The Muslim Link - May 28, 2008 by The Muslim Link

Muharram . Safar . Rabi’ al-awwal . Rabi’ al-thani . 18 JUMADA AL-AWWAL . Jumada al-thani . Rajab . Sha’aban . Ramadan . Shawwal . Dhu al-Qi’dah . Dhu al-Hijjah . 1429 A.H.

FRIDAY, MAY 23, 2008

A MD, VA, and DC. Metropolitan Area Bi-Weekly Newspaper

LOCAL PALESTINIANS REMEMBER

ISB HOSTS SCHOLAR OF QURANIC RECITATION

By Farkhunda Ali Muslim Link Staff Writer

Internet photo archives

PG 09

THEIR CATASTROPHE

Holding an enlarged 11x14 framed picture of her parents’ house in Jerusalem, Manal A. Dajani sits down in her living room in Alexandria, Virginia to retell the story of her family’s eviction from what was once her home, her dear land, but now the state of Israel.

THE IMPLICATIONS OF AL-NAKBA 60 YEARS LATER

Dajani, 74, said her grandchildren did not learn about the event from history textbooks, but from stories of her childhood. She utilizes every moment of her life reminding the second and third generations about her family of Palestine. “They can take everything from us, but Palestine will always remain alive in my heart and my mind,” said Dajani, as she

>> PG 25

>> Catastrophe I Pg 011

DC Muslimah Forced to Remove Hijab After Traﬃc Stop

By Farkhunda Ali Muslim Link Staff Writer An African American Southeast DC Muslim couple is seeking a legal counsel to discuss what they consider a discriminatory act against them. On the morning of May 2nd, 2008, Octavia Washington, her husband

Mark Timberlake and their four children were living peacefully in their three-bedroom home in a quite developing neighborhood of SE on Minnesota Avenue. Around midnight, Washington parked her Ford Freestar Minivan in front of her residence to unload groceries. She was approached by a DC police ofﬁce and arrested

at 12:45AM for a suspended license.

the tints removed and take her vehicle for another inspection.

Wa s h i n g t o n t o l d T M L s h e considers the arrest unnecessary since she was originally stopped for having tints on her windows.

At the time of the citation, she was issued a $50.00 ticket and warned to remove the tints as soon as

The ofﬁcer informed her that DC regulation has special codes for tints. Washington agreed to get

>> Muslimah Pg 18

Appeal for Sabri Benkahla Heard in North Carolina Capturing Muslim FunFest 2008 A Photo Essay Page 14

The following update on the case of Falls Church youth Sabri Benkahla was written by his brother Souhail Benkahla for the Muslim Link. For more information about the history of the case, search for “sabri” at www. muslimlinkpaper.com”. - TML The appeal of Sabri Benkahla took place at North Carolina University Law School on April 11, 2008 and was

viewed by many supporters and law students.

raised in the United States, was the ﬁnal defendant in the “Virginia 11’’ case. He was dropped from that case due to lack of evidence then after several months indicted again by the government with new charges of providing material support to the Taliban in July of 1999. President Clinton issued an order banning material support in June of

For those who are unfamiliar with the case, Sabri, an American citizen born and

>> Appeal Pg 06

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

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Court Rules with Defense on Access to Classiﬁed Material in the Case of Dr. Ali Al-Timimi Dr. Jonathan Turley May 16, 2008 Due to the classiﬁed status of the case, I have been limited in what I can report about the progress in the case of Dr. Ali Al-Timimi. However, today’s hearing was public and thus some additional information can be disclosed. Today was a very positive day for the defense. We have been trying for two years (since a remand from the Fourth Circuit) to gain access to material that we believe was withheld by the government during the trial. This material includes interceptions and other forms of evidence conducted under national security programs. In November, Judge Leonie Brinkema threatened to order a new trial for Dr. Al-Timimi in light of the

government’s refusal to give me, as lead counsel, access to ex parte material, click here. Today, the government sought to end the case after completing its own review of material

— without giving the defense (which includes Will Olson from Bryan Cave) access to any of the material. We filed papers seeking such access. Judge Brinkema refused and ruled with the defense that access must be given. She further threatened again that she is considering a new trial unless things change. Notably, Judge Brinkema confirmed that the government had used classification to hide purely legal argument — an abuse of such rules. She noted that much of the ex parte filing is composed of legal argument without any possible claim that it is classified. That would be a flagrant abuse of ex parte rules and it is precisely what the defense has warned about: the use of these filings to avoid the adversarial process. She noted that I have a clearance and should be able to see the material. She ordered a conference with the government and the security officer to

arrange for such a disclosure. She, however, declined our request that Will Olson be given access with me due to the government’s concerns over the sensitivity of the material and limiting those with access to the fewest possible individuals. We are deeply grateful for Judge Brinkema’s continued demand for access in the case. We remain convinced that the government has material that should have been disclosed at trial. We remain committed to Dr. Al-Timimi’s efforts to receive a new and fair trial. We will continue to update this blog as public information becomes available. Source: The blog of Dr. Ali Al-Timimi’s lead counsel Dr. Jonathan Turley, http:// jonathanturley.org

Muslims Political Voices Divided on Darfur By Talib I. Karim Muslim Link Contributing Writer Last week, a coalition that included the only two Muslims in Congress, called on the Bush administration to deploy UN soldiers to the Muslim country of Sudan. The call was issued during a May 14, 2008 press conference held in Washington. The news conference came on the heels of an unprecedented attack on the Sudanese capitol of Khartoum. On May 10th, days before the press conference, rebels from the Dar Fur Justice and Equality Movement (JEM) rebels led a coordinated attack in Omdurman, a district in Sudanese capital that houses the nation’s Parliament building the headquarters of the country’s TV and radio network. It is believed that the rebel strike speciﬁcally targeted the Sudanese communications center as a means of toppling the Sudanese government. In response to the attack, the international community issued strong condemnations of the rebels. The UN led the condemnations. UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon of Korea said in a prepared statement that he “condemns strongly

the use of armed force and military means by JEM for the achievement of political ends and calls for an immediate cessation of ﬁghting and a renewed commitment to a peaceful resolution of outstanding issues”.

Sudanese government to open its doors to more United Nations troops. At last week’s press conference, Congressman Keith Ellison (D-MN), followed the lead of Save Dar Fur, which has been criticized for

The views of the Muslims in Congress were buttressed by the statements of non-Muslim members of Congress who were more direct in criticizing the Muslim-led government of Sudan rather than the rebels responsible for the recent attack.

An even harsher condemnation came from the Arab League Council, which met in an emergency session hours following the attack. Arab foreign ministers said the attack on the Sudanese capital was a “terrorist operation” and “called on all states that support armed rebel movements to stop backing them or allowing them to use their territories to threaten the unity, security and stability of Sudan” which is the largest country in Africa. Rather than joining in the international community’s condemnation of the rebel attacks, Muslim American political leaders joined with a coalition of groups, such as Save Dar Fur, to turn up the pressure on the

making false statements about the conﬂict in Sudan’s western region. Instead of showing solidarity with the Sudanese government whose capital was attacked, Ellison expressed sympathy for the people of Darfur, the home of the JEM rebel movement. “I urge the leaders of the world to listen to our collective voices when it comes to the genocide of our brothers and sisters in Darfur,” Congressman Ellison stated. “Ending suffering, and the pursuing of peace are not exclusively Christian, Jewish or Muslim values; but shared values by all.” Ellison said. His comments were echoed by the second Muslim elected to Congress, Representative

Andre Carson (D-IN) of Indianapolis. “We talk about America being one of the greatest nations on earth,” Carson said. “If we are to have that title ... we need to step out on the world front and be a leader on this issue” asserted Carson. The views of the Muslims in Congress were buttressed by the statements of non-Muslim members of Congress who were more direct in criticizing the Muslim-led government of Sudan rather than the rebels responsible for the recent attack. “It’s time for Secretary Rice to make a singular mission to Africa on the genocide in Sudan,” she said, “... and not come back until troops are on the ground, until the African Union is reinforced, until the Khartoum government is aware of our seriousness that the genocide must stop” said Rep. Sheila Jackson Lee, D-Texas. Some activists like Mauri Saalakhan of Maryland’s Peace and Justice Foundation, see irony in such statements from these political leaders. On the one hand, anti-war Democrats such as Ellison, Carson, and Jackson Lee call for the Bush Administration to bring home

>> Darfur Pg 011

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COMMUNITY NEWS

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Planting Day at ISB Draws Enthusiastic Young Volunteers By Rana Khan Muslim Link Contributing Writer May 10, 2008 : A dozen volunteers, comprising of mostly children and women, came to the Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) on a cold and wet Saturday morning to beautify the grounds of one of the houses of Allah (subhanahu wa ta’ala). Children as young as three years old were enthusiastically raking leaves and debris, planting flowers and spreading mulch on the flower beds. Azzam Mahdi, age 10, worked hard for more than three hours. “I like this kind of work, especially digging the soil,” he said. Aseela Abdul-Rahman, age 5, and her two siblings were also there all morning. Maryam Abdur-Rahman, age 5, worked diligently by her mother’s side as other little hands pitched in to help. Zaynab Al-Zaawily, age 9, Khadija Smith, age 6, and Zainab Khalid, age 8, arrived full of energy and ready to work. Wearing work gloves that were given to all the volunteers as they entered the masjid property, they said with beaming faces and big smiles, “We came to help because Allah will reward those who help the masjid.” Muhammad Saleem, a community member actively involved in the planning stages of this event, supervised the planting at the entrance of the masjid and patiently demonstrated for his young helpers the best technique for removing the colorful potted ﬂowers from their containers and transplanting them into the soil. “When you enjoy something, you will not

ISB members both young and old took part in planting day. Photo courtesy of Omar Smith.

have a problem learning how to do it,” he said. Madiha Tahseen had coordinated with the organizers of the event to encourage girls from the ISB Youth group to attend and assist with the effort. “They enjoy participating in events like this where they can see the difference their efforts have made,” she said. “It gives the youth a sense of belonging to their masjid and motivates them to come together for a good cause. It’s Saturday morning and it’s

raining but these girls still came out here because they wanted to be a part of this.” One of the attendees of the event said, “It is important for us to take pride in our masajid and keep them clean and beautiful. We spend so much time and effort maintaining our homes to the best of standards yet when it comes to the houses of Allah, where Allah’s name is remembered and gloriﬁed, where we pray and come together as a community, we don’t have the time to spare in helping to maintain them.”

Allah (Subhanahu wa ta’ala) says in the Holy Quran: “The masajid of Allah shall be visited and maintained by such as believe in Allah and the Last Day, establish regular prayers, and practice regular charity, and fear none (at all) except Allah. It is they who are expected to be on true guidance.” {9:18}

Appeal for Sabri Benkahla Heard in North Carolina continued >> Appeal from pg 01

1999.

The government alleges they have hard proof Sabri visited Pakistan that month. After 8 months of home detention, Judge Leonie Brinkema found Sabri not guilty on all counts. Soon after being acquitted Sabri was called for several “debrieﬁngs” and then compelled twice to testify in front of a Grand Jury. His house was raided, business raided and family friends’ houses were raided during the course of the “investigation”. Sabri was then tried and convicted by jury for obstruction of justice and perjury charges related to the same issues he was acquitted of. Instead of the normal guideline sentencing of 18 months, or Scooter Libby’s sentence of 0 months for the same charges, Sabri became the ﬁrst citizen to have a terrorist enhancement applied to his perjury sentence giving him 10 years. Last month’s appeal brought supporters from the Dar Al Hijrah Community as well as Muslims from North Carolina. The

Courtroom was filled and many had to view the proceedings from an overflow room. The appeal case was heard by: Judge Duncan, who was nominated to the Fourth Circuit by President George W. Bush on April 28, 2003 and is the Fourth Circuit’s first female African American judge; Judge Motz, not unfamiliar to our community, who heard the appeals of both Ahmed Abu Ali and Ali Asad Chandia

Arguing for the prosecution was Gordon Kromberg and Assistant US Attorney John Gibbs, and for Sabri were Bill Mofﬁt and Andrew Hurst. One of the issues of appeal is whether the trial court violated Sabri’s Sixth Amendment right by improperly applying U.S.S.G 3A1.4 (Terrorism Enhancement) to Sabri’s conviction of perjury/obstruction. The defense

The government’s strongest argument that the terrorist enhancement applied to Sabri was that he lied when he said he didn’t remember if jihad was discussed at this particular lecture. and who has also challenged Bush in her dissenting opinions on the balance between national security and individual freedoms; and Chief Judge Wilkinson, who also heard Ahmed Abu Ali’s appeal and who wrote the majority opinion upholding the right of the United States government to detain Yaser Esam Hamdi indeﬁnitely without access to counsel or a court.

says the government failed to show that Sabri had actually obstructed an investigation of a federal crime of terrorism. The government contended that Sabri should have known the information they were seeking and could have helped them. Although they conceded that there was no “ticking time bomb” they argued that they had to ﬁnd out information that Sabri had about

people but he failed to deliver. Judge Motz explained that trial Court Judge Cacheris “had to have the specific incident in order but when he based his actual sentence he didn’t refer to those specific instances...He specifically talked about Abu Ali and Ali Timimi but then as I read the order...he doesn’t refer to the conduct this defendant had with Ali Timimi and Abu Ali …” The fact is that there was no specific investigation into a crime. The information the FBI tried to elicit from Sabri was more general and the specific question that Sabri was accused of perjuring himself on, and in which the government argued that the enhancement applied had to do with the content of a public lecture that Sheikh Ali Timimi gave. Application Note 2 of the terrorism enhancement provides that, in order to be applied, there needs to be a specific investigation into a crime of terrorism. This particular lecture was recorded and the FBI already had a copy before questioning Sabri. It was not new information about a crime that was about to happen, but rather a fishing expedition or a perjury trap. There was

>> Appeal II Pg 17

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

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COMMUNITY NEWS

CCMO Meets with DC Area leaders for Strategic Planning By Mostaﬁz Chowdhury

Muslim Link Contributing Writer The Coordinating Council of Muslim Organizations in the Greater Washington, DC (CCMO) met with the community leaders on May 11, 2008 at the International Institute of Islamic Thought (IIIT) headquarters ofﬁce in Herndon, VA to develop an operational plan for the next 2-3 years based on their strategic planning. The participating leadership included representatives of over 25 Masajid and Muslim organizations in the DC area. They reviewed the previous strategic planning work and collectively identiﬁed an action plan for CCMO. This action plan is developed to achieve the following seven goals of CCMO: 1. Cooperate with and coordinate among member organizations; 2. Foster youth and women’s development; 3. Enhance organizational effectiveness; 4. Relate with significant publics in society; 5. Harness

professional skills/abilities; 6. Support educational institutions; and 7. Ensure ﬁnancial stability. These goals are based on the mission of CCMO to serve as a platform of unity and to promote, facilitate, and synergize the cooperative activities among Muslim Organizations in the DC Metro area. Dr. Iqbal Unus from the CCMO EC directed the entire working session to identify and formulate SMART objectives (objectives that are Speciﬁc, Measurable, Acceptable, Realistic, and Time-bound). It was stated that this process is aimed to develop and sustain an operational plan responsive to the needs of the member organizations and to ensure that the goals serve the mission and vision appropriately. Five working groups were formed to deliberate and produce strategies in line with the guidelines given. Each group consisted of 5 to 6 participants working diligently with 1-2 goals independently presented

their recommendations to the whole group. The whole group reviewed the SMART objectives to ensure that they are tied to speciﬁc goals and represent a managerial commitment to produce specified results in a speciﬁc time frame. They collectively agreed on a version which was handed over to the CCMO Executive Committee (EC) for implementation and execution.

to join CCMO so that they can support the unity of Muslims in this area and to benefit from numerous potential benefits of CCMO membership. To understand the strategic planning process in its entirety, Muslim organizations are encouraged to study Rafiq Beekun’s pioneering book on Strategic planning and implementation for Islamic organizations.

The next step in the strategic planning process is to consolidate the strategies identiﬁed in this meeting into a common document and to develop implementation and evaluation guidelines. A steering committee from CCMO member organizations will be selected by the EC to put this document together and help with further reﬁning the operational plan.

As one of the immediate manifestations of this process, CCMO has already launched an effort to improve their web site (www. ccmodc.org). The plan is to make this web site a central source of information about all of the Muslim organizations and the Muslims events in this area. For any questions and comments about CCMO and this process, please visit the web site and contact CCMO secretary at CCMO.Secretary@yahoo.com. Together we serve our Lord and together we stand tall!

Those CCMO member organizations which could not join this meeting are requested to join the process and provide their input to CCMO EC. Further, those Muslim organizations who are not member of CCMO, are encouraged

ISB Hosts Scholar of Quranic Recitation By Rana Khan Muslim Link Contributing Writer “The best of you are those who learn the Quran and teach it.” {Sahih Bukhari} The Islamic Society of Baltimore (ISB) hosted Sheikh Qari Mohammad Yaseen at Masjid Al-Rahmah on Friday, May 16, 2008 and invited him to share with the gathering, his insight into the importance of Quranic education for children. Qari Yaseen enumerated many ahadith addressing the special status and honor conveyed upon the memorizer of the Quran and related many examples of how the choicest

of Allah’s blessings and mercy are conferred upon those that strive to preserve Allah’s words by learning and teaching them. Qari Sheikh Mohammad Yaseen, who is currently visiting the U.S. from Pakistan, was born in Panipat, India, in 1937 and migrated to Pakistan in 1947 while witnessing many of the harrowing incidents that took place during the partition. He completed the memorization of the Holy Quran in 1954 with Sheikh Qari Fateh Mohammad and also studied under Qari Rahim Baksh. He received permission to teach Quran from the renowned Qari Hasan Shair of Syria in 1961 while in Madinah al-Munawwarah. Thereafter, he started teaching Quran in Dar-ul-Uloom (Karachi)

and has been teaching there for the last 50 years. His students are widely dispersed and strive to take the light of the Quran to many communities around the world. Qari Yaseen’s teachers, were themselves devoted to the service of the Quran and dedicated all their time to this cause. Mufti Taqi Usmani has said about them,”Qari Fateh Mohammad was a living miracle of Quran. His tongue was all the time busy reciting the Quran. He was always engrossed

>> Expansion Pg 18

The Persecution of a Palestinian Family in America Mauri’ Saalakhan Muslim Link Contributing Writer “A passionate attachment of one nation for another produces a variety of evils… It gives to ambitious, corrupted or deluded citizens (who devote themselves to the favorite nation) the facility to betray or sacrifice the interest of their own country without odium, sometimes even with popularity.” – President George Washington Imam Dr. Mohammad Qatanani is a 44 year old religious scholar, a soft-spoken Muslim

One of the most touching moments of the court proceedings was when Rev. Bill Potter, who was on the witness stand, turned toward Imam Qatanani, who was seated on the ﬁrst row of the court with his family, and declared: “My 18 year old daughter adores you.” Then turning toward the judge he said, “She was inspired to study Arabic largely because of him.” of Palestinian heritage. He came to the United States with his wife and three young children in 1996, with the hope of realizing the much sought after “American dream.” In later years the Qatananis were blessed with three more American born children, as they planted familial roots in the city of Paterson, New Jersey.

The writer is a member of the CCMO Strategic Planning Committee.

Dar Al-Taqwa Talks Expansion at Annual Fundraiser By Muslim Link Staff Howard County, Maryland’s Dar Al-Taqwa had its annual fundraising dinner on April 26, 2008 at Long Reach High School in Columbia, MD. According to an update sent out by the center located on Route 108, about $144,000 was raised, including about $79,000 in pledges. The goal for the ﬁscal year is $250,000. Imam Mahmoud Abdul-Hadi presented the achievements of Dar Al-Taqwa, including religious programs, community outreach, and other activities like the Saturday school. Children enrolled in the Saturday school and other Dar Al-Taqwa programs took to the stage and read Qur’an, poems, and statements showing what the masjid means to them. “It Dar Al-Taqwa did not exist, we would never have met each other ... I am very grateful to Allah for giving it to me,” said a young Hasan Ahmad, standing on stage alongside his masjid friends.

Over the years, Imam Qatanani became a well known figure in the state of New Jersey. He is the spiritual leader of one of the largest Islamic Centers in that state, the Islamic Center of Passaic County (ICPC); he is known far and wide for his community outreach and interfaith work; he is lauded

Current President Mumtaz Khan explained the board’s vision for growth, including utilizing a recently acquired adjoining property for additional parking space, a security gate, and a professional website that is already in development. “We have to ﬁnish the media center, to make it state of the art ...

>> Palestinian Pg 19

>> Expansion Pg 10

COMMUNITY NEWS

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

Baltimore School Calendar Still Leaves Out Muslim Holidays The following letter was sent by Dr. Bashar Pharon of Baltimore to Baltimore County’s Board of Education. Dr. Pharon has been actively engaged for many years to have the public school system recognize Muslim hoildays. The letter is below. -- TML ----------------------------------------------------Regarding: Baltimore County Public Schools partnership with Baltimore County residents. Good evening Dr. Hairston, Madame Murphy and honorable board members. It is clear today that the board of education believes in a strong partnership with the residents of Baltimore County as a way for better education for all students. Dr. Hairston pointed out to all Baltimore County Public Schools principals on 8/15/2003 that “we shall leave no child behind” and that “ALL MEANS ALL”. He also presented the seismic change landmark speech on December 12, 2005. We have been witness to the board of education supporting both visions almost

in every meeting in one way or another. Federal and State legislation always has impact on public education. The constitution of the US and the State of Maryland do too. The superintendent and the board of education have adopted great and courageous plans to move forward based on data. Nothing in the school system should move without objective data. The school calendar committee for the 09-10 calendars partially did not adopt the calendar based on data. Members did not address the data behind granting NonCOMAR and clearly religious holidays to one minority only. Actually, they passed that holiday on without any assessment. Some on the board say our request for equality of minority religious holidays is political. It is not. It is constitutional right for equality. The Berger decision to lobby and push his religious holiday in 1997 or thereabouts was political and not based on DATA. Let us remember Dr. Hayman’s statements on this board, “every thing is political”.

Let us remember the Flynn-Hayden campaigned of this year. It was purely political. Let us remember the appointment of board of education members. It is a political appointment. We know who appoints members to the board. In the calendar committee meeting for calendar 2007-2008 last year, the majority agreed to adding one Muslim holiday. That recommendation was suffocated before it had a chance to breathe. The Baltimore County Public Schools are ﬁnishing this year early on Wednesday. If the board last year added one Islamic holiday as school closing day, the schools would have closed this year on Thursday. Every one would still be happy. A one-day difference will not be a difference. The Syrian Arab American poet, Jibran Khalil Jibran told: “ask what you can do for your country”. President Kennedy took that and slightly modiﬁed it to “And so, my fellow Americans, ask not what your country can do

Rising With the Angels and Getting Double the Reward By Asiya Akyurt Muslim Link Contributing Writer One of the primary objectives of an Islamic school is to focus on the reading, recitation and understanding of Al-Quran Al-kareem. The Washington Islamic Academy (WIA) in Virginia offers a class each day in the Quran in addition to a daily class in Arabic. A great deal of emphasis, therefore, is also placed upon the co-curricular activities related to it. The 3rd and the final round of the Annual Qur’an Memorization and Recitation Competition at the Washington Islamic Academy was held on March 8th, 2008. After the first round of the competition, which was held in-class with the school’s Qur’an teachers, Sr. Hadia Bouji and Sr. Asiya Akyurt, the second round was conducted by local sisters knowledgeable in the Qur’an. These sisters included: Sr. Nimao Abdi, Sr. Fatima Abdallah, Sr. Haneen Adas, Sr. Khadeejah Akyurt, and Sr. Sahar Qudsi. The winners of the second round went on to compete in the exciting third, and final, round.

This round was held in the school Musalla, with an impressive panel of judges, including Sh. Mohammad Al-Hanooti, from Dar Al-Hijrah Islamic Center; Sh. Abdelqadir, the Assistant Imam of Dar Al-Hijrah; and Sh.Hafiz Zaheeruddin, Imam of ICNA [Islamic Circle of North America] Masjid, Alexandria, VA. The well attended program was started with welcoming remarks from Dr. Talat Sultan, WIA Principal followed by a short yet thoughtful message from Shaikh Hanooti. Sr.Asiye spelled out the rules of the competition. The students were divided into 7 levels, ranging from Surat An-Nas all the way to Surat Saba’. Oh, how thrilling it was to listen to the students reciting perfectly from memory all they had learned this year and in previous years! It was truly humbling to sit there and hear even those who do not speak Arabic recite Allah’s words so beautifully, and with such conﬁdence that some of them won ﬁrst and second prizes at their respective levels. It gave us all hope that if they could memorize so much Qur’an, then so could we.

for you; ask what you can do for your country. “. We pay taxes. We came to you in masses in 2004 and 2005, until the board made so many lose hopes for equality. We asked you only to treat us equally no more and no less. America has its moments of rise and weakness. The ideal of our constitution, “we the people”, the ideal of equality of all citizens and residents, in liberty and justice for ALL, shall survive and keep us strong, as long as we mean ALL means ALL. I do respectfully ask you to exercise your leadership and vision for a united Baltimore County and approve the addition of one Islamic holiday as school closing day on the secular basis of equality with our cousins’ holiday. If you choose not to, then we ask you to honor the COMAR holidays. The calendar 2009-2010 is tilted in its current form. Bash Pharoan, MD ADC Baltimore President

continued >> Expansion from pg 09 so our children can come and learn instead of ‘chilling out’,” said Brother Mumtaz.

Listening to the students from different backgrounds recite reminded me of the Prophet’s (peace be upon him) hadeeth: “The one who reads the Qur’an excellently is with the honorable angels, and the one who reads the Qur’an and stutters while reading it, and it is difﬁcult for him, has two rewards.”

He also mentioned big projects that Dar AlTaqwa wants to implement, like constructing a gymnasium senior housing close to the masjid, and establishing a cemetery. “There are may opportunities to acquire neighboring lands property ... and all of this sounds good, but it doesn’t come for free,” he added.

At the end of the competition refreshments were served, then the winners were announced:

After Treasurer Altaf Lohani updated community members on the revenue and expenditures of the masjid, it was time for the main event: fundraising.

Levels One and Two: All participants were winners Level Three: Ealed Nuru (First Place), Hasan Hasan and Maryam Hassan (Second Place) Level Four: All participants were winners Level Five: Ahilla Ghannouchi (First Place), Ayah Mahdi (Second Place) Level Six: Zulfa Ghannouchi (First Place), Osama Mohamed (Second Place) Level Seven: Ahmed Aden (First Place), Ousswa Ghannouchi (Second Place)

Sheikh Ibrahim Al-Daramali was the keynote speaker and fundraiser. Daramali, the Director of the Islamic Center of Austin, Texas, was also the fundraiser not long ago when Dar Al-Taqwa was being built. “Congratulations,” he told the crowd. “You are all the winners, all of you [helped built this masjid],” he said. Encouraging people to act on their conviction and donate, he said “you chose the name Dar Al-Taqwa.” Four people pledged $10,000 each, and another four pledged $5,000 each. Many hands raised for $1,000 donations and smaller amounts.

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008 continued >> Darfur from pg 04 troops occupying the Muslim country of Iraq in the Middle East, yet these same political leaders urge the same Bush Administration to send troops to the Muslim nation of Sudan on the African continent, reﬂected Saalakhan. Another viewpoint was shared by Mohamed Elsanousi, Director of Communications & Community Outreach for the Washington, DC ofﬁce of the Islamic Society of North America (ISNA). Elsanousi, a Sudanese by birth said, “I condemn these attacks, no question about it.” According to Elsanousi, “The Dar Fur problem can be solved in another way,” rather than through rebel attacks. Elsanousi also criticized the JEM for employing

continued >> Catastrophe I from pg 1 pointed to some pictures from the Old City and Jerusalem, reﬂecting back to the good times she had with her eight uncles and several cousins during Eid celebrations.

Sayad said some Palestinians from his hometown still hold onto the keys to their homes hoping to return back soon.

COMMUNITY NEWS children in the recent attacks in the Sudanese capitol city. “In this particular attack, they used 72 minors, they are recruiting minors,” stated Elsanousi. Such use of children soldiers is widely accepted as a violation of international law. Muslim political observers, like Saalakhan, suggest that last week’s press conference is another example of the strength of forces that are aligned against Islam. The Muslim Members of Congress regrettably fell into a trap set for them by non-Muslim “special interests” notes Salakhan. “I think it is absolutely shameful that Muslim leaders and organizations allow themselves to be manipulated on the issue of Darfur, yet are absolutely silent on the other Muslim-African country where political genocide is taking place, Somalia.”

To help Muslims leaders and organizations withstand such attacks, veteran Muslim political insiders like Valencia Mohammed, a former member of the DC Board of Education, believe that the time has come to build a united Muslim political platform. The newly formed Muslim Democratic Caucus of the District

the expulsion of several hundred thousand Palestinians and their families.

In Egypt, every day her father said to the Dajanis, “we’re going back tomorrow.”

Many Palestinians still hold onto their pictures, diaries, videos, rugs, plants uprooted from their gardens, stems of the dates and olive trees, and other artifacts with hope to return to their towns and villages in Palestine.

Dajani traveled to Saudi Arabia after getting married, then to Lebanon, Greece, and lastly to the United States of America (U.S.). She said after six years, the countries ask them to leave due to their stateless status with no citizenship to any nation.

These Palestinians share a dream. This is a dream of returning to their homes that they were forced to leave and now are restricted to. The Real News Network estimates there are 4.5 million Palestinians in refugee camps with over 9.5 million Palestinian refugees around the world. Al-Nakba is the name Palestinians have given to May 15th, 1948 when the State of Israel established itself on the lands, towns, villages, cities, homes and the lives of the Palestinians. Al-Nakba translates into the English language as “catastrophe” or “disaster.” When Palestinians think of this day, it brings them back the painful memories of how they were bulldozed, gunned down, and forced to evacuate their happy living conditions. Al-Nakba reminds them of the hysteria which was created by the Israeli soldiers during the war in 1948.

A Palestinian elderv at the May 16th Nakba Commemoration event on the Mall in Washington, DC. Photo courtesy of Brian Hennessey from the Nakba Commemoration. Organizers vineeta. org/nakba

But critics say the Muslims in Congress are not the only victims of these “well-orchestrated anti-Islam campaigns”. Debbie Almontaser was forced to step down in August 2007 as the founding principal of the Khalil Gibran School, New York City’s ﬁrst public school dedicated to the study of Arabic language and culture. According to the website of CAIR, “Her [Almontaser’s] resignation followed a rightwing campaign that painted her as an educator with a militant Islamic agenda.” Fairfax, Virginia’s Islamic Saudi Academy has also been similarly targeted.

While Israel celebrates its 60th anniversary, Palestinians remember the day when their agony began. Many Palestinians shared similar stories with TML about becoming lonely and homesick, encountering problems with survival and starting all over again, and becoming a stateless population.

She traveled to ﬁve different countries, started all over again in her life each different time, made friends, and lost friends. “I’m just like my mother you know who was never stable in one place. I miss my family

11 of Columbia, a group on which Mohammed serves as Treasurer, is underway to create such a national consensus amongst Muslim elected ofﬁcials and other Muslim political leaders in America. The Peace and Justice Foundation’s Saalakhan believes that a united Muslim political platform could avoid Muslims from sending mixed messages on issues like Dar Fur. However, those leading such an effort must have the right “niyah” [intention] states Saalakhan. “It can become a powerful dawah” says Salakhan. If the people see sincere intentions behind this effort, then it will stand out “as bright shining example of the Quranic mandate” to enjoin what is right and stand up against what is wrong, advises Saalakhan.

University and American University in Washington, DC, and Duke University in North Carolina. According to Palestinians, not much has changed since Al-Nakba. The only difference now is their living conditions in Israel are much worse. There is more harassment, more checkpoints, and Palestinians treated “less than human beings.” Mosa Sayad, 33, of Laurel, Maryland visited Jerusalem six months ago. It is easier for Sayad to travel because he is one of the few fortunate ones who has an Israeli passport.

According to Palestinians, not much has changed since Al-Nakba. The only difference now is their living conditions in Israel are much worse. There is more harassment, more checkpoints, and Palestinians are treated “less than human beings.” just as my mother was homesick missing her family when we moved from place to place,” said Dajani. When she visited Jerusalem in 1994, she traveled from Amman, Jordan by road to her hometown which used to be called “German Colony” in Jerusalem. Nobody could travel through the Israeli occupied territories due to the barbed wire after the war of 1967, according to Dajani. She said the travel is humiliating for Arab women. “They make us take off our clothes and check all of our bags and belongings.” In 1994, she visited her parents’ house, which was now occupied by three Israelis.

While her daughter is at work, and grandchildren in school, she can’t help but to day dream about her past as she watches Al-Jazeerah lying on her couch.

Dajani remembers it was cloudy when her father, mother, and four siblings flee to Cairo, Egypt for their safety. They left behind property, land, business, and extended family.

“The garden was not there. The exterior appeared neglected. I remembered the tiles with red flowers and green leaves,” said Dajani.

“I can remember everything. Every street, every alley, all of the short cuts to my house,” said Dajani.

Dajani’s father told her they will be returning to their house in two weeks, but that day never came.

May 15th, 2008 marks the 60th Anniversary of the creation of the state of Israel. For the Palestinians, this is Al-Nakba, which marks

“We lost everything and became displaced,” said Dajani.

Dajani has one brother who is a surgeon in Pittsburg, Pennsylvania. Her other brother is a banker in Jordan. Another brother is a civil engineer in Saudi Arabia, and the last one is a CPA in California. Her three children attended Georgetown

His grandfather left all of his farming land to the British mandate and ﬂew to Jordan when the Israelis arrived. Other Palestinians from their village refused to leave and died there. “The Palestinians don’t have equal rights to education, healthcare, water, and other resources,” said Sayad. “It is making the Palestinians backwards with no growth.” Sayad said some Palestinians from his hometown still hold onto the keys to their homes hoping to return back soon. Al-Nakba was the exact moment when the Palestinian people, in a matter of hours, became a nation of refugees. “The people in camps don’t have a passport. They have no identity,” said Dajani. These people left their money, lands, businesses, gold, schools, religious organizations, and closest family members. Some flee with nothing more than the one pair of clothing on their bodies. Samira Hussein, 53, a resident of Gaithersburg,

>> Catastrophe II Pg 12

12 continued >> Catastrophe II from pg 11 Maryland came to the United States in 1972. Her family was forced out of Al-Ramla from a small village called Bayt Nuba during the Six-Day War. A very hot day on June 5th, 1967 reminds Hussein of the suffering she said she will never forget. The Israelis entered their home at midnight and asked everyone to leave at gunpoint so there won’t be any resistance while they entered her village. Hussein’s family walked for three days with no water and two weeks with no food. They thought they would be able to return in a few days. “The more they occupied, the more we got pushed further and further. We walked from village to village. We lost all of our friends during the time of war. Our impression as refugees was that we were problems for people,” said Hussein. Hussein’s father was a volunteer Mayor who owned a ﬂour mill, properties, and gas stations. Over night, they lost everything except for the one piece of cloth on their bodies. They even misplaced their shoes, but continued walking miles after miles bare feet.

COMMUNITY NEWS homes and shot the men from their families in front of them. El-Hayek’s grandfather owned several acres of orange ﬁeld which was bulldozed by Israeli soldiers. They went from being a middle class family which owned properties, land, cars, living a comfortable life, to having nothing. “My grandparents had to start from ground zero,” said El-Hayek. The Palestinians close to GAZA ﬂew to Egypt, and others near the West Bank went to Jordan, according to El-Hayek. El-Hayek’s father, born in 1952, a Jordanian citizen, to this day tells her stories about the Six-Day War in 1967. “During the Six-Day War, there were so many dead bodies on the street that dogs were going around and eating people,” heard El-Hayek from her father. From the many stories that were told to ElHayek, she believes Palestinians were living happily before 1948. When she visited Palestine in 2000, she said Palestinians had no control over the water sources. They had to pay triple the price to Israelis to get water everyday. “Times are much harder now. There are many checkpoints and daily oppression,” added El-Hayek.

“When I remember Haifa, I remember walking, and walking, and walking until our feet bled hoping to return in one week. We buried our gold and money in a box, but never went back to retrieve it. We walked from Haifa to Damascus, Syria and I am still a refugee.” When they heard the United Nations (UN) is giving out flour in Ramallah, one family member went there after walking all day to bring large 10 lbs bags of flour. “The Israeli soldiers ripped it open before it reached us.” Hussein said Palestinians who refused to leave the village witnessed their houses burnt into flames right in front of their eyes. Others got killed trying to get out of town. At age 12, Hussein grounded her feet deep in the sand by the Dead Sea thinking to herself time is the last time she will see Palestine. She was jerked out by the Israeli soldier. “I can still feel that pain now,” said Hussein. Al-Nakba remains in the Palestinians’ recollection as the time when their “good days” remained buried in their soil, with the aspiration to return. The fortunate ones were able to escape, while several hundred thousands were massacred. One Palestinian family went from Ramla to Ramallah, and then to Jordan. Summer El-Hayek, 27, of Gaithersburg, Maryland, said Al-Nakba reminds her of the story of her grandparents loosing everything while others were killed. She said “Zionists’ went into small villages, took the women and young girls out of their

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

Among the many Al-Nakba events is one story of a Palestinian born on the ocean while his mother took an American boat from Lebanon to the U.S. Imad ad-Dean Ahmed, 59, was in his mother’s womb when she unwillingly left Jerusalem after her husband’s village Bir Nabala was taken over by the Israeli soldiers. Ahmed, who is now the director of the Minaret Freedom Foundation and the Islamic American Zakat Foundation, both nonproﬁt organizations in Bethesda, Maryland, remembers his mother crying for no apparent reason as a child. When Ahmed would ask his mother the reason for her sadness, she told him she was homesick. Ahmed returned to Jerusalem in 1962 at age 14 with his mother to sell some of her properties. He witnessed his mother’s home occupied by refugees and the family did not have the heart to throw them out of their home. In 1967, Ahmed was informed the Israelis took the refugees out and destroyed the property. According to www.palestineremembered.org, there are refugee camps in Palestine, Jordan, Lebanon, and Syria. These refugee camps were only supposed to

The scene at the May 16th Nakba Commemoration event on the Mall in Washington, DC. Photo courtesy of Brian Hennessey from the Nakba Commemoration. Organizers vineeta.org/nakba be served as a “temporary” solution by the UN to over 750,000 thousand displaced from their homes in Palestine until they are permitted to return to their homes and families. Resolution 194 (Right to Return) declared by the UN recognizes the natural and ancestral right of the Palestinians to return back to the land of their forefathers. Now after six decades, Palestinian refugees still live in camps while Israel continues to ignore countless UN Resolutions. Like every year since 1948, Palestinians and civil rights organizations held rallies in May opposing the establishment of the state of Israel. On May 16th, 2008, the Muslim American Society (MAS) Freedom Foundation, together with American Muslims for Palestine (AMP), and the ANSWER Coalition held a Solidarity Rally for a “Free Palestine” in Washington, DC in Lafayette Park in front of the White House from 4PM-6PM. Approximately 100 people of conscience waved their “End Occupation Now” banners and the red, green, black and white Palestinian ﬂag to remind the American President the Palestinian right and the want to return to their homeland still exists after sixty years of oppression. They opposed the several million dollars of American tax dollars that are funding the six decades of Israeli occupation of the Palestinian land. “Justice is not a matter of one religion over another, but it is about the freedom of one’s natural right to self-determination,” said Mahdi Bray, executive director of MAS Freedom. Bray said people all over the world need to express their solidarity to the Palestinians. Palestinians are the largest refugee population in the world, and “it is not by choice, but by someone else’s desire.” “Al-Nakba is the catastrophe that we, the Americans have funded with our tax dollars,” added Bray. Another demonstration was held on May 17th in front of the Congress. The event was organized and sponsored by the Vineeta Foundation, the Washington Interfaith Alliance for Middle East Peace (WIAMEF), Sharing

Jerusalem, the American Palestinian Women’s Association (APWA), and the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC). On the west lawn reﬂecting the pool in front of the Capitol Building, the organizers laid a symbolic quilt with the name of each village, the number of residents destroyed, and the year they were demolished on each square. One of the organizers read a statement sent by Fadia Khaddasi, who was four years old in 1948. Khaddasi did not attend the demonstration due to fears of retribution from the Israelis. The statement reads: “When I remember Haifa, I remember walking, and walking, and walking until our feet bled hoping to return in one week. We buried our gold and money in a box, but never went back to retrieve it. We walked from Haifa to Damascus, Syria and I am still a refugee.” Talking about the peace process, Hussein commented, “There is no peace process.” Hussein believes all parties including the Israelis, the Palestinian ofﬁcials, and the UN need to sit together and negotiate. “I’m very pessimistic about the current situation. Palestinians are being divided. Israelis are still not recognizing the rights of Palestinians under the International Law,” said Ahmed. Ahmed said one thing he is optimistic about is that no matter what the Israeli’s do, they can never wipe out the entire Palestinian nation because they have a higher birth rate than the Israelis. “I don’t think the world would tolerate it if there were increased blood shed to ethnically cleanse majority of the Palestinians,” added Ahmed. “Like Germany apologized to the Jews, the world needs to apologize to the Palestinians,” said Dajani. Dajani concluded her interview by saying she always wonders how their lives would be if Al-Nakba did not happen. “I will never forget how my parents suffered.” Palestine will never be forgotten, “not by me, not by my children, and not by my grandchildren,” she said.

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The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008 continued >> Appeal II from pg 6 nothing new to learn by questioning Sabri and nothing to gain. The government’s strongest argument that the terrorist enhancement applied to Sabri was that he lied when he said he didn’t remember if jihad was discussed at this particular lecture. Gordon Kromberg from the government stated, “If you obstruct a general intelligence investigation that doesn’t trigger the enhancement, you have to obstruct a specific investigation, in this case there was specific investigations that were obstructed...He denied knowledge of anything that Ali Timimi said during a lecture.” The other questions posed to Sabri were of the same nature, inquiring about telephone calls and full names of people he had met five years prior, all of which the government could not prove one way or another if Sabri was truthful or not, but the question on the content of Ali Timimi’s lecture was the strongest argument the government had for the enhancement to stand. Judge Motz didn’t seem convinced when she asked, “But the actual obstruction finding, the holding, the reason why we have the enhancement rests on evidence about more general investigations....it (the trial judge) makes the finding, “yes you have to have the specifics, you can’t just have a general conspiracy in order to trigger the enhancement,” then it imposes an enhancement and doesn’t rely on any evidence about the specific conspiracies...why wouldn’t that be error?” she asked. In closing Bill Moffit explained that, “In Judge Cacheris’ final opinion he found that he did not believe that Sabri Benkahla was motivated to impede a terrorism investigation and he made that finding a fact, the application of the enhancement was as if it was automatic and unchallengeable by the defendant.” The second issue at trial was whether the trial court abused its discretion when it improperly admitted cumulative, irrelevant, and unduly prejudicial evidence, thereby denying Sabri a fair trial. The defense argued that Judge Cacheris erred when he failed to exclude or at least limit certain testimony of the so called “terrorism expert” Evan Kohlman, the testimony of Agent Linden, and eighty nine exhibits all of which had nothing to do with Sabri, but were admitted solely on issues of materiality, to bring “context” to the case. The defense argued in their brief that all were extremely and unfairly prejudicial to Sabri’s

ability to secure a fair trial and outweighed the probative value. Kohlman had no first hand knowledge of the case and made references to over twenty different political, religious, and/or extremist group and movements; more than ten references to 9/11 and twenty references to Osama Bin Laden; references to terrorist activities in approximately twenty countries, including Afghanistan, Algeria, Bosnia, Chechnya, Egypt, India, Iraq, and Yemen. Judge Wilkinson, the most progovernment of the three judges, asked “...why is it in these cases involving terrorism, why isn’t it permissible as a matter of discretion for a district court to allow an expert to give background about some of the concepts.... to give the jury some context in which to evaluate the claims...why wouldn’t this be helpful to the jury?” In all cases involving any foreign group, the government has relied on scare tactics in order to influence the jury into finding a guilty verdict. “Terrorism experts” are employed by the government to testify for this very purpose. After hearing these so called “experts” the jury is then tainted and the government then proceeds with their case. In Sabri’s case, Evan Kohlman, who obtained his training in this new field of terrorism through the Internet and has neither relevant foreign language skills nor knowledge of Islam, delivered a full day testimony about terrorists and terrorist events around the world. This tactic has proved to be very effective, even in cases the government concedes are weak, the jury finds guilty verdicts based on fear rather than fact. Sabri’s attorney Bill Moffit argued, “How much of that testimony is necessary to establish background?....He was the first witness that testified, his testimony comprised 171 pages of testimony of the transcript.... testimony involved Osama Bin Laden, 9/11, virtually every terrorist event....hating America, desiring to kill American citizens.... In the context of the world that we currently live in, with our country at war....it was not necessary for him to testify to all of that to establish materiality in a perjury case...and to the extent that it may have been offered as background, it far exceeded background,” explained Moffit. The government’s rebuttal was that “He was offered as an expert witness to give basically a class in the context of the offense...just a class to provide background so the jury would understand.” These so called “classes” have been the corner stone to the government’s “terror” cases. The fact is that without these scare “classes” many cases that have come before judges and juries may have had different results. The length of these classes and the damage they inflict have negatively impacted cases involving Muslims around the country and may be influencing the juries to

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convict preemptively or on a “better safe than sorry” logic even when there is little evidence that the defendant has actually broken the law. Even Judge Motz exclaimed that it was a “pretty long class.” Sabri’s attorneys argued that under the Fifth Amendment guarantee against double jeopardy, the trial court abuse its discretion when it allowed the Government to re-litigate issues previously decided by concealing these issues in compound questions. Sabri’s acquittal in the first trial barred the government from bringing the same charges so they found a back door method of prosecuting by disguising it as perjury. On this topic Judge Duncan stated, “My reading of it was that it had a slight connotation of a suggestion of a malicious prosecution or selective prosecution that was in fact the motivating factor for the obstruction charge was the inability to successfully prosecute on the early charges.” Although the government conceded that this case was “Not the heartland of terrorist investigations to be obstructed...” they denied this was just a second attempt to punish Sabri because of his acquittal in the first trial stating, “...we would have been derelict in our duty not to pursue this...,” the prosecutors said. Although not mentioned at trial, the last two issues on appeal were whether the trial court abused its discretion when it refused to grant Sabri’s motion for judgment of acquittal, when the jury based its guilty verdicts for Counts I,III, IV on an uncorroborated confession and whether the trial court abused its discretion when it refused to grant Sabri’s motion for judgment of acquittal, when there was insufficient evidence for any rational

17 juror to find that the Government proved its charges beyond a reasonable doubt. Judge Cacheris granted an acquittal for insufficient evidence on Count II but incorrectly allowed the verdicts for Count I, III and IV to stand. The defense argues that the record of evidence is absent sufficient evidence to support Sabri’s conviction. The Government’s evidence draws a weak presumption that Sabri may have known persons or remembered conversations he denied knowing, may have been aware that Ali Timimi discussed jihad during his lecture, and may have remembered telephoning persons he denied telephoning. At most, this evidence left open a possibility that Sabri testified falsely, but no evidence was presented that proved he actually did remember these things and testified falsely. Most of the subject matter Sabri was questioned about took place five years prior to being questioned. No reasonable juror could find guilt beyond a reasonable doubt on the evidence presented, that Sabri perjured himself. Their guilty verdict came from the devious tactics the prosecution used in order to elicit fear and prejudice. Sabri now awaits the Appeal Court’s decision, but has been unable to speak to his attorneys after trial. He has remained patient, in good spirit and disposition, AlhumduAllah, throughout this five year ordeal and prays that justice is finally rendered. The family asks that all readers keep Sabri, and all the other brothers that are going through the same hardships and appeals, and their families in their du’ah.

18 continued >> Muslimah from pg 01

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008 hijab.

possible so as not to incur another ﬁne of $1,000 for her tinted windows.

Washington said she felt as if someone ripped off her clothes off of her. She entered the prison cell among convicted criminals who were spending time in prison for robbery, prostitution, and drug charges.

The red and blue ﬂickering lights caught her husband’s attention as he looked out to see who is speaking loudly on the radio. He immediately came out of the front door with

Her husband came to the precinct with his infant a few hours later to get his baby boy nursed by his mother. His request for his wife to feed his son was denied again. His

When asked why her religious covering was conﬁscated, the couple was told it was due to “suicide concerns” due to its length. his 10-month old baby in his arms. He asked the ofﬁcer to allow his wife to feed his son, who is exclusively nursed.

request to bring in a breast pump machine for him to get the mother’s milk for his son was also denied.

Washington was refused the request to feed her son and taken into the police custody.

According to Timberlake, the officer told him “they don’t make those kinds of accommodations.”

In the police car, Washington was questioned about her nationality among other things without her Miranda Rights being read to her.

Timberlake remained at the precinct to ﬁnd out what else could be done to bring his wife home quicker. He became outraged when he saw his wife without her head covered.

“Although the ofﬁcer was not required to read her the rights since my wife was not being arrested for any alleged charges, he still should have read her Miranda Rights before interrogating her,” said her husband Brother Mark Timberlake.

When asked why her religious covering was conﬁscated, the couple was told it was due to “suicide concerns” due to its length.

According to Washington, she was not aware of any problems on her license. She said the officer ran her record only under her name, and not her license number. At the time of the arrest, she believed there was a discrepancy in the records. After being taken to the 6th District precinct, a female police officer removed her head covering, knowing that it is required due to her religious beliefs. Washington explained the religious significance of her head covering. Still, the officer was adamant about her taking off her

continued >> Muslimah from pg 09 in thinking of the best ways of spreading Quran education. Hwe was at home in different accents of recitation. During Ramadan, he would lead the prayer of taraweeh and recite seven to ten parts of Quran in one night. In this way, he would complete the Quran in three or four days. Then he would again recite the whole Quran in some other accent. By the end of Ramadan, he would complete the recitation of the Quran ten times in taraweeh alone. “Qari Raheem Bakhsh was also blessed with such immense love of the Quran that, except for natural human needs, he would not spend a single moment in which he was not teaching or reciting the Quran. His punctuality was proverbial. He never absented himself from

Children’s Hospital in NW Washington, DC. Since the birth of her fourth child, she elected to stay home and raise her son until he reaches the age of schooling. At 4:30AM, the same police officer who removed her head covering came out and said Washington was free to go without having to pay the $1,000 processing fee. It turned out that the Department of Motor Vehicle (DMV) informed the 6th District that Washington’s license was not suspended. When she was released to send home, her head covering was returned to her in the lobby where the public already witnessed her without her Islamic attire. “I feel like there are two strikes against us. Not only are we black and still harassed by the police, but we are also Muslims,” said Timberlake.

The next day, Timberlake removed the tints on their car. He said he had the tints added to their vehicle to protect the privacy of youth involved in ongoing feuds with the courts.

At this point, he became even more anxious to take her home. He asked the ofﬁcers what could be done to speed up the process for her to return home. They said he could pay $1,000 to bring her processing to the top of the list.

Timberlake is a social worker in Ward 7. He also is a volunteer in the DC youth prisons where he mentors Muslim and non-Muslim youth and transports them to transitional living programs, and other places to access services.

While engaging in an argument regarding the removal of his wife’s head scarf, Timberlake repeatedly explained his family situation, which required his wife to be home for his baby son.

“I do this because most youth get back into the street life if they don’t have a network to keep them busy with activities and enrolled in programs,” added Timberlake.

teaching duty during 40 years. Whatever salary he withdrew from the school, he returned it to the school in a short period. His son Qari Abdullah said, “Since my childhood, I have never seen my father miss his tahajjud prayer. He would recite three parts of the Quran in tahajjud prayer every night.” One community which has been blessed to beneﬁt from this scholarship is that of the Islamic Society of Baltimore. For many years, the two sons and students of Qari Mohammad Yaseen; Qari Zahid and Qari Abid and their families have been spreading the light of Quranic memorization among the adults, youth and children in this community. They have, by the grace of Allah, produced many hufadh - young men, women and children, some of whom go on to acquire further higher Islamic education. Some of the older ones are already teaching others, both at the masjid and elsewhere and several of the male graduates of

When the city officials learned about Timberlake’s involvement with the Ward 7 and the betterment of the SE youth, they asked him to aide them in starting a religious sensitivity training. After the meeting, Council Member Alexander apologized for the incident in an email sent to Timberlake. “I accepted the apology, but I let them know it is not enough,” said Washington. “I’m going to investigate this further to make sure no other Muslimah is treated like this.” Washington, 26, and Timberlake, 29, are both searching for avenues to help Muslim women in prison. They are asking the DC Metropolitan community members’ help to make the Muslim’s voice prominent in the DC

After the meeting, Council Member Alexander apologized for the incident in an email sent to Timberlake. “I accepted the apology, but I let them know it is not enough,” said Washington. “I’m going to investigate this further to make sure no other Muslimah is treated like this.”

Timberlake raised the question of the proper length of a headscarf. He was left with no explanation.

Washington is a pharmacy technician at

7 Council Member Yvette Alexander, Assistant Police Chief Grooms, and Commander Contee.

prisons to maintain a respectful environment for the Muslims. The couple wants to work with Muslims and civil rights groups to make this incident known. They said they want to bring awareness to this type of mal-conduct, which still exists today in the American society. ---------------------------------------------------For more info, email Mark Timberlake at marktmbrlk@yahoo.com. Calls made to the Ward 7 Council Member Office and the DC Police Chief Cathy Lanier’s Office were not returned.

In a Town Hall meeting on May 14th, Timberlake addressed his concerns with Ward

the program regularly lead taraweeh prayers at various masajid. Two of the earliest graduates regularly lead the daily prayers at ISB. One student of the hifdh program completed memorization of the Quran in about two years while keeping up with her high school education through homeschooling. She regularly assists with teaching the younger children in the program. She had this to share about her experience... “Picture this: It’s a weekday. Your parents are headed off to work, your siblings are going to school and you are going somewhere very special- Imagine walking into the masjid a couple of minutes later to hear the most beautiful words sparkle throughout the room. Imagine students of all ages and nationalities sitting together reciting the teachings of the Holy Quran and turning its beautiful pages. Tranquility descends over them as individual

melodious recitation begins and they start reciting their juz to one another. Turning its pages without even have to see where the page ends and begins! These are no ordinary students and this is no ordinary study circle. These are serious students who have gathered for the sake of Allah for one goal and one goal alone, to study the Holy Quran and commit it to memory. “Àbdullah bin Àmr bin Al-Às (May Allah be pleased with them) reported: The Prophet (SAW) said, “The one who was devoted to the Qur’an will be told on the Day of Resurrection: `Recite and ascend (in ranks) as you used to recite when you were in the world. Your rank will be at the last Ayah you recite.’’’ “How many ranks would you like to climb?”

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008 continued >> Palestinian from pg 09 for being a principled voice of tolerance and compassion during trying times; he is also respected as a man of deep knowledge and impeccable character, by Muslims and nonMuslims alike. Now, over the past few weeks, the Qatananis have become known for something else. In the words of the imam’s supporters, “After nearly 13 years as an extraordinary voice of tolerance and compassion serving the wider community in Northern New Jersey, Imam Dr. Mohamad Qatanani faces the unjust prospect of deportation from the land of liberty and justice for all, the land that he and his family have grown to love.” According to the government, Imam Qatanani first came to its attention in 2002, when immigration agents found him listed as a person of interest, with possible terrorism connections, in a database kept by U.S. border officials. By the government’s own admission, it took three years, however, before anything was done with this information. Testifying in immigration court, at the Peter W. Rodino, Jr. Federal Building in Newark (NJ), on Friday, May 9, 2008, U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement Special Agent Heather Philpott stated that she only learned of Imam Qatanani’s alleged 1993 arrest by Israeli officials, when the imam personally contacted the FBI in 2005 to seek help with his immigration application; because the process had languished for nine years. Instead of receiving assistance from the government, the U.S. Citizenship and Immigration Services denied the family’s adjustment of status application in July 2006, and the Imam and his family were placed in removal proceedings. The basis for the denial was the 1993 detention of Imam Qatanani in Occupied Palestine, when he journeyed from his home in Jordan to visit his family in the West Bank. Israel claims he had been “arrested” and pleaded guilty to “aiding the terrorist group Hamas.” Following Israel’s lead, the U.S. government now accuses Qatanani of having failed to disclose this information on his 1996 green card application. Meanwhile the imam and his attorneys argue that he was detained (and tortured) - as opposed to being “arrested” - and never formally charged with any crime. He maintains he was released three months later, with no explanation as to why he had been held in the first place; and he categorically denies ever admitting to having been a “recruiter” for Hamas.

What others have said about Imam Qatanani

“Fostering dialogue, understanding and trust between Muslims, Christians and Jews is critical for our nation and the world. In this cause here in New Jersey, Dr. Mohammad Qatanani, the Imam of the Islamic Center of Passaic County, has been a tireless champion. Now our federal government is seeking to deport him along with his wife and six children. With the billions our government spends now on homeland security, how could they get it so wrong?” – Rev. Bill Potter, Priest

COMMUNITY NEWS of St. Like Episcopalian Church (Hope, NJ) “Imam Qatanani is an asset to our society and culture, as he models and preaches values consistent with the American ideal.” – Rabbi David Senter, Congregation Beth Shalom (Pompton Lakes) “I’ve seen with my own eyes a gentleman who’s had a tremendous positive inﬂuence in the community… He’s done nothing but good since he’s been in the U.S., and many of us are ready to stand up and go to court to testify about him if need be.” – U.S. Representative Bill Pascrell (Congressman for NJ) “When I’m in his presence, and he does have a presence, this small, unassuming person…he gives me a better feeling of peace. I feel better as a person to be with him.” – Bergen County Sheriff Leo McGuire “Qatanani radiates peace.” – Passaic County Sheriff Jerry Speziale “It’s important for us to have Muslim leaders who are accepting of us, and give us inroads into the community. In this regard Imam Qatanani has been very helpful. In the process the imam has assisted law enforcement in becoming more culturally aware of the Muslim community.” – Assistant United States Attorney Charles McKenna (who was subpoenaed to testify for the defense) One of the most touching moments of the court proceedings was when Rev. Bill Potter, who was on the witness stand, turned toward Imam Qatanani, who was seated on the ﬁrst row of the court with his family, and declared: “My 18 year old daughter adores you.” Then turning toward the judge he said, “She was inspired to study Arabic largely because of him.” Another memorable moment was when another witness (a Catholic priest) described the imam as a man of “honor,” who “trusts, and who is trustworthy.” He brought laughter to the courtroom when he described the impact that Imam Qatanani has had on his family. “He’s the kindest and gentlest person.” He then proceeded to inform the court that one or more of his “kids” had encouraged their dad to become more like him. Perhaps the most powerful testament of the warmth felt for Imam Qatanani and his family, however, was found in the demonstrations of support that were held for them outside of the federal building during the proceedings. On the second and third day of the hearing, hundreds of supporters stood outside for hours in a driving rain storm!

Why This Case Is So Important

While I have had the pleasure of knowing Imam Qatanani for several years now, and value him as one of my dearest friends, this case is about more than friendship. It is a graphic manifestation of the “evils” of which the “Father” of this country warned (in his Farwell Address to the Union); an evil that has touched the lives of a long list of individuals and families right here in the Washington, DC, area! A case like this also exposes the carefully manufactured lies surrounding the Apartheid State of Israel. In his recent address to the Israeli Knesset, President Bush declared: “Israel has built a thriving democracy in the heart of the Holy Land. You have welcomed immigrants from the four corners of the Earth.

Upcoming Events In Your Area Al-Madina - Trials of the Messengers Friday, May 23, 2008

Al-Madina Institute is pleased to announce “Trials of the Messengers.” This will be an overview of the various trials that our noble prophets and messengers faced for us.The seminar will be taught by Shaykh Muhammad Bin Yahya Ninowy, Imam Mohamed Magid and Imam Zaid Shakir. Don’t miss the opportunity to be in the ﬁrst ever class taught on “The Trials of the Messengers” in this region. Space is limited! Al-Madina Institute info@almadinainstitute.org

ISNA East Zone Conference Saturday, May 24, 2008

Civis Responsibility and Our Faith at Sheraton City Center Hotel, 101 Fayette St. Baltimore, MD. Registration deadline is May 15th. For more information, call 317-838-8129

Al-Rahmah School Fundraising Dinner Saturday, May 31, 2008

Al-Rahmah School, 6631 Johnnycake Rd, Windsor Mill, MD 21244 (ISB). Tickets are $20.00/pp or $50.00 per family of ﬁve. Guest speakers are Br Saﬁ Khan and Imam Salmuddeen Harun. Free babysitiing and Moonbounce will be available. For more information please call Sr Donna @ 410-719-0921.

Open House at Dar al-Taqwa Sunday, June 1, 2008

Everyone is invited to come and join and learn about Islam. Tour will be provided, lectures, free snacks and literature. All ages and backgrounds welcome. For more information email us at pr@taqwa.net

Islamic Society of Annaplois Annual Fundraiser Sunday, June 8, 2008

You & your family are invited to attend the Makkah Learning Center Annual Fundraiser and picnic on the grounds of the Masjid. Come out to show your support and to learn about current activities and future plans. ... Contact Maher Kharma at mkharma@dchweb.org for more information.

Muslim Youth Debate Tournament 2008 Tuesday, June 10, 2008

Metro DC Muslim Youth Debate Tournament for Middle & High School Students is scheduled on 22 June 2008. For on-Line registration, please visit www.Maﬁq.org and click on the Reach for the Knowledge logo on the right top.Registration Deadline: 20 April 2008For more on Debate 2008 please visit www.Mafiq.org or contact Debate@Mafiq.org for more information.

ICCL Annual Summer Picnic Sunday, June 15, 2008

Join ICCL for our annual day of outdoor family fun with barbeque, s p o r t s , b a z a a r, a n d e n t e r t a i n m e n t f o r c h i l d r e n i n a n I s l a m i c atmosphere!FREE admission! ICCL Office:301-317-4584 ps@icclmd.org

You have forged a free and modern society based on the love of liberty, a passion for justice, and a respect for human dignity. You have worked tirelessly for peace. You have fought valiantly for freedom.”

service and impeccable credentials, can be deported after 13 years of residence in the U.S., what does this suggest for the security of any other Muslim immigrant in the United States of America?!

The president also said, “We believe that targeting innocent lives to achieve political objectives is always and everywhere wrong.” The reality on the ground in Israel for the Palestinian people, and cases like this right here in America, exposes the lie imbedded in such vain, rhetorical conceits.

The final day of testimony is scheduled for Monday, June 2, insha’Allah. We pray that there will be a good outcome – for the Muslim community, and for the better of the two Americas. -----------------------------------------------------

If a man like Imam Qatanani - his wife Samaia (a school teacher), and his six impressive children (three of whom, American born) – with his outstanding record of community

The writer, El-Hajj Mauri’ Saalakhan, serves as Director of Operations for The Peace and Justice Foundation. He can be reached at peacethrujustice@aol.com .

WORLD PRESS

World Press

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

News you might have missed. News that might have missed you.

Consciousness of Guilt Genocide in Iraq? By DAVID MODEL Despite the precipitous plunge in his popularity and growing criticism of his competency, character, and style, George W. Bush is not really that much different from other presidents with respect to his hegemonic ambitions or his proclivity to use force to achieve foreign policy objectives. Continuing historical patterns, President Bush and all presidents since World War II have committed horrendous crimes against humanity in order to protect and advance American interests under the guise of liberating people from under the jackboot of brutal dictators or communist subversives, bringing democracy to totalitarian states, improving the lives of those who are suffering and eradicating terrorism. These are laudable goals reﬂecting prevailing shibboleths domestically. These goals are an alluring mantle for the real paradigm governing foreign policy which is the pursuit of American interests with total indifference to the consequences to people victimized by American “ideals”. The gaping discrepancy between the stated goals of American foreign policy and its praxis is best exempliﬁed by the apogee of war crimes: genocide. In its pursuit of these lofty goals, the United States has committed genocide in Iraq. Intervention resulting in genocide at the very minimum proves that American government’s professed motives for foreign policy decisions are altogether specious. Rationalizations for the application of military force have been based on euphemistic doctrines which have no basis in American or international law. George W. Bush’s doctrine of preemptive war was not new to foreign and defence policy strategists but can be traced back to Dean Acheson’s doctrine dismissing the applicability of international law to the United States as outlined in a speech to the American Society of International Law in 1963 in which he argued that: The power, position and prestige of the US had been challenged [Cuban Missile Crisis] by another state and the law does not deal with such questions of ultimate power – power that comes close to the source of sovereignty. [1] In other words, national interests including meretricious threats to the sovereignty of the American State supersede international law despite the fact the United Nations Charter makes provisions for these exigencies.

The growing appetite for the unilateral application of force resulted in the “humanitarian intervention” or “illegal but legitimate” doctrine during the Clinton and Bush presidencies. This doctrine validated acts of preemption that justiﬁed the use of force whenever a threat was neither imminent nor substantial but necessary to defend the security interests of the United States against a perceived threat easily manufactured through the propaganda of fear. Invading and occupying Iraq under the pretext of a preemptive war, a country already decimated by Dessert Storm, sanctions and noﬂy-zones, represents the quintessential tragedy and hypocrisy of American foreign policy. To verify that the American Government is guilty of genocide in Iraq, I will establish a set of criteria based on the United Nations Convention for the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide and apply them to Iraq. The UN Convention on the Prevention and Punishment of the Crime of Genocide sets out a number of criteria to evaluate whether or not a war crime attains the magnitude of genocide. These criteria are not without controversy but by examining the scholarly literature on the subject and the judgments of the International Criminal Court, I have established conservative standards to assess whether or not the American Government is responsible for genocide in Iraq. According to the Convention: Genocide means any of the following acts committed with intent to destroy, in whole or in part, a national, ethnical, racial or religious group, such as: a) Killing members of the group; b) Causing serious bodily or mental harm; c) Deliberately inflicting conditions of life calculated to bring about its physical destruction in whole or part; d) Imposing measures intended to prevent births within the group; e) Forcibly transferring children of the group to another group. Although the phrase “in whole or in part” sounds ambiguous, its ambit has been restricted by judgments of the International Criminal Court. According to the Rapporteur for the Preparatory Commission of the International Criminal Court, “The accused aimed to destroy a large part of the group in a particular area.” The International Criminal Court for the

former Yugoslavia concluded that “The killing of all members of a group within a small geographical area” was tantamount to genocide. Notwithstanding the imprecision of these definitions of “part”, the area in Bosnia referred to in the ruling sets a baseline for future cases. The architect of the Convention, Raphael Lemkin, intended to define “in part” as a level of destruction sufficiently substantial to imperil the existence of the group. Shedding even further light on this problem, the Convention itself considers attempted genocide to be punishable under the Convention implying that intent alone is sufficient to establish guilt. “Intent” is another term in need of clarification. Apart from direct evidence through orders, statements, or coordinated acts, intention can be shown if “Acts of destruction that are not the specific goal but are predictable outcomes or by-products of a policy, which may have been avoided by a change in that policy.” [2] The Genocide Convention defines two basic levels of guilt: the direct commission of genocide and complicity to commit genocide. Complicity in genocide must embody: 1.Intentional participation; 2.Knowledge of the genocidal intent of the perpetrators; 3.Organizing, planning, supplying arms, training intelligence, or direct military support. One example of direct American genocide, Iraq, has suffered massive destruction to its infrastructure, the economy and human life, particularly since the imposition of American sanctions in 1990 and the bombing in 1991. UN Resolution 661 mandated sanctions against Iraq originally to force Iraq to withdraw from Kuwait. The resolution was worded in such a way as to grant the United States a veto over which products could be traded with Iraq. The American government exploited that veto to severely punish the people of Iraq in the hope that they would overthrow Saddam Hussein themselves. According to a 1993 UNICEF study, “What has become increasingly clear is that no significant movement toward food security can be achieved so long as the embargo remains in place.” [3] Declassified documents divulge the fact that the Americans were aware of and responsible

for a humanitarian crisis caused by the sanctions. A Defense Intelligence Agency report on January 18, 1991 concludes that: Failing to secure supplies [for Iraq] will result in a shortage of pure drinking water for much of the population. This could lead to increased incidences; if not epidemics of disease…Current public health problems are attributable to the reduction of normal preventative medicine, waste disposal, water purification and distribution electricity, and the decreased ability to control disease outbreaks.[4] On January 15, 1991, B-52s were flying towards their targets in Iraq and cruise missiles were fired from ships in the Indian Ocean. Iraqi defences were incapable of offering any resistance. Restricting the bombing to only military targets was not part of the U.S. war plan whereas targets included hospitals, electric utilities, schools, factories, water treatment plants, irrigation systems, food storage facilities and community health centres. Over 200,000 people died, the majority of whom were civilians. In 2003, George Bush Junior inflicted further atrocities on the devastated people of Iraq and on a country virtually bombed back into preindustrial times by another so-called war. As of today, Iraq has suffered a further one million casualties and four million refugees. Whether or not the administrations of Bush Senior, Clinton, and Bush Junior intended to commit genocide in Iraq is irrelevant because the consequences of the bombings and sanctions could have been predicted by any reasonable person. The actions of these administrations clearly resulted in mass killing, serious bodily and mental harm, and the infliction of conditions calculated to bring about Iraq’s physical destruction in whole or in part. Iraq is a clear-cut case of genocide. The carnage resulting from this genocide clearly exposes the disparity between the professed principles of American foreign policy and its manifest practice. This hypocrisy betrays the indifference of American leaders to basic democratic principles and to respect for both domestic and international law. David Model is a Professor of Political Science at Seneca College. He is the author of States of Darkness: US Complicity in Genocides Since 1945. He can be reached at: david. model@senecac.on.ca Notes: [1] Acheson, D. (1968). Dean Acheson’s remark is quoted in Louis Henkin: “How Nations Behave: Law and Foreign Policy.” Columbia University Press. P. 265266. [2] Gellately, R., and Kiernan, B. (Eds.). (2003). The Specter of Genocide: Mass Murder in Historical Perspective. New York: Cambridge University Press. P. 15. [3] UNICEF Report. (1993). Children, War, and Sanctions. Cited in Ullrich, G. (1998) “The effects of Sanctions on the Civilian Community of Iraq.” [4] Defense Intelligence Agency. (1991, January 8). Iraq Water Treatment Vulnerabilities. Source: counterpunch.org, May 21, 2008

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

�� in College Park, Maryland

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• Administrators (minimum qualifications: Master’s in Education) • K-10 Certified Teachers (minimum qualifications: Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in education) • Arabic, Qur’an & Islamic

Studies Teachers

(minimum qualiﬁcations: Bachelor’s Degree, preferably in Arabic language or Islamic studies)

• �� • ��

��

• Fulltime Islamic school (est. 1995) • Accredited by the Middle States Commission on Elementary Schools • Grades: PreK-10th grade (adding 10th in fall’08) • Student body: 390+ • Facility: 22 classroom, 54,000 sq ft building on 9.3 acre land • A project of Dar-us-Salaam*

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• Competitive salaries • Excellent Health beneﬁts (Medical and Dental Insurance) • Tuition discounts for staff children • Excellent Islamic working environment • Paid Sick/personal leave • Paid Holidays that match the Islamic calendar (i.e. both Eids) • Professional development programs

��

• �� Al-Huda Preschool is seeking above candidates with appropriate coursework and experience

• ��

The Hifzh School at Dar-us-Salaam is looking for qualiﬁed male and female teachers to teach in the Hifzh School on a full-time basis. The Hifzh School at Dar-us-Salaam has been in operation for more than 5 years and has had 20 graduates in this time period. Applicants to this position should: • Have memorized the entire Qur’an, or at least 15 Juz of the Qur’an • Have experience in teaching Qur’an in the past (having taught in the US is a plus) • Have some experience in working on the computer (par ticularly Microsoft Ofﬁce), and the internet • Know the Rules of Tajweed and be able to implement them in recitation • Be a team player and work successfully in a team-oriented work environment

** Dar-us-Salaam: Striving to build a vibrant Islamic Community that can serve as an effective vehicle to call people to Islam. Visit us on the web at www.darussalaam.org to learn more about our mission and for a more complete listing of available positions.

��

Along with a cover letter and references to the following: Email: jobs@darussalaam.org | Fax: 301-982-9849 Mail: Dar-us-Salaam c/o, Employment, P.O. Box 596, College Park, MD 20741-0596 All applicants must have legal authorization to work in the US. For more information: Please call 301-982-2402

Islam

ISLAM

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

The way of life given to us by our Creator and practiced by our Messenger Sallallahu ‘alyhi wa sallam

This Bud is NOT for You! The Universe

The entire universe and all its contents are the creation of Allah. The Earth and the Skies, Sun, Moon and Stars, Mountains and Oceans, all living creatures and each and everything owes its existence to Allah and Allah alone.

Almighty Allah says in the Holy Quraan:

“Behold! In the creation of the Heavens and the Earth; In the alteration of the Night and the Day; In the sailing of the Ships through the Ocean for the proﬁt of Mankind; In the Rain which Allah sends down from the Skies, and the Life which He gives therewith, to an Earth that is Dead; In the Beasts of all kinds that He scatters through the Earth; In the change of the Winds, and the Clouds which they trail like their slaves between the Sky and the Earth; (Here) Indeed are Signs for a People that are Wise.” (Surah Al-Baqarah:164) It is clearly evident from the above verse that Almighty Allah created everything and all these creations function according to Allah’s wishes and commands.

The Human Being

Then followed the creation of the Human Being. Almighty Allah states: “Man We did create from a Quintessence (of clay).” (Surah Mominoon:12) Amongst all of Allah’s creations the Human Being has been honoured as the best. Almighty Allah says: “We have indeed created man in the best of moulds.” (Surah At-Teen:4) So the world was created and so was man. There is no fault in Allah’s creation. To man, Allah gave the purest and best nature, and man’s duty is to preserve the pattern on which Allah has made him.

Almighty Allah has exalted the Human even higher than the Angels, but if he uses his will and discretion is wrong then he will be abased to the lowest possible position.

The Shariah

Only Allah knows what is right and beneﬁcial for His creation, and alternatively what is wrong and harmful. The Holy Quraan clearly states the lawful and unlawful actions. All Humans must follow this Law of Allah which is known as the `Shariah’ or Islamic Law. Amongst the clear-cut prohibitions is the use of Alcohol in any form whatsoever.

The Quraan Prohibits Alcohol

Regarding Alcohol - The Holy Quraan states: “They ask Thee concerning Wine and Gambling, Say: In them is great sin, and some profit, for men; but the sin is greater than the profit.” (Surah Al-Baqarah:219) The Arabic word used in this text is Khamr which is applied to all intoxicating liquor or drug. The Quraan further states in Surah Al-Maaidah verse 90: “O Ye who believe! Intoxicants and Gambling, Sacrificing to Stones, and (divination by) Arrows, are an abomination, of Satan’s handiwork; Keep away from such, that Ye may prosper.”

Take Heed - Oh Muslims!

Quraanic evidence has been presented to you regarding the use of Alcohol. Allah - The All Knowing and full of Wisdom knows what is best for us - His creation. We must abstain fully from all forms and uses of alcohol.

No - Drinking!

So, ﬁrstly, all Muslims must not consume Alcohol at all. It is amongst the Major Sins and will have to be accounted for on the day of Judgement. Besides the Islamic ruling,

we all know too well the harms of this evil. This is one of the main roots of corruption in society. Violence, family tragedies, suicides are a few of the fatal results of this disease. May Almighty Allah save us all. Ameen.

No - Selling!

The selling of Alcohol is also forbidden. It is completely Haraam for Muslims to be trading in this trade. It is also forbidden to sell alcohol as part of your business. Grocers, Newsagents and Mini-Market traders should keep this in mind. Therefore, no question remains regarding trading in Off-Licences, Pubs or Public Houses. In selling of these in TakeAways and Restaurants also is completely Haraam. Muslims should also not work or employ any of their family members in such Haraam Environments. May Allah give us the right understanding. Ameen.

Conclusion

The consumption of Alcohol can destroy families, communities and in fact a whole locality. Man commits such autrocious crimes in the state of being drunk which can only be described as babaric and ruthless. A life of a drunkard becomes hell and of all those connected with him. And remember, it’s an addiction. A few drops will lead to a glassful which in turn will lead to bottles. Then there will be no stopping. Selling these products makes ones livelihood Haraam. All his life will pass through Haraam. His clothing, sustenance e.t.c. if bought from this income will also be doubtful. So, Oh Muslims - Take heed and abstain from the mother and roots of all vices and evils. May Allah grant us the right understanding. Ameen-Ya-Rabbal-A’lameen. Source: The Islamic Email Circle, to join email us: intl@islam4ever.net Web: www. islam4ever.net

DID YOU KNOW? • that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world? • that Islam is the fastest growing religion in the US? • that the fastest growing segment of the US Muslim population is women? • that the largest Muslim nation is Indonesia? • that Muslims worship only One God - the God of Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, Joseph, Moses, Aaron, David, Solomon, Mary, and Jesus? • that Muslims believe that all people are born pure, without sin? • that only 12 percent of Muslims live in the Middle East? • that Moses is the most frequently mentioned prophet in the Qur’an? • that Muslims accept Jesus as the Messiah, the Christ, the Word of God, and that his mother was pure and righteous? • that Muslims believe that Jesus will return at the End of Time to defeat an Anti-Christ? • that Muslims do not worship Jesus or any prophet, but instead pray to the same God that the prophets prayed to? • that during war Islam forbids the killing of women, children, elderly, men who aren’t ﬁghting, animals, and even crops and fruitbearing trees? • that by the year 2020 Islam is projected to be the largest religionin the world? *** For further info/questions on Islam please call 301-982-9463 or email info@learnaboutislam.com

HEALTH & FAMILY

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

Health & Family

The Muslim Link’s occasional series by local Muslim medical professionals

Domestic Violence

A Societal Imperfection With No Place In A Perfect Religion By Asma Hanif Muslim Link Contributing Writer

Peace is the absence of violence. In order to make peace with others, one must ﬁrst have peace within themselves.

consideration of one’s self. Communities which fail to discourage violence and persecution in accordance with the Qur’an and Sunnah will also fail to provide shelter and social services for its victims. In these communities, open harassment, or other harmful acts against innocent individuals not

Communities which fail to discourage violence and persecution in accordance with the Qur’an and Sunnah will also fail to provide shelter and social services for its victims. Domestic violence is an afﬂiction disruptive to the peaceful co-existence of husband and wife. Such disruptive states infringe not only on the immediate family, but also the Islamic family community at large.

only continue unopposed, but they ﬂourish.

Domestic violence does exist within the Muslim community. One may consider this existence an imperfection within a perfect way of life, or a paradox in which imperfect humans behave imperfectly. However it is viewed, it’s presence cannot be denied.

Within the conceptual framework of Islam, a perfect religion, there can be no tolerance of domestic violence. Such tolerance signiﬁes a passive acceptance of domestic violence as well as an injustice which one is unwilling to prevent. Failure to be proactive in the face of domestic violence can be understood as a magnanimous indulgence shown toward the perpetrator without the moral determination to externally disapprove of the action.

Dr. Pamela Heath, Medical Director of Muslimat Al-Nisaa, states “Domestic violence within the Muslim community is difﬁcult to quantify due to under-reporting. It would not surprise me if non-Muslim physicians over-estimate it and Muslim physicians underestimate it. Neither is doing any good for the victims or the image of Islam”.

This kind of tolerance implies indifference towards right and wrong and in principle, a countenancing of this imperfection. Hence, it is clear that tolerance of domestic violence is a failure of every man to recognize their religious, moral and ethical obligations. Truly, “Man’s inhumanity to man makes countless thousands mourn!” – Robert Burns.

We cannot hope to attain a peaceful existence until we acknowledge both on an individual level and at a community level that abusive behavior does exist within Muslim individuals and within the Muslim communities.

Intolerance of domestic violence should be a prominent characteristic of believers, nationally and internationally . Further, for the safety and protection of those victimized by their and our silence, including the “covering of faults”, perhaps there should be the establishment of some degree of universal recognition of abusers.

Admittedly the world is full of problems, ranging from homelessness and domestic violence, to drug addiction and fornication. If we fail to acknowledge these real world problems, then we allow them to carry over into our Islamic way of life, and subsequently fail to circumvent the human imperfections which created them. However, domestic violence cannot be justiﬁed under the guise of human imperfection -- a cornucopia of experiences, mistakes and illusions relative to man’s reliance on his own unguided opinions and desires. Therefore, regulation of actions cannot be by our own judgment, but by choosing to be guided by the Qur’an and the Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) without any

Allah (Subhanahu w ta’ala) Says: “This day, I have perfected your religion for you, completed My Favour upon you, and have chosen for you Islam as your religion” (Qur’an, Surah V:3) Allah (Subhanahu w ta’ala) completed His favor on us with a “perfect” way of life — if there are any imperfections in creation, it is due to disobedience of Allah (SWT). Even though there exist many examples of imperfections in society, none exist as ﬂaws in Islam. When we utilize the Qur’an and Sunnah as our criteria it serves to purify mankind from all imperfections.

Inherent within this perfect religion are ayaat and hadith which should touch the hearts and conscience of the ummah compelling them to leave behind apathetic behaviors and move aggressively toward the elimination of domestic violence as a social ill within the Muslim community If we don’t have the desire to make things better, then things will never get better. Domestic violence has to be resolved in the context of Islam. Those who know Islam, understand Islam, and love Islam must become proactive in keeping “peace” within this perfect religion. The paradigm of thought cannot simply be the abhorrence of domestic violence, but must also include the enforcement of the tenets of justice contained within Islam – a Perfect way

of life. Protecting victims should be a simple matter of adherence to the Qur’an and Sunnah. However, preventing abuse requires active work by the community at many levels. ----------------------------------------------------Insha Allah on August 2nd & 3rd, in the Washington, DC area, Muslimat Al-Nisaa organization will provide a conference, forum and fundraising banquet whereby community beliefs and attitudes that support domestic violence will be changed and the entire Muslim community will see themselves as part of the solution. SAVE THE DATE! The organization is currently seeking funding for the Dr Maryam Funches Shelter for Muslim Women Victims of Domestic Violence. (410) 466-8686. Donate to Muslimat Al-Nisaa at www.mnisaa.org or Mail: 5115 Liberty Heights Ave, Baltimore, MD 21207

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

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301 982 1020

OPINION & EDITORIALS

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

The Implications of Al-Nakba 60 Years Later By Mauri’ Saalakhan On Friday, May 16, I had the pleasure of being part of the Muslim community-led Al-Nakba demonstration at the United Nations in New York City. I was honored with the invitation to serve as guest khatib for the jumah which basically kicked off the event; but the more significant blessing was to simply be there, to be a witness to the hundreds of young and old who braved a rain storm to make a statement to the world. The UN site was a fitting venue for such a protest. May 2008 marks the 60th anniversary of the founding of the State of Israel, and celebrations are taking place all over the world to mark this occasion. For Palestinians, however, Israel’s celebration translates into their catastrophe (and thus the meaning of “alNakba”) – the politics of which generated a little bit of controversy within the UN as well, when the term was used in a UN press briefing by a spokesperson for Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon. The world has become well schooled on the Jewish holocaust. The indoctrination over the past century has been so thorough that many populations know the history of the holocaust better than they know their own personal histories. But while the Jewish holocaust has been successfully ingrained in our collective consciousness, comparatively little is known about the decades-long holocaust perpetrated against a people who had nothing to do with the genocide unleashed in Europe. As Rabbi Yisroel Feldman (of the antizionist movement known as Neturei Karta) has opined, “It would probably lend much credibility to those who wish to study the destruction of European Jewry if they would clearly condemn these actions committed during the holocaust. There is no moral justification for what was done. However, there is also no moral justification for using these events to dispossess and occupy another people who have nothing whatsoever to do with what was done in Europe. Let Europe make amends for what took place if they so desire, not the Palestinians.” This brings us back to the United Nations, its raison de’tre, and the implications of al-Nakba 60 years later. In 1945, delegates from 50 nations convened a conference in

San Francisco (CA) to design the charter for the UN. The UN’s chief goal, expressed at the very beginning of the Charter’s preamble was “to save succeeding generations from the scourge of war.” The tragic irony is that between 1945 and 1985 – when the UN reconvened an “assessment conference” with representatives from 100 countries accredited to the UN - there had been 154 conventional

The first president of the United States, General George Washington, in his farewell address to the Union warned his compatriots of the “evils” (his words) of according “favorite nation” status to any foreign power, and formulating policy around such a relationship. And now the slope has become so slippery on such matters that today’s president – and other political leaders at the highest echelons

While the Jewish holocaust has been successfully ingrained in our collective consciousness, comparatively little is known about the decades-long holocaust perpetrated against a people who had nothing to do with the genocide unleashed in Europe. wars affecting 71 countries, resulting in an estimated 20 million casualties! The question arises, why has this world body been so ineffective in realizing its raison de’tre (reason for being)? The answer lies in the undemocratic dictatorship of the UN Security Council, the heavy handed influence of one or more of its “permanent members” on any given issue, and the endemic corruption among the UN’s many member states – a corruption that saps the moral fiber for any substantive, institutional change. In his recent speech before the Israeli Knesset, U.S. President George W. Bush complained about the number of critical resolutions brought against Israel. He noted: “We believe that democracy is the only way to insure human rights; so we consider it a source of shame that the United Nations routinely passes more human rights resolutions against the freest democracy in the Middle East than any other nation in the world.” Left unsaid by the American president are the reasons for the long list of condemnatory resolutions against Israel, and the role that America has played in insuring that the effect of such condemnations never extend beyond the paper they are recorded upon. In short, America has used its “special relationship” with the Apartheid State of Israel, and its veto on the UN Security Council, to insure that the United Nations remains nothing more than a paper tiger vis-à-vis its conflict-resolution mandate!

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of government – can routinely boast of their individual and collective role in helping to solidify, protect and defend such a relationship (as Bush did before the Israeli Knesset a few days ago). The implications and potential consequences of such brazen, oppressive state policy are indeed grave. It extends way beyond the damage that these politicos (and their behindthe-scenes handlers) do to the image of America, as the self-professed “land of liberty and justice for all,” it has implications on the future viability of the state itself!

As a Muslim, I am often reminded of the words of Sheikh ibn Taymeeyah (on the affairs of state): “Civilization is rooted in justice, and the consequences of oppression are devastating. Therefore, it is said that ALLAH aids the just state even if it is non-Muslim, yet withholds His help from the oppressive state even if it is Muslim.” As nothing happens except by the knowledge and permission of ALLAH, I sincerely believe that the record-breaking natural disasters that are today afﬂicting different parts of the globe (including right here in America) are meant to serve as a wake up call for the wise. As the Qur’an says: “Corruption has appeared on the land and on the sea, on account of what men’s hands have wrought; that ALLAH may make them taste a part of what they have done, so that they might return.” Al-Nakba stands today as one of the world’s leading indictments on man’s inhumanity to man. The implications of ignoring the moral imperatives connected to this reality are indeed grave…for the nation and the world. ---------------------------------------------------Mauri’ Saalakhan is the author of The Palestinians’ Holocaust: American Perspectives. He lives in the Washington DC metropolitan area.

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OPINION & EDITORIALS

EDITORS DESK

The Muslim Link, MAY 23, 2008

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Editor-in-Chief: Minhaj Hasan Office Manager : Jann McClary News Desk: Umm ‘Abdullah (Events) Distribution: Elwaleed Elshowya Layout & Design: Fadlullah Firman Staff Writers: Lensay Abadula Amina Ali Farkhunda Ali Fasiha Khan Farha Marfani Rashad Mulla Maryam bint DawudMussallihullah Sharia Advisors: Sheikh Salah as-Sawi Safi Khan The Muslim Link (TML) is published every other Friday on a Bi-Weekly Schedule and distributed throughout the Washington, Baltimore, and Northern Virginia Metropolitan Areas. TML is a non-profit publication and is based at Dar-us-Salaam in College Park, Maryland, USA. Staff and contributors are not necessarily affiliated with Dar-us-Salaam. The views expressed in The Muslim Link do not necessarily reflect those of Dar-us-Salaam or TML management or their underwriters. Dar-usSalaam and TML are not responsible for the accuracy of information presented by advertisers, or for the religious compliance of events, products, or services published in TML. This publication contains the names of ALLAH (Subhanahu wa ta’ala). Please keep, recycle, or share it with others The Muslim Link 5301 Edgewood Road College Park, MD 20740 Phone : (301) 982-1020 Fax: 240-209-0702 editor@muslimlinkpaper.com Advertising: 301-982-1020 or email us at ads@muslimlinkpaper.com The Muslim Link. All Rights Reserved 2008

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