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Recollected: Aafia’s Essence of ‘Eid

08 Nov

This is based on a conversation involving Aafia where she discussed Eid Al Adha and what it meant beyond performing the ritual acts.

It was a casual social conversation sometime in the 1990s. The Hajj was about to conclude, and Eid Al Adha was approaching.  A point was made that perhaps this Eid is really only a celebration for those attending the Hajj as it marked the successful conclusion of their pilgrimage.  For the rest of the Muslim world it was only about the sacrificing of animals. As symbolic, solemn and beneficial to the poor as the ritual was, what was the cause for celebration?

As was the case with many of Aafia’s perspectives, the response was neither traditional nor focused solely on the logic of obedience to God, blessings for the Hereafter and remembering the enormous tribulations of the prophets of God. These reasons provide satisfaction and comfort to those already in the fold of “believers” and are popular when one is preaching to the proverbial choir. But the root of the question was a challenge seeking a more pragmatic response that would resonate more universally

To Aafia, Eid Al Adha, as a celebration, was not just about the rituals themselves even though it is the culmination of perhaps the most ritual laden event of the Islamic calendar – The Hajj.  In order to truly celebrate and enjoy this Eid universally, she suggested the examination of what the rituals were highlighting:

The Hajj essentially marks the challenges posed to the Prophet Abraham and his family as believed in the Islamic tradition.

First, the taking of Hagar and Ismail to a barren spot in the “middle of nowhere” and leaving them with no sustenance other than a faith that an unseen God will provide.  Then, later, the Hajj marks the willingness of a father to sacrifice his son, again on the order of that unseen God. So, is the lesson here one of blind obedience regardless of how harsh the commandments seem?    Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on November 8, 2012 in Collateral Damage, Flashback

 

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Babar Ahmad and Talha Ahsan: End the Silence!

07 Nov

It has now been one month since Babar Ahmad and Talha Ahsan were extradited to the US. Without being permitted to even make one final telephone call to their loved ones, they were transferred into the custody of US marshals and flown to Connecticut, where they are now in 23 hour solitary isolation.

Since their extradition, neither Babar nor Talha have been able to telephone their families or write to them despite sufficient funds having been transferred to them to do this. Furthermore, letters which the family members have sent to the men have not been given to them, increasing their isolation. The families have no idea what condition Babar and Talha are in or why they have been unable to communicate.

We request all campaigners and supporters to write to the British Foreign Secretary, the British Ambassador to the US and and your own Member of Parliament to request that they urgently intervene to ensure that regular contact is established between the men and their families.

Sample letters are below for your convenience (please do not forget to insert your name and and full address) but it is always more effective to use your own words. It is also possible to send your comments using Twitter and Facebook.   Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on November 7, 2012 in Campaigns

 

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Très bonne nouvelle!!! | Some Good News!!

23 May

Aujourd`hui, Djamel a été transféré de la maison d`arrêt de Bois d`Arcy à celle de la Santé. La grande nouvelle c`est qu`il est sorti de l`isolement dans lequel il se trouvait depuis 2 ans. Et qu`il reste dans la région parisienne, ce qui nous facilitera les visites, même si nous ne sommes pas souvent la-bas.

Il a pu nous appeler rapidement, et il avait l`air d`aller bien, le transfert s`est bien passé, ses affaires ont bien suivies apparement. Ce petit plus de liberté l`a tellement changé qu`il était fatigué, il était etonné de voir des détenus marcher devant lui alors qu`il était au téléphone, en accés libre dorénavant! Al HamduliLlah…

Il transmet son salam à tous et remercie les gens qui prient pour lui, prières qui ont sans doute été entendues, les choses ont été facilitées.

Nous sommes soulagés pour lui, et nous attendons dans un proche avenir d`autres bonnes nouvelles, jusqu`à la libération complète…

Merci à tous pour vos soutien de la part de notre famille

Today, Djamel was transfered from the Bois d `Arcy holding facility to la Santé.The great news is that he is out of solitary confinement, which he had been in for two years. For the time being he is in the Paris area, which will facilitate visits for us, although we are not often there.
He was able to call us quickly, and he seemed to be doing well, the transfer went well, and his needs were being attended to. That extra bit of ‘freedom’ is such a big change that he became overwhelmed; he was surprised inmates walking in front of him, then surprised that he able to use the phone, free access from now on! Al Hamdulillah …

He sends his salaam to all and thanks the people praying for him; prayers that without a doubt have been heard, as things have become easier.

We are relieved for him, and we expect in the near future more good news, until his complete release …

Thank you all for your support from our family

 
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Posted by on May 23, 2012 in Bushara, Collateral Damage

 

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Mohammed Saleh: April 15, 2012 (A Snake in Solitary)

15 Apr

As-Salam Alaykum wa Rahmatullah wa Barakatuh, my Dear Beloved Brother, alHamduLillah, I got your email today. I’m glad that you and your family are doing ok. May Allah protect you and protect your family, and provide you with all the help you need always. We always keep you in our Du’a. Your have Salam from all the brothers.

Concerning the article about the solitary confinement. There is a writer in Colorado, she is contacting me about the Solitary Confinement, her name is Susan Greene, she is writing a lot about the confinement, and she found my name and she contacted me, because I had a law suite about Solitary confinement. I was feeding the birds, and they gave me an Incident Report about that, and she was interested to know more details about that and about the life in the Solitary Confinement at ADX.

And since I spent about ten years in Solitary Confinement, half of my time in prison, so she wanted to know more. I wrote to her a couple of articles. One story I’ll tell you which you and brothers/sisters might be interested in and find beneficial, in ADX, that one morning before Fajr, I heard one Arab guy, who was a Communist, screaming in his cell, screaming that there was a snake is his cell, and he was in the middle of the range.

So I thought it was a joke. Then I saw the officers went in, and they came running, and they attacked the snake and killed it, and they were caring it on top of a stick, it was a big snake. And the amazing thing about it, is that the snake specifically picked his cell, there were Believing Muslim brothers in cells to his right and to his left, but it only went into his cell. We told the guy that this is a warning sign from Allah, for you to repent, and to start your relation with Allah. And he was terrified from the incident. And even the prison admistration couldn’t believe how a snake could come inside the building, since the space beneath the doors is very small.

This incident was documented by the Human Rights Watch when they visited the ADX at that time. I think it was in 2007. If she sends me some of the articles she was writing, if you are interested, I will send you a copy, InShAllah. Always when you live in isolation for a while, you get paranoid thoughts. But al-HamduLillah, Allah protected me from it, despite all the years in isolation. All the years I spent, I concentrated on the Words of Allah, and to do good things in the isolation for the Deen.

Unfortunately, I [have] seen a couple of brothers loose their minds, and a lot of non-Muslims lost it completely, because isolation is not easy if Allah does not protect the person. I love you for the sake of Allah, and may Allah grant you the al-Firdaws al-A’la.

Your brother in Islam, Abu Mu’az.

Mohammed Saleh #34853-054
USP Marion
U.S. Penitentiary
PO Box 1000
Marion, IL 62959
USA

 

 
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Posted by on April 15, 2012 in Letters from Mohammed Saleh, Risala

 

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Jesse Curtis Morton: February 17, 2012* (Solitary Confinement: A First-Hand Reflection on Domestic Torture in a Time of Terror)

20 Feb

 

They locked me in this room, Alone, by myself, just me –
With no one to talk to except for the walls, or the face in the mirror I see.
So I sit, listen, and watch
the television in my head
Not a notion to move nor a second spared
I record everything that is said –
Absence of Kindness, Distinct Memories of Pain
Caused by the things that they took away
So I’m holding my breath,until they let me out
But I’m afraid of what might happen the next time I breathe.

I wrote that poem when I was 17.  These days I am living it; all over again.  Then it was a proverbial prison.  I was a conscious youth inside one of the most dangerous institutions of America:  the public high school.  Today, 16 years later, I am in another – the U.S.prison system where I am but one of a growing number of Muslim Americans who dared to speak out.  Today I am a pretrial federal inmate housed in solitary confinement and in conditions that best resemble those of Guantanamo Bay.

Trust me I am not alone.  In 1994, my junior year of high school, the U.S. Justice Department announced that the prison population had reached one million.  By 2009, that number had more than doubled to 2.3 million with 5 million more on probation or parole.  U.S. citizens now represent only 5% of the global population but account for 25% of the world’s prisoners.  Additionally,1 in15 Americans is in “extreme poverty” with 48% of Americans labeled “in poverty” or “working poor”, but a recent Gallup poll documented that the percentage of Americans that realize the levels of poverty are so high, has dramatically decreased.  These two seemingly distinct sets of statistics suggest something more sinister is going on.

The civil rights era included prison protests like the Attica riots of 1971 and paved a way for productive reform, but today talk of human rights tends to cover a manipulative compromise with the power elite and diverts attention away from structural cause.  Generally prisoners today have enhanced rights and services but like the starving people fed by NGO’s in Africa or refugee camps in Afghanistan, such rights and philanthropy are counterproductive where they allow society to ignore the root causes of such appalling levels of crime, punishment, hunger or war.  These contradictions become apparent with regard to civil liberties in a time of confrontation, when the citizen is reduced to an object of propaganda about domestic enemies in order to maintain public support for wars abroad.

The authors of the American constitution unanimously resented any sacrifice of civil liberties in the name of national security, but the reaction to 9/11, the immediate passage of the Patriot Act and a new approach to law enforcement the Bush Administration called a “preventative paradigm” ushered in an order of sustained national liberty sacrifice.  These changes disproportionately affected American Muslims, however while “terrorists” abroad were “disappeared”, water boarded and held without charges at Guantanamo Bay, the courts approved warrantless wiretapping, ethnic profiling, blacksite rendition and preventative detention targeting Muslims on America’s shores.  Wartime propaganda alongside a wave of arrests utilizing entrapment, where undercover agents encourage fund, and coerce potential terrorist attacks, have helped to sustain support.  Recent polling documents that two-thirds of Americans support sacrificing some privacy and freedoms in the fight against terrorism. Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on February 20, 2012 in Letters from Jesse Curtis Morton, Risala

 

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An Open Letter to the American Government: Transfer Our Husband to Guantanamo…

12 Feb

… It’s Much More Merciful

Peace upon those who follow the guidance:

We the undersigned Nouzha Amrani and Fatiha Hassani (Um Adam El-Mejjati), the lawful wives of Moulay Umar Amrani Hadi who is sentenced to 10 years imprisonment  unjustly. He is constantly being transferred to and from Toulal 2 prison and Sale’ 2 prison. We appeal to the American government to transfer its prisoner from its previously mentioned prisons to its detention centre in Guantanamo, Cuba.

This is for the following reasons:

Your prisoner suffers from various chronic illnesses, he is 47 years old, yet he is always subjected to torture. Bearing in mind he was sentenced to prison only not prison and torture.

Types of torture:

Psychological torture:

Subjecting him to constant psychological pressure by, Provocation, humiliation, Insults and threats. He is held in a wing with the general prison population where cigarette smoke fills the air, abusive language is the norm and there is constant noise that prevents him from sleeping. For nine months he has been held in solitary confinement, in a very small cell that lacks the conditions for human residence. He was put in a punishment cell twice within three months. He is prevented from direct visits (without barriers), and being with his wife Nouzha Amrani. They suffice with a barrier visit, even his kids, Abdulrahman, 7, and Zainab, 5. Since three weeks ago his son visited him without a barrier for 15 minutes only in an office. They had a desk in-between them and were surrounded by guards. Zainab refused to go to the visit because of what she experienced before. She would remember the barriers and small windows and the fact she couldn’t sit with her father nor kiss him. He is prevented from seeing his second wife Um Adam, since the 4th of July 2011, even if the visit is a barrier visit. This continues although she has legal permission from the general prosecutor of the King in Meknes. The prison administration and all those behind it, have sought to hinder the process of completing a legal (marriage) contract, bearing in mind we have completed all the necessary procedures on our part from the date of the 28th of February 2011.  Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on February 12, 2012 in Collateral Damage, News Items

 

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Wali Khan Amin Shah: January 9, 2012

09 Jan

As-salamu alykum, I been have busy and unable to sit to write these days, the weather is very unseasonably warm and inside it is very hot!!!

I heard a good news, that a brother who been in the SHU for more than a month might come out to join us again, I ask Allah to make easy on all brothers who are in solitary confinement every where in the world, I also called home on Sunday and today too, I heard that my son was hit by a car but thanks to Allah only injured his foot, his leg is in cast now and that means he will not be able to go to work for couple of weeks, I felt bad because I wasn’t able to speak to him because he is deaf, we are requesting the prison authorities to allow us to get video visits so those of us who don’t have families here or their families are very far and can’t visit will be able to see their families via video, so far the brothers are fighting in the court under the civil law to get that but it is very hard to go to court in civil law suits here, a case can drag on for seven or eight years and it costs too much to maintain the case.

I hope that our little community here gets some new good brothers, we didn’t get a new addition in a while, the
brothers are everywhere and some have nowhere else but this unit, every time the unit gets a good brother we
feel a little bit of change in the community, some are stuck here for over three years, I have been in this unit for two years, and when we get a new brother we feel new energy.

The different backgrounds and diverse origins is a double edge sword, I say despite the huge differences we managed to sail a relatively smooth voyage so far, our main obstacle is the ban by the authority on any good and positive activity, for example it is ok to come together to play cards and shout and scream or even curse one another but not ok to gather to learn a good thing!!

The whole USA policy on Islamic learning is misguided, they think that more Islamic knowledge leads to violence when it is the opposite, only people with little knowledge are putting this planet in danger, separating the knowledgeable people from the young and knowledgeable is the reason of the chaos, sometimes I say to myself maybe that is by design!! Sometimes I see evidence that it is bad advice that is causing these people to implement such foolish policies.

I got a beautifully hand written letter about the meaning of the “shahada” (There is no god worthy of worship but Allah), I say thank you and may Allah reward you for the reminder. I have to go now, please share this message with my family if possible, salamu alykum.

 
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Posted by on January 9, 2012 in Letters from Wali Khan Amin Shah, Risala

 

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Wali Khan Amin Shah: January 4, 2012

04 Jan

As-salamu alykum,

I still have four more days before my phone restriction ends, I don’t know why things still very slow here, but I hope soon things will change and I will get some news from my family, I finally got some batteries for the hearing aid, and it is good to hear again!!

The weather is alternating between cold and warm, but doesn’t stay one way or the other for long, our brothers in the SHU are not requesting recreation at all!! It is some times easier to just go to sleep in the morning and miss the recreation while in the Hole, I didn’t have outside recreation from 1996 to early 2001 and then again from 2002 to late 2004, after that I was able to get few hours of fresh air a week.

I didn’t turn down any opportunity to get any fresh air, here alhmdulliah we can walk out and get as much as we want of fresh air, I am worried that the brothers in the SHU will be there for some time and it is extremely important to keep high morale in the Hole, without fresh air and some sun I think it will take its toll on them, may Allah help us all.

I just fixed myself a cup of coffee and am heading out to walk a little. My younger neighbor injured his wrist and we didn’t play any volleyball for five days, even the walk we used to have outside is hurting him because of the cold, I will give him a week or so and he will be back asking for a match.

I will write tomorrow by the will of Allah, so far I got no e-mails or snail-mail, salamu alykum.

 
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Posted by on January 4, 2012 in Letters from Wali Khan Amin Shah, Risala

 

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Parviz Khan: December 22, 2011

22 Dec

23/12/11

Seg

Bismillah. In the name of Allah the Most Compassionate the Most Merciful.

Asalaamu alaykum W.R.W.B

My dear respected brother in Islam, who I love solely for the sake of Allah’s Greatness. I pray that this letter reaches you firstly INSHAHALLAH even though the disbelievers don’t like it, and I pray that you receive it in the best of health and Emaan, and that the Almighty accepts your good deeds and multiply them in the duniyah & the hereafter, InshAllah. I am writing to you in the early hours of Friday morning, my mind was switching between this small cold heatingless coffin of a cell to the Ummah outside.

My mind for some reason went to thinking about yourself and the Ummah with you that corresponded with the ukhwaan that are illegally incarcerated inside this gulag system. And I must express my thanks ALHAMDULILLAH for your love and sincerity because I feel that I am not worthy of this kind of treatment: please, please, please I love you but seek out the needy and the weak of the ummah before you even think of myself because I do not want to be a burden or an obstacle in their way or salvation.

Please express my appreciation of the heart warming and everyday experiences the brothers & sisters write about, because even though they might seem normal and daily on the outside when you are on the inside it opens up avenues and thoughts that are frozen in time. Just by reading the letters and the naseehaa advice leaves one in a sense of peace and harmony for many a hour.

I am currently in the seg since Sunday. I was brought here because the security claim that I was involved in a violent assault which I am totally innocent of. I am in a ground floor cell with no heating and I only got a pair of shoes after four days and only because I shouted and kicked up a fuss. For this shout of defiance I have been place on reduced rations. This is the so called Justice of Democracy-Hypocracy. Whenever I state my displeasure the door or the flap is slammed shut in my face.

SubhanAllah – and they have ambitions to win the hearts & minds of the Muslim Ummah, what about starting in their own back yard first!

I will be getting canteen so that I can keep up my strength – InshahAllah, so please JazakhAllah khair for your support. I will InshahAllah purchase noodles and tuna to try and keep going because when I voice my displeasure they reduce my rations.

Now I am beginning to understand and live the words of Brother Malcom X (Malik al Shabbaz – may Allah have mercy on his soul) when he describes an obedient slave and a disobedient slave; and the various kinds of treatment that they receive. May the Almighty guide and protect you all and your families and the Ummah. I love you and would just for the record like to state that British foreign policy – Under my shoes! Democracy – Hypocrisy.

PARVIZ KHAN

Walayku Salam W.R.W.B

P.S I miss the blessed company of Isa Barot, Abideen and Zaman, Asad on the wings, we all discuss and talk about your work and sacrifices, you are not forsaken or forgotten in our duas.

 
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Posted by on December 22, 2011 in Letters From Parviz Khan, Risala

 

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Mufid Abdulqader: December 14, 2011

14 Dec

Dear beloved brothers, sister and friends:

Assalamu Alaikhum Wa Rahmato Allahi Wa Barakatoh;

I am sure, by now, everyone knows the court’s decision regarding our case. I want to share with you some of my thoughts. This may give some of you a chance to reflect on the issue while considering the implication of what has transpired in these last few days.

First of all, Allah (SWT) says at the end of Surat Yousef, Verse 110: “When the messengers lose hope (of their people) and come to think that they were treated as liars, Exactly at that time Our help reaches them, and those whom we will deliver into safety. But Our punishment will never be warded off those who are doers of evil (oppressors)“. What Allah is telling us in these verses is that when Allah’s messengers feel almost that it will be hopeless to preach and come to consider themselves branded as liars by an unbelieving world; that the breaking-point is then reached; that Allah’s help then comes swiftly to His men and they are delivered from persecution and danger, While the wrath of Allah overtakes evil doers, and nothing can ward it off.

Also Allah (SWT) says in Surat 16, Verse 42: “They are those who remained patient (in this world for the sake of Allah) and put their trust in their Lord Allah alone“.

Second, Allah (SWT) says in the Holy Quran in Surat 2, Verse 216: “It is possible that you may dislike a thing which is good for you, and you may love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knows, and you do not know“. And in another verse Allah (SWT) says: “And you may dislike something and Allah put in it a lot of goodness“. Everyone perceives that the decision was bad. But that is just a perception and not a reality. Only Allah knows the reality. This is His Universe and He runs it as He sees fit. Also Allah (SWT) says in The Holy Quran:  ”Do you think that you shall enter Paradise without such trials as came to those before you? they encountered suffering and adversity, and were shaken to the point that even the Prophet & those of faith who were with him cried: WHEN WILL COME THE HELP & VICTORY FROM ALLAH?“.

So, All this is good and no one should be angry, sad, or upset whatsoever. One great scholar said: “Whoever is afflicted with some type of calamity then Allah has put him through the path of Prophets, may prayers & salutation be upon them“. This is just one battle of the many battles we will fight toward achieving justice. We just lost a single battle but not the war of justice.

Third, I do not and will never apologize for feeding my Palestinian people: children, women and orphans and elders. Not now, not ever. It was my greatest honor to do so. It is a badge of honor that I will cherish forever. I wish I did more than what I did to help these needy families who were destitute & forgotten. I wish that I can dedicate my entire life and many more lives to alleviate the suffering of my Palestinian people and ease their suffering and help them live a decent & respectable life, so they can live with honor & dignity and can dream of a brighter future instead of the daily destruction & humiliation nightmare inflicted on them by the racist occupiers.

Fourth, What I am going through is nothing in comparison to what other Palestinians are going through. Here in this prison, I still eat three meals a day. I even pick and choose what part of each meal I choose to eat. I do not wake up every morning worried about being tortured. I have time to read and memorize Quran, learn and pray and sleep and do what I need to do to become a better Muslim to serve humanity.

Yes it is true that I am in prison, But I could be in some Israeli prison and be under constant torture and extremely difficult conditions where human rights violations are the norm and atrocities are committed with impunity against innocent people every day. So, overall, I am doing just fine. Yes it is true, I was put in solitary confinement for 28 days last month, but I turned that punishment into a great blessing and utilized it to memorize two full Jozas of Quran (40 pages) and lost extra 3 pounds where I am down to my ideal weight. I worked out every day & My health & spirit are the best they have ever been in the last 3 years of imprisonment. I am a 52 year old man but feel like a 26 years old man. My worship to Allah will never decrease, it will increase. My faith & reliance on Allah will never decrease, it will increase.

Fifth, We must realize that our persecution is nothing but an extension of the persecution of so many other Palestinians worldwide. This entire world looks at the Palestinians as a problem they wish it would just go away. Hoping that we just disappear and stop fighting for our rights and accept whatever charity is handed down to us, so the world can move on & be happy. Maybe they would like for the Palestinians to go to the moon (or other planets) or just vanish underground and stop their struggle for their holy homeland and their Allah’s (God) given right for a life of freedom, honor & dignity.

Sixth, What I am living through, right now, is what I used to read about the injustice happening to others, and always wondered how they were able to deal with it. It never crossed my mind that I will be treated so unjustly and that court after court in the land of freedom will rubber stamp this blatant injustice for political gain. But now I realized that faith is only confirmed or denied after being put to the test. It is easy to be faithful when the sailing is smooth, but how you react when you are sentenced to 20 years in jail for helping your own people. And with that, comes the possibility of being deprived of your family and children as they grow up, finish school, get married and end up missing so many of their life’s milestones. How you react to that determines your true faith or fake.

Read the rest of this entry »

 
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Posted by on December 14, 2011 in Letters from Mufid Abdulqader, Risala

 

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