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Will China intervene in North Korea? (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

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If China intervenes in North Korea, it would not to be to save Kim Jong-un.

North Korean leader Kim Jong-un waves from a balcony during a parade for the ''Day of the Sun'' festival on Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang on April 15 [EPA/Howe Hwee Young]
North Korean leader Kim Jong-un waves from a balcony during a parade for the ”Day of the Sun” festival on Kim Il-sung Square in Pyongyang on April 15 [EPA/Howe Hwee Young]

by

@sbabones

Salvatore Babones is a specialist in global economic structure.

North Korea is in the headlines – again. For a small, poor country of 25 million people, it sure does make a lot of news. This time it’s the perennial issue of nuclear testing. North Korea has tested five nuclear devices since 2006. Donald Trump is in no mood to allow a sixth.

Just days before his Florida summit with Chinese President Xi Jinping, Trump vowedthat “if China is not going to solve North Korea, we will.” Then, just after the summit, he backed up his pledge by ordered an aircraft carrier strike group to the region.

Most people agree that North Korea is a problem. Aside from its nuclear tests, it also stands accused of state-sponsored counterfeiting of foreign currencies, the industrial-scale manufacture and sale of illicit drugs, and even of assassinating its own citizens in foreign countries.

But why is North Korea China’s problem in particular? China is North Korea’s only major diplomatic ally, but the relationship is fraught with difficulties. How did China get saddled with such a troublesome partner? The history of the relationship runs much deeper than most people realise.

The first Korean War

China fought in the Korean War of 1950-53. In 1950, the new communist regime in China invaded the country with nearly three million troops, losing some 180,000 soldiers in the war. All this happened barely a year after the end of China’s own civil war in 1949.

China didn’t participate in North Korea’s initial invasion of the South. It intervened after Douglas MacArthur’s United Nations troops defeated the North Koreans and launched a counter-invasion of the North. The UN army was virtually on the border with China before China unexpectedly invaded and pushed south to the line that still divides the two Koreas to this day.

The last thing China wants is a united Korea under South Korean leadership.

But the 1950-53 Korean War wasn’t the first Chinese intervention in Korea. In a distant precursor to the 1950s, a very similar drama played out way back in the 1590s.

In 1592, Japan invaded Korea at Busan and rapidly drove up the peninsula to the Chinese border, prompting an intervention from China. The Chinese army pushed the invaders back south, liberating Pyongyang but reaching a stalemate just north of Seoul, roughly where the demilitarised zone stands today. The conflict ended with a negotiated withdrawal of Japanese troops in 1593.

Japan went on to invade Korea again in 1597, but Korean forces repelled the attack with Chinese support. For the next three hundred years, Korea was a kind of a Chinese protectorate, first as China’s closest “tributary” state and later as an ally in the resistance against Western and Japanese colonialism.

In 1894, Japan invaded Korea again, this time as part of the larger 1894-95 Sino-Japanese War. And again Chinese troops made their major stand at Pyongyang. But this time they lost, and by 1910 Korea lost its independence entirely. It became a colony of Japan and suffered a 25-year military occupation which poisons Japanese-Korean relations to this day.

Back to Pyongyang

Having fought to hold Pyongyang in 1593, 1894, and 1951, China’s connection with North Korea long predates the current communist regimes in both countries. In fact, it is older than communism itself. North Korea is not exactly a protectorate of China, but its history is so tightly intertwined with China’s that its independence of Beijing is almost unthinkable.

Today’s North Korean regime has become such a liability to China that China may finally have lost its patience. In late February, China banned imports of coal from North Korea, an act applauded by US President Donald Trump. Now things seem to be getting more serious.

There have been unconfirmed reports that China has moved up to 150,000 troops to its border with North Korea, which Beijing has called “pure fabrication”. But on Friday, China did suddenly suspend flights between Beijing and Pyongyang without offering any explanation.

Whether China is preparing to intervene in Korea once again, preparing to manage the fallout of a US intervention in Korea, or just playing it safe, nobody knows.

Northeast China is already host to thousands of North Koreans refugees. Some are on the run from the repressive regime of Kim Jong-un, others are just seeking work, and still others are women forced into prostitution. If there is to be another conflict on the Korean Peninsula, China would be worried about a large number of Koreans fleeing across the border.

The second to last thing China wants is a new Korean war. But the last thing China wants is a united Korea under South Korean leadership. China’s Communist Party leadership has learned the lessons of 1989-1991, when German reunification ultimately pushed the borders of NATO some 1000 kilometres to the east and Soviet communism was thrown into the dustbin of history.

If China does intervene in North Korea, it won’t be to topple the Kim regime and promote peaceful reunification. It will be to prevent a collapse of the Kim regime in the face of domestic mismanagement and American pressure. Kim may go, but China will make sure that the regime remains. The long-term consequences of any such intervention are anyone’s guess.

Salvatore Babones is a comparative sociologist at the University of Sydney. He is a specialist in global economic structure.

Source: Al-Jazeera

Aleppo blast: Syrian evacuation convoy targeted (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

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Monitor says at least 126 people were killed as explosion targets convoy of evacuees from two pro-government villages

A large blast has killed at least 126 people in an attack near buses carrying Syrians evacuated from two besieged government-held towns, according to a monitoring group.

The explosion on Saturday in Rashidin, west of Aleppo, targeted residents who were evacuated from the rebel-besieged towns of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib province under a deal reached between the Syrian government and rebels.

The UK-based Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR) on Sunday said at least 126 people were killed in the blast, raising a previous death toll of 112.
Syria: Evacuation buses leave Madaya, Zabadani for Idlib

At least 68 children were among those killed, the monitor said.

The Syrian Civil Defence, a volunteer rescue group that operates in rebel-held parts of Syria, had said on Saturday that at least 100 people were killed, while a report on Syrian state TV had given a death toll of 39.

While there was no confirmation as to what caused the blast, state media said a “suicide bomber” allegedly used a van meant for carrying aid supplies to enter the area. The SOHR said the explosion came from a vehicle-born improvised explosive device.

Al Jazeera’s Adham Abul Hussam, reporting from the scene of the attack, said dozens of bodies littered the ground and ambulances were packed with victims.

“The civil defence teams are recovering the bodies and searching for survivors. Many of the buses were totally destroyed,” he said.

Pictures posted on state media showed what appeared to be the aftermath of the explosion, with burned bodies and fires belching out thick black smoke.

Buses were blackened by the blast with their windows blown out.

“It appears that the explosion happened at the front of the convoy, which is about 70 buses long. Apparently it happened in an area where the sick and the injured were either being transferred or swapped,” Al Jazeera’s Hoda Abdel-Hamid said, reporting from Antakya in Turkey.

“We do understand that the casualties go into the dozens … among them women and children and some of the rebel fighters that were there to secure that convoy.”

Ahrar al-Sham, a key rebel group in Syria’s north, condemned the “cowardly” attack, saying that many of its members were killed in the blast. The group said it was willing to cooperate with an international probe to determine the culprits.

The attack took place as thousands of evacuees from the besieged government-held towns of Foua and Kefraya waited to continue their journey to regime-controlled Aleppo, the coastal province of Latakia, or the capital, Damascus.

More than 5,000 people who had lived under the crippling siege for more than two years left the two towns, along with 2,200 evacuated from rebel-held Madaya and Zabadani, on Friday.

They were headed for regime or rebel-held areas via the government-held second city of Aleppo.

Thousands of evacuees from Foua and Kefraya were stuck on the road in Rashidin when the blast struck.
Is political transition a reality in Syria? – Inside Story

The evacuation, brokered by government ally Iran and rebel-backer Qatar, is set to see more than 30,000 people evacuated over 60 days.

The deal had stipulated that in the first stage 8,000 people, including 2,000 pro-government fighters, leave the two towns. But only 5,000 left, including 1,300 fighters, the Observatory said.

Evacuees were left stranded as differences emerged over the number of loyalist fighters leaving, a rebel source said, refusing to elaborate as “negotiations are under way”.

Thousands of evacuees from Madaya and Zabadani were also stuck in government-controlled Ramousa, south of Aleppo.They were due to be transferred to rebel-held Idlib.

Mohamed Darwish, a doctor from Madaya, told Al Jazeera by phone that there was a growing fear among civilians aboard buses in Ramousa.

“There’s a lot of fear on our bus, especially because the regime soldiers are here and there is a crowd all around us,” he said.

“We hope the UN, Turkey, Qatar, Iran, all of those who supported this deal, will look after the civilians and ensure that they all arrive safely.”

But hours after the explosion, the transfer resumed – as dozens of buses, starting with the wounded, left to their respective destinations. Before midnight on Saturday, 100 of some 120 buses from both sides had already arrived to their destinations.

The deal to evacuate the towns was the latest in a string of such agreements, touted by the government as the best way to end the fighting. Rebels say they have been forced out by siege and bombardment.

The government has retaken several key rebel strongholds including eastern Aleppo since Russia’s military intervention in September 2015.

Additional reporting by Dylan Collins:  @Collinsdyl  

Source: Al Jazeera and news agencies

Syria's civil war explained from the beginning (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

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The Syrian civil war is the deadliest conflict the 21st century has witnessed thus far.

 

HIGHLIGHTS

As the Syrian conflict enters its seventh year, more than 465,000 Syrians have been killed in the fighting, more than a million injured and over 12 million Syrians – half the country’s prewar population – have been displaced from their homes.

In 2011, what became known as the Arab Springrevolts toppled Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali and Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak.

That March, peaceful protests erupted in Syria as well, after 15 boys were detained and tortured for having written graffiti in support of the Arab Spring. One of the boys, 13-year-old Hamza al-Khateeb, was killed after having been brutally tortured.

The Syrian government, led by President Bashar al-Assad, responded to the protests by killing hundreds of demonstrators and imprisoning many more. In July 2011, defectors from the military announced the formation of the Free Syrian Army, a rebel group aiming to overthrow the government, and Syria began to slide into civil war.

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What caused the uprising?

Initially, lack of freedoms and economic woes fuelled resentment of the Syrian government, and public anger was inflamed by the harsh crackdown on protesters. Successful uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt energised and gave hope to Syrian pro-democracy activists. Many Islamist movements were also strongly opposed to the Assads’ rule.

In 1982, Bashar’s father, Hafez al-Assad, ordered a military crackdown on the Muslim Brotherhood in Hama, which killed between 10,000-40,000 people and flattened much of the city.

Although the initial protests in 2011 were mostly non-sectarian, armed conflict led to the emergence of starker sectarian divisions. Minority religious groups tend to support the Assad government, while the overwhelming majority of opposition fighters are Sunni Muslims.

Most Syrians are Sunni Muslims, but Syria’s security establishment has long been dominated by members of the Alawite sect, of which Assad is a member.

The sectarian split is reflected among regional actors’ stances as well.

Even global warming has been claimed to have played a role in sparking the 2011 uprising. A severe drought plagued Syria from 2007-10, spurring as many as 1.5 million people to migrate from the countryside into cities, which exacerbated poverty and social unrest.

Foreign involvement

Foreign backing and open intervention have played a large role in Syria’s civil war. An international coalition led by the United States has bombed targets of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL, also known as ISIS) group since 2014.

The US has repeatedly stated its opposition to the Assad government, but has hesitated to involve itself deeply in the conflict, even after the Assad government allegedly used chemical weapons in 2013, which former US President Barack Obama had referred to as a “red line” that would prompt intervention.

On April 7, the US carried its first direct military action against Assad’s forces, launching59 Tomahawk cruise missiles at a Syrian air force base from which US officials believe a chemical attack in Khan Sheikhoun had been launched.

The White House spokesman said: [Trump] “made it very clear that if those actions were to continue, further action will definitely be considered by the United States.”

In October 2015, the US scrapped its controversial programme to train Syrian rebels, after it was revealed that it had spent $500m but only trained 60 fighters.

In February 2017, the CIA froze funding and logistical support for rebel factions in northern Syria but according to Free Syrian Army (FSA) sources, the funding was restored to a certain extent by late March.

Russia launched in, September 2015, a bombing campaign against what it referred to as “terrorist groups” in Syria, which included ISIL as well as rebel groups backed by western states. Russia has also deployed military advisers to shore up Assad’s defences.

At the UN Security Council, Russia has vetoed eight Western-backed resolutions on Syria, while China vetoed six resolutions.

Several Arab states, along with Turkey, have provided weapons and materiel to rebel groups in Syria. The governments of majority-Shia Iran and Iraq support Assad, as does Lebanon-based Hezbollah, while Sunni-majority states including Turkey, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and others staunchly support the rebels.

Turkish troops and special forces, backed by the Free Syria Army, launched in August 2016 operation “Euphrates Shield” against ISIL to liberate the strategic Syrian city of Jarablus on the border with Turkey and stop the advance of Kurdish militia fighters. Turkey’s government fears its large native Kurdish population may grow more restive and demand greater autonomy as a result.

In March 2017, Turkey officially ended the Euphrates Shield military operation, but Prime Minister Binali Yildirim suggested there might be more cross-border campaigns to come.

Rebel groups

Since the Free Syrian Army formed in 2011, many new rebel groups have joined the fighting in Syria, including ISIL, Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, Iran-backed Hezbollah, and the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) dominated by the Kurdish People’s Protection Units (YPG).

EXPLAINED: Hezbollah, from Israel to Syria

The FSA has weakened as the war has progressed, while explicitly Islamist groups such as the al-Nusra Front became empowered. al-Nusra Front leader, Abu Mohammed al-Joulani, announced in 2016 his group’s name changed to Jabhat Fateh al-Sham, or The Front for liberation of al-Sham, and severed ties with al-Qaeda.

ISIL emerged in northern and eastern Syria in 2013 after overrunning large portions of Iraq. The group quickly gained international notoriety for its brutal executions and its energetic use of social media. The ranks of ISIL include a sizeable number of fightersfrom around the world.

Kurdish groups in northern Syria are also seeking self-rule in areas under their control.

Lebanese members of Hezbollah are fighting on the side of Assad, as are Iranian and Afghan fighters.

In December 2016, the Syrian army announced that Aleppo has been fully recapturedfrom rebel fighters, the government’s biggest victory in the nearly six-year civil war.

Syrian government forces used chemical weapons in rebel-held areas of Aleppo during the final weeks of the battle to retake the key city, killing at least nine people and wounding hundreds more, according to Human Rights Watch.

Since Assad’s forces recaptured Aleppo, a new military alliance of rebel groups in northern Syria was formed with the aim to consolidate military control over Idlib province, the western part of Aleppo province and parts of Latakia province, according to an FSA commander.

Whereas several rounds of peace talks have failed to stop the fighting, the Syrian government and the opposition groups have agreed to 12 evacuations. Evacuation deals allow opposition fighters to safely leave government-besieged cities and towns for areas under opposition control in Northern Syria.

Rebel groups have jockeyed for power, and frequently fight one another. Fighting has occasionally spilled over from Syria into Lebanon, contributing to the country’s political polarisation.

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The situation today

A suspected chemical attack that killed at least 80 civilians in the Idlib opposition-held town of Khan Sheikhoun is being investigated by the UN as a potential war crime, while Bashar al-Assad said it was a “fabrication” to justify US military intervention.

Despite that 1,300 tonnes of sarin nerve gas and its precursors were removed from Syria, chemical weapons have been a recurring footnote in the bloody narrative of Syria’s civil war.

In the latest evacuation deal between the rebels and the goverment, over a 110 people were killed in an attack targetting the evacuation convoys from the rebel-besieged towns of Foua and Kefraya in Idlib.

In March, an alliance of US-backed fighters said it has begun a new phase of its campaign on the ISIL-held city of Raqqa in northern Syria, aiming to complete its encirclement and sever the road to the group’s strongholds in Deir Az Zor province.

Also in March, fighting in and around Damascus has intensified after surprise attacks by rebel fighters in the northeastern parts of the city. The United Nations said fighting around Syria’s capital has cut off 300,000 people from humanitarian assistance and pauses in the conflict are needed to allow aid convoys to get to the area.

In addition to Aleppo, the Syrian government currently controls the capital, Damascus, parts of southern Syria and Deir Az Zor, much of the area near the Syrian-Lebanese border, and the northwestern coastal region. Rebel groups, ISIL, and Kurdish forces control the rest of the country.

Syrian refugees

The Syrian war is creating profound effects far beyond the country’s borders. Lebanon, Turkey, and Jordan are now housing large and growing numbers of Syrian refugees, many of whom have attempted to journey onwards to Europe in search of better conditions.

With much of Syria in ruins, millions of Syrians having fled abroad, and a population deeply traumatised by war, one thing is certain: Rebuilding Syria after the war ends will be a lengthy, extremely difficult process.

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Source: Al Jazeera News

North Korea launches missile despite US tensions (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

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Defiant Pyongyang fires missile despite US warnings, but projectile reportedly blows up on take-off in failure.

An undated photo released in April 2016 by the North Korean Central News Agency allegedly shows a ballistic missile launch [via EPA]

North Korea launched a missile early on Sunday, but it reportedly “blew up almost immediately” on take-off, according to the US military.

The reported test launch came a day after North Korea held a massive military parade in its capital, Pyongyang, marking the birth anniversary of the state founder, where what appeared to be new ballistic missiles were displayed.

The attempted blast-off near Sinpo, on North Korea’s east coast, is believed to have failed shortly after launch, South Korean and US officials said.
North Korea showcases new missiles at military parade

“The North attempted to launch an unidentified missile from near the Sinpo region this morning but it is suspected to have failed,” the South’s Office of the Joint Chiefs of Staff said in a statement.

There were no further details, and the office said it was analysing the launch.

The US Pacific Command detected and tracked what it assessed to be a North Korean ballistic missile launch early on Sunday, said Navy Commander Dave Benham, a military spokesman.

“The missile blew up almost immediately,” Benham said. “The type of missile is still being assessed.”

Citing the military parade and the launch of the missile, South Korea’s foreign ministry said in a statement that the North’s combined show of force “threatened the whole world”.

There was no immediate response from Pyongyang.

Fears have been growing that the reclusive North could soon conduct its sixth nuclear test or more missile launches in defiance of United Nations sanctions and stark warnings from the US that a policy of patience was over.

The North launched an intercontinental ballistic missile (ICBM) from the same region earlier this month ahead of a summit meeting between the leaders of the US and China, its key ally, to discuss the Pyongyang’s increasingly defiant arms programme.

The White House has said US President Donald Trump has put the North “on notice”, while the possibility of American military action against Pyongyang has gained traction following US cruise missile strikes against Syria on April 7

Trump has ordered a navy strike group flagshipped by a nuclear-powered aircraft carrier to head to the region as a show of force as his officials assess tougher economic sanctions, as well as military options against the North.

The North has in turn warned of a nuclear strike against the US if provoked.

Pyongyang says it has developed and would launch a missile that can strike the mainland US, but officials and experts believe it is some time away from mastering all the necessary technology.

James Mattis, the US defence chief, said in a statement on Sunday: “The president and his military team are aware of North Korea’s most recent unsuccessful missile launch. The president has no further comment.”

Seven points rebuttal to the lies of somto monanu (adsbygoogle = window.adsbygoogle || []).push({});

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I was reading stories on Facebook when this story “A Christian Eating ram and celebrating Sallah with Muslims is an abomination” caught my attention.
This article is a rebuttal to his article and a warning to non-Muslims who spread propaganda against Islam that this is the age of reason, all propaganda to demean, disparage, deface and ridicule Islam and Muslims will not go without being refuted. I am going to highlight his major arguments one after the other and I am sure it would go a long way in helping the reader discern between truth and falsehood.
REBUTTAL 1

He wrote,
“First and foremost; Muslims and Christians do not worship the same God”
_________

In response to this, I will agree that we Muslims do not worship the same God with Christians because,

* We don’t believe our God can act like a drunkard. We read in Psalms 78:65,

“NIV:Then the Lord awoke as from sleep, as a warrior wakes from the stupor of wine”

Ascribing Sleep to God, comparing God to a drunkard literarily is something Muslims cannot accept

* Muslims also do not believe that God can sometimes be foolish or wise. We read in 1 Corinthians 1:25,

“NIV:For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom, and the weakness of God is stronger than human strength”

Whether figuratively or literally, Muslims cannot ascribe attributes like these to God Almighty. He cannot be foolish nor weak no matter what the intent of the comparison, it doesn’t exalt God, rather it ridicules Him.

* A comparison of these two verses below would make it clear that we Indeed do not worship the same God. We read,

“NIV:It will be a sign between me and the Israelites forever, for in six days the Lord made the heavens and the earth, and on the seventh day he rested and was refreshed” Exodus 31:17

We read something different from the Qur’an,

“And We did certainly create the heavens and earth and what is between them in six days, and there touched Us no weariness” Qur’an 50:38

While the Bible ascribes weakness to God, be weary as to need rest, the Qur’an portrays God as an entity that doesn’t slumber nor gets weak not needing to rest nor refresh.

* While the Christians are torn apart as regards whom to worship, all Muslims agree God is one not two not three. We have the unitarian Christians and the trinitarian Christians. The trinitarian Christians believe we have God the son, God the Father and God the Holyspirit, the Holyspirit being the most cheated because they get to use him more in getting money from church members, concealing lies in the Bible but they worship him less compared to the son and the Holyspirit.

Worthy to note that several prophets of God even in the Bible attested to the fact that God is one. We read,

Deuteronomy 6:4 “Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD”

St. Mark 12:29 And Jesus answered him, The first of all the commandments is, Hear, O Israel; The Lord our God is one Lord”

There are so many verses in the Bible itself that proves God is one and the Qur’an says in Chapter 112:1

“Say, He is Allah (God), the ONE”

So, if a trinitarian Christian says we don’t worship the same God, he is right because we do not worship three gods said to be one, a theory that was decided upon by a group of people in the starting from the Nicea council in 325AD. When group of men came together to argue, debate and deliberate on the concept of God, we should not wonder why an adherent of such faith says we don’t worship same God with them, apparently because they worship what was fashioned.

REBUTTAL 2

He wrote,

“We Christians believe that Jesus Christ is the son of our own God (YHWH), but Muslims will tell you that Jesus is not the son of god and their own god has no sons”

______

We Muslims do not believe God has a son neither do we ascribe one to him. In the Bible, the word “son of God” was used figuratively to mean someone dear to God. A Christian’s argument is that Jesus is the only begotten son of God citing John3:16 as a reference. Unfortunately, we find many other sons of God in the Bible. We read,

Jeremiah 31:9 “They shall come with weeping, and with supplications will I lead them: I will cause them to walk by the rivers of waters in a straight way, wherein they shall not stumble: for I am a father to Israel, and EPHRAIM IS MY FIRSTBORN.”

If Jesus is God’s only begotten son, how come Ephraim is his firstborn son? Should we take this verse figuratively? If we do, is it not double standards to interpret John 3:16 literally and Jeremiah 31:9 figuratively?. We read about more sons of God,

Job 1:6 “Now there was a day when the sons of God came to present themselves before the LORD, and Satan came also among them.”

Genesis 6:2 “That the sons of God saw the daughters of men that they were fair; and they took them wives of all which they chose”

A Christian might want to contend that the word “Begotten” was used only for Jesus. The revised standard version of the Bible along with several other versions have expunged the word “Begotten” from John3:16, claiming that it is a fraud. We read,

ESV:“For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.”

NIV:”For God so loved the world that he gave his one and only Son, that whoever believes in him shall not perish but have eternal life”

The word “Begotten” was expunged from these verses yet Jesus being an only son of God still not matching it because there are several other sons of God in the Bible.

These are figurative expressions and in reality, God has no son, no Begotten son and everyone including Jesus are slaves of God.

REBUTTAL 3

He wrote that Muslims Worship a pagan God because La ilaha illa Allah means there is no god except Allah. This statement can only give someone who is mischievous a problem. This is it in Arabic form,

لا إله إلا الله

This is simply to mean that there’s no deity worthy of worship except ALLAH. Islam does not recognize any gods except the Supreme God. Arabic doesn’t have capital letters same as Greek. In greek, Hotheos stands for God while Thontheos is used for lesser gods.

This same word, Allah اللّهُ was used to refer to God in the Arabic Bible. So the joke is on the one saying Allah is a pagan god.

REBUTTAL 4

He wrote that Muslims Worship a pagan god hence we face the east while praying, saying it was an ex-pagan shrine. He also said that inside the shrine is Allah, Hubal and Allat.

_______

In response to this, Hajj is the last of the pillars of Islam. On facing the east, no religion on earth today as a unifying mode of worship like Islam. In Islam, two million people can arrange themselves in rows within two minutes, facing same direction, bowing at the same time, and prostrating in worship at the same time.
Worthy to note that, there was a time Muslims used to face Jerusalem.

Allah says in Qur’an 2:143-144,

“Thus We have made you [true Muslims – real believers of Islamic Monotheism, true followers of Prophet Muhammad SAW and his Sunnah (legal ways)], a Wasat (just) (and the best) nation, that you be witnesses over mankind and the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) be a witness over you. And We made the Qiblah (prayer direction towards Jerusalem) which you used to face, only to test those who followed the Messenger (Muhammad SAW) from those who would turn on their heels (i.e. disobey the Messenger). Indeed it was great (heavy) except for those whom Allah guided. And Allah would never make your faith (prayers) to be lost (i.e. your prayers offered towards Jerusalem). Truly, Allah is full of kindness, the Most Merciful towards mankind.
Verily! We have seen the turning of your (Muhammad’s SAW) face towards the heaven. Surely, We shall turn you to a Qiblah (prayer direction) that shall please you, so turn your face in the direction of Al-Masjid- al-Haram (at Makkah). And wheresoever you people are, turn your faces (in prayer) in that direction. Certainly, the people who were given the Scriptures (i.e. Jews and the Christians) know well that, that (your turning towards the direction of the Ka’bah at Makkah in prayers) is the truth from their Lord. And Allah is not unaware of what they do.”

Therefore, it should be noted that we do not face the east as an act of piety. Moreso, the Kaabah which he referred to as a shrine was built by Abraham. The burden of proof is on the Christian to prove that inside the Kaabah were three idols named Allah, Hubal and Allat and that Muslims Worship them.

REBUTTAL 5

He asked Christians to tell Muslims to call God YHWH which can be pronounced as Yahweh or Jehovah
_______

That Somto Monanu could not give us a specific name between yahweh or jehovah to amounts to shooting himself in the leg. In Matthew 27:46, the Bible says Jesus said,

“St. Matthew 27:46 And about the ninth hour Jesus cried with a loud voice, saying, Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani? that is to say, My God, my God, why hast thou forsaken me?”

Why didn’t Jesus call God Yahweh or Jehovah? We have no one who called God Yahweh or Jehovah. In addition, we find more names the Bible gives God but the likes of Somto Monanu do not call address God with these names. We read,

Exodus 3:14 “And God said unto Moses, I AM THAT I AM: and he said, Thus shalt thou say unto the children of Israel, I AM hath sent me unto you.”

But today, no one calls God I AM.

Exodus 34:14 “For thou shalt worship no other god: for the LORD, whose name is Jealous, is a jealous God”

Who knows that God’s name is Jealous?

REBUTTAL 6

On whom was the son God asked Abraham to sacrifice between Isaac and Ishmael, Somto being a Christian maintained it is Isaac not Ishmael. Let us look into history,

Testing the faith of Prophet Ibrahim (AS) otherwise known as Abraham in other Abrahimic faiths, God ordered him to offer his son, Isma’il. Prophet Abraham hearkened to this order and set to sacrifice his son but God sent him a ram which he sacrificed instead of his son. This is a background to this celebration, ‘Eid-el-kabir.

This story occurred in the Jewish land, so the Jews were custodians of this story. Unfortunately, given several wars waged against Israel by the Babylonians and others including the Romans, Many of this books were destroyed, leading to the distortion and corruption of several narrations.

The story being distorted, Isma’il was bastardized by the Christians and Ishaq was used to replace Isma’il as being the son that was to be sacrificed. In light of this, I present to you,

ACADEMIC RESPONSE TO THE ILLEGALIZATION OF ISHMAEL, THE FIRSTBORN OF ABRAHAM.

Christians including their apologists, Bishops, Missionaries etc do not give Ishmael any iota of respect. In this paper, I’ll not be talking about Abraham and Hagar, I’ll rather concentrate on the position of Ishmael. I hope the reader will be calm and patient enough to read and try to understand all points and decode all the analysis in this paper.

“To be sacrificed son” between Ishmael and Isaac has led to series of arguments and debates for centuries.

After God gave Abraham a ram instead of his son to be
sacrificed, an angel addressed Abraham, he said, Genesis 22:16 And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing, and hast not
withheld thy son, thine only son:

The angel made us realise the child to be sacrificed was ABRAHAM’S SON, not just his son but His ONLY SON. Let’s check the relationship between Ishmael and Abraham.

We read:

Genesis 17:25 And Ishmael his SON was thirteen years old, when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Genesis 17:26 In the selfsame day was Abraham circumcised, and Ishmael his SON.
_________
Since the Bible recognizes Ishmael to be Abraham’s son as in the verses cited above, and the angel Said His ONLY SON,
Therefore, the child to be sacrificed was Ishmael as there was no time Abraham had an ONLY SON except when he had Ishmael before the birth of Isaac.

The interpolation in Genesis 22 is clear, they only had to
remove Ishmael and insert Isaac.

We read, Genesis 22:2 And he said, Take now thy son, thine only son Isaac, whom thou lovest, and get thee into the land of
Moriah; and offer him there for a burnt offering upon one of the mountains which I will tell thee of.

Isaac was never at any point in time Abraham’s only son but Ishmael.

We hope that in times to come, the Christians will open their eyes to clear Evidences instead of playing the holy spirit game.

_________

As regards sacrificing animals, Allah (SWT) answered critics who would make irrational criticisms,

“Their meat will not reach Allah, nor will their blood, but what reaches Him is piety from you. Thus have We subjected them to you that you may glorify Allah for that [to] which He has guided you; and give good tidings to the doers of good. Qur’an 22:37

Therefore, the claim that we sacrifice ram to idol(s) is only a result of ignorance and bigotry.

__________

REBUTTAL 7

Mr Somto seems not to want to agree that the Bible is distorted.
________
Not only did the Bible suffer from distortion, it contains errors, contradictions, anachronisms, discrepancies and variations.

WHICH VERSION??
Today, the bibles versions we have are so many that we cannot tell which of them is translating from the so called original manuscripts because each of these versions tend to disagree with one either in the number of books or verses they should contain and some other versions of the bible accusing another of defects. Here is a little out of the different versions of the bible we have today:

1) Amplified Bible
2) American Standard version
3) Common English Bible
4) Contemporary English Version
5) Contemporary English version(Anglicised Version)
6) Catholic Public Domain Version
7) Darby Translation 1890
8) Douay-Rheims Challoner Revision 1752
9) Easy-to-read Version
10) English standard Version
11) Good News Bible
12) Good News Bible(Anglicised)
13) Good News Bible(Catholic edition in Septuagint order)
14) Good News Translation
15) Good News Translation (US version)
16) God’s Word Translation
17) Holman Christian Standard Bible
18) ISR98(The scriptures 1998)
19) Jubilee Bible
20) King James Version
21) King James Version(American Edition)
22) King James Version(with Apocrypha,American Edition)
23) Lexham English Bible
24) Modern English Version
25) Metrical Psalms 1650
26) MSG(The Message)
27) New American Bible(Revised Edition)
28) New American Standard Bible
29) New Century Version
30) New English Translation
31) New International Reader’s Version
32) New International Version
33) New International Version(Anglicised)
34) New King James Version
35) New Living Translation
36) New World Translation
37) Orthodox Jewish Bible
38) Queen James Bible
39) RV1885(Revised version 1885)
40) Tree Of Life Version
41) World English Bible
42) World Messianic Bible
43) World Mesianic Bible(British Edition)

The reader may want to comment, “But these are just translations”. These different versions of the bible go more than being just mere translations. It appears many of them are translating from different manuscript because the different bible versions vary in terms of number of books and verses in them.

For example, In the King James Version of the Protestants, we have 66 Books while in the Good News Bible of the Catholics, we have 73 books. So, we can see that they are not just mere translations but versions.

In 2 Chronicles 22:2 of the King James Bible, we read,

“Forty and two years old was Ahaziah when he began to reign, and he reigned one year in jerusalem. His mother’s name also was Athaliah the daughter of Omri.”

In contrast to this, We read 2Chronicles22:2 in the New International Version,
“Ahaziah was twenty-two years old when he became king and he reigned in Jerusalem one year. His mother’s name was Athaliah, a granddaughter of Omri.”

The King James Version gives the age of Ahaziah to be 42 when he began to reign while The New International version says 22.Which did God inspire? 42 or 22?

The Revised Standard Version, The New International Version and The New World Translation of the bible expunged 16 verses from their Bibles e.g Romans 16:24

Many versions of the bible have problems with 1Samuel13:1, Let us have a look.

* NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION
|
Saul was thirty years old when he became king, and he reigned over Israel forty- two years.

* ENGLISH STANDARD VERSION
Saul lived for one year and then became king, and when he had reigned for two years over Israel.
* KING JAMES BIBLE
Saul reigned one year; and when he had reigned two years over Israel
NET BIBLE
Saul was [thirty] years old when he began to reign; he ruled over Israel for [forty] years.

NEW AMERICAN STANDARD BIBLE 1977
Saul was forty years old when he began to reign, and he reigned thirty-two years over Israel.

JPS TANAKH 1917
Saul was –years old when he began to reign; and two years he reigned over Israel.

AMERICAN STANDARD VERSION
Saul was forty years old when he began to reign; and when he had reigned two years over Israel,

YOUNG’S LITERAL VERSION
A son of a year is Saul in his reigning, yea, two years he hath reigned over Israel

The bible is far from being the word of God and as David Cross puts it,” Back when the bible was written, then edited, then rewritten, rewritten, then re-edited, then translated from dead languages, then re-translated, then edited, then rewritten, then given to kings for them to take their favourite parts, then rewritten, then re-rewritten, then translated again, then given to the pope for him to approve, then rewritten, then edited again, then re-re-re-re-rewritten again…all based on stories that were told orally 30 to 90 years after they happened, to people who did not how to write…so…”
________

There are several other points he raised that I did not address because this article is turning into a book. So I’ll be stopping here.

This is now a big challenge to Mr Somto Monanu. He should come out for a live debate on the issues he raised and let us see how much he can defend what he wrote on. If he fails to take up this challenge, shame on him and those who championed him. Shame on falsehood, Shame on propaganda.

Mr Somto (if he exists) should take up this challenge and we will have lots of Christians and Muslims on attendance, perhaps he might win some lost sheep or some sheep might become guided.

Written by LuCas Samson Lukman as ( A rebuttal to the lies of Mr Somto Monanu and also commemorating my my third year of reverting to Islam from Christianity)

07015779491

Gmail:[email protected]

Clock Boy: Ahmed Mohammed, ‘Black Muslim Boy’ turned ‘US Teenager”

0

When a BLACK MUSLIM boy, Ahmed Mohamed decided to build a clock, he never knew he was building success and global attention for himself. The 14-year-old, Irving, Texas, high school freshman took homemade clock with him to McArthur high Monday morning which he had assembled the night before, hoping to impress his teachers.

He was met with the unexpected when he showed it to his teachers, they took it for a bomb and the boy was led out of school in handcuffs. After interrogations, he was vindicated and attracted global attention. After being vindicated, he turns US Teenager https://www.independent.co.uk/news/people/ahmed-mohammed-us-teenager-accepts-scholarship-in-qatar-after-barack-obama-meeting-a6703536.html

In late 2015, his family decided to accept a scholarship from the Qatar Foundation and move to Qatar, partially because of unsupported accusations of terrorist links and continued harassment by conspiracy theorists

However, a greater irony awaits the boy.

There are lessons we can derive from this event…

THE CASE OF AHMED MOHAMED IS SIMILITUDE TO THAT OF PROPHET YUSUF (A)

In the Quran, Prophet Yusuf’s brothers plotted how to get rid of them out of jealousy, they(his brothers) came across a dry well. They removed Prophet Yusuf’s (A)
shirt, and threw him into the well. Ignoring their young brother’s pleas, they heartlessly left him to die of hunger.

On the way back, they slaughtered a goat and stained Prophet Yusuf’s (A) shirt with its blood. They arrived home weeping and told their father that while they were grazing their sheep, a wolf came and ate their brother. He did not believe their story and could do nothing but remain patient and wait for Allah to reunite him with his beloved son. Meanwhile, a caravan of traders passing by the well stopped
to draw some water. They were surprised to see Prophet Yusuf (A) come up holding the bucket. They hid him with their merchandise and sold him to some slave traders for a
few pieces of silver.

The young Yusuf(A) was sent to success in guise of slavery. In Egypt, he got the success he never expected. This is congenial to the case of Ahmed Mohamed. When he was assembling his clock, he never dreamt of being in the white house, never thought of Barack Obama addressing him personally. The teachers who were Genesis to his arrest played the role of prophet Yusuf’s (A) brother while the police who arrested him played the role of the slave traders who bought prophet, Yusuf.

THIS DUNYA IS A PRISON FOR THE BELIEVERS

Narrated Abu Huraira, the Prophet (saw) said,
“The dunya is a prison for the believer and Paradise for the kafir (disbeliever),”[Sahih Muslim, vol.4, #7058]

Imam Ahmad narrated from Abu Hurayrah , that the Prophet
said,


“The dunya is a prison for the Believer and a garden of paradise for the Kafir.”

Indeed, this world is a prison for believers. If we look at what led to Ahmed Mohamed’s arrest, we can see that the ridiculous suspicion stemmed up because the boy is a Muslim. He’s not the first person to build a homemade clock . Let’s see others who had done this.

Peter Mattis of Gregory elementary made a clock.

Haley Zinke and Tasha Williams of
Turtle Lake, North Dakota made theirs

Logan Weimer of Holland, Ohio

There was another anonymous kid who took an inert bomb to school and wasn’t suspended but his teacher was…
Read about others too here http://gawker.com/7-kids-not-named-mohamed-who-brought-homemade-clocks-to-1730999866

Here, it’s Muslim lands being invaded, there it’s a Muslimah getting kicked because of hijab, and in another place, you see female Muslim students sent home for wearing long skirts. Imagine having to seek the government’s permission to put on hijab, jubilating that the hijab is now legalized in a particular country. If non-Muslims have a right to go about with uncovered head, why should Muslimahs be oppressed for covering their heads??

We live in a world where the kuffar become sad at our success and they merry at our pains, such was displayed when some idiots claimed it was their god who avenged by making a crane fall in masjid Al-haram.

 IF ALLAH INTENDS GOOD FOR SOMEONE, THEN HE AFFLICTS HIM WITH TRIALS

Abu Huraira reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and
blessings be upon him, said:
ﻣَﻦْ ﻳُﺮِﺩِ ﺍﻟﻠَّﻪُ ﺑِﻪِ ﺧَﻴْﺮًﺍ ﻳُﺼِﺐْ ﻣِﻨْﻪُ
If Allah intends good for someone, then He afflicts him with
trials.

Source: Sahih Bukhari 5321, Grade: Sahih….

Ahmed Mohamed was not expecting the global attention he got. He never thought of displaying his clock to the world, he never though Barack Obama would invite him to bring his homemade clock to the white house.

When he was being led away in handcuffs, he never knew he was being handcuffed to success. Indeed, the arrest was a blessing in disguise.

When Allah(SWT) intended good for prophet Ibrahim (A), prophet Yusuf (A) etc, HE tested them and when Allah intended good for Ahmed Mohamed, he was tested(via his arrest)…

In all cases, trials can be good for the true believer. If he is tested with prosperity, he should remain grateful and he will receive a reward. If he is tested with hardship, he should remain patient and he will receive a reward.

Lastly, In Qur’an 8:30,Allah said ;

” And (remember) when the disbelievers plotted against you (O Muhammad SAW) to imprison you, or to kill you, or to get you out (from your home, i.e. Makkah); they
were plotting and Allah too was planning, and Allah is the Best of the planners.

*Indeed, And (remember) when the teachers and police plotted against you (O Ahmed Mohamed to imprison you); they were plotting and Allah too was planning, and Allah is the Best of the planners.

So, Ahmed, be grateful to your Lord, the Most Merciful, Most Beneficent.

Bashir Lucas Samson Lukman

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