essay is an extraordinarily effective and lucid thesis exploring the weakness of secularism and the way that faith and reason go hand in hand.

He said he agreed with his Muslim friends who claimed that true Islam is not a violent religion, but he wanted to know why Islam today had become associated with violence. The Muslim world must address this matter with great urgency, he said.

Lord Carey was delivering a lecture titled The Cross and the Crescent: The Clash of Faiths in an Age of Secularism, at Newbold College, Berkshire.
 

Based on an article from The Times

The Archbishop of Westminster entered the row over the Pope’s comments on Islam yesterday when he questioned whether Turkey should be admitted to the European Union.

Cardinal Cormac Murphy- O’Connor, the senior Catholic in England and Wales, echoed concerns shared by the Pope when he argued that the predominantly Muslim state was not culturally part of Europe.

The Cardinal played down the controversy over the Pope’s address in Regensburg, Germany, last week, in which he quoted the words of a Byzantine emperor who described Islam as “evil and inhuman”. But the Cardinal did say that there were passages in the Koran that could be read as an “incentive to violence”.

He questioned the Government view that Turkey should be allowed to join on the grounds that to exclude it would be damaging.

The Cardinal said: There may be another view that the mixture of cultures is not a good idea.I think the question is for Europe. Will the admission of Turkey to the European Union be something that benefits a proper dialogue or integration of a very large, predominantly Islamic, country in a continent that, fundamentally, is Christian?
 

From Yahoo News

Pakistani President Pervez Musharraf called for a ban on the "defamation of Islam" in a speech to the UN General Assembly in which he took a veiled swipe at Pope Benedict XVI for his remarks linking the Muslim faith to violence: We also need to bridge, through dialogue and understanding, the growing divide between the Islamic and Western worlds, It is imperative to end racial and religious discrimination against Muslims and to prohibit the defamation of Islam.

And in an indirect reference to Pope Benedict XVI, he added: It is most disappointing to see personalities of high standing oblivious of Muslim sensitivities at these critical moments.

Based on an article from Catholic News

As Pope Benedict XVI prepares to meet Muslim ambassadors to the Holy See today, a number of Asian Muslim leaders have came out in support of the Pope on the eve of Ramadan, accepting his apology and call for dialogue.

The purpose of this meeting is to relaunch dialogue with the Islamic world, said a senior Vatican official.

We ... are definitely going to participate, said Iran's deputy ambassador to the Holy See, Ahmad Faihma. This is a positive signal from the Vatican. I know that this will improve relations with the Islamic world.

However, Turkey's religious affairs director Ali Bardakoglu urged the Pope not to use the meeting just to reiterate that he was misunderstood.

In Malaysia about 300 Muslims waved anti-Pope banners at a peaceful rally and supporters of the opposition Islamic party PAS demanded the Pope's resignation.

It has been reported that the president of the European Commission has expressed disappointment that European leaders failed to defend the Pope over his remarks about Islam. Jose Manuel Barroso said that while Europe must take the threat of Islamic extremists "very seriously", it must not confuse tolerance with a form of political correctness that puts others' values above its own.

Barroso also urged Europeans to encourage moderate Islamic leaders to take a stronger stance against the extremists: The problem is not the comments of the Pope, but the reaction of the extremists.

In another sign of improved relations, Filipino Muslim leaders yesterday signed a manifesto expressing their support for Benedict XVI and their acceptance of his personal apology for the speech, according to the Philippine Star: It is our honest belief that it was never the intention of His Holiness Pope Benedict XVI to hurt or offend the feelings of Muslims like us, the leaders noted.

From The Telegraph

No criminal offences were committed in a Muslim protest over the Pope outside Westminster Cathedral, police have decided.

The Metropolitan Police has also decided not to take action against the controversial Muslim figure, Anjem Choudary, who allegedly said in a television interview about the row over the Pope that anyone who insulted the Muslim faith would be "subject to capital punishment".

Police received about 25 complaints from members of the public about the protest, which was said to have left worshippers attending the cathedral on September 17 feeling "upset" and "intimidated".

The Metropolitan Police Commissioner, Sir Ian Blair said  that, after reviewing the evidence, Scotland Yard officers had concluded that "no substantive offences" were committed during the cathedral demonstration: We are in an angry time and it is our job in the Met to hold the line on free speech.

However a spokeswoman for the Crown Prosecution Service said that its lawyers were still reviewing TV footage from the day of the demo.

About 100 Muslim demonstrators took part in the protest . Slogans on display included 'Pope go to hell' and 'May Allah Curse The Pope'.

From Turkish Press

The youth chapter of the protestant Dutch party SGP filed a legal complaint against the singer Madonna for blasphemy and insulting a religious group.

The group objected to a mock crucifixion scene featured in Madonna's European tour after the US pop star gave two sell-out concerts in Amsterdam this month.

Chairman Jan Kloosterman said the complaint was supported by 50 different organisations.

From The Independent

Saudi Arabia's religious police, the Muttawa are turning to a new target: cats and dogs. They have issued a decree banning the sale of the pets, seen as a sign of Western influence.

The prohibition on dogs is unsurprising, since conservative Muslims despise the animals as unclean. But the cat ban has astonished many, since Islamic tradition holds that the Prophet Mohamed loved cats ­ even in one instance letting a cat drink from his ablutions water before washing himself for prayers.

The Muttawa enforce Saudi Arabia's strict Islamic code and have wide leeway to enforce any rules they deem necessary to uphold the social order.

The new decree, which applies to the Red Sea port of Jeddah and the holy city of Mecca, bans the sale of cats and dogs because some youths have been buying them and parading them in public, says the Municipal Affairs Ministry.

From The Globe and Mail

Islamic intolerants controlling much of southern Somalia shut down a radio station Sunday for playing love songs and other music, the latest step to impose strict religious rule which has sparked fears of an emerging, Taliban-style regime.

The group closed Radio Jowhar because the programs were un-Islamic, Islamic official Sheik Mohamed Mohamoud Abdirahman said. It was the only radio station in Jowhar, some 90 kilometres from Mogadishu.

Jowhar resident Ali Musse said closing the radio station was a violation of freedom.

This directive is like the Taliban, Musse said: It is censorship against independent media and freedom of expression.

From CBC.ca

Prosecutors in the Netherlands say a priest has confessed to phoning in a fake bomb threat to a Madonna concert in Amsterdam to try to prevent the singer from performing her crucifixion act.

Meulenbroek said the priest was arrested almost immediately after making the threats on Sunday. From his home, he phoned the emergency services number where the call was traced right away.

The priest appeared before a judge Friday and has been released pending judgment.

We take bomb threats seriously, but in this case, it was clear very quickly it was not real, said Meulenbroek, who said prosecutors would likely ask for a punishment of community service because it was the priest's first offence.

Based on an article from ic Wales

Christian nutters say cinematic versions of a series of what they were anti-religious novels will prove as controversial among churchgoers as Dan Brown's The Da Vinci Code.

Philip Pullman's trilogy, His Dark Materials, which went into film production recently, has prompted outrage among religious nutters, who dismissed it as blasphemous anti-Christian propaganda.

The Catholic Herald condemned his work as "fit for the bonfire", while Rupert Kaye, chief executive of the Association of Christian Teachers, has said Pullman's "blasphemy is shameless".

Simon Jenkins, editor of the online Christian newsletter Ship of Fools, says the film version of His Dark Materials has the potential to prove every bit as offensive to some religious groups. But Jenkins said he believes those opposed to Pullman's books should use them as a platform for a debate about faith instead of dismissing the work as heresy.

Work on filming the first of the three novels began at Shepperton Studios and the production will star Nicole Kidman as Mrs Coulter, Daniel Craig as Lord Asriel and the unknown Dakota Blue Richards as Lyra.

The Hollywood film will be titled The Golden Compass, which was the US name chosen for the first novel in the trilogy - it was known as Northern Lights here. It is being directed by Chris Weitz, who made About a Boy and Antz.

Jenkins said, I'm sure this new film will launch 100 anti-film and anti-book websites going through all the detailed reasons why they are wrong and why they are dangerous and pose a threat to civilisation as we know it. But that's not my view of it. I think that is counter-productive. I think it's better to engage with the books on all the issues.

Pullman agreed the books had upset some Christians, but said he was unconcerned about the prospect of the films doing the same.

If the books become three separate films, then Christians will be far less offended by the first instalment than the following two - The Subtle Knife and The Amber Spyglass, he said.

Kaye said it's only in the final novel in the trilogy that Pullman's blasphemy is unfurled for all to see. Pullman uses the names many people will recognise as referring to the God of the Christians and Jews, like Yahweh, the Almighty, and then goes on to say that the same God is not the creator of the universe and hence a liar.

From International Herald Tribune

The chief editor of a Sudanese independent daily who provoked a furor by publishing an article denounced as blasphemous was found dead a day after being abducted by unknown gunmen.

A group of masked gunmen abducted Mohammed Taha Mohammed Ahmed, the editor-in-chief of Al-Wifaq, from his home in the east of Khartoum late Tuesday.

His body was found in another part of the city a day later, an Interior Ministry official said, speaking on condition of anonymity because he was not authorized to speak to the media.

Several suspects were arrested for alleged involvement in the crime.

Reporters Without Borders condemned the kidnapping and killing of Ahmed: We express our solidarity with our colleagues in Khartoum, for whom this cowardly murder is a harsh ordeal, They urged Sudanese authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice.

In May 2005, scores of Sudanese gathered in front of the capital's courthouse demanding a death sentence for Ahmed for insulting Islam's prophet, by republishing an article from the Internet that questioned the parentage of the Prophet Muhammad.

The Al-Wifaq daily was fined 8,000,000 Sudanese pounds (about US$3,200) for the outcry it prompted in this conservative African Muslim nation. Ahmed refuted the blasphemy charges and apologized in a letter to the press saying he did not intend to insult the prophet.

Blasphemy and insulting Islam can bring the death penalty in Sudan, which has been governed by strict Islamic Sharia law since 1983.

From MediawatchWatch who also include the anti-gay leaflet

Stephen Green, national director of Christian Voice, was arrested this weekend at the Cardiff Mardi Gras.

His was detained for 4 hours and charged with using “threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour within the hearing or sight of a person likely to be caused harassment, alarm or distress  (section 5 of the Public Order Act). What he actually did was hand out around 1,000 anti-gay leaflets.

Green is predictably delighted as shown by a Christian Voice press release:

I thank God for the honour of being locked up for sharing the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Speaking about righteousness, morality, sin, repentance and the forgiveness sinners can find in the cross of Jesus Christ may well offend the fragile sensibilities of homosexuals, but should the police have a partisan unit whose job is to round up Christian dissidents, treat them like thought criminals and trample on freedom of speech?
 

From MediawatchWatch.

A Christian Institute mailshot reports that the CPS has dropped the case against Stephen Green.

This is good news all round. Not only was the charge of using “threatening, abusive or insulting words or behaviour” a specious one, given that Stephen Green was merely distributing leaflets at a rally, but this will also scupper the “double standards” charges aimed at the CPS who recently refused to pursue the case against the Gay Police Association for its bloody bible ad.

To make up for his disappointment at missing out on his day in court, publicity-hungry Stephen Green has vowed to take civil action against the police for infringing his freedom of speech. And so it goes on… So much for turning the other cheek - why not help waste a bit more public money, Stephen?

From The Age

The Dutch justice minister has rejected a call by a Christian party to stop Madonna staging a mock-crucifixion in concerts in Amsterdam.

Minister Piet Hein Donner said he understood the concerns of the SGP party which asked the minister to prevent Madonna performing the scene in concerts on Sunday and Monday, but said only a court could take action against the show.

It is understandable that Christians feel offended by the crucifixion act that Madonna performs, he said in remarks posted on the SGP website. It is a reprehensible way to attract attention at the cost of the deepest feelings of many people. That does not mean that this act can be classified as blasphemy. Judgement over whether the event in question constitutes blasphemy is not up to the justice minister, but up to prosecutors and ultimately a judge.

The youth wing of the Christian party, the SGP, said they were deeply disappointed by Donner's response and said they would launch a suit against Madonna for blasphemy after her concerts in Amsterdam, part of her worldwide "Confessions Tour".