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Weekly Comment |
Palestine – The Promised
“Holocaust!”
‘Israel’ is
always seen to be responding to
attacks from Palestinians. They
act in self-defence or strike
back against Palestinians who
have disrupted the peace.
The argument of whether
Palestinian abstention from
supposed ‘rocket fire’ and other
‘militant acts’ would cause an
environment of concord to
prevail, is often put forward by
many Western commentators and
even some ‘enlightened’ Muslims.
One wonders what these people
would say when faced with the
fact that Israel threatened to
turn the Gaza Strip into a
"bigger holocaust" using the
term "shoah", a Hebrew word
meaning holocaust and a word
which has been traditionally
exclusively used by Jews to
refer to the holocaust. Israel
has additionally threatened to
use any and all types of actions
and have not ruled out the
possibility of ‘occupation’.
The current invasion of the Gaza
and the wild killing spree that
amounted to over 120 deaths (by
Sunday) including many women,
elderly and children was nothing
short of a holocaust. The
Israeli offensive continues with
many more lives being lost, and
it is strange that the Western
world still continues to assume
that the Israeli action is a
response and that too a
legitimate response.
Ramzy Baroud of Al-Jazeerah
writes in the Arab News that the
uneven numbers of casualties
speak volumes. He says
“While Yechiah’s (supposedly
killed by rocket fire) death is
tragic, he was the “first person
killed by rocket attacks from
Gaza since May 2007, and the
14th overall since the
resumption of
Israeli-Palestinian armed
clashes in September 2000,”
according to a Human Rights
Watch press release on Feb. 29,
citing Israeli human rights
organization B’Tselem.
B’Tselem reported that “1,259 of
the 2,679 Palestinians killed by
Israeli security forces in the
Gaza Strip (since September
2000) were not participating in
hostilities when they were
killed, and 567 were minors.”
According to a news agency
report published in Al-Arabiya
website, as of Feb. 22, 190
Palestinians were killed since
the resumption of the peace
process following the Annapolis
talks last November. That number
increased when the Israeli Army
escalated its attacks on the
Gaza Strip, killing 34
Palestinians in 48 hours between
Feb. 27-28, not counting several
other Palestinians killed in the
West Bank during the same
period.
Despite the facts, Israel’s
actions are repeatedly accepted
by most media as a legitimate
‘response’ to Palestinian
violence.”
Among the many killed, Islam
Online provides a brief story of
one young twelve year old girl.
The report states:
"There must have been an Israeli
sniper on a rooftop because he
fired one shot and hit her in
the stomach," Raad Abu Seif told
the Telegraph on Monday, March
3.
His 12-year-old daughter Safa
died in his arm inside the
family home in the Zimo Square
area of Jabaliya in northern
Gaza. The father, his wife and
seven children had bunkered down
inside their home when Israeli
troops trudged through the
Jabaliya refugee camp. Safa was
going up upstairs to join her
uncle and his family when an
Israeli bullet penetrated her
young body. "She was still about
four meters from a window and up
on the first floor."
The horrified father rushed to
the phone and called an
ambulance to save his child, but
the car came under Israeli fire
and was not able to reach the
house. In a desperate attempt,
Abu Seif carried the girl out of
the house, raising a white flag.
An Israeli tank fired warning
shots above his head, forcing
him to dive for cover.
Shortly, the 12-year-old child
breathed her last in her
father's arms.
"I stroked Safa's hair," said
Abu Seif, his voice hoarse. "And
then her eyes rolled backwards
in her head. "I tried to massage
her heart for a minute, two
minutes, three minutes, I don't
remember. And then I felt there
was nothing."
During a winter more severe and
intense than most in terms of
its coldness, and in a winter
where Palestinians have found
themselves without food,
medicines and other basic
necessities, the Israelis
attacked the Gaza in full-scale
invasion cynically given the
designation ‘Operation Warm
Winter’.
The humanitarian situation has
degenerated to the extent where
one wonders where the champions
of human rights have hidden
themselves. Never mind the
rights to issues such as honour
and dignity, the right to needs
that would ensure basic survival
have and are being continuously
denied with such impunity that
the perpetrators of such crimes
are bold enough to justify their
inhumanity. Food is scarce,
electricity is limited,
medicines donated by those with
human hearts have been withheld
at the port of entry causing the
deaths of innocent infants and
kids and now Palestinians have
been warned that they must boil
any drinking water since
chemicals necessary from
purifying water have been
continuously denied to the
authorities in Palestine.
At the same time, the Al-Aqsa
Foundation for Rehabilitating
Islamic Sites issued a press
statement on Tuesday where they
claimed that unknown
perpetrators climbed over the
fence surrounding the Hassan Bek
Mosque in Jaffa and vandalized
sections of the mosque.
US Secretary of State, Rice,
meanwhile blamed the
Palestinians and urged them to
stop ‘firing’ their home-made
rockets and return to the
talking-table. George Bush, on
the other hand, insisted that
“he is still optimistic there
will be a Middle East peace deal
before he leaves office”. |
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C O N
T E N T S |
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Summarised
Jumuah Bayaan |
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Question and
Answer |
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Update |
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Message from the Ameer |
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I N F
O R M A T I O N |
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Min. Mahr |
R 187.11 |
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Mahr Faatimi |
R 9,355.62 |
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Zakaat Nisaab |
R 3,742.25 |
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Words of Wisdom |
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Hadith of the Week |
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Seeking Forgiveness |
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Anas Bin Malik Radhi-allahu
'anhu narrates that Muhammad
Sallallahu ‘alayhi wa sallam
said: "Should I not show you
your sickness and its
remedy? Your sickness is
sinning and your remedy is
to seek forgiveness (istighfaar)."
(Baihaqi).
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Quotation for the Week |
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Introspection |
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Do not have evil thoughts
about anyone. Instead look
at your own faults and try
to put them in order.
(Maulana Ashraf Ali
Thanvi rahmatullahi `alayhi)
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Point of Reflection |
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Guess
Work |
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“To guess is cheap, to guess
wrong is expensive”.
(Chinese Proverb)
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Q and A |
Question:
Is it permissible to balance
off bank charges with
interest received. Some
banks charge high amounts
for every transaction on top
of monthly charges?
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Answer:
It is not
permissible to offset bank
charges with interest.
Bank charges are valid
charges
in lieu of services offered
to a client. Hence, it is
not permissible to repay a
valid charge with invalid [haraam]
money.
However, there are banks
that offer special accounts
where
they do not charge service
fees and where they do not
give interest to the client.
This is a better option.
And Allâh Ta’âla Knows Best.
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U P D A T E |
Abuse of Islamic Symbols
It has been
observed that there is a growing
trend of the use of images and
supposed ‘artwork’ of Middle
Eastern origin in the design and
marketing field. This artwork
often consists of or contains
Qur'anic verses or Islamic
religious material such as the
Kalimah, Bismillah
or the name of Allah. Designers
are ignorant of the religious
significance of the material
they are using and end up
creating something which is
highly offensive to us as
Muslims. In the recent weeks,
three such incidents have been
noted.
On one occasion, a company was
selling Martial Arts DVD’s and
the label of the DVD had the
kalimah inscribed upon it.
The Jamiatul Ulama contacted the
distributors who were unaware of
the significance of what was
printed on the label. When it
was explained to them, they
apologised, promised a written
apology ad also pledged to
withdraw other copies and change
the label. Alhamdulillah, a
written apology together with an
undertaking to exercise caution
in future has now been received.
On the second occasion, the
Daily Sun published an
advertisement for a sex-talk
service and the background of
the advertisement contained a
dome and the inscription of the
kalimah. The Daily Sun
was approached in this
connection. A written apology
together with the assurance that
care would be taken in future.
The third incident involved an
invitation card for the
Johannesburg Art Fair. The card
featured a picture of a scantily
dressed woman with the 99 Names
of Allah printed in the
background. On contacting them,
the Jamiatul Ulama was informed
that it was not their own
design. They were exhibiting
artworks of different artists
and this was part of the artwork
of a French artist of Algerian
descent. The artist claims that
she is blending sexuality with
spirituality. The same artist is
not without controversy. Last
year she was forced to remove a
picture of a couple engaged in
sex with this picture
superimposed on the word
bismillah.
They promoters of the fair gave
assurance that the currently
used artwork would be removed
from the promotional items.
NRLF Meeting on Crime
On Monday, Maulana
Abdullah Jeena of the Jamiatul
Ulama and Maulana Abdul Khaliq
Alli of the Muslim Judicial
Council were the appointed
representatives at a meeting of
National Religious Leaders
Forum. The meeting focused on
crime and more specifically on
how a partnership between
religious leaders and the
government can be cemented in
the fight against crime.
The meeting was attended by
representatives of various
religious communities, the
Presidency, South African Police
Services and various other
governmental departments.
It was decided that a concrete
plan be structured whereby
religious leaders can become
more involved with the local
police authorities at police
stations and at grassroots level
in the effort to combat and
prevent crime.
A working group of five persons
was appointed and strict
deadlines were set for devising
a proper structure, manner and
fields where and how this
partnership will operate.
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Summarised Jumu’ah
Bayaan:
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Reasons For
Allâh's Anger And Ways
For Its Remedy |
Allâh (azza wa jalla)
says: "Whatever
misfortune happens to
you, it is because of
the things your hands
have wrought, and for
many of them he grants
forgiveness…". (42:30)
The Prophet (sallallahu
`alayhi wa sallam)said:
"A period will come when
the non-believers will
come closer by calling
one another for annexing
the nations of the
believers just like how
people call one another
for eating food when it
has, been prepared.
"Someone then asked as
to whether the Muslims
will be few in number
then? Rasulullah
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam is reported to
have replied, "You will
be large in numbers, but
will like hay before a
flood of water. Your
enemies will not fear
you because you will be
so weak and timid. "One
companion then asked the
reason for this decline,
and Rasulullah
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam said, "Life (and
its luxuries) will
become more dearer to
you and you will dislike
death, (and facing Allâh)
Abû Dawûd
It is often asked why it
is that the Muslim Ummah
find themselves in
distress and suffering
around the world. It
seems as if it is open
season on the Ummah,
with attacks from all
sides raining down upon
Muslims in all areas.
Mufti Abdur Raheem
Lajpuri, in a talk,
explained why. Among
other aspects, he said:
There are several
reasons for this sad
state of affairs in the
Ummah. Among the more
prominent ones are the
following:
• Lack of true faith in
Allâh Ta'âla.
• Increased disobedience
towards Him.
• Increasing timidity
among us.
• Love of the
materialistic world [Hubb-e-Dunya
wa Mâl].
• Open disobedience of
the Sunnah of Rasulullâh
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam.
• Following our own
innovated [bid'ah]
practices and customs.
Neglecting the rights of
Allâh [Huqûq-Allâh], and
the rights of creation [Huqûq-ut-Ibad].
• Our complete
ingratitude towards the
innumerable blessings
showered upon us by our
Benefactor, despite
being totally unworthy
of these blessings.
• Disregard for the
selfless advice given to
us by our noble Ulamâ in
relation to our
religion.
Almighty Allâh sums up
the reasons for our
suffering in Surah 42,
Âyah 30 of the Holy
Qur'ân:
"Whatever misfortune
happens to you, it is
because of the things
your hands have wrought,
and for many of them he
grants forgiveness…". A
further elaboration on
this point is found in
Surâh 30, Âyah 4 1:
The companion, Hadhrat
Thawbân Radhiallahu Anhu
narrated that Muhammad
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam is reported to
have said:
"A period will come when
the non-believers will
come closer by calling
one another for annexing
the nations of the
believers just like how
people call one another
for eating food when it
has, been prepared.
"Someone then asked as
to whether the Muslims
will be few in number
then? Rasulullah
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam is reported to
have replied, "You will
be large in numbers, but
will like hay before a
flood of water. Your
enemies will not fear
you because you will be
so weak and timid. "One
companion then asked the
reason for this decline,
and Rasulullah
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam said, "Life (and
its luxuries) will
become more dearer to
you and you will dislike
death, (and facing Allâh)
Abû Dawûd
Allâh Ta'âla has warned
of dim punishment for
those who do not order
people to perform
virtuous deeds and
prevent them from
committing evil and
disobedient acts. He
states in the Qur'ân:
The Sahâbi, Hadhrat
Hudhaifah Radhiallahu
Anhu, has narrated that
the Nabî Muhammad
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam said, "I swear by
Allâh, the One in whose
hands my life is,
continue to order and
guide people towards
virtuous deeds and
prevent people from
immoral acts and sins.
Otherwise, Almighty
Allâh will surely send
His severe punishment
upon you. If you then
turn to Allâh and pray
your prayers will not be
accepted. - Mishkât
Sharîf, p.436. Chapter
on Amr-Bil -Marûf.
The following saying of
Rasulullah Sallallaahu ‘alayhi
wa sallam is food for
thought:
"My followers will also
face incidents of
sinking in the ground,
disfigurement and the
raining of heavy stones
from the heavens. One of
the companions asked
when these incidents
would manifest. To this
Rasullullah Sallallaahu
‘alayhi wa sallam
replied "When the evils
of singing, dancing,
music and drinking
liquor will be common.
Tirmidhi Sharîf
The disobedience of
Allâh and the rejection
of the Sharî'ah will
create a very dangerous
situation calling for
severe punishment, as
has happened to past
nations which
transgressed. Allâh has
described these events
in the Qur'ân at various
locations. One such
verse is:
"Each one of them We
seized for their crime,
against some of them We
sent a violent tornado;
some were caught in a
blast; some We caused
the earth to swallow up;
and some we drowned, it
was not Allâh who
injured them; but they
injured their own
souls... Surah 19 Âyah
40
What should
Muslims do in Such a
Situation?
Allâh has said:
"And never give up hope
of Allâh's truly
soothing mercy, no-one
despairs of Allâh's
soothing mercy except
those who have no
faith." Surah 12 Âyah
87.
In another Âyah Allâh
Ta'âla states:
"So lose not heart and
do not fall into
despair, for you must
gain mastery if you are
true in faith." Surah 3.
Âyah 139.
o Turn to Allâh
Allâh has emphasized in
the Qur'ân as follows:
"Oh, ye who believe!
Seek help with patient
perseverance and prayer
for Allâh is with those
who observe patience."
Surâh 2 Âyah 153.
o Need for Istighfâr and
Taubah: We must make a
point to offer
repentance for our sins
and seek Allâh's
forgiveness regularly.
Hadhrat Abû Mûsa Ash'ari
Radhiallahu Anhu
narrates Rasulullâh
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam as saying,
"Surely Allâh has
blessed my followers
with two symbols of
peace, firstly, myself
and, secondly, the act
of seeking forgiveness [Istighfâr],
Remember! When I will no
longer be in this mortal
world, I will be leaving
behind the act of
seeking forgiveness. It
will help you all to
save yourselves from
Allâh's punishment."
o Encourage the Giving
of Charity
o Increase the Tilawat
of the Qur'ân and Durud
upon Rasulullah
Sallallaahu ‘alayhi wa
sallam
o Stop the Disobedience
of Allâh
o Implement Proper Dîni
Education
o Reconcile Disputes and
Differences and Unite as
Muslims
o Seek Guidance only
from the Ulama.
Establish Links with
Them
o Create an Atmosphere
of Brotherhood
o Make the World Aware
of the Beautiful
Teachings of Islâm
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Message from the Ameer of
the Jamiatul Ulama |
Meeting with the
Danish Ambassador
Last week nineteen Danish
newspapers reprinted the
infamous blasphemous
cartoons, in an action they
claim to be in response to
the allegation that three
Muslims had attempted to
take the life of one of the
cartoonists.
This provocative and
challenging behaviour of
abuse and defilement has
resulted in an expected
uproar from the
International Muslim
community. In addition to
individuals and
organizations from around
the globe, many countries
have discussed putting a ban
on Danish products while
some have even talked about
seriously reconsidering
diplomatic ties with
Denmark, Sudan being a
forerunner in the filed.
It is our duty and
responsibility, as Muslims,
to protect the honour and
dignity of our Beloved
Prophet of Allah, Muhammad
Sallallahu 'alayhi wa sallam.
As such, the Jamiatul Ulama,
together with various other
Ulama of the country, under
the banner of United Ulama
Council of South Africa, met
with the Danish ambassador
to deliver a strong protest
on behalf of the Muslims of
South Africa. On the Friday
the 29th February the
delegation of ten Ulama
representing UUCSA and
coming from organizations
such the Jamiatul Ulama, the
Muslim Judicial Council from
the Cape, the Jamiat KZN,
the Sunni Ulama Council and
the Sunni Jamiatul Ulama
presented a memorandum and
made representations to the
Danish ambassador.
The delegation was
well-received and the
memorandum accepted. The
ambassador apologised and
produced a statement of the
Danish Prime Minister
expressing his disagreement
with the media on the issue.
The Ulama however insisted
that this was not
sufficient. The point was
made that it was important
for the government and the
prime minister to institute
action to prevent any such
actions that defile the
honour and integrity of any
of the Prophets of Allah. It
was emphasized that the
reprinting of the cartoons
impacted on the rights and
beliefs of the Muslims of
Denmark as well as all
Muslims, who comprise one
third of the world’s
population.
We await a response from the
Danish government.
Click here for a copy of
the memorandum submitted to
the Danish ambassador.
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