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April 02, 2005

Terror Related Baloney

I was discussing with a client of mine the various machinations of the feds against Muslims and immigrants that are in the news a lot these days. She seemed confused about why the FBI and US Attorneys continually investigate, infiltrate, and bust Muslim charities and accuse them of having sinister but nebulous “links to terrorism”.

She seemed to buy into the idea the feds put out about how all these groups are either swindles to rip-off gullible immigrants or the clandestine funders of terrorist groups within America. So clearly, I got some ‘splainin’ to do so people can understand what most of these bogus charges amount to. Some of it is misperception but some is entrapment by the feds.

So I’ll start at the beginning.

The practice of the Islamic faith (regardless the sect) is based upon these Five Pillars as put forth in the Holy Qur'an, and no Muslim can be considered devout if they omit or neglect any of them.

They are:

1. The acknowledgement of Allah.
2. Daily prayer.
3. Alms to the needy. (This is known as Zakah)
4. Fasting and abstinence during the day during the month of Ramadan.
5. A Pilgrimage to the Holy Place (Mecca).

The one that concerns the issue here is Zakah. Giving alms is specified by amount and type and such, but that isn’t relevant here. The point is, to do your religious duty as a Muslim you must give (if you can without neglecting your own family of course) to help others. Allah commands this.

So social services, hospitals, orphanages, Mosques, schools, and such are the usual recipients of the funds raised. Additionally however, (read carefully here) they are to be made available to all that need them.

This is where the “hook” the feds use to bust people comes into play. If I become ill or injure myself I can go to the charity hospital and they will help me. Moreover, even if I am a Hamas, Hiz’ballah, or Fatah guerilla fighter who has been injured in combat against the Israelis, US Army, or the local dictator. The injured and ill are all treated to the best of their ability to do so. Islam requires this conduct.

Remember Pvt. Jessica Lynch earlier in the war when the evil Saddam Hussein and the Ba’athist Party were still in control in Iraq? Injured in combat, she was taken to a hospital and treated as best they were able. She was not raped, tortured, or neglected.

So then, if Israel, the local warlord, British, or American forces arrest or kill your father, husband, or son the charities will still help your family. Whether you are in jail for theft or robbery, or for “suspicion of terrorism” or whatever else, no questions are asked.

Now see, the US government and other statist entities consider this “open to all” approach to be abetting terrorism. So if here in Michigan our mosque donates money to the Bekka Valley Hospital Society based in Lebanon, and then that hospital gives food and shelter to the families of imprisoned or killed guerilla fighters from Hamas or Hiz’ballah, the Israelis will often say that this is “aiding terrorism”. Or if they treat injured fighters then the facility is now a “military target” and can be attacked.

The Israeli government will notify the US government if there are any connection or funds from American based organizations whether real or imagined. If they are shown to have received any funds at all, then that mosque is now a “terror cell” and the leaders of the Muslim community affiliated with that mosque can go to prison and/or be deported if they are immigrants.

I will not say that Muslims are all perfect or that all the Zakah activities are fully in compliance with Islamic or civil laws. No doubt some do in fact aid in terrorism or are scams. With all that alms money flowing around and human nature being what it is, I’d be more surprised if there weren’t some bad apples out there. Surprisingly though, and based on what I know and what I have heard this very rarely happens.

This is something I think the American people should know. Please remember my words the next time you see a Muslim cleric, or community leader doing a perp walk on CNN or Fox News while the newsreader drones on about arrests for “terror related activities” down at the local mosque or Muslim charity.

Posted by Ali Massoud at April 2, 2005 04:53 PM

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Posted by: Jessica at April 6, 2005 02:17 AM

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