Moroccans pray for rain as ‘mercy from God’
“We beg for God’s mercy,” said 10-year-old Hassan, wearing a long white tunic, as Moroccans across the parched country on Friday held prayers for rain under a royal decree. The faithful gathered in Sale, opposite the capital Rabat, to take part in the ancient tradition. “People pray to call for God’s mercy and pardon. The […]
After Sinai Massacre, Why Are Muslims Killing Muslims?
Radical Islamist militants converted the Al Rawdah Mosque in Egypt’s northern Sinai peninsula from a scene of prayer to a slaughterhouse on Friday. Jihadis detonated an explosive device and shot revellers dead as they left the compound, which the gunmen had surrounded. In all, at least 235 people were left dead and 130 injured, according […]
At least 75 wounded in Egypt mosque attack: ministry official
Gunmen attacked a packed mosque in Egypt’s restive North Sinai province on Friday and set off a bomb, wounding at least 75 people, health and police officials said. Health ministry spokesman Khaled Megahed told AFP at least 75 people were wounded in the attack and no deaths had been reported yet. The Islamic State group’s […]
US Asks Pakistan to Arrest Freed Cleric, Charge Him with Terrorism
The United States has called on Pakistan to arrest and charge an Islamist cleric accused of masterminding the 2008 attacks on India’s financial capital. Pakistani authorities acting on a court order Friday freed Hafiz Saeed from nearly 11 months of house arrest in the eastern city of Lahore. The detention had stemmed from the terrorism […]
Who are the Sufis associated with the mosque attacked in Egypt?
The mosque where Friday’s massacre unfolded in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula had been widely associated with Sufi Muslims who have been attacked by the Islamic State group wherever the extremists operate. A Bedouin tribal leader told AFP the Rawda mosque, some 40 kilometres (25 miles) west of the North Sinai capital of El-Arish, was known as […]
Qatar calls for renewed push against ‘terror’ groups
London, United Kingdom – Qatar’s foreign minister Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulrahman Al Thani has called on the international community to unite against groups like the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL). Al Thani told the audience at the Westminster Counterterrorism Conference in London on Thursday that “it is time for the international community […]
Mauritania strengthens blasphemy law after blogger case
Mauritania has moved to strengthen a law criminalising apostasy and blasphemy, after a court in the West African nation ordered the release of a local blogger who faced the death penalty for allegedly criticising the Prophet Muhammad. An amendment to Article 306 of the country’s penal code will now see the death penalty applied to […]
Man Living in a Shack is Saved By His ‘Worthless’ Blanket That Spurs $1.5 Million Bidding War
Six years ago, Loren Krytzer was living in a shack and scraping by on $200 disability checks from a car accident in 2007 that cost him his leg and left him out of work when he saw a television segment that would change his life. The native of Liona Valley, California was watching an episode […]
US expresses ‘deep concern’ over Hafiz Saeed release
Islamabad, Pakistan – The US has expressed “deep concern” at the release of Hafiz Muhammad Saeed, the alleged mastermind of the 2008 attacks in the Indian city of Mumbai that killed more than 160 people, calling for him to be “arrested and charged for his crimes”. Saeed was released in the early hours of Friday […]
More than 200 killed as Egypt militants attack mosque in Sinai
At least 235 people were killed and scores more injured when gunmen stormed a mosque in Egypt’s Sinai Peninsula, setting off explosives and firing on worshippers during Friday prayers, authorities said. There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the assault in the town of Bir Abd, about 25 miles from the North Sinai provincial […]