CNN Promotes Sharia Blasphemy Laws

Following the recent shooting at a Muhammad cartoon contest in Garland, Texas, media attention has once again focused on Islam and the First Amendment. In a discussion with Pamela Geller, CNN news anchor Alisyn Camerota noted the "fine line" between free speech and provocative speech. She went on to say that there should be a debate about the line between free speech and provocative speech. Apparently, CNN agrees with proponents of Sharia that criticizing Islam is beyond the scope of free speech (despite Camerota's claims to the contrary).

Pakistan Sentences Bollywood Actress Veena Malik to 26 Years in Prison for Blasphemy

Politicians and the media continue to defend Islam from criticism. Meanwhile, Pakistani courts are sentencing actors to prison for blasphemy. Any idea how Veena Malik will be treated in prison?

Veena Malik

Fox News—An actress was sentenced to 26 years in jail by a Pakistani anti-terrorism court for "malicious acts" of blasphemy, the U.K.s' Independent reports.

Veena Malik, along with her husband Asad Bashir Khan Khattak and Mir Shakil-ur-Rahman, the owner of the network that aired the "blasphemous" television program, have been given 104 years combined in prison by the Pakistani court.

The offending program aired several months ago and features a couple reenacting their wedding vows based on the marriage of the Prophet Mohammed's daughter.

The judge asked for immediate arrest of Malik, her husband and Shakil-ur-Rahman who are reportedly living in the United Arab Emirates.

"26 years! Come on. 26 years is a lifetime...But I have faith in higher courts in Pakistan," Malik said according to Gulf News. (Continue Reading.)

Pakistani Police Officer Hacks Shia Muslim to Death for Insulting Muhammad's Companions

In the Muslim world, Shias are killing Sunnis, and Sunnis are killing Shias. Christians are being killed. Ahmadis are being killed. Yazidis are being killed. Women are being raped.

In the non-Muslim world, we're called "racists" and "bigots" for speaking out against the violence.

"Woe to those who call evil good and good evil, who put darkness for light and light for darkness, who put bitter for sweet and sweet for bitter." ~Isaiah 5:20

LAHORE—A policeman used an axe to kill a man arrested for allegedly committing blasphemy, officials said Thursday, days after an enraged mob murdered a Christian couple accused of the same crime.

Tufail Haider, a 50-year-old member of the Shia sect, was arrested for allegedly making derogatory remarks toward the companions of the Prophet Mohammed (PBUH) and brought to the Civil Lines police station in the eastern city of Gujrat on Wednesday.

“Tufail was kept in the lock-up but he continued uttering derogatory remarks and hurled abuse at policemen. He looked like a malang (wandering preacher) and seemed mentally imbalanced,” duty officer Ali Raza told AFP.

“Assistant Sub-Inspector Faraz Naveed, 36, became very angry on hearing the derogatory remarks against the companions of the Prophet (PBUH) and he killed the detainee with an axe in the lock up,” he added.

Naveed has been arrested and legal proceedings have been started against him, he added.

Around 1,000 Shias have been killed in the past two years in Pakistan, a heavy toll on the community that makes up roughly 20 per cent of the country’s 180 million-strong population, most of whom are Muslim.

There has been a recent surge in extra-judicial killings linked to Pakistan’s blasphemy laws. (Continue Reading.)

Asia Bibi’s Death Sentence for Blasphemy Upheld by Pakistani Appeals Court

The U.S. sends billions of dollars to the government of Pakistan. The government of Pakistan sentences Christians to death for blasphemy. Think about how your tax dollars are spent.

National Review—Pakistan is a perennial recipient of billions of U.S. taxpayer dollars. It’s an occasional ally/frequent enemy, sometimes actively conspiring against U.S. interests, sometimes actually firing on U.S. troops (incidents so notorious they now have their own Wikipedia page), and — of course — it’s the home of increasingly virulent jihadist extremism. And, no, this extremism isn’t confined to the fringes of Pakistani society but is sometimes even manifested in its appellate courts.

Last week, a Pakistani court of appeals upheld Asia Bibi’s death sentence for blasphemy. She’s a Christian and a mother of five.

Death. For allegedly saying bad things about Mohammed.

Barbaric.

Not that it matters (one should be able to freely insult the prophet of Islam without fear of death), but there’s evidence that even the inherently illegitimate blasphemy charge is trumped-up nonsense. Here’s Asia Bibi describing the incident in her own words. The story begins with Bibi taking a drink of water, then offering the cup to her Muslim neighbors:

Then I start to hear muttering. I pay no attention and fill the cup again, this time holding it out to a woman next to me who looks like she’s in pain. She smiles and reaches out . . . At exactly the moment Musarat pokes her ferrety nose out from the bush, her eyes full of hate: “Don’t drink that water, it’s haram!”

Musarat addresses all the pickers, who have suddenly stopped work at the sound of the word “haram,” the Islamic term for anything forbidden by God.

“Listen, all of you, this Christian has dirtied the water in the well by drinking from our cup and dipping it back several times. Now the water is unclean and we can’t drink it! Because of her!”

It’s so unfair that for once I decide to defend myself and stand up to the old witch.

“I think Jesus would see if differently from Mohammed.”

Musarat is furious. “How dare you think for the Prophet, you filthy animal!”

The story then moves into the familiar demand for conversion:

“That’s right, you’re just a filthy Christian! You’ve contaminated our water and now you dare speak for the Prophet! Stupid bitch, your Jesus didn’t even have a proper father, he was a bastard, don’t you know that.”

Musarat comes over as though she’s going to hit me and yells: “You should convert to Islam to redeem yourself for your filthy religion.”

I feel a pain deep inside. We Christians have always stayed silent: We’ve been taught since we were babies never to say anything, to keep quiet because we’re a minority. But I’m stubborn too and now I want to react, I want to defend my faith. I take a deep breath and fill my lungs with courage.

“I’m not going to convert. I believe in my religion and in Jesus Christ, who died on the cross for the sins of mankind. What did your Prophet Mohammed ever do to save mankind? And why should it be me that converts instead of you?”

Bibi’s act of defiance is rewarded with physical assault, an assault that days later grows more sinister:

Five days later, I went to work fruit picking in another field. I’ve almost filled my bowl when I hear what sounds like a rioting crowd. I step back from my bush, wondering what’s going on, and in the distance I see dozens of men and women striding along towards our field, waving their arms in the air.

I catch the cruel eyes of Musarat. Her expression is self-righteous and full of scorn. I shiver as I suddenly realize that she hasn’t let it go. I can tell she’s out for revenge. The excited crowd are closer now; they are coming into the field and now they’re standing in front of me, threatening and shouting.

“Filthy bitch! We’re taking you back to the village! You insulted our Prophet! You’ll pay for that with your life!”

They all start yelling:

“Death! Death to the Christian!”

The angry crowd is pressing closer and closer around me. I’m half lying on the ground when two men grab me by the arms to drag me away. I call out in a desperate, feeble voice:

“I haven’t done anything! Let me go, please! I haven’t done anything wrong!”

When a young mullah intervenes, he is explicit: Convert or die.

“If you don’t want to die,” says the young mullah, “you must convert to Islam. Are you willing to redeem yourself by becoming a good Muslim?”

Sobbing, I reply:

“No, I don’t want to change my religion. But please believe me, I didn’t do what these women say, I didn’t insult your religion. Please have mercy on me.”

I put my hands together and plead with him. But he is unmoved.

“You’re lying! Everyone says you committed this blasphemy and that’s proof enough. Christians must comply with the law of Pakistan, which forbids any derogatory remarks about the holy Prophet. Since you won’t convert and the Prophet cannot defend himself, we shall avenge him.”

This is a nation with a nuclear arsenal, that flies dozens of F-16s supplied by the United States, and is an alleged partner in our war on terror. But it’s a nation that sentences mothers to death simply because they’re Christians who refuse to deny Christ — even in the face of an angry, violent mob. (Continue Reading.)

Liberal Muslim Scholar Muhammad Shakil Auj Accused of Blasphemy and Shot to Death in Pakistan

Western academics keep insisting that Muslim reformers will pave a path to peace in Islamic nations. But how is this going to happen when reformers are shot dead as soon as they call for reform?

The Independent–A Pakistani academic known for promoting liberal views on Islam has been shot dead by gunmen – two years after being accused of committing blasphemy in a speech he made in the US.

Dr Muhammad Shakil Auj, Dean of the faculty of Islamic Studies at the University of Karachi, was attacked by two gunmen on a motorbike as he was making his way in his car to a function at the city’s Iranian cultural centre. A junior teaching colleague was also hit and suffered an injury to her arm.

“A bullet pierced through his head, proving fatal,” senior police officer Pir Mohammad Shah told the Associated Press. “We are investigating the killing. It would be premature to state the motive at the moment.”

The 54-year academic was known as someone who had spoken out on many issues in Islam and written several articles. One of the articles had suggested Muslim women should be allowed to marry non-Muslim men. He had also said Muslim women did not need to remove lipstick or make-up before going to prayer.

In 2012, Mr Auj, 54, had complained to police that four colleagues from the university had threatened him and sent him text messages accusing him of blasphemy. They had claimed a speech he had made that year in the US amounted to blasphemy.

One of the academics he complained about had previously held his position within the department. The four men face charges but are currently out on bail, according to reports. (Continue Reading.)

Iranian Blogger Soheil Arabi Sentenced to Death for Insulting Muhammad on Facebook

Soheil Arabi, an Iranian blogger, has been sentenced to death for "insulting the prophet" on Facebook. Meanwhile, politicians and the media continue to praise Islam.

Soheil Arabi

Iran—A blogger found guilty of insulting the Prophet Mohammad in his postings on Facebook has been sentenced to death. An informed source told the International Campaign for Human Rights in Iran that the blogger, Soheil Arabi, will be able to appeal the decision until September 20, 2014.

Agents from the Revolutionary Guards Corps’ (IRGC) Sarallah Base arrested Soheil Arabi, 30, and his wife in November 2013. Arabi’s wife was released a few hours later, but he was kept in solitary confinement for two months inside IRGC’s Ward 2-A at Evin Prison, before he was transferred to Evin’s General Ward 350. Branch 76 of the Tehran Criminal Court, under Judge Khorasani, found Arabi guilty of “sabb al-nabi” (insulting the Prophet), on August 30, 2014.

“The way he was arrested was illegal. It is not clear how the agents were able to enter their home at that time in the morning. All the doors were locked and family members were asleep. Agents entered his home and bedroom. He and his wife were arrested and some of their photographs and personal belongings were taken after their home was searched,” said the source.

“Soheil had eight Facebook pages under different names, and he was charged with insulting the Imams and the Prophet because of the contents of those pages. He has accepted his charges, but throughout the trial, he stated that he wrote the material without thinking and in poor psychological condition,” the source told the Campaign. (Continue Reading.)

Pakistan Sentences Illiterate Christian Couple to Death for Blasphemous Text Messages

Pakistan just sentenced a Christian couple to death for sending blasphemous text messages. The most glaring problem with the ruling is that the couple is illiterate—further proof that Sharia blasphemy laws are used to oppress minorities.

Christians protesting blasphemy laws

Pakistan—A Christian couple was sentenced to death in Pakistan for committing "blasphemy" via text messages. However, lawyers say this will appeal the ruling, as both the man and woman are illiterate.

"We are seriously concerned. Cases like these are common and cause great suffering. We continue to pray, while the issue remains unresolved," Fr. Aloysius Roy, Superior of the Pakistani province of the Missionary Oblates of Mary Immaculate, told Fides News Agency in a report on Monday.

"We express our solidarity, but Christians keep a low profile, because life is full of difficulties and dangers, and for us the first commandment is to survive. Christians are afraid and they move with extreme caution."

Shafqat Emmanuel is reportedly disabled, and his wife, Shagufta Kausar works as a waitress and is unable to read. Both were arrested in July of last year and sentenced to death last month.

Fr. Roy stated, "From the government we expect respect for the law, the rule of law and freedom of worship provided for in the Constitution."

The couple's lawyer say that the Sim card from the phone containing the messages was not registered in the couples name. While the contents of the texts have not been released, lawyers argue that the couple could not possibly have sent the messages, as the couple is illiterate. (Continue Reading.)

Pakistani Lawyer Rashid Rehman Murdered for Defending Client Accused of Blasphemy

So now any Muslim can accuse any non-Muslim of blasphemy, and the non-Muslim won't even be able to stand trial, because lawyers are too scared to defend people accused of blasphemy.

Welcome to the Islam that the media says has nothing to do with Islam.

Rashid Rehman

Pakistan (Reuters) - Gunmen posing as clients shot dead a prominent human rights lawyer defending a professor accused of blasphemy, officials said Thursday, underscoring the danger facing those trying to put an end to religious intolerance in majority-Muslim Pakistan.

Wednesday's killing of Rashid Rehman in the southern city Multan of was the first time a lawyer has been killed for taking on a blasphemy case, police said.

Rehman had been representing Junaid Hafeez, a lecturer in English accused by hardline student groups of making blasphemous remarks against the Prophet Mohammed in March last year.

Hafeez had been in prison without being able to find a lawyer until Rehman agreed to represent him in February.

Blasphemy carries the death penalty in Pakistan. The accused are often lynched or languish for years in jail without trial because lawyers are too afraid to defend them. Rights groups say the laws are increasingly used to seize money or property.

Judges have previously been attacked in Pakistan for acquitting blasphemy defendants and two politicians who discussed reforming the law were shot dead.

Rehman was shot dead by two gunmen at his office on Wednesday night. A junior lawyer and an assistant were wounded, police said.

"Rehman was at his office at night when two men came there posing as potential clients, asking for his help with a marriage case," police officer Shaukat Abbas told Reuters.

"He was shot five times and succumbed to his injuries on the way to hospital."

On Thursday morning, an unsigned pamphlet was distributed in Multan saying Rehman met his "rightful end" for trying to "save someone who disrespected the Prophet Mohammed".

"We warn all lawyers to be afraid of god and think twice before engaging in such acts," the pamphlet said.

Rehman worked for the independent Human Rights Commission of Pakistan (HRCP). He frequently denounced the repression of Pakistan's dwindling religious minorities. (Continue Reading.)

Saudi Activist Raif Badawi Sentenced to 1000 Lashes and Ten Years in Prison for Promoting Free Speech

For years, Muslim organizations like CAIR have been conditioning politicians and the media not to criticize Islam. Now that our leaders have been properly trained to tip-toe around Muslim issues, Muslim nations like Saudi Arabia can continue the systematic abuse and oppression of anyone who dares challenge Sharia. CNN reports the story, but doesn't dare point out that harsh penalties for criticizing Islam are part of Islam, not simply Saudi law.

Raif Badawi

CNN—Prominent Saudi activist Raif Badawi on Wednesday was sentenced to 10 years in prison and 1,000 lashes by a Saudi court for insulting Islam, said his wife and a source who followed the case closely.

Badawi had appealed his original 2013 conviction, which carried a sentence of seven years in prison and 600 lashes, for insulting Islam and violating the Kingdom's anti-cybercrime laws.

That verdict was overturned by an appeals court and a retrial was ordered.

Badawi plans to appeal this new decision, said the source, who wished to remain anonymous.

"This is terrible news and I'm absolutely shocked and devastated by it," said Badawi's wife, Ensaf Haider. "How is it possible they could take a sentence that was already so harsh and make it even harsher? Ten years in jail and 1,000 lashes? That's unimaginable. I'm extremely scared for my husband."

The judgment also included a 1 million riyal fine, which is equal to about $267,000.

Despite repeated attempts, CNN was unable to reach Saudi Arabia's Justice Ministry for comment.

Badawi, a respected rights activist in Saudi Arabia, first got into legal hot water with the Saudi government after starting a liberal website and forum where users could discuss religion.

His trial, guilty verdict, sentence and imprisonment has caused immense outrage among international rights groups like Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, who accused Saudi authorities of cracking down on activism and attempting to quell dissent in the ultraconservative nation.

Amnesty International called Wednesday's judgment outrageous and called for the conviction to be overturned.

"He is a prisoner of conscience who is guilty of nothing more than daring to create a public forum for discussion and peacefully exercising the right to freedom of expression.," said Philip Luther, director of the Middle East and North Africa program at Amnesty International. (Continue Reading.)

Pakistan: Christian Couple Sentenced to Death for Blasphemy

Here in the West, Muslim groups (such as CAIR and ISNA) and Muslim apologists (such as Yahya Snow and Ijaz Ahmad) attempt to silence critics of Islam through character assassination (attacking the character of anyone who objects to child marriage, jihad, spousal abuse, female genital mutilation, etc.). In Muslim countries, leaders simply enforce sharia blasphemy laws. The penalty for blasphemy in Pakistan is death.

These blasphemy laws are also used to persecute Christians, even Christians who haven't said a word about Muhammad.

News Daily—A court in eastern Pakistan has sentenced a Christian couple to death for sending a blasphemous text message insulting to the Prophet Mohammed, their lawyer said Saturday.

Judge Mian Amir Habib handed the death sentence to Shafqat Emmanuel and Shagufta Kausar in a jail in the town of Toba Tek Singh on Friday, defence lawyer Nadeem Hassan told AFP.

Prosecution department officials confirmed the sentence.

The impoverished couple, who are in their forties, have three children and live in the town of Gojra, which has a history of violence against Christians, Hassan said.

Both denied the charges, Hassan said, adding that they would appeal the sentence.

Maulvi Mohammad Hussain, the prayer leader at a local mosque in Gojra, lodged a complaint against couple on July 21 last year for sending him a text message which he said was insulting to the Prophet Mohammed.

Hussain accused the husband of sending the message from his wife's cellphone.

However, defence lawyer Hassan said that the text originated from a cellphone which the couple had lost some time before the incident, so they could not have sent the message.

The defence lawyer said that the couple had suspected rivals of implicating them into blasphemy case to settle personal scores and that they had ties with the complainant.

Pakistan has extremely strict laws against defaming Islam, including the death penalty for insulting the Prophet Mohammed, and rights campaigners say they are often used to settle personal disputes. (Continue Reading.)

Pro-Sharia Islamist Yahya Snow Defends Pakistani Blasphemy Laws and the Execution of Christians

There are two ways to defend Islamic blasphemy laws. First, there's the direct approach, which is used in Muslim-majority countries. In countries like Pakistan, Muslims can simply appeal to the commands of Muhammad, who ordered his followers to execute critics of Islam:

Second, there's the indirect approach, which is used in Western nations. In countries like the United States or Great Britain, Muslims can't silence critics by killing them, so they have to silence critics by other means. The weapon of choice is an endless barrage of name-calling hurled at anyone who dares draw attention to the horrific treatment of non-Muslims (and Muslim women) in Muslim countries.

Most disturbing is that the Muslims who hurl abuse at anyone who criticizes Sharia typically pretend to be interested in open discussion of these atrocities, even though they attempt to silence all such discussion.

Consider Yahya Snow's take on the recent news of a Pakistani Christian receiving a death sentence for supposedly mocking Muhammad.

There you have it, Ladies and Gentlemen. We "love" hearing about one of our Christian brothers being sentenced to death, because it gives us ammunition against Islam. Yahya probably thinks we enjoy reading about Christians being slaughtered in Foxe's Book of Martyrs because it helps us condemn non-Christians. (This reminds me of one of my debates with Sami Zaatari, when he claimed that the Qur'an doesn't promote rape when it allows Muslims to have sex with their war-captives, since the women wanted to have sex with the Muslim men who had slaughtered their families. Muslims, it seems, often think we enjoy being treated as "the worst of creatures," as Qur'an 98:6 calls us.)

Notice how Yahya pretends that he wants free, open discussion. Well, how exactly is that going to happen? Muslims certainly aren't doing anything to stop Sharia, so the task falls to non-Muslims. But when non-Muslims talk about Islamic blasphemy laws, or the persecution of Christians and other minorities in Muslim countries, or the rampant sexual abuse of little girls in accordance with the Qur'an, we're condemned as "bigots," "hate-mongers," "racists," and the all-too-common "Islamophobes."

But suppose we take Yahya's advice and keep our dhimmi mouths closed. What then? The only thing that stops these killings is the outcry from Western nations (which embarrasses Muslim leaders into calling off the executions). If we follow Yahya's advice, there will be no outcry, and the executions will proceed. Hence, the man who pretends to want open discussion is actually defending blasphemy laws and the execution of Christians.

Given Yahya's open hatred for Christianity and Christians, is anyone surprised?

Pakistani Christian Sawan Masih Sentenced to Death for Blasphemy

A Christian has been sentenced to death for supposedly doing what I do every day (criticizing Muhammad). Am I a racist for objecting? Am I a bigot for standing against Sharia?

Sawan Masih

LAHORE, Pakistan (AP) — A court convicted a Pakistani Christian man and sentenced him to death Thursday in a blasphemy case that sparked a riot last year in the eastern city of Lahore, according to his lawyer.

Naeem Shakir, the lawyer for Sawan Masih, said a judge announced the verdict during a hearing at the jail where the trial has been held out of fears that Masih might be attacked on his way to court. Shakir said he would appeal.

Although Pakistan has never executed anybody under the law, crowds angered over blasphemy accusations have been known to take the law into their own hands and kill those they suspect of violating it. Once an accusation is made it is extremely difficult to reverse, in part because law enforcement personnel do not want to appear to be going easy on suspects.

Such vigilantism has created a climate of fear, forcing frightened judges into holding court sessions inside jails and keeping witnesses from coming to the defense of those on trial.

Many human rights activists say the blasphemy law, which allows for punishment of life in prison or death, is misused as a way to target people for personal gain or revenge.

The incident that led to Thursday's conviction began March 7 last year when a young Muslim man accused Masih of maligning the Prophet Muhammad. Police arrested Masih, but the next day a mob ransacked the neighborhood where he and other Christians live, setting fire to homes and destroying household possessions. (Continue Reading.)

Of course, it's nothing new for Muhammad's followers to kill unbelievers for criticizing Islam. This has been happening since Muhammad made criticism of Islam punishable by death: