The Associated Press: Petraeus wants Taliban in Pakistan on terror list

The Associated Press: Petraeus wants Taliban in Pakistan on terror list

WASHINGTON — The new military commander in Afghanistan and chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee are urging the State Department to add to its terrorist list some Afghan insurgent commanders who operate from hiding places in neighboring Pakistan.
Commander of NATO forces Gen. David Petraeus wants some leaders of the Haqqani network added to the list, a senior U.S. Defense official in Washington said Wednesday. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in order to describe internal administration discussions.
On Tuesday, Sen. Carl Levin, D-Mich., urged the State Department to take the same action. Levin is chairman of the Senate Armed Services Committee.
Both asked for sanctions against the al-Qaida-linked group, led by Jalaluddin Haqqani and his son Siraj. The Haqqani network launches attacks against U.S. forces in eastern Afghanistan from the Waziristan tribal region in Pakistan.
Formally designating leaders of the group as terrorists could anger Pakistani officials, because it would require that government to put pressure on any country harboring those leaders.
The listings also could hamper efforts by Afghan President Hamid Karzai to reconcile with insurgents in his effort to negotiate an end to the war.
State Department spokesman P.J. Crowley said the department has studied the question, but not reached a decision.
"The Haqqani network has been known to us for some time, this is not something that snuck up on us," he said Wednesday. "This is an ongoing process ... Developments change over time and it is something that we are actively looking at."
A group of lawmakers also has been urging the State Department to designate the Pakistani Taliban organization Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan, or TTP, as a foreign terrorist organization.
Officials said that review also is under way and was speeded up after the May 1 failed Times Square bombing. The man who has pleaded guilty in the New York incident, Pakistani-born American Faisal Shahzad, said he trained with the Pakistani Taliban to build bombs, then returned to the U.S. to launch an attack that would avenge attacks on Muslims by U.S. forces overseas.

TG-782: Treasury Targets Taliban and Haqqani Network Leadership: Treasury Designates Three Financiers Operating in Afghanistan and Pakistan
WASHINGTON – The U.S. Department of the Treasury today designated three key leaders and financiers for the Taliban and its affiliated group the Haqqani Network, for supporting acts of terrorism and for acting for or on behalf of the Taliban or the Haqqani Network. Today's designation, pursuant to Executive Order 13224 targets Gul Agha Ishakzai, the head of the Taliban's financial commission; Amir Abdullah, former treasurer to senior Taliban leader Mullah Berader; and Nasiruddin Haqqani, an emissary for the Haqqani Network. The Haqqani Network is a Taliban-affiliated group of militants that operates out of North Waziristan Agency, Pakistan and has been spearheading insurgent activity in Afghanistan. Executive Order 13224 freezes any assets the designees have under U.S. jurisdiction and prohibits U.S. persons from engaging in any transactions with them. Today's designees were added to the United Nations 1267 Consolidated List on July 19, 2010 for being associated with Al-Qa'ida, Usama bin Laden or the Taliban.

"Today's designation of three senior leaders and financiers for the Taliban and its affiliated Haqqani Network builds upon Treasury's longstanding efforts to deprive these extremists of the resources they need to execute their violent activities," said OFAC Director Adam J. Szubin. "We will continue to aggressively work to expose and dismantle the financial networks of terrorist groups in support of the President's goal of a stable Afghanistan."
Gul Agha Ishakzai
Gul Agha Ishakzai is the head of the Taliban's financial commission and is part of a recently-created Taliban council that coordinates the collection of zakat from Baluchistan Province, Pakistan. Gul Agha has collected money for suicide attacks in Kandahar, Afghanistan and has been involved in the disbursement of funds for Taliban fighters and their families.

A childhood friend of Taliban leader Mullah Mohammad Omar, Gul Agha has served as Omar's principal finance officer and one of his closest advisors. He lived in the presidential palace with Omar during Taliban rule, served as his personal financial secretary and was one of Omar's closest advisors. At one time, individuals were not permitted to meet with Mullah Omar unless approved by Gul Agha. Gul Agha traveled in late 2006 to obtain weapon parts and in December 2005 facilitated the movement of people and goods to Taliban training camps in Iran.

Amir Abdullah
Amir Abdullah has served as treasurer to senior Taliban leader Mullah Abdul Ghani Berader and was the former deputy to the Taliban governor of Kandahar Province. Abdullah has traveled to Kuwait, Saudi Arabia, Libya and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to fundraise and collect money for the Taliban. In 2001, Abdullah helped many senior Taliban members who fled Afghanistan settle in Pakistan. Abdullah also facilitates communications for Taliban leadership and coordinates high-level meetings at the guesthouse of his Karachi residence.

Nasiruddin Haqqani
Nasiruddin Haqqani is a key leader of the Haqqani Network. He is the brother of Sirajuddin Haqqani, previously designated by the U.S. in March 2008 pursuant to E.O. 13224. Nasiruddin Haqqani functions as an emissary for the Haqqani Network and spends much of his time raising money.

From at least 2005 to 2009, Nasiruddin Haqqani collected funds for the Haqqani Network, including during a 2008 fundraising trip to a Gulf state and during regular travel to the (UAE) in 2007. As of mid-2007, Haqqani reportedly received funding from ­donations from the Gulf region, drug trafficking, and payments from al-Qa'ida. In 2004, he traveled to Saudi Arabia with a Taliban associate to raise funds for the Taliban. Also in 2004, Haqqani provided funds to militants in Afghanistan for the purpose of disrupting the Afghan presidential election.

Kerry would reject a Petraeus request for more time, troops at drawdown deadline

Kerry would reject a Petraeus request for more time, troops at drawdown deadline - The Hill's Blog Briefing Room

Senate Foreign Relations Committee Chairman John Kerry (D-Mass.) said Sunday that he would say no if Gen. David Petraeus wanted more time or more troops to get the job done in Afghanistan.
Speaking on CNN's "Fareed Zakaria GPS," Kerry said that President Obama's strategy with a transitional point in mind was underscoring to Afghans and the Pakistanis "that they need to begin to make this their battle."
"And the only way to get them to do that is for them not to believe you're there forever," Kerry said. "Now there is a delicate balance, obviously. But you don't need 150,000 troops on the ground, at a million dollars a troop or whatever it is, in order to be able to achieve the goals that we have."
Kerry said that next July's drawdown deadline shows that the president "is determined to begin to turn a corner," and demurred when asked what would happen if Petraeus asked for more time or troops when the 2011 deadline rolled around.

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"I personally would say, no, I don't think troops are the answer," Kerry said. "The answer is a political resolution. And that political resolution has to come about by engaging to a greater degree with India, with Pakistan itself."
Kerry said the surge had not yet taken hold, so it was too early to judge the strategy.
About the WikiLeaks controversy surrounding the 90,000 secret Afghanistan war documents posted online a week ago, the senator said he was concerned about the aspects revealing suspicions about Pakistan's security service but in all didn't find the documents to be "particularly revelational."

Lindsey Graham on Birthright Citizenship

YouTube - Lindsey Graham on Birthright Citizenship

Graham fears left, right in ‘unholy alliance’ on Afghanistan

All politics, all the time Blog Archive - Graham fears left, right in ‘unholy alliance’ on Afghanistan � - Blogs from CNN.com

From CNN Associate Producer Martina Stewart

About President Obama and Afghanistan, Sen. Graham told CNN, 'He's got a political problem. But we've got a national security problem.'

Washington (CNN) - A prominent Republican on the Senate Armed Services Committee is praising President Barack Obama's approach to fighting terrorism in Pakistan.

However, Sen. Lindsey Graham, R-South Carolina, is also worried that conservatives and liberals could join forces to undermine Obama's efforts in Afghanistan.

Obama has set July 2011 as the target date to begin to draw down the additional troops he's surged into Afghanistan. But, in an interview broadcast Sunday on CNN's "State of the Union," Graham predicted that conditions may not allow the troops to begin to come home by that date.

"[G]enerally speaking, this time next summer, we're still going to be engaged in one hell of a fight," Graham said. "We're going to need every troop we have today, I think, still in Afghanistan next year."

According to Graham, it will be clear by the end of this year where things stand in Afghanistan.

"If, by December, we're not showing some progress, we're in trouble," he said. "And the question is: what is progress? Without some benchmarks and measurements, it's going to be hard to sell to the American people a continued involvement in Afghanistan."

Asked about the growing tide of sentiment against the Afghanistan war, particularly among Obama's base of supporters and some Democrats on Capitol Hill, Graham said he is worried about conservative and liberal forces joining together to frustrate Obama's efforts to stabilize Afghanistan.

"You know what I worry most about: an unholy alliance between the right and the left," Graham said. "That there are some Republicans who are not going to take a, you know, do-or-die attitude for Obama's war. There are some Republicans that want to make this Obama's war. . . There will be some Republicans saying you can't win because of the July 2011 withdrawal date, he's made it impossible for us to win, so why should we throw good money after bad?"

Graham added that liberals could also refuse to back the president's plans in Afghanistan.

"You've got people on the left who are mad with the president because he is doing exactly what [former President George W.] Bush did and we're in a war we can't win," Graham said, adding: "My concern is that, for different reasons, they join forces and we lose the ability to hold this thing together."

But, Graham said, he thinks the president understands the consequences of losing in Afghanistan.

"He's got a political problem. But we've got a national security problem," the Republican senator said.

Graham also said that the situations in Afghanistan and neighboring Pakistan are linked when it comes to national security.

"How do you win in Pakistan if you lose in Afghanistan?" Graham said. "And I asked the president that. How can we be successful in Pakistan, protect that regime from extremists, if all goes to hell in Afghanistan?"

While Graham expressed concern about the short and long-term situations in Afghanistan, he offered praise for what Obama is doing across the border in Pakistan.

"Things generally are the best they've been with Pakistan in a long time," Graham said. "And this is one area where President Obama doesn't get enough credit. His team, in my view, have brought out the Pakistanis into the fight better than anybody in recent memory. They're cooperating with us more."

Graham added: "So I would say that the Obama administration has done a very good job at taking the fight to the enemy in Pakistan and trying to bolster the Pakistanis' capability to take the fight to the enemy."

In addition to sitting on the Senate Armed Services Committee, Graham is also a member of the Senate Homeland Security and Governmental Affairs Committee and the Veterans Affairs Committee.

Graham has served active duty in the military as an Air Force lawyer and continues to serve in the Air Force Reserves. He holds the rank of colonel and is assigned as an instructor at the Air Force Judge Advocate General School. Graham said he will be going to Afghanistan to do his reserve duty during the upcoming Senate recess in August.

Petraeus issues Afghan guidelines - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - Al Jazeera English

Petraeus issues Afghan guidelines - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - Al Jazeera English

The new Nato guidance echoes the long-held aim of securing the Afghan population [AFP] General David Petraeus, the newly-installed commander of US and Nato forces in Afghanistan, has issued a set of guidelines for how the war there should be run. The "counterinsurgency guidance" issued on Sunday puts more emphasis on combating corruption in the Afghan government, identifying reconcilable members of the Taliban and allocating Nato funds more responsibly. Much of the document appeared to match word for word guidelines issued by General Stanley McChrystal, Petraeus' predecessor, but with some personal touches added from the new commander's experience in Iraq, Al Jazeera's James Bays, reporting from Afghanistan, said. "It's emerging that although perhaps the overall strategy is not being changed, it's certainly being fine tuned," Bays said. "I think behind the scenes General Petraeus ... is looking at every detail of this operation." McChrystal resigned in June after Rolling Stone magazine published a profile of the general that quoted his staff disparaging high-level officials in the US administration. Barack Obama, the US president, replaced McChrystal with Petraeus, who oversaw the production of the US army's manual on counterinsurgency and was the commander of US troops in Iraq during President George Bush's troop "surge". 'Fighting corruption' Some of the language in the new rules use more direct language than that of McChrystal's. Afghan directive Main points of Petraeus' new rules in Afghanistan: Secure and serve the population Live among the people Confront a culture of impunity Read the document (pdf) Whereas McChrystal urged Nato forces to "confront self-serving officials" and not "look the other way," Petraeus instructs troops to "confront, isolate, pressure and defund malign actors" and to refer them for prosecution "where appropriate". If Nato does not act against officials who don't work "for the people," the document says, "we will appear to be part of the problem". Petraeus does not mention the Taliban by name, but addresses the need to reintegrate "reconcilables" whose grievances can be addressed while working to "kill, capture, drive out or 'turn' the irreconcilables". In his guidance, McChrystal never made any mention of reintegration - an objective increasingly emphasised by Hamid Karzai, the president of Afghanistan. Petraeus' also tells Nato forces to act as if "money is ammunition" by being wary of who receives funding, such as the widely used Commander's Emergency Response Programme, which enables low- and mid-ranking military officers to fund projects ranging from a few to several hundred thousand dollars. "Pay close attention to the impact of our spending and understand who benefits from it," the document says. "How we spend is often more important that how much we spend." Word for word In many respects, however, there is little difference between the two documents. Both echo the core philosophy of counterinsurgency - that securing the population is more important than winning military victories against the Taliban. McChrystal referred to taking "control of the population" from the enemy, while Petraeus instructs troops to "secure and serve" the Afghan people. Both documents, in nearly identical words, say that Nato forces need to live, eat, train, plan and operate with Afghan soldiers and policemen. They also address the way troops should conduct themselves among the people on a day-to-day basis; how they should drive, dress and act.

US: Afghan pullout to be limited - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - Al Jazeera English

US: Afghan pullout to be limited - CENTRAL/S. ASIA - Al Jazeera English

US troops have been battling a stubborn insurgency in Afghanistan [Reuters] Large numbers of American troops will remain in Afghanistan after a "limited" drawdown beginning in July 2011, the US defence secretary has said. Speaking in a television interview on Sunday, Robert Gates said that the deadline did not mark the date that the US would leave Afghanistan. "I think we need to re-emphasise the message that we are not leaving Afghanistan in July of 2011," Gates said. "My personal opinion is that drawdowns early on will be of fairly limited numbers," Gates said. His comments came as the administration of Barack Obama, the US president, launched an all-out PR offensive to defend the war in Afghanistan, which is losing popularity with a war-weary American public. Defending war Speaking on a Sunday morning television programme, Obama defended the war-effort, saying that the US was not trying to turn Afghanistan into a western-style democracy. "What we're looking to do is difficult, very difficult, but it's a fairly modest goal, which is, don't allow terrorists to operate from this region," he said. "That can be accomplished," he added. "We can stabilise Afghanistan sufficiently and we can get enough co-operation from Pakistan that we are not magnifying the threat against the homeland." Opposition to the war is also growing from within sections of Obama's Democratic party. Nancy Pelosi, the top Democrat in the House of Representatives, said that Americans wanted to see a more significant withdrawal than a figure of 2,000 troops floated by Joe Biden, the US vice-president. "Well, I hope it is more than that," Pelosi told ABC, referring to the 2,000 figure offered by Biden. "I know it's not going to be turn out the lights and let's all go home on one day." Many Democrats in the US congress recently broke ranks and voted against funding the nine-year-old war, which in July claimed the lives of 66 US troops in the deadliest month of the conflict so far.

Gates Cites Peril in Leak of Afghan War Logs by WikiLeaks - NYTimes.com

Gates Cites Peril in Leak of Afghan War Logs by WikiLeaks - NYTimes.com

WASHINGTON — Secretary of Defense Robert M. Gates said Sunday that an announcement by the Taliban that they were going through classified military dispatches from Afghanistan posted by the Web site WikiLeaks “basically proves the point” that the disclosures put at risk the lives of Afghans who had aided American forces.

“Growing up in the intelligence business, protecting your sources is sacrosanct,” said Mr. Gates, a former director of the C.I.A. He said that while it was up to the Justice Department to investigate who supplied the documents to the Web site, run by Julian Assange, an Australian activist who is an outspoken opponent of American and NATO involvement in Afghanistan, he had been “mortified, appalled” at Mr. Assange’s willingness to make public documents that listed the names of individual Afghans.
“There’s also a moral culpability,” he told Christiane Amanpour, in her debut as the host of ABC’s “This Week.” “And that’s where I think the verdict is guilty on WikiLeaks. They have put this out without any regard whatsoever for the consequences.”
Senator Carl Levin, a Michigan Democrat who heads the Armed Services Committee, said on CNN’s “State of the Union” that the Pentagon was assessing the disclosure’s impact on operational security in Afghanistan. “There quite clearly was damage,” Mr. Levin said.
The New York Times, The Guardian in London and Der Spiegel in Germany published excerpts of the leaked documents, but excluded those that identified individuals or compromised operations. The Times also agreed to forward a request by the administration urging WikiLeaks not to post any documents that would put informants in jeopardy.
As the authorities continued their investigation into the source of the leaks, a Seattle-based software developer who has volunteered for WikiLeaks said he was detained at Newark Liberty International Airport on Thursday and questioned for three hours. The developer, Jacob Appelbaum, 27, said in an interview that as he was returning from an overseas trip, agents from Immigration and Customs Enforcement and from the Army’s criminal investigation division asked him about Mr. Assange.
Mr. Appelbaum, an American citizen, said the agents also seized his laptop computer and three cellphones. The laptop was later returned, but the phones were not, he said. Officials from Immigration and Customs Enforcement, part of the Department of Homeland Security, would not comment.
Two American civilians interviewed in recent weeks by the Army’s criminal division said that investigators were focusing in part on a group of friends who know Pfc. Bradley Manning, a leading suspect in the leak. Investigators, the civilians said, apparently believe that the friends, who include students from M.I.T. and Boston University, might have connections to WikiLeaks.
Mr. Appelbaum said Sunday that he was not involved with that group. He also said he never met or communicated with Private Manning, who has been charged in a separate case with disclosing to WikiLeaks a classified video of an American helicopter attack in Iraq.
Mr. Appelbaum said the agents at Newark Airport refused him access to a lawyer and threatened to detain him for similar questioning whenever he re-entered the country after traveling abroad, which he said he did twice a month for a day job as an online software developer.
“They questioned my ability to re-enter the U.S. even though I’m a U.S. citizen,” he said in a telephone interview from Las Vegas. “It’s very troubling to think that every time I cross the border, I’d get this treatment.”
Mr. Appelbaum, who develops software for the Tor Project, a software system that allows people to talk anonymously to each other online, filled in for Mr. Assange at a conference last month, apparently because Mr. Assange did not want to enter the United States. “It seems the only reason they’re bothering me is that Julian is beyond their reach,” Mr. Appelbaum said.
Mr. Appelbaum said he had been a volunteer for WikiLeaks for several months, but was not involved in reviewing information submitted to it. Investigators, however, appear to be examining whether Mr. Assange was assisted by others in obtaining the documents.

Bloomberg’s Statement of Support for the Cordoba House

Bloomberg’s Statement of Support for the Cordoba House

Mayor Michael Bloomberg said the following on a recent radio address:

“If somebody wants to build a religious house of worship, they should do it and we shouldn’t be in the business of picking which religions can and which religions can’t. I think it’s fair to say if somebody was going to try to on that piece of property build a church or a synagogue, nobody would be yelling and screaming. And the fact of the matter is that Muslims have a right to do it too. What is great about America and particularly New York is we welcome everybody and I just- you know, if we are so afraid of something like this, what does it say about us? Democracy is stronger than this. You know, the ability to practice your religion is the- was one of the real reasons America was founded. And for us to say no is just, I think, not appropriate is a nice way to phrase it.”

While reiterate our point that the Cordoba House is not intended to be a house of worship, exclusive to Muslims, we echo his statement, and value his support.

Who is Pam Geller?

'CAR-SCAM' LINK EYED - NYPOST.com

Detectives are investigating possible links between the men accused of gunning down two Brooklyn cops and an alleged million-dollar scam at a Long Island auto dealership.
While probing the murder of car salesman Collin Thomas outside the showroom of Universal Auto World in Lawrence, L.I., in January, cops unraveled what they said was a massive scam at the dealership.
Employees at Universal allegedly stole and bought identities, then used the IDs to obtain at least $1.3 million in financing for fancy cars, court records show.
The luxury models, including Maseratis and Aston Martins, were allegedly sold or transferred under the table to individuals who didn't want cars in their real names.
Nassau County Police Lt. Kevin Smith said his department and city cops were investigating if accused cop shooters Dexter Bostic and Robert Ellis knew Thomas and were part of the scam.
Bostic worked as a car salesman at Five Towns Mitsubishi, just up the road from Universal on Burnside Avenue in Inwood. Ellis, who lived with Bostic, also may have once worked at Five Towns.
"We're investigating any links between these people," Smith said.
Thomas had worked at Five Towns Chrysler, across the street, for several years before joining Universal.
Thomas, 27, a father of two, was shot in the back as he closed up for the night on Jan. 11.
As part of the homicide probe, Nassau County police raided the dealership, owned by auto czar Michael Oshry, and Oshry's Hewlett Harbor home and seized business records.
Cops found banking records were sent to the house, though the state requires such files be kept at businesses, according to court papers filed in a civil forfeiture action by the Nassau district attorney.
"The dealership knew what was going on," an investigator said.
Oshry's lawyer, William Petrillo, said his client "has not engaged in any criminal activity."

His ex-wife, Pamela Geller, former associate publisher of the New York Observer and a conservative blogger, burst into tears when told her ex is under criminal investigation.

Although listed in business records as a Universal co-owner, she denied it. "I have nothing to do with this," Geller said.
Thomas' fiancée, Cindy Heron, 21, said he was popular and successful. "All his customers loved him," she said.
Universal shut its doors June 22 and liquidated its assets.
Cops say Bostic and Ellis were in a BMW SUV that Bostic had taken from the Mitsubishi lot when they fired at Officers Herman Yan and Russel Timoshenko on Monday.



Bikini Blogger Pamela Geller and Robert Spencer Rejected by Academics, “birds of a feather, flock“.
Pamela Geller, also known as Pamela Geller Oshry is a 51 year old resident of New York City and a well known right-wing blogger. She was a former associate publisher with the New York Observer and in October 2004 created her own blog Atlas Shrugs, a title she chose after reading Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged. She claims her “blog is, and its purpose is, clearly defined by Rand’s philosophy.”

Pamela Geller Oshry was married to Michael Oshry, an auto czar and owner of Universal Auto World which came under criminal investigation after Police, probing the murder of one of the company’s car salesman, Collin Thomas, unraveled what they say was a massive scam at the dealership. A murder investigation has led Nassau prosecutors to uncover a massive fraud scheme that was being run out of two Five Towns area car dealerships, District Attorney Kathleen Rice announced at a news conference.  Prosecutors have arrested 11 people who they say were running scams out of Universal Auto World and Victory Toyota, both on Burnside Avenue in Lawrence, Rice said.  Universal Auto Sales LLC aka Universal Auto World , 711 Burnside Ave. in Lawrence, is charged with scheme to defraud in the first degree, seven counts of grand larceny in the second degree, one count of grand larceny in the third degree, and 16 counts of falsification of business records in the first degree.  The New York Post reported that,

Although listed in business records as a Universal co-owner, she denied it. “I have nothing to do with this,” Geller said.

  

NYS Department of State

Division of Corporations

Entity Information

Selected Entity Name: UNIVERSAL AUTO SALES LLC

Selected Entity Status Information

Current Entity Name:	UNIVERSAL AUTO SALES LLC
Initial DOS Filing Date:	JANUARY 04, 2006
County:	NASSAU
Jurisdiction:	NEW YORK
Entity Type:	DOMESTIC LIMITED LIABILITY COMPANY
Current Entity Status:	ACTIVE

MICHAEL H. OSHRY
UNIVERSAL AUTO SALES LLC
1195 HARBOR ROAD
HEWLETT HARBOR, NEW YORK, 1155

Pam Geller’s blog has earned her a spot in the Conservative limelight. She frequently attacks Barack Obama, pushing and originating conspiracy theories that include: Obama is a secret Muslim, Obama is not American, Obama is the illegitimate son of Malcolm X, Obama is an anti-Semite. She writes in an August 1st blog about Obama’s travel to Pakistan in the 80’s, “I think he went for the drugs and came back with jihad.”

The other topic that she pursues frequently is Islam and Muslims, which she considers to not even be a religion but more of a fascist movement. She is close allies with many in the right-wing movement who are considered anti-Muslim such as: Neo Nazi Geert Wilders, Robert Spencer Rejected by Academics: , Andrew Bostom, phony Khalim Massoud, Jerome Corsi WorldNetDaily Loon Writer,  Brigitte Gabriel Sincere Hypocrisy, Nut Job Joe Kaufman, Dave Gaubatz a white supremacist,  and others. She believes that Islam is at war with the West and that Westerners must stop Muslims at all costs.

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Jewish Group Opposes Muslim Center Near Ground Zero - NYTimes.com

Jewish Group Opposes Muslim Center Near Ground Zero - NYTimes.com

An influential Jewish organization on Friday announced its opposition to a proposed Islamic center and mosque two blocks north of ground zero in Lower Manhattan, intensifying a fierce national debate about the limits of religious freedom and the meaning of the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.

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The decision by the group, the Anti-Defamation League, touched off angry reactions from a range of religious groups, which argued that the country would show its tolerance and values by welcoming the center near the site where radical Muslims killed about 2,750 people.

But the unexpected move by the ADL, a mainstream group that has denounced what it saw as bigoted attacks on plans for the Muslim center, could well be a turning point in the battle over the project.

In New York, where ground zero has slowly blended back into the fabric of the city, government officials appear poised to approve plans for the sprawling complex, which would have as many as 15 stories and would house a prayer space, a performing arts center, a pool and a restaurant.

But around the country opposition is mounting, fueled in part by Republican leaders and conservative pundits. Sarah Palin, the 2008 Republican vice-presidential nominee, has urged “peace-seeking Muslims” to reject the center, branding it an “unnecessary provocation.” A Republican political action committee has produced a television commercial assailing the proposal. And former House Speaker Newt Gingrich has decried it in speeches.

The complex’s rapid evolution from a local zoning dispute into a national referendum highlights the intense and unsettled emotions that still surround the World Trade Center site nine years after the attacks.

To many New Yorkers, especially in Manhattan, it is a construction zone, passed during the daily commute or glimpsed through office windows. To some outside of the city, though, it stands as a hallowed battlefield that must be shielded and memorialized.

Those who are fighting the project argue that building a house of Muslim worship so close to ground zero is at best an affront to the families of those who died there and at worst an act of aggression that would, they say, mark the place where radical Islam achieved a blow against the United States.

“The World Trade Center is the largest loss of American life on our soil since the Civil War,” Mr. Gingrich said. “And we have not rebuilt it, which drives people crazy. And in that setting, we are told, why don’t we have a 13-story mosque and community center?”

He added: “The average American just thinks this is a political statement. It’s not about religion, and is clearly an aggressive act that is offensive.”

Several family members of victims at the World Trade Center have weighed in against the plan, saying it would desecrate what amounts to a graveyard. “When I look over there and see a mosque, it’s going to hurt,” C. Lee Hanson, whose son, Peter, was killed in the attacks, said at a recent public hearing. “Build it someplace else.”

Those who support it seem mystified and flustered by the heated opposition. They contend that the project, with an estimated cost of $100 million, is intended to span the divide between Muslim and non-Muslim, not widen it.

Oz Sultan, the programming director for the center, said the complex was based on Jewish community centers and Y.M.C.A.’s in Manhattan. It is to have a board composed of Muslim, Christian and Jewish leaders and is intended to create a national model of moderate Islam.

“We are looking to build bridges between faiths,” Mr. Sultan said in an interview.

City officials, particularly Mayor Michael R. Bloomberg, have forcefully defended the project on the grounds of religious freedom, saying that government has no place dictating where a house of worship is located. The local community board has given overwhelming backing to the project, and the city’s landmarks commission is expected to do the same on Tuesday.

“What is great about America, and particularly New York, is we welcome everybody, and if we are so afraid of something like this, what does that say about us?” Mr. Bloomberg asked recently.

“Democracy is stronger than this,” he added. “And for us to just say no is just, I think — not appropriate is a nice way to phrase it.”

Still, the arguments against the Muslim center appear to be resonating. Polling shows that a majority of Americans oppose building it near ground zero.

The Twilight Zone:The Constitution of Afghanistan

Islamic tolerance? This is what U.S. children are dying for in Afghanistan. They are dying in the name of the Sacred Religion of Islam (see item 1 of the Preamble of the Afghan constitution below). 

As a Christian, how do you feel about that? 

The Ground Zero Protest against of the mosque was organized by Pamela Geller, a conservative blogger, and her group, "Stop the Islamicization of America". 

Are you not finding a discrepancy in the dialogue? Of course Muslims are building a mosque at Ground Zero. American children are dying for Sacred religion of Islam. How much more Islamicized does it get?

Can't get more tolerant that that! 

Just wondering........

Art. 1 of the Amendments of the Afghan Constitution:

The provisions of adherence to the fundamentals of the sacred religion of Islam and the regime of the Islamic Republic cannot be amended.

  

Afghanistan Online: The Constitution of Afghanistan

In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate

Preamble

We the people of Afghanistan:

1. With firm faith in God Almighty and relying on His lawful mercy, and Believing in the Sacred religion of Islam,

2. Realizing the injustice and shortcoming of the past, and the numerous troubles imposed on our country,

3. While acknowledging the sacrifices and the historic struggles, rightful Jihad and just resistance of all people of Afghanistan, and respecting the high position of the martyrs for the freedom of Afghanistan,

4. Understanding the fact that Afghanistan is a single and united country and belongs to all ethnicities residing in this country,

5. Observing the United Nations Charter and respecting the Universal Declaration of Human Rights,

6. For consolidating national unity, safeguarding independence, national sovereignty, and territorial integrity of the country,

7. For establishing a government based on people's will and democracy,

8. For creation of a civil society free of oppression, atrocity, discrimination, and violence and based on the rule of law, social justice, protection of human rights, and dignity, and ensuring the fundamental rights and freedoms of the people,

9. For strengthening of political, social, economic, and defensive institutions of the country,

10. For ensuring a prosperous life, and sound environment for all those residing in this land,

11. And finally for regaining Afghanistan’s deserving place in the international community,

Have adopted this constitution in compliance with historical, cultural, and social requirements of the era, through our elected representatives in the Loya Jirga dated 14 Jaddi 1382 in the city of Kabul.

Chapter One
The State

Article One
Ch. 1. Art. 1

Afghanistan is an Islamic Republic, independent, unitary and indivisible state.

Article Two
Ch. 1, Art. 2

The religion of the state of the Islamic Republic of Afghanistan is the sacred religion of Islam.

Followers of other religions are free to exercise their faith and perform their religious rites within the limits of the provisions of law.

Article Three
Ch. 1, Art. 3

In Afghanistan, no law can be contrary to the beliefs and provisions of the sacred religion of Islam.