ATIF RASHID
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Extremist thought is allowed to linger too long in this country and freedom of speech is no excuse
It was a welcome move by LBC to finally remove Katie Hopkins from her provocative show.
However, it took an especially grotesque tweet to do so which shows how overly tolerant or simply blind we’ve become to the abuse of free speech taking place.
For far too long we’ve allowed extremists, Muslim and non-Muslim the airtime to spout their hate-filled and divisive rhetoric.
The London terror attack revealed the greatestness of this nation because the brightest stars shine in the darkest of nights
Muslim leader and Hiroshima survivor to warn of nuclear war and urge for peace after London terror
After this attack, the greatness of our nation reveals itself even more. Now more than ever, it’s vital to not only appreciate the great things about this wonderful nation, but also to respond with that much more love, trust and unity towards every single person who lives alongside us in modern Britain.
This month, Hiroshima survivor Ms. Setsuko Thurlow will give a speech in London as she claims the 2017 ‘Advancement of Peace’ Prize presented by the Caliph of the oldest Muslim organisation in Britain. It’s for her anti-nuclear activism describing the horrors of living through nuclear devastation in what she calls ‘hell on earth’. We must listen to what she has to say, especially in light of repeated warnings a nuclear war is on the horizon.
Less than a month after Jo Cox’s murder and we haven’t learnt anything
It was the most high profile murder in decades on British soil which equally shook and horrified the nation if not the world. It wasn’t just any MP, it was a young, talented, principled, adored and respected representative of the people. Far more than you could say about many other politicians today.less-than-a-month-after-jo-coxs-murder-and-we-havent-learnt-anything.html
The Syrian Diaspora: The World Response and The Solution
With
over
12
million
affected
, the
current
refugee crisis is the worst the world has seen since World War 2
according to the United Nations High Commission for Refugees
(UNHCR)
.
As Syrians, once established professionals with stable careers and incomes, are forced to flee their homes while others are driven to feeding themselves with
grass
,
the world response has been divergent if anything.
The Worship of Mammon pervades the Panama Papers and its crippling our world
My hospital experience & how junior doctors risk becoming the pantomime villains in the saga over their contracts
Picture by www.democracynow.org
Shady dealings and dodgy dictators. Corrupt regimes and extortionate systems. It sounds like a Hollywood movie. Or at the very least something that happens in third world countries ruled by unscrupulous dictators taking our aid money for themselves.
It’s not something we imagine dignified leaders in first world developed countries and civilised nations doing. Or is it? For some time now we’ve known there have been shady dealings going on right from the top and how money leads people to do evil things. The 2008 economic downturn exposed the fraudulent practices of bankers and traders. The 2010 MP’s expenses scandal revealed how they’d been cheating the system.
Picture by Iker Merodio
It’s clear something is awry when those who've devoted their lives to heal people, go on strike and stop the work they spent years sweating for.
With disputes over contract changes which would actually increase basic pay but remove extra pay at weekends, junior doctors have vented their fury at the government by striking for the 4th time in this dispute. And with further strikes and a full walk out planned later this month, A&E services will be without cover.
The Paris Attacks Are a Reminder We Should All Listen to the London Based Khalifa (Caliph) of Islam
Days Before the Brussels Attacks, This Muslim Leader Issued a Call for Peace and Justice
Photo by
Moyan Brenn
In the aftermath of the Paris attacks, we'd all be wise to listen to the 5th Khalifa of the Ahmadiyya Muslims Community who has repeatedly been giving viable solutions to remove the poison of ISIS while exhorting Muslims to be true to the faith they follow. He condemned the Paris attacks
last week and prayed for its victims.
Airport terminal (Photo by RudyMareelPhotography)
Airports are notoriously known for their high levels of security checks and precautions. It makes an attack at an airport all the more shocking, frightening and inscrutable. If a place so heavily guarded can be attacked, are we safe anywhere? What people forget though is that security at airports is primarily meant to safeguard planes and their passengers onboard, not airport terminals necessarily. Don’t be surprised then if we see more security at airport entrances forthcoming.
5 Lessons We Should Learn From This Remembrance Day
The poppy - tough, resolute yet delicate flowers. They represent remembrance and hope in the wake of tragic wars which cost the lives of millions and still consume the world today.
Poppies represent remembrance and hope
7 young British Muslims were interviewed at the London Mosque
My digital and mental struggle with Islamophobia
I was delighted when the BBC Inside Out programme came to meet me and a bunch of young British Muslims at the London Mosque (London’s oldest Mosque) to get our views on Islamophobia. Here are some of my experiences and thoughts on the issue. It was broadcast on Monday 7th September at 7.30pm. The full programme can be viewed
here
An over-crowded boat carrying migrants
ISIS continuously distort verses to justify their barbarity
Reject the refugees... at your peril!
How we're heading for a major global catastrophe, that is, unless we change our ways.
We
’
re all forgetting why we’re in this mess in the first place. Amidst the worst refugee crisis since World War 2 and the deplorable humanitarian disaster we
’
re witnessing, some still feel as though housing refugees in Europe will solve the problem. It won't. It may ease it for some time but for how long will we continue fighting wars and killing our own, displacing them from their homes and adopting stringent, harsh policies?
How ISIS Have Failed to Deceive the World by Distorting Qur'anic Verses
Fear, terror, threat and intimidation. Man will go to extreme lengths to exert his superiority.
Harsh punishments and religious (or anti-religious) fanaticism have always been used for political gain and to control masses.
The one place you’ll find peace this weekend
You won’t find it in the hills of Afghanistan or the streets of London. You won’t find it in the cities of the Middle East or the plains of Africa. You certainly won’t find it turning on the news today
.
Thousands gather to find peace
Benefits of Ramadan
7 Benefits of Ramadan
for the spiritual wayfarer
The month of Ramadan is upon us once more. A month described as better than a thousand months, when Satan is locked in shackles and the doors of Heaven are wide open - for those who wish to enter.
The Holy Qur’an lays down the main purpose of the month of fasting - to develop righteousness. It’s not easy to become a righteous person and so Ramadan is a period when good deeds are made easy and heavenly blessings are made accessible. Moreover, certain qualities which contribute to a person’s righteousness are developed.
Why Beheading is Over Sensationalised
Everyday we hear of beheading in the news. Whether it’s ISIS murdering innocents or Saudi Arabia applying their interpretation of Islamic law. Islamophobes conveniently use it to spew their usual hatred and fear of Islam saying that Muslims are
living in 7th century and are evil and cruel.
The media meanwhile loves the dramatic headlines beheading brings and soaks up all the drama surrounding it.
As
Frances Larson
in her book about the history of beheading puts it, the “whole procedure is a piece of theatre designed to create power and cause fear, just as with state executions stretching back to the thirteenth century” - and the media loves it.
Indeed, execution by beheading has been going on for centuries, we aren’t witnessing anything new at all.
It is estimated that
Nazi Germany beheaded thousands
between 1933 and 1945 and who can forget how
Henry VIII
had his own wife decapitated. The French Revolution saw the
introduction of the guillotine
which was only outlawed as
recently as 1977
.
Mexican cartels
also often
decapitate and display the heads
of their rival gangs.
Having beheaded innocent
aid workers
and
journalists
, one has to wonder what the crime was for which they were beheaded except reporting the truth and serving humanity. Likewise, the
21 Coptic Christians
mercilessly beheaded was a most heinous and intolerable act. Never justifiable under any circumstances
...
Not So Free Speech
Is free speech a license to provoke, insult and offend? Are Muslims justified in their actions? And how would the Prophet of Islam have reacted in similar circumstances?
As some so-called Muslims foolishly continue to defame their own religion, which they claim to believe in, and Islamophobes continue to spew their hatred of Islam under the false guise of 'free speech', we have to look at the issue of what ‘free speech’ actually is. Is there indeed complete freedom of speech to say whatever we wish at any time and place?
Patriotic British Muslims
A response to
Dan Hodges
Dan Hodges was right when he started his ill-informed article by saying ‘we can’t carry on like this. We just ca
n’t.’ Indeed,
we simply can’t carry on blaming Muslims for what aren't even Muslim issues
Hodges tried ever so forcefully to make the point that Muslims have failed to integrate into the British society
...
The Pride of Pakistan
There haven’t been many proud moments for Pakistan in recent history. With civil and political turmoil, religious intolerance, military coups, corruption, terrorism and injustice, there probably isn’t much more that could have possibly gone wrong with a country.
It’s not all bad however, last month Pakistanis all over could rejoice with the news that Pakistan has the honour of producing two Nobel laureates, a fact not all that many Muslim countries can boast. It's ironic though that while both Pakistani laureates were born and educated in Pakistan, they both were prevented from going back to the country they had built their successes on.
'Islamic' Extremism - what does the Qur'an really teach?
Whenever I hear 'Islamic extremist' or 'extremist Islam', I think when will everyone stop using this oxymoron of a phrase 'Islamic extremist'? From what I've read in the Qur'an (the Muslim holy book), there is a no more moderate and balanced religion than Islam.
Since the emergence of extremist militant groups such as 'Al Qaeda', the 'Taliban', 'Boko Haram' and 'ISIS', concerns (and understandably so) have been raised about why these militant groups commit atrocities and cruelties in the name of Islam. Does Islam permit such atrocities, does it even condone and encourage them? The answer is a resounding no! Rather, Islam is the antithesis of extremism.
Ramadhan in Britain 2014
Ramadhan is about contemplation and self reflection. In a world ridden with war, anxiety and difficulties, Muslims seek to bring peace in themselves and to others especially during this holy month
.
National Flood Relief Efforts by Muslim Youth
January – February 2014: AMYA National flood relief efforts
Joining in a national flood relief initiative by the AMYA (Ahmadiyya Muslim Youth Association) earlier this year, members from the South East branch visited neighbouring towns and villages offering their help and support.
Muslim Marks & Spencer
Marks and Spencer's decision to allow Muslim workers to politely request customers wishing to purchase pork or alcohol to use another till created an epic backlash against the high end retailer last December. So fierce was the debate and anger of customers that Marks & Spencer apologised and said they would find more suitable roles for people, who due to religious or cultural reasons cannot sell certain products.
From Exile to Exaltation
Los Angeles: World Muslim Leader visits to advocate Peace, Unity and Universal Human Rights
In a time when the Ahmadiyya Muslims Community is persecuted,
declared as heretics and exiled from their homeland, Pakistan,
their leader's voice reaches across the world as he is honoured in Los Angeles, California...
Harvard University Acknowledges Islam's Stand for Justice
Harvard University, the highest ranking university in the world and certainly the top for law, has acknowledged that a verse of the Holy Qur'an is one of the most greatest expressions of justice in history.
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