Category Archives: Uncategorized

Rise of Radical Jihadists Setback for Syria

Nervana

Omar-al-Farouk-Brigade

This image of the Omar al-Farouq brigade was taken from the group’s website; Syrian Sunni rebel Khalid al-Hamad, who mutilated a corpse, is a member of the brigade.

I wrote this piece for  Al-Monitor, look forward to your comments.

The recent gruesome video of a Syrian rebel soldier, Khalid al-Hamad, mutilating a corpse has triggered shock and outrage, fueling a tense debate over the wisdom of supporting the armed uprising against President Bashar al-Assad. While some consider the video as the ultimate proof that backing the rebels is a bad idea, others view the radicalization and increasing brutality of the armed opposition as a direct result of the weak Western response and US dithering. This later opinion is based on the assumption that an early and decisive intervention in support of the moderate factions of the Syrian rebels would have marginalized the radicals and reduced their recruiting abilities.

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With hardline Islamic militants gone from Somali capital, a mystical branch blooms again

Sufism, a mystical branch of Islam, is having a major comeback since al-Shabab, an armed militant Islamic group, was pushed out of Somalias capital in August 2011. The Sunni insurgents had banned Sufis from gathering and prevented them from worshipping. Sufi sheiks, or elders, were attacked, graves of their saints were desecrated and rituals and celebrations became rare or secretly performed.

via With hardline Islamic militants gone from Somali capital, a mystical branch blooms again.

Lebanon: Blogger Beaten for Taking Photos · Global Voices

Lebanese blogger Habib Battah narrates how he was held against his consent, forced to delete photographs of ruins from his phone camera and repeatedly assaulted in this post on the Beirut Report. When he reported the case to his local police station, the officers in charge said it was his word against theirs.

via Lebanon: Blogger Beaten for Taking Photos · Global Voices.

All supported and voted for by House and Senate many times since 9-11! US government uses subpoena to gain wide swath of Associated Press telephone records

Officials have previously said in public testimony that the U.S. attorney in Washington is conducting a criminal investigation into who may have provided information contained in a May 7, 2012, AP story about a foiled terror plot. The story disclosed details of a CIA operation in Yemen that stopped an al-Qaida plot in the spring of 2012 to detonate a bomb on an airplane bound for the United States.

In testimony in February, CIA Director John Brennan noted that the FBI had questioned him about whether he was AP’s source, which he denied. He called the release of the information to the media about the terror plot an “unauthorized and dangerous disclosure of classified information.”

Prosecutors have sought phone records from reporters before, but the seizure of records from such a wide array of AP offices, including general AP switchboards numbers and an office-wide shared fax line, is unusual.

via US government uses subpoena to gain wide swath of Associated Press telephone records.

a 2007 Opinion: IRS sends mixed messages to nonprofits – Christopher S. Rizek – POLITICO.com

Will the role of the Internal Revenue Service in policing the political activities of nonprofit organizations be an issue in next year’s election? History suggests it should be. The IRS’s actions in the past election cycle leave nonprofits, especially church organizations, concerned and uncertain about the future.

Last month, All Saints Episcopal Church in Pasadena, Calif., announced that the IRS had sent it a letter closing the IRS’s examination into alleged political activities of the church in 2004.

The examination had been triggered by a sermon delivered by a guest speaker at the church on the Sunday before the presidential election, on the topic, “If Jesus Debated Sen. Kerry and President Bush.”

After praising both candidates for being “devout Christians,” the guest pastor assured the congregation that “good people of profound faith will be for either George Bush or John Kerry for reasons deeply rooted in their faith” and expressly stated, “I don’t intend to tell you how to vote.”

The IRS nevertheless asserted that the sermon constituted campaign intervention, which is prohibited for churches and other tax-exempt organizations under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code. Yet curiously, and somewhat confusingly, it still closed the examination.

via Opinion: IRS sends mixed messages to nonprofits – Christopher S. Rizek – POLITICO.com.

LBC’s New TV Show: Splash!

Better celebrity cook offs or “oh my gosh” – Lebanese mothers cook offs for university student judges!

A Separate State of Mind | A Blog by Elie Fares

I get competition shows that are centered around singing or dancing. I may not be a fan or watch them but at least I can fathom their premise.

Then comes Splash! also known as LBC is really desperate for a hit TV show à la Dancing With The Stars.

The TV show will start this coming Sunday. It has been adopted from the UK version which ranked only #16 weekly among British TV shows. Not impressive at all. And yet Splash! is here.

A few Lebanese celebrities will be competing against each other in diving. That’s what the show is all about. Lame? You bet. Silly? An even surer guess. What’s the point? I guess it’s still better than airing AUD’s graduation ceremony on Sunday, Roula Saad – Star Academy’s person – has been without a TV show for a while now and there will be public voting, obviously. Money…

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