Islamists planned attacks across Europe

Reuters likes to call them "Islamist extremists", but that is duplicitous term, because the word "Islamist" already implies "extremist". Regardless, this should come as no surprise to anyone, except of course Islamists, their defenders and apologists. From Islamists planned attacks across Europe:

Islamist extremists were planning attacks across Europe, especially against public transport, before their arrests in Barcelona last weekend, a Spanish paper reported on Saturday, citing a would-be attacker's testimony.

The Al Qaeda-inspired cell planned to attack the Barcelona metro and other targets in Spain, Germany, France, Portugal and the United Kingdom, said the bomber turned police informant.

In testimony that led to the arrest of 14 South Asians last Saturday, the informant told police the group had a preference for attacks on public transport, especially metro systems, El Pais newspaper reported.

Two pairs with explosive-filled bags were to enter separate Barcelona subway stations and other members of the group were to detonate their bombs by remote control, said the witness.

On Friday, Spain's government said the Barcelona cell was preparing to carry out the metro attack either last weekend or in the following 15 days.

Two other pairs of suicide bombers had been assigned targets elsewhere in Spain, another was to attack Germany, three were given objectives in France and two more were to strike Portugal.

The informant said the Barcelona cell had six suicide bombers and other members responsible for preparing explosives and planning attacks in other European states. Four of those arrested have since been released due to lack of evidence.

Al Qaeda was to take responsibility for the Barcelona attacks through Baitullah Mehsud, a Taliban commander the Pakistani government says was behind the assassination of opposition leader Benazir Bhutto, El Pais said.

The Barcelona bombings could have taken place less than two months before Spain's March 9 general election.

Islamic militants attacked Madrid commuter trains days before Spain's last general election in March 2004, killing 191 people and wounding 1,800. They said the attacks were made in revenge for Spain sending troops to Afghanistan and Iraq.

Furthermore, why bother with the term "al-Qaeda" as the name for "Islamist extremism" anyway. Muslims are involved in 25 of some 30 conflicts going on in the world: in Afghanistan, Algeria, Bangladesh, Bosnia, Congo, Cote d'Ivoire, Cyprus, East Timor, India, Indonesia (2 provinces), Kashmir, Kazakastan, Kosovo, Kurdistan, Macedonia, the Middle East, Nigeria, Pakistan, Philippines, Sudan, Russia-Chechnya, Tajikistan, Thailand, Uganda and Uzbekistan. Wouldn't the term "Islamist" be sufficient?

Doesn't this mean that extremist Islam is the norm and normal Islam is extremely rare?

The "Hitler Room" Is Most Popular in Hotel

Don't fool yourselves. It is still our father's Europe. Via ABC News:

Belgrade hotelier Dusan Zabunovic renovated a property opposite Belgrade's central trainstation, with the help of some of the best designers in thecountry. He named the hotel Mr. President and designed each roomaround a current or past world leader. As a member of the Design Hotel chain, Mr. President boasts manyluxurious suites. The most luxurious, on the seventh floor, comes complete with a portrait of former communist leader Josip Broz Tito, who ruled Yugoslavia for more than 35 years. You can enjoy his picture while soaking in your Jacuzzi. In addition to the Bushes, Margaret Thatcher, Fidel Castro and Joseph Stalin, there is also a junior suite named after the infamous Adolf Hitler (Y"S).

The Hitler or room 501, occupied mainly by German, Croat and Slovenian guests, sees the highest demand, according to Zabunovic.But the former Nazi dictator's popularity hasn't gone down well with everyone. The leader of the Jewish community in Belgrade has condemned Zabunovic's marketing ploy as a dangerous "banalization" of the German dictator.

Despite public outrage in Serbia, not much can be done under Serbian law to persuade the hotelier to change his controversialchoices. Like all Serbs who were persecuted alongside Jews and gypsies during the Nazi occupation Zabunovic does not have any kind of admiration for Hitler. But sitting in the lobby of his new hotel surrounded by statues of former U.S. Presidents Lincoln,Washington, Jefferson and Madison, he says he refuses to exclude him.

Islamic Group Plans to Double Number of Mosques in Germany

Some in Germany are uncomfortable about more mosques being built

Germany's Muslim community is planning to more than double the number of mosques in the country over the next few years, according to figures released by an Islamic institute this week.

"We have recorded 184 projects to build new mosques, of which some are already under construction," Salim Abdullah, of the German Institute of Islamic Archives, told the AFP news agency this past week.

"We are talking here about buildings with a dome and a minaret, which are clearly recognizable from the outside, and not the 2,600 prayer areas housed in various buildings throughout the country," Abdullah added.

Of some 1,200 institutions used as mosques in Germany, only 159 are recognizable mosques, serving a community that numbers over 3 million. The remaining are so-called "backyard mosques," meaning they are in rooms in buildings that have other purposes or would not obviously appear to be mosques to unaware passers-by. In 2004, mosques with minarets numbered just 141.

The growth in the construction of mosques over the past two decades has made Germany one of the "best-equipped" countries in Europe for Islamic worship, Abdullah said.

German architect Paul Böhm with a model of the mosque he designed for Cologne

Plans to build one of the biggest mosques in Europe in the western German city of Cologne have been opposed by Christian leaders and far-right politicians.

The mosque is being planned by the Turkish-Islamic Union for Religious Affairs (DITIB), Germany's biggest Muslim group.

The Central Council of Ex-Muslims has also spoken out against the project. Speaking on German public radio, Mina Ahadi, chairwoman of the ex-Muslims group, argued that were already enough mosques in Germany.

"If more mosques are built, then women are put under increased pressure and even more children will be sent to school in headscarves, and become isolated," she said.

While the number of mosques is growing, the doors are slamming shut at Christian churches across the country.

In recent weeks, a church in the Neukölln neighborhood of Berlin was sold for 550,000 euros to the Muslim Association of Intercultural Centers, which plans to turn it into what it calls a "house of peace."

In future, the group says, the building will host prayer services, projects designed to promote integration, social advice services and career guidance.

EU Proposes Monitoring Radical Mosques

Now this is what I call progressiveness. From EU Proposes Monitoring Radical Mosques:

Security officials from Europe's largest countries backed a plan Saturday to profile mosques on the continent and identify radical Islamic clerics who raise the threat of homegrown terrorism. The project will focus on the roles of imams, their training, their ability to speak in the local language, and their sources of funding, EU Justice and Home Affairs Commissioner Franco Frattini said after a meeting on terrorism.

A Pro-Israeli European Leader

It would be nice if Hillary Clinton, who I abhor, loathe and detest, but who I believe, with great sadness and with a heavy heart, has a decent chance of winning the 2008 presidential election because most Americans are too stupid to vote otherwise, should take some notes. Via Front Page Magazine:

Palestinian Authority officials have accused German Chancellor Angela Merkel of "offending the Palestinians' feelings" during her visit earlier this week to Ramallah, where she met with PA Chairman Mahmoud Abbas.

The accusations, the first of their kind against a European leader, were made by top PA officials only hours after Merkel and her entourage left Ramallah on Monday.

"She did everything to provoke the Palestinians during her visit," said one official. "She showed no understanding for the plight of our people. On the other hand, she appeared to be very biased toward Israel."

The official claimed that while Merkel refused to meet with families of Palestinian prisoners held in Israel, she focused during her talks with Abbas on the need to release kidnapped IDF Cpl. Gilad Schalit, who has been held in the Gaza Strip since last June. In addition, he noted, Merkel met with the families of missing IDF soldiers during her visit to Jerusalem.

Read the complete article here.

EU Says No to Aiding Palestinian Unity Government

From Deutche Welle-Germany:

Palestinian Finance Minister Salam Fayyad has failed to convince the EU to agree to resume aid to the PA. EU External Affairs Commissioner Benita Ferrero-Waldner repeated Wednesday in Brussels the international demands that the Palestinian government renounce violence, formally recognize Israel's right to exist, and abide by former agreements. She said until that happened, the EU would only deal with what it considered to be Western-friendly members of the new Palestinian unity government. In 2006, the EU redirected its funding for the Palestinians through a special mechanism to help the neediest people while bypassing the government to avoid contact with Hamas - which it considers a terrorist organization. Ferrero-Waldner said this temporary mechanism would continue, but offered Fayyad technical assistance for his ministry.

Muslims in Europe

From Der Spiegel, Special: Muslims in Europe:

A German Judge Cites Koran in Divorce Case: He beat her and threatened her with murder. But because husband and wife were both from Morocco, a German divorce court judge saw no cause for alarm. It's a religion thing, she argued.

German Muslim Groups to Speak as One: Germany's Islamic organizations aren't lacking in number. But coherence has long been a problem. Now four groups are banding together to form an umbrella organization. German politicians applaud the initiative, but warn that it's only one of several on the way to better inter-cultural dialogue. more...

"Not Possible to Modernize Islam": Human rights activists have formed a "Central Council of Ex-Muslims in Germany" to help women renounce the Islamic faith if they feel oppressed by its laws. Its Iranian-born founder Mina Ahadi, under police protection after receiving death threats, talks to DER SPIEGEL about its goals. more...

Islam No Longer Taboo: In light of the Muhammad cartoon scandal in 2006, carnival jokesters in Germany went easy on Islam. This year, Muslim satire will return to at least one parade. By Philipp Wittrock more...

Cartoons 1 : Muhammad 0: A French republication of the controversial Muhammad cartoons from Denmark has led to a fierce legal battle. But France's politicians -- in a year when some of them are running for president -- are clearly on the side of satire. By Stefan Simons more...

Kurnaz Case Continues to Trouble German Foreign Minister: German Foreign Minister Frank-Walter Steinmeier has come under increased fire for his role in preventing the release of Murat Kurnaz, the German-born Turkish citizen who spent almost five years in US prison camps. German papers debate whether the criticism is appropriate. more...

Angst- Ridden Germans Look for Answers -- And Find Them in the Koran: The number of Germans who have converted to Islam has increased fourfold within one year -- despite the negative perception of Islam among the general public. By Lutz Ackermann more...

Muslims in Germany Choose to be Buried Abroad: As the first generation of Muslim immigrants to Germany get older, over 70 percent still plan to be buried in the country of their birth. Is integration a problem even in death? By Michael Scott Moore in Berlin more...

The Muslims Are Coming!: A citizens' group in Berlin turned out this week for a candlelight vigil to protest plans for a new mosque in their neighborhood. It will be the first to be built in the former East Berlin, where almost no Muslims live -- but no one can quite explain why it shouldn't be there. By Michael Scott Moore and Jochen-Martin Gutsch in Berlin more...

Berlin To Stage Controversial Opera: Berlin's Deutsche Oper hasn't had much luck getting sell-out crowds lately. But with politicians, Muslims, international journalists and police turning out for its controversial staging of Mozart's "Idomeneo" -- complete with the decapitated head of the Prophet Muhammad -- the opera house's fortunes could change. By Michael Sontheimer in Berlin more...

Spain: the European Iran

Spain, the first domino, falls. From FrontPage:

Ciempozuelos is a village near Madrid. Excluding punctual scandals – like the major’s recent resignation under charges of corruption – for the 12,768 inhabitants of Ciempozuelos, life is good – and progressive. The Socialist Party PSOE calls the shots, so it was no surprise when the town announced there was not going to be any commemoration of the Holocaust Memorial Day,
which Miguel Ángel Moratinos, Spanish Foreign Minister, likes to say he established in Spain (even though the date was established in the Berlin Accords signed by previous Prime Minister Jose María Aznar in 1995). The townhall will host the Day of the Palestinian Genocide instead, a hate-fest against Israel, Israelis and Jews in general.