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Comment by Ablacem on June 6, 2010 at 5:42pm

Turkey holds activists' funerals


Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal reports from Istanbul after being released by Israel following convoy raid

Turkish forensic experts have confirmed that the nine activists killed during the Israeli raid on the Gaza aid flotilla were shot with guns.

Eight were Turks and one a US national of Turkish origin, the Anatolia news agency reported on Thursday as funerals got under way in Istanbul.

The remaining activists, including some who were injured in the Israeli raid, landed in the Turkish city early on Thursday.

Al Jazeera's Jamal Elshayyal, who reported from the ship as the raid began, was also sent to Turkey by Israel after being released by the Israelis.

Elshayyal said that he witnessed some of the killings, and confirmed that at least "one person was shot through the top of the head from [the helicopter] above".
IN DEPTH

Our producer was on the top deck when the ship was attacked and said that within a few minutes of seeing the Israeli helicopters, there were shots being fired from above.

"The first shots [coming from Israeli boats at sea] were tear gas, sounds grenades and rubber coated steel bullets," Elshayyal said.

"Live shots came five minutes after that. There was definetly live fire from the air and from the sea as well."

He confirmed that some passengers took apart some of the ship's railing bars to defend themselves as they saw the Israeli soldiers approaching.

"After the shooting and the first deaths, people put up white flags and signs in English and Hebrew," he said.

"An Israeli [on the ship] asked the soldiers to take away the injured, but they did not, and the injured died on the ship."

Heroes welcome

Earlier three air ambulances landed at a military base in Ankara, the Turkish capital, carrying wounded activists who were transferred to hospitals in the city.
Activists killed

Turkish victims
Ibrahim Bilgen
Ali Haydar Bengi
Cevdet Kiliçlar
Çetin Topçuoglu
Necdet Yildirim
Fahri Yaldiz
Cengiz Songür
Cengiz Akyüz
US victim
Furkan Dogan

Hundreds of supporters including Bulent Arinc, Turkey's deputy prime minister, and several other Turkish politicians were at the airport in Istanbul to welcome the returning activists.

"They faced barbarism and oppression but returned with pride," Arinc told hundreds of jubilant relatives and supporters outside the airport, chanting "God is Great!"

A crowd of several thousand gathered in central Istanbul to celebrate the activists' return.

An aircraft carrying 31 Greek activists, together with three French nationals and an American, flew into Athens airport in the early hours of Thursday, the Israeli foreign ministry said.

Seven activists wounded in Monday's clashes were still being treated in an Israeli hospital, it said.

Three others - an Irishman and two women from Australia and Italy - remained in Israel "for technical reasons", the ministry said.

But Ayman Mohyeldin, Al Jazeera's correspondent in Jerusalem, said that four Palestinian-Israelis remain in prison.

Our correspondent said that Raed Salah,a leader of the Islamic Movement in Israel, was one of those still being held.

Israel defiant

Israel has remained defiant about the raid and says it is ready to intercept another aid ship, the Rachel Corrie, that organisers of the Freedom Flotilla say is due to head for the Gaza Strip next week.
IN DEPTH


Blog: Israel defending the indefensible
Twitter: Sherine Tadros
Pictures: Protests around the world
Previous activists killed by Israel
Focus: On board the Freedom Flotilla
Focus: Gaza's real humanitarian crisis
Video: Israel's Gaza PR offensive
Programmes: Born in Gaza

Accusing international critics of "hypocrisy," Binyamin Netanyahu, the Israeli prime minister, defended the seizure of the aid ships on Wednesday.

"This was not the Love Boat," he said in a televised address to the nation, referring to the vessel boarded by commandos. "It was a hate boat."

"These weren't pacifists, these weren't peace activists, they were violent supporters of terrorism."

Netanyahu said the aim of the flotilla was to break the blockade of Gaza, not to bring aid.

He said that if the blockade ended, ships would bring in thousands of missiles from Iran to be aimed at Israel and beyond, creating what he said would be an Iranian port on the Mediterranean.

"The same countries that are criticising us today should know that they would be targeted tomorrow," Netanyahu said.

However, Ban Ki-moon, the UN secretary-general, said the flotilla tragedy only highlights the serious underlying problem - namely, the siege imposed on the Gaza.

He said that the siege was "counter-productive, unsustainable and wrong".

"It punishes innocent civilians," he said.

Ban said the siege should be lifted immediately.

No mention of inquiry

Netanyahu's comments came hours after Turkey warned it would cut off diplomatic ties with Israel if its citizens killed and injured in the Gaza flotilla raid were not returned by Wednesday night.

Mohyeldin said the Israeli prime minister's address did not include mention of an inquiry into the attack, as many have demanded.

"If the international community, or the Turkish government, were waiting to hear Binyamin Netanyahu announce an independent investigation to look into this deadly raid, it certainly did not come as expected, or as the international community and the UN Security Council had demanded," Mohyeldin said.
Thousands of protesters welcomed the activists' return to Turkey [Reuters]

"Instead the Israeli prime minister once again defended the Israeli course of action."

Ahmet Davutoglu, Turkey's foreign minister, has called for an international commission into the raid.

"We have clearly stated that we would review our ties with Israel if all Turks not released by the end of the day," he said on Wednesday.

Davutoglu also said Turkey was ready to normalise ties with Israel if it lifted its blockade on Gaza, saying "it was time calm replaces anger".

Relations between Turkey and Israel have deteriorated rapidly since the deadly raid, with most of the bloodshed occurring on the Mavi Marmara, a Turkish-flagged ship carrying hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists.

State media reported on Wednesday that Turkey's justice ministry is considering legal action against Israel.

Officials are looking into both domestic and international law to see what action might be undertaken after Monday's operation in international waters, a report by the Anatolia news agency said.

AlJazeera

Comment by souror on June 6, 2010 at 4:21am

El loco de Hitler tenia que acabar con esta basura..pero ya viene pronto el peor para ellos el Antecristo! que lo toman como amigo sea el enemigo de los israelistas sionistas! patiencia hermanos nosotros morimos shohada pero ellos souffren en este el mundo y luego tendan el lugar de fuego el jahanama khalidina fiha...hermanos esta raza no viven en paz donde estan hasta los toilet,son armados de miedo de musulmanes nos tienen comó fantasmas...Allah ma3ana

Comment by Asma on June 1, 2010 at 7:25am

Assalamu alaykom sister ABLACEM ,thks for join me.
we all feel sorry what happen in PALESTIN.
all i want to say hasbia allah wa neema elwakeel
حسبي الله و نعم الوكيل
و ان ينصركم الله فلا غالب لكم

Comment by Ablacem on May 31, 2010 at 3:41am

May. 31, 2010
Israeli Army: At Least 4 Killed On Gaza Flotilla
Israeli Army: At Least 4 Pro-Palestinian Activists Killed In Operation Against Gaza Flotilla

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(AP) JERUSALEM (AP) - The Israeli military says at least four pro-Palestinian activists have been killed after attacking naval commandos who were halting an aid flotilla heading toward the blockaded Gaza Strip.

The army says the soldiers were attacked with knives and clubs as they boarded the six vessels Monday. It says soldiers opened fire after a protester grabbed a weapon from one of the commandos.

The army says dozens of people were wounded, both soldiers and activists, and it is evacuating the casualties from the Mediterranean by helicopter.

THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information. AP's earlier story is below.

OFF THE MEDITERRANEAN COAST (AP) - Israeli commandos on Monday stormed six ships carrying hundreds of pro-Palestinian activists on an aid mission to the blockaded Gaza Strip, setting off fierce battles in which at least two people were killed and dozens were wounded, according to the Turkish government.

There were conflicting accounts of what happened.

The al-Jazeera satellite channel reported by telephone from the Turkish ship leading the flotilla that Israeli navy forces fired at the ship and boarded it, wounding the captain. Turkey's NTV channel also reported an Israeli takeover in which gunfire was used.

The Turkish Foreign Ministry, citing "preliminary information," said at least two people were killed and more than 30 wounded. NTV, which had a reporter on board one of the ships, also said two were killed.

But Israeli security officials, speaking on condition of anonymity under military guidelines, said activists attacked the Israeli forces with knives and iron rods as they boarded the boats.

They said an unspecified number of activists and 15 Israeli troops were among the wounded.

"The people on the boats were very, very violent toward the soldiers," said Israeli military spokeswoman Lt. Col. Avital Leibovich.

NTV showed activists beating one Israeli soldier with sticks as he rappelled from a helicopter onto one of the boats.

A Turkish website showed video of pandemonium on board one of the ships, with activists in orange life jackets running around as some tried to help an activist apparently unconscious on the deck. The site also showed video of an Israeli helicopter flying overhead and Israeli warships nearby.

"These savages are killing people here, please help," a Turkish television reporter said.

The al-Jazeera broadcast ended with a voice shouting in Hebrew, "Everybody shut up!"

There were no details on the identities of the casualties, or on the conditions of some of the more prominent people on board, including a Nobel peace laureate and an elderly Holocaust survivor.

Satellite phones on board the ships were turned off, and communication with a small group of reporters embedded with the Israeli military was blocked.

In Turkey, which had unofficially supported the aid mission, news of the attack sparked violent protests.

Police blocked dozens of stone-throwing protesters who tried to storm the Israeli consulate in Istanbul. The CNN-Turk and NTV televisions showed dozens of angry protesters scuffling with Turkish police and shouting, "Damn Israel."

The Turkish Foreign Ministry condemned the Israeli raid and said it was summoning the Israeli ambassador for an "urgent explanation." It says Israel violated international law and will suffer consequences.

The Israeli military denied its forces attacked the boats, saying soldiers were under orders only to use fire if their lives were in danger.

Some 700 pro-Palestinian activists were on the boats, including 1976 Nobel Peace Prize laureate Mairead Corrigan Maguire of Northern Ireland, European legislators and Holocaust survivor Hedy Epstein, 85.

The flotilla, which includes three cargo ships and three passenger ships, is trying to draw attention to Israel's blockade of Gaza, home to 1.5 million Palestinians. The boats are carrying items that Israel bars from reaching Gaza, like cement and other building materials. The activists said they also were carrying hundreds of electric-powered wheelchairs, prefabricated homes and water purifiers.

The head of the Gaza Hamas government, Ismail Haniyeh, condemned the "brutal" Israeli attack.

"We call on the secretary-general of the U.N., Ban Ki-moon, to shoulder his responsibilities to protect the safety of the solidarity groups who were on board these ships and to secure their way to Gaza," Haniyeh told The Associated Press.

The reports came just after daybreak, with the flotilla still well away from the Gaza shore. Israel had declared it would not allow the ships to reach Gaza.

The violent takeover threatened to deal yet another blow to Israel's international image, already tarnished by war crimes accusations in Gaza and its three-year-old blockade of the impoverished Palestinian territory.

The flotilla began the journey from international waters off the coast of the east Mediterranean island of Cyprus on Sunday afternoon after two days of delays.

After nightfall Sunday, three Israeli navy missile boats left their base in Haifa, steaming out to sea to confront the ships. Two hours later, Israel Radio broadcast a recording of one of the missile boats warning the flotilla not to approach Gaza.

"If you ignore this order and enter the blockaded area, the Israeli navy will be forced to take all the necessary measures in order to enforce this blockade," the radio message continued.

This is the ninth time that the Free Gaza movement, an international group of pro-Palestinian activists, has tried to ship in humanitarian aid to Gaza since August 2008.

Israel has let ships through five times, but has blocked them from entering Gaza waters since a three-week military offensive against Gaza's Hamas rulers in January 2009.

The latest flotilla was the largest to date.

Israel and Egypt imposed the blockade on Gaza after Hamas militants violently seized control of the seaside territory in June 2007.

Israel says the measures are needed to prevent Hamas, which has fired thousands of rockets at Israel, from building up its arsenal. But U.N. officials and international aid groups say the blockade has been counterproductive, failing to weaken the Islamic militant group while devastating the local economy.

Israel rejects claims of a humanitarian crisis in Gaza, saying it allows more than enough food and medicine into the territory. The Israelis also point to the bustling smuggling industry along Gaza's southern border with Egypt, which has managed to bring consumer goods, gasoline and livestock into the seaside strip.

___

Associated Press writer Selcan Hacaoglu contributed to this report from Ankara.
link

Comment by Ablacem on March 16, 2010 at 3:22pm

Assalamualaikum

Ya Rabbi, Please protect Masjidil Aqsa from the Kuffar.

Palestinian Authority: Muslims, go to al-Aqsa

Ali Waked

14 March 2010, - Ynetnes (Israel)

http://www.ynetnews.com/articles/0,7340,L-3862403,00.html


The Palestinian Authority is joining the Islamic Movement in its calls for Muslims to flock to the al-Aqsa Mosque in response to extremist Jews' plans to lay a cornerstone at the Temple Mount.

Hatem Abdel Kader, the Fatah official in charge of the Jerusalem portfolio, on Sunday urged Palestinians in Jerusalem and Israel to declare their plans to travel to the mosque and barricade themselves there starting Monday.

Meanwhile, police have declared they will not allow the Israeli rightists to go through with their plans to lay a cornerstone at the site.

Police said they have rejected requests from both Palestinians and rightists to hold a march in the area. "We will prevent, with a firm hand, any attempt by extremist from either side to disrupt order and security at the Temple Mount and in the east of the city," a statement by the Jerusalem District Police said.

Jerusalem Police Commander Aharon Franco said at a situation evaluation meeting that police forces were prepared and deployed around the compound and in the alleys of the Old City.

The Palestinian Authority urged Palestinians and Muslims to demonstrate vigilance in Jerusalem, following the opening of a synagogue in the Old City. Abdel Kader said, "We are facing the most dangerous three days since 1967."

According to the Fatah official, Israel is taking the utmost precautions as part of a broad and dangerous action plan meant to cause a dramatic change in the status quo. Abdel Kader urged Palestinians and Muslims to be prepared to stay in the mosque for fear of it being raided by Jewish extremist.

He accused Israel of distracting the world with the settlement issue in order to move forward with its plans to judaize Jerusalem, including the al-Aqsa Mosque. According to Abdel Kader, the full closure that was imposed on the West Bank, and the age restrictions for worshippers entering the site are part of this scheme.

He said that Fatah is slated to hold a meeting with the Islamic Movement on later Sunday to discuss joint action the parties can take to prevent any attempt to invade the mosques.

Earlier, some 50 Palestinians gathered in Beit Jala and threw stones at security forces in the area. The soldiers responded with teargas. The Rabbis for Human Rights organization said that the Palestinians had gathered in the area to hold a peaceful protest against the construction of the separation fence, and attempted to plant olive trees.

Saturday night Defense Minister Ehud Barak ruled that the full closure on the West Bank is to be extended until midnight Tuesday, amid concerns of possible riots in Jerusalem and the West Bank.

In a rare move, police decided to impose a full closure on the West Bank Friday, following intelligence obtained by police of Palestinian youths' plans to riot in the capital. A number of clashes between Palestinians and security forces took place on Saturday.

Shmulik Grossman contributed to this report

Comment by Malina Mokhtar on November 12, 2009 at 1:57am

Palestinians mark Arafat's death
November 11, 2009 - 21:48

Thousands of Palestinians are marking five years since the death of Yasser Arafat, their iconic leader who led them for nearly four decades, pushing the struggle for an independent homeland onto the world stage.

Mahmoud Abbas, the Palestinian president, addressing a rally honouring Arafat in the West Bank city of Ramallah on Wednesday, where Palestinians remain divided, said he was extending a hand to Hamas for reconciliation.

Abbas addressed the crowd amid grim predictions by his aides that he may resign as president which could lead to the collapse of the Palestinian Authority, which was established by Arafat during the Oslo peace process in the 1990s.

The beleaguered Palestinian president said he did not want to talk anymore about his decision not to run for president for a second time due to stalled peace efforts that have failed to bring about an independent Palestinian state.

Settlement freeze

He insisted the Palestinians remain committed to a peaceful solution to the conflict and accused Israel of hindering peace efforts by expanding settlements in the occupied West Bank including east Jerusalem.

"We see Israel confiscating land, building settlements and Judaising Jerusalem with unprecedented speed ... and then they ask that we return to negotiations," Abbas told the huge crowd.

"The return to negotiations depends on Israel adhering to the terms of reference of peace and that means halting all settlements, including natural growth and Jerusalem," he said.

'Moment of truth'

Saeb Erakat, the chief Palestinian negotiator, told the AFP news agency: "The moment of truth has come and we have to be frank with the Palestinian people that we have not been able to reach a two-state solution through 18 years of negotiation."

Referring to the Gaza Strip and the West Bank, including East Jerusalem, which Israel captured in the Six Day War, he said: "We have become convinced that Israel doesn't want a Palestinian state on lands it occupied in 1967."

If Abbas were to resign, it would throw the divided Palestinians into new legal and political limbo, analysts say.

According to Palestinian Basic Law, Abbas's resignation has to be approved by two-thirds of the Palestinian parliament in order to become effective.

But the chamber has not convened since 2006 and it is unclear whether it would do so if he quits.

If the resignation is approved, Aziz Dweik, the speaker of parliament of Fatah rival, Hamas, would assume the presidency until new elections are held within 60 days.

Abbas called for elections to be held in January but Hamas, which has urged Palestinians to reject his leadership, called on voters to stage a boycott.

http://english.aljazeera.net/news/middleeast/2009/11/20091111101389...

Comment by Ablacem on October 31, 2009 at 8:12am

Seven Million Handicapped Movement

Overwhelmed with the feelings of hope, optimism and happiness, a group of Egyptian activists started their "Seven Million Handicapped Movement " on 2nd October at Al-Hurriya Garden in Egypt. The emergence of a movement was launched representing a glimpse of hope for all those with disabilities in Egypt.

Programme of Events
The event started off with a moment of silence for the participants who had varying physical disabilities. Signs that read:
"We are humans",
"We’re still alive,"
"We have voices".

The attendees were from different age groups spanning seven to over 40 years of age. Several media channels were keen to attend and cover the event, which set a precedent in Egypt.
Then we listened to Ramez, a deaf young man who sang for the audience. Ramez managed with his strong will, to continue his education and is currently studying law. However, the event was a great chance for all who suffer from these disabilities to gather and have fun, as after listening to the songs, they all took part in a dish party.
At the end of the event the organizers called for a civil march in the street for about an hour and half. However, before attending the event various questions crossed my mind, such as how did they launch this movement? What are their main demands? And ultimately, why did they begin the event.
The Start
"We gathered through an internet group, and we started to discuss our problems, as people with disabilities, and then we decided what our aims would be and the mechanism for reaching them," said Mahmoud ‘Abd El-Haleem, an engineer, one of the movement's organizers.

‘Abd El-Haleem mentioned that the first step for attaining their goals was this event, which represented the birth of the movement. Sara Samir, a 27 year old, graphic designer, added that they decided to call for their rights in a civilized manner, and from there came the idea of establishing this event.
As for the name of the movement, Samir, with much excitement said:
"We chose the name "The 7 Million Disabled ", as according to recent official statistics that the number of disabled people in Egypt is about 7 million."

Lubna ‘Abd El-Aziz, one of the organizers added that they wanted to prove their right to live a normal life, and be integrated into society just as any other person.
"We have many capabilities and potentials, which can make a positive change within our community, but unfortunately, underestimated and shunned by the society," ‘Abd El-Aziz said.

Main Problems

People with disabilities confront several problems and obstacles, which in fact, have negative impact upon them.
"We call for many rights throughout our movement, such as, the right to have suitable means of transport, said sufficient job opportunities in any field and joining governmental schools and universities," said Samir.

Samir added that one of their main problems is the false image, which the society has placed on the disabled.
"People feel that we are week individuals, who are useless to the community," argued Samir.

‘Abd El-Haleem added that this stereotype has a negative psychological impact upon the disabled. He supported Samir's view that the disabled person should be integrated into society, and to live and work just s any other individual.
"We need to have representatives in the parliament, who can present our problems, needs and demands," said’ Abd El Haleem.

Not only adults face these obstacles because of being handicapped, but also children and in turn, their parents who take on their responsibility as well. Rabab Hassan, a mother of a physically handicapped 10 year old girl, confronts difficulties in taking her to classes everyday at school, as there is no wheel-chair access. In addition wheel-chairs and other equipment designed for the handicapped is unaffordable.
One of the attendees was a trainer for deaf and mentally disabled children, who has helped them solve issues concerning their problems and their rights. He believes that these kids are deprived from various rights, such as the joining of government funded universities, and attending Friday's khutba (sermons), because of the absence of translators.

Dreams 4 the Future

"Increasing awareness among society is one of our major goals, throughout lectures, workshops and media coverage, "added ‘Abd El-Alziz.
Finally, I left the event asking myself many questions and having various thoughts; "The Seven Million Movement" is the first in Egypt that supports and protects the rights of the disabled. So could it be the start for more and more organizations and campaigns that call for handicapped privileges? And could this movement make a positive change, and spread awareness on the issue of disabled rights?

Hopefully we can see a fruitful result and positive influence upon the government, individuals and the whole of society.

islamonline

Comment by Ablacem on October 13, 2009 at 1:23am

The Rediff Special/Ehtasham Khan in New Delhi

August 18, 2003

Umar Aziz paid†the price for sporting a beard in China.

Scarred and scared, the 31-year-old Uighur from Hotan -- in the Xinjiang Uighur Autonomous Region in China -- has now gone underground in New Delhi. Because though the UNHCR has organised a visa for him to go to Sweden, the Indian government is yet to clear it.†And each day brings the possibility of Bejing demanding his extradition as a terrorist.

In an exclusive and emotional interview with rediff.com, Aziz spoke of†how and why he fled "the cruellest country in the world."

A farmer by profession, Aziz has studied only till class five. A practising Muslim, he offered namaaz five times a day at his home and sported a beard.

The Uighurs of China's restive Xinjiang province claim descent from Genghis Khan and are predominantly Muslim. Once constituting an independent Republic of Eastern Turkistan, the Uighurs live uneasily under Chinese rule, alleging economic, cultural and political suppression.

All was well with Aziz till one day in 1995, when he and his wife were taken into custody by the Chinese police. He was charged with†sporting a beard, seen as a symbol of Muslim identity and a rejection of Communist philosophy, and supporting the anti-China movement.

He was tortured and beaten†on a regular basis for four long years before being released. His wife died in police custody.

The anti-China campaign was gaining momentum when Aziz came out of jail in 1999, and separatist groups in Xinjiang were blamed for several bomb blasts in China during that†period.

The Eastern Turkestan Islamic Party of God, established in 1993 to establish a separate Uighur state in Xinjiang, was allegedly responsible for these attacks.

Aziz, however, said he subscribes to the ideas of the East Turkestan Uighur Congress Party, also†known as Demograsia, which advocates a peaceful struggle for independence.

"We are not terrorists," he said. "We don't believe in violence. But they [the Chinese government] call us terrorists. They call us American agents. We have nothing to do with America. We want our separate homeland," said Aziz in broken Urdu, a† language that he has learnt only after his escape from China.

"China captured our country 55 years ago. We want to live freely and with our religious identity. We want to practise our religion freely. China is the cruellest country in the world."

When he came out of jail in 1999, he joined the growing anti-China movement. "There was a strike and I was among the protestors. We were about 100 people. I urged others to join us. I used to write posters.

"On that day we had a protest march in the heart of Hotan [town]. I was carrying the placards." Aziz and many of his colleagues were identified by the police.

And the searches began. Many of Aziz's friends and relatives were interrogated in brutal fashion by the police to get his whereabouts. His father and elder brother were arrested and are probably still in jail. His mother, younger brother, and sister fled and are apparently living in the jungles near Hotan.†"I am not in touch with them," Aziz said. "But if they are alive, they must be in the jungles."

Under pressure, Aziz and his friends decided to escape to Nepal via Tibet and seek political asylum. "Our objective was to reach Nepal and seek asylum from the UN.

"We were 40 when we left Hotan. But only two of us could reach India. The rest were either arrested or killed or just disappeared on the way," said the well-built man, tears trailing down his cheeks and disappearing into his thick brown beard.

It took Aziz and his companions more than six months to reach Nepal's capital Kathmandu.

"I had 1,500 in Chinese currency when I left home," he recounted. "I also had some clothes and food. I never thought the journey would be so long. Everybody pooled in the money as much as we could."

Trains were being checked thoroughly, so they didn't take a direct route to Tibet, or Xizang as the Chinese call it. Instead they†travelled short distances by bus. "The police had our photographs. There was checking at the district borders. We had to be extremely careful," he said.

From the jungles of Hotan, (where eight of them were killed in police firing), the group went to Korla, Hami, Khumul, Dunhuong, Lenghu, and†Golmund before entering†Tibet. They travelled by bus and alighted before the border checkposts, crossing over furtively in batches of four and five at night. If one group got caught by the police, others turned back and preferred to stay on till the situation cooled down.

"This way it took us a lot of time to cross each district," Aziz explained. "We always feared that those who were caught would give information to the police about our hideouts. So we kept changing places.†Some of our friends were caught. But, fortunately, police could not trace me all the way.

"When I saw police dragging some of our friends, there was no way other than to run and hide," he recalled. Eight persons in the group were killed in police firing in the jungles of Hotan. The group kept getting smaller at each station.

From Hotan, they reached Korla in about 40 days. Aziz is not sure what the distance they covered was. "We had to walk all through the jungles," he said. "It was raining heavily. It is a thick forest. But thankfully there was no snow as it was April."†

They bought five camels from a shepherd on the way†to ferry goods and have occasional rides. As they reached Korla, 17 more were caught. "We could not even think about those who were caught," said Aziz. "We had to keep running. The Chinese are very cruel people."

Some also fell ill on the way, but Aziz was among the lucky few. "Shepherds were of great help," he said. "We bought food and other things from them."

Finally, the group reached the Tibetan capital of† Lhasa, where they rested and recuperated for 25 days. "Tibetans helped us a lot. We were feeling at home in Tibet. We share the same plight and hopefully both will get freedom one day."

Finally, Aziz and five others decided to leave for Nepal.

But they were caught by the Nepalese police as soon as they crossed the border, and†jailed for seven months until the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees†intervened.

"The UN office in Kathmandu pleaded our case and gave us refugee status," said Aziz. All six were released, and lived there happily for about two years.

Aziz learned Urdu while living with some Muslims in Nepal. "Nepali was difficult so I preferred Urdu. It is close to Arabic. I know Arabic," he explained.

But one day a local newspaper ran a report on the refugees, that too with a photograph.

A few days later, the Chinese embassy†demanded custody of all six,†calling them terrorists.

According to Aziz, four of them were handed over to the Chinese authorities. One was executed, while the other three are in jail.

Aziz and one other man escaped to India, arriving in New Delhi on October 5, 2002, and sought help from the UNHCR's local office.

The UNHCR's staff†asked an Afghan refugee to give Aziz shelter in his rented house in Hauz Rani in south Delhi. In November, Tariq Nasir, 26, also reached New Delhi via same route. Abdushakur, 31, arrived in May.

Now as many as eight Uighur refugees live in New Delhi at two different places.

Aziz, Nasir and Abdushakur lived in a two-room rented house in Hauz Rani, for which they paid Rs 2,500. Two of them get Rs 1,400 a month from the UNHCR office. This is their only source of income.†"We don't get jobs here. There are so many problems. We want to migrate to some other country where we can start life afresh," Aziz said.

"In Nepal we used to get Rs 3,000 a month. It was better there."

Though Aziz and Nasir have got visas to go to Sweden, they†are waiting for the final clearance from Indian authorities. Until then, they fear that†Chinese spies might report their whereabouts to Beijing, which will immediately demand their extradition. Abdushakur's immigration papers are stuck in Nepal.

"We hope we will have a better life in Sweden. The movement [for a separate state] has almost died in the last five years. All activists are in jail in China or living as refugees," said Aziz.

"Let us see what Allah will do for us."

Comment by Ablacem on October 13, 2009 at 1:15am

'I questioned things at Guantánamo from day one'

Sarfraz Manzoor
Wednesday 7 October 2009

Terry Holdbrooks arrived at Guantánamo detention camp in the summer of 2003 as a godless 19-year-old with a love of drinking, hard rock music and tattoos. By the time he left Cuba the following year, he had alienated his army colleagues, won the respect of the detainees and, most astonishingly, converted to Islam in a midnight ceremony in the presence of one of the detainees, who had become his mentor.

When I meet Holdbrooks, now 26 and named Mustafa Abdullah, he is wearing a black Muslim cap, a thick beard and long-sleeved traditional robes that almost obscure the tattoo on his right arm that reads "by demons be driven".

Holdbrooks grew up in Arizona, the only son of junkie parents who split up when he was seven years old. He was raised by his ex-hippie grandparents. Tired of being poor, determined not to follow in his parents' footsteps and keen to see the world, Holdbrooks signed up for the military. He was stationed with the 253rd Military Police Company, mostly doing administrative support work, when he was told he was to be deployed to Guantánamo.

During a two-week training course, the new guards took it in turns to act as detainees, and were also taken to Ground Zero. "We were not taught anything about Islam," he says. "We were shown videos of 11 September and all we kept being told was that the detainees were the worst of the worst – they were Bin Laden's drivers, Bin Laden's cooks, and these people will kill you the first chance they get."

Holdbrooks skims over the words, as if he is quoting from his forthcoming memoir, Traitor? "I was questioning things from day one," he says. "The first thing I saw was a kid who is all of 16 who had never seen the ocean, didn't know the world was round. I am sitting there thinking, what can he possibly know about the war on terror, what could he possibly know?"

Holdbrooks' duties at Guantánamo including cleaning, collecting rubbish, walking up and down the block to ensure detainees weren't passing anything between cells and ferrying them to and from interrogations. There were plenty of opportunities for communication. Holdbrooks's friendliness towards the detainees – they called him "the nice guard" – earned him unwelcome attention from his fellow guards.

"I didn't have a very high impression of my colleagues," he says. Many of them were "ridiculous Budweiser-drinking, cornbread-fed, tobacco-chewing drunks, racists and bigots" who blindly followed orders, and within months he had stopped talking to them altogether. There were frequent physical altercations: "One time one of them said to me, 'Hey, Holdbrooks, you know what we are going to do today? We are going to skull-**** (mod: foul language) the Taliban out of you – you're a sympathiser and we don't like that." That led to another fist fight."

While the guards indulged in alcohol, porn and sports, Holdbrooks says he needed to learn how the detainees could endure abuse and still smile, while he was utterly miserable.

"I knew nothing about Islam prior to Guantánamo," he says, "so this was a complete culture shock to me. I wanted to learn as much I could, so I started talking to the detainees about politics, ethics and morals, and about their lives and cultural differences – we would talk all the time." What began as curiosity turned to disciplined study, with Holdbrooks spending at least an hour a day learning about Islam and talking in chatrooms online. Among those he talked to were the Tipton trio of British Muslims who featured in Michael Winterbottom's docudrama, The Road to Guantánamo; another was a man the other detainees referred to as the General – Moroccan-born Ahmed Errachidi, who had lived in Britain for 18 years, working as a chef, and spent five and a half years in Guantánamo accused of attending al-Qaida training camps. (He was later released and cleared of any wrongdoing.)

"We'd talk for hours and hours," Holdbrooks says. "We'd talk about books, about music, about philosophy: we would stay up all night and talk about religion."

Finally, six months into his time at Guantánamo, Holdbrooks was ready. On 29 December 2003, in the presence of Errachidi, he repeated the shahada, the statement of faith that is the sole requirement for converting to Islam: "There is no God but God and Muhammad is his prophet". The Guantánamo guard was now a Muslim.

He stopped drinking and even gave up music, because his interpretation of Islam suggested that this, too, was unacceptable. "It was not easy praying five times a day without my colleagues finding out," he says. "I told them I had to go the bathroom a lot."

Converting to Islam made Holdbrooks even more unhappy about his work – he felt he was worse off than the detainees. "They were having a lot more fun than I was. The Tipton trio were always playing tricks on the guards and the interrogators. The detainees had a lot of freedom in their confinement: I had all the freedoms they didn't have, but I was a slave to what the army wanted me to do."

This claim sounds implausible, but Holdbrooks says he is referring to their freedom of thought: he was impressed by the independence he saw in the detainees, compared to his fellow guards. This still seems a rather self-pitying analysis, particularly when he goes on to describe how he had seen detainees being tortured. "It was my job to take prisoners to interrogations, so sometimes I would sit and watch," he says. "I would see detainees who would be locked up for hours in horrible positions – for hours upon hours upon hours, in a room that might be 50 degrees or 60 degrees.

"There was one man who had defecated on himself and this ogre of an interrogator would douse water on him and then ask him if he was going to talk, and he would say he had nothing to talk about, and I remember thinking, what good is this going to accomplish? You cannot abuse and torture people and expect to get results that are accurate and credible."

In the summer of 2004, Holdbrooks left Guantánamo and was later discharged from the army on the grounds of a "general personality disorder". The alcohol problem that had plagued him before enlisting returned, and when his marriage dissolved, he sought solace in the old comforts of drinking, casual sex and music. "I was having nightmares about my time in Guantánamo," he says, "and I spent the best part of three years just trying to drink Guantánamo out of my mind."

Today, Holdbrooks is a practising Muslim again, but he does not seem to be at peace. There is a blankness in his gaze that hints at the scars his childhood and Guantánamo have left on him.

Why had this hard-living Arizona boy embraced Islam? The question needles me throughout our conversation. It is only when, towards the end, Holdbrooks reveals that his favourite words are "structure", "order" and "discipline" that the pieces fall into place. Holdbrooks's life had been a search for order: the regimentation of army life had appeared to offer structure, and when it let him down, he turned to religion.

Holdbrooks has more in common with his former colleagues than he realises: their allegiance to the army is matched by his adherence to faith. "Islam is a very disciplined, regimented faith and it requires a great deal of effort and conviction," he says. "I've had an unbelievable fascination with structure and order for as long as I can remember: structure, order and discipline – I just love them."

The Guardian

Comment by jalil on October 12, 2009 at 4:34pm

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