Lost in Translation (Diaries of an Imam)

Abdullah Hasan, onislam.net, Lost in Translation (Diaries of an Imam) Week 2 "Imams are supposed to be individuals whom the entire community follows, not just one section of the community. It is worrying that this is still a problem in the UK and in the 21st century. I do not think this is much of a problem among the younger generation. Yes, they do have other issues and concerns to tackle. I am not denying there will not be problems among the younger generation, there will be, but I am confident that they will be very easily resolved." opinion piece

"Bringing London’s “Christmas Bombers” to Trial"

Raffaello Pantucci, Terrorism Monitor Volume: 9 Issue: 46, Bringing London’s “Christmas Bombers” to Trial, December 16, 2011 "Five of the men are also accused of possessing material useful in the preparation of terrorism, and four are charged with owning two editions of al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula’s (AQAP) Inspire magazine and a copy of Saudi ideologue Muhammad bin Ahmad as-Salim’s famous tract “39 Ways to Serve and Participate in Jihad”"

Writer is the author of a forthcoming book We Love Death as You Love Life: Britain’s Suburban Mujahedeen (Hurst/Columbia University Press)

Maktabah

Telegraph, Terrorists' favourite bookseller guilty, 15 Dec 2011 "The Maktabah website received nearly 20m hits from 460,000 obsessive users, more than a third of whom lived in the US.

"Faraz made profits of at least £62,000 and employed a number of salesmen, sending unsolicited copies of his books to Islamic shops around the country."

"How much can we learn from the history of Islam in Britain?"

I haven't viewed this yet, but thought I'd drop this item - hosted by Tariq Ramadan on Press.tv - into the blog anyway. I'll watch it when I have a bit more time ...

Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam

British Museum, Hajj: journey to the heart of Islam, 26 January – 15 April 2012 "One of the five pillars of Islam central to Muslim belief, Hajj is the pilgrimage to Mecca that every Muslim must make at least once in their lifetime if they are able. This major exhibition charts the history of this deeply personal journey."

I hope I can get a ticket for this!

Check out Seán McLoughlin's survey in relation to this exhibit: 
https://www.survey.leeds.ac.uk/hajj/

'Inside Iqra: Slough's Muslim primary school'

Masood Khan, Guardian, Inside Iqra: Slough's Muslim primary school - video, 12 Dec 2011 "In 2008, after years of campaigning and opposition, Iqra opened as one of the first Muslim primary schools in the United Kingdom. Film-maker Masood Khan talks to its head, chair of governors and a teaching assistant whose children attend the school, who make the case for faith-based education. Taking the opposite position, Jonathan Romain of the Accord Coalition tells Khan of his fear that such schools ghettoise children and fail to prepare them for a multicultural society."

Mosque arson case

UKPA, Pair jailed for mosque arson attack, 8 Dec 2011 "The court heard that the pair set fire to the mosque, in Regent Road in the Hanley area of the city, in a revenge attack after Muslim extremists burned poppies on Armistice Day."

'Reading the riots'

Guardian, Comment is Free, Reading the riots: ask the reason why, 8 Dec 2011 " ... as we report, nor were the riots entirely about race. Stop and search powers are used, in some forces, disproportionately against black people. There is a generation of young Muslims whose lives have been shaped by the war on terror. But what unites our interviewees is a sense of alienation. Barely half "felt part of British society". Race contributed to it, but more often it was poverty and a lack of hope." The associated reports on Reading the riots raise many significant issues, especially relating to this blog, including Shiv Malik's piece in the Guardian, Muslim rioters say police discrimination motivated them, 8 Dec 2011

Leicester - gang case

Mail Online, Girl gang who kicked woman in the head while yelling 'kill the white slag' freed after judge hears 'they weren't used to drinking because they're Muslims', 6 Dec 2011 [rather a long and loaded headline - posted retrospectively]