Newcastle Schoolgirl Branded 'Terrorist' Gives Moving Speech Against Islamophobia

A Newcastle schoolgirl who was branded a "terrorist" by fellow students in the wake of the Paris attacks has spoken out against Islamophobia in a moving school assembly.

Isra Mohammed, 15, told classmates at Kenton School: "Terrorism has no religion and terrorism is not the face of Islam."

The Muslim teen says she and her siblings were blamed for the terrorist attacks in France in November, with her brother being told: "Your religion is killing people."

“People come to me telling me that because I am a Muslim, I am a terrorist," Mohammed said in the speech, which has been watched more than 5,000 times online.

“I have a seven-year-old sister who came home from school crying. When I asked why, she said people in school were blaming her for the Paris attacks. She said that she didn’t want to go back."

In the rousing speech to teachers and pupils, the GCSE student explained the difference between Isis and Islam.

"Islam is a beautiful religion, just like many others. It is a religion of peace and mercy.

"Isis is a terrorist organisation. They cause nothing but harm and terror to the world," she continued.

Isra told of how she and her siblings were bullied in the wake of the Paris attacks

"Isis have one goal. They want countries like ours to reject Muslims. This evil organisation have in their minds that if they can get Muslims [to appear as] the enemy of the west, then Muslims in France, the UK, America and Australia will have nowhere to turn but to Isis.

"So if you are someone with a Facebook account, a Twitter account, an Instagram account, or any form of social media, which I'm sure everyone here has, and you are throwing out masses of hate, you are helping Isis. You are supporting ISIS. This is what they want.

"Think about it - do you want to be the person helping a terrorist organisation?

Mohammed told the assembly that Islamophobia could be tackled by learning about each other's religions and by refusing to make assumptions.

The teen finished the speech by simply stating: "My name is Isra Mohammed, I am a Muslim and I am not a terrorist."

Mohammed decided to make the speech after an assembly given by English and Media teacher Jessica Griffiths on asylum seekers.

Griffiths, who helped Mohammed with her speech, told the ChronicleLive: “Her speech has inspired so many students and members of staff and the reaction online has been phenomenal. We have also had three other schools contact us to ask if Isra can speak there.

“I know she wants to become a doctor but she could be a future Prime Minister," the teacher added.

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Saudi Arabia and Iran heading to war?

IRAN vs SAUDIA

It is wrong to look at Operation Decisive Storm merely as an incidental Saudi military operation against the Houthis. This is a Saudi policy combining diplomacy and war to stop Iranian influence then push it out of Syria and Yemen.

We have heard this before, but where will this dangerous policy end and where will the line be drawn? To what extent will Iran tolerate these consecutive Saudi slaps in Syria and Yemen, and where do major powers stand on all of this?

Answering these questions will help us find an answer to whether Saudi Arabia and Iran are heading to war. Does Iranian infiltration deserve taking such risks and costing the kingdom huge amounts of money, along with the possibility of an open war with Iran?

Iran should know that Saudi Arabia will not draw back from what it started

Jamal Khashoggi

Let us lend our ears to former U.S. foreign minister, competent analyst and illustrious politician Henry Kissinger. In his book “World Order,” published last year shortly before Operation Decisive Storm, he said the conflict with Iran was existential and covered the continuity of the kingdom, the state’s legitimacy and the future of Islam.

While Riyadh is not executing an aggressive or intrusive policy toward Tehran and its strategic interests, Iranians are behaving as if Kissinger’s description applies to them too. First, the supposed friend of the kingdom, former Iranian President Hashemi Rafsanjani - who was the godfather of the Saudi-Iranian rapprochement in the 1990s - issued statements against it last week no less harsh than any extremist from the Iranian Revolutionary Guards.

Iranian footholds

Then Qassem Soleimani, commander of the Quds Force and hero of Iranian forays into the Arab world, broadcast that his army and Syrian military leaders are in the midst of preparing for battle. What do they have up their sleeves? Will they execute an airdrop on the Syrian coast to protect it from the rebels’ progress, or send a large contingent from the Iranian army to protect the Alawite state that they wish to establish as a foothold in Syria?

I do not know what the Saudi military response for such a folly would be, but I am sure both the kingdom and Turkey categorically reject any direct Iranian presence or division of Syria. Thus, we might consider Soleimani’s broadcast as one of the demarcation lines that may lead to a direct Saudi-Iranian confrontation.

Also, the kingdom will not allow an Iranian foothold in Yemen. This explains the following Saudi attitude toward ongoing negotiations: The Houthis can live however they want inside their country, but they will never be considered a prevailing authority as the government is bound to be pluralist and participatory.

Saudi Arabia does not want an open confrontation with Iran, realizing the high cost of such a war. The same goes for Iran, which knows that the military budget, especially for the air force, is not in its favor. Moreover, Riyadh has alliances with a number of Arab and Islamic countries willing to defend the Land of the Two Holy Mosques. Both countries have enough arms to destroy each others’ capacities. It is a binary threat and an important deterrence.

Iran’s allies in Yemen are subjected day and night to a Saudi-led war against them until they turn to peace, and the blade is now closer to the necks of Iran’s allies in Syria and Lebanon. It is time to either give up these allies in a deal, or carry out the “surprises” Soleimani promised.

‘Fahd line’

Iran should know that Saudi Arabia will not draw back from what it started, and will continue until complete victory. Even though Riyadh is open to a diplomatic solution in Yemen, it is awaiting the outcome of the Muscat-Houthi talks under U.S. patronage. Meanwhile, it has not reduced the intensity of its military operations in Yemen, and was careful to let the Iranians know that the “Fahd line” still exists.

This is an imaginary line drawn by the late Saudi King Fahd in the middle of the Arabian Gulf during the Iran-Iraq war. Iran was informed that any of its planes crossing this line would be shot down without warning. This happened on June 5, 1984, with two Iranian F-4 planes. Saudi F-16 fighter jets shot them down in the Gulf Sea.

After that incident, Iran fully abided by the “Fahd line” until two weeks ago, when a civilian plane tried to land by force in Sanaa airport. This was followed by another entry attempt by a ship claiming to carry relief materials at Hodeidah port. Both times, Saudi fighter jets and marine vessels intercepted the intruders and made them retreat by force. Iran is now fully aware that the “Fahd line” not only stands but has extended to Yemen, and that the kingdom will not hesitate to deal with any crossing attempt.

In both cases, Iran applied its famous “Edge of the Abyss” policy, with one unintentional mistake leading to ominous consequences: had the wings of both planes slightly touched, they would have crashed, leaving a trail of victims. This would have pushed one or both governments to an irrational war. In order to prevent this, the rational one must stop the crazy one who wants to score an absurd media victory.

U.S. involvement

From afar, the international community led by the United States does not want such a nightmare to come true. Even China will agree with the West in this regard. This explains why Washington is making every effort to reach a peace agreement in Yemen, as it called for and sponsored the ongoing negotiations with the Houthis in Muscat. It has taken charge of the talks alongside Oman, while Riyadh and the Yemeni government are waiting.

U.S. involvement in the crisis is useful. Washington will get introduced the hard way to the Houthis, who learned well from the Iranians in terms of lying, procrastinating and dodging. Their true colors will then be evident to the international community, and the latter will understand the Saudi position.

If negotiations in Geneva are conducted, the Yemeni people will request that the Houthis and ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh be bound by a ceasefire, that thousands of detainees be released, and that politics in Yemen be free.

Victory to the Yemeni Popular Resistance can only be achieved by war, or the Saudi threat of a bigger war. Wars are always ugly, but a just war is necessary sometimes to achieve peace.

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Does God Exist?

Does God Exist? : There was a young man who went overseas to study for  quite a long time. When he returned, he asked his parents to find him a religious scholar or any expert who could answer his three questions. Finally, his parents were able to find a Muslim scholar.

Young man says:

I have three questions:

Young Man: Who are you? Can you answer my Questions? Scholar:     I am one of Allah’s slaves and Insha Allah (God Willing), I will be able to answer you Questions. Young Man: Are you sure? A lot of Professors and experts were not able to answer my Questions.

Scholar:    I will try my best, with the help of my Allah Ta’ala.

The young man said: listen my questions.

Question No. 1. Does God Exist? If so, show me his shape?

Question No.2. What is Taqdeer (Fate)?

Question No.3. If Shaitan (Devil) was created from the fire, why at the end he will be thrown to hell that is also created from fire? It certainly will not hurt him at all, since shaitan and the hell were created from fire.  Did God Think of this far?

Suddenly, the Scholar slapped the young man’s face very hard. Young man felt pain and cried why do you get angry at me?

The Scholar said: “I am not angry. The slap is my answer to your questions.

Young man said: “I really don’t understand.

Scholar said: “How do you feel after I slapped you?

Young man: “Of course, I felt pain

Scholar: “So do you believe that pain exists?”

Young man: “Yes”

Scholar: “Show me the shape of the pain!

Young man: “I cannot”

Scholar: “That is my first answer. All of us feel God’s existence without being able to see His shape……Last night, did you dream that you will be slapped by me?

Young Man: “No”

Scholar: “Did you ever think that you will get a slap from me today?”

Young man: “No”

Scholar: “That is taqdeer (fate) my second answer… my hand that I used to slap you what is it created from?”

Young man: “it is created from flesh”

Scholar: “How about your face, what is it created form?”

Young Man: “Flesh”

Scholar: “How do you feel after I slapped you?”

Young man: “In pain”

Scholar: “That’s it. This is my third answer, even though shaitan (Devil) and also the hell were created from the fire, if Allah wants, the hell will become a very painful place for shaitan.

Allah Ta’ala Said: “If you are ashamed of me, I will be ashamed of you.”

If you are not ashamed, pass this message on…only if you believe…..

Yes, I love Allah; Allah is my fountain of life and my savior. Allah keeps me going day & night. Without Allah, I am no one, but with Allah, I can do everything. Allah is my strength. May He help you to Succeed Ameem.

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6 Major Religious Traditions: Where Did They Come From?

Even if you’re not a religious person, you should know something about religion. It’s one of the main forces that shapes the modern world and has informed all of human history. If you don’t know the basics, you’re going to have a hard time understanding the world around you — and you might look pretty silly, too! With that in mind, we’re here to share a little bit of the history of 6 major world religions. Let’s get to it!

1. Hinduism

The third largest religion in the world today is Hinduism, which has about 1 billion adherents. Interestingly, some people do not classify Hinduism as a religion, but rather as a “way of life.” Hinduism has roots in the deep past of the Indian subcontinent, many thousands of years ago when tribal religions were widely practiced across the region. Some of the these are believed to have had elements of proto-Hinduism that were later incorporated into the main tradition. It wasn’t until around 500 B.C. that Hinduism became truly well-defined. Over the next several hundred years, the religion spread across the region, becoming the dominant force in South Asian life that it continues to be today.

2. Buddhism

The history of Buddhism is wrapped up with the Buddha himself. The Buddha, also known as Siddhartha Gautama, was born in Nepal some 2,600 years ago. Gautama lived and taught in eastern India, but it wasn’t until several hundred years after he died that his lessons were first collected in writing. Over the succeeding centuries, Buddhism would be spread throughout eastern and southern Asia and would even exert influence on Greek philosophy and religion via Greco-Buddhism. Today, it’s estimated that around 7% of the world’s population is Buddhist.

3. Chinese Folk Religion

The so-called “three teachings” of China — Confucianism, Taoism, and Buddhism — have an enduring legacy within the country. Confucianism comes from the teachings of a wise man around 2,500 years ago, while Taoism came from the teachings of Laozi around 200 years earlier. Chinese folk religion, which is based in ancestor worship and an animist worldview that places gods and spirits in all things, is extremely widespread. It’s estimated that as much as 80% of the Chinese population practices some form of traditional Chinese religion still today.

4. Shinto

The traditional religion of Japan is Shinto, which is based on ritual practices to honor the past, as well as on spirits and gods inhabiting all things. The religion has its roots in the 7th century B.C. Shinto is widely practiced in Japan alongside Buddhism, which was introduced to the country around the year 550. In fact, an estimated 80% of the Japanese population practice some form of Shintoism, but few self-identify as Shinto any longer.

5. Christianity

The largest religion in the world today is Christianity, which is estimated to have around 2.4 billion adherents. Christianity began in the Levant (the region of modern Syria, Palestine, Israel, and Jordan) about 2,000 years ago, originally emerging as a sect of Judaism. Over the next 400 years, the religion spread across the region and became the official religion of the Roman Empire. It spread throughout Europe, North Africa, India, and other regions during the Middle Ages.

6. Islam

Islam emerged around the turn of the 7th century in modern-day Saudi Arabia, when the prophet Muhammad began to unite the tribes of the region under a single banner. After his death in 632, the Qur’an (the holy book of Islam) was compiled and his successors began a series of holy wars to expand the religion. This so-called first Caliphate expanded the reach of Islam throughout the region, and it continues to spread today. Islam is the fastest-growing religion and includes more than 25% of the world’s population. Like Christianity (and Judaism), Islam is an Abrahamic religion.

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