I need to add some commentary before I post the latest news worthy article. If you all read BBC regularly like I do, then you will have read this today. If not, please read the article below. The West has this tendency to tell Muslims how uncivil we are, and that our actions are completely unprovoked. Well, here is a classic example of how hypocritical the Western powers are. They provoke us, when we have a protest, they say we are acting without reason. The news media is brilliant when it comes to defaming large swaths of people. There is no other social or religious group more demonized or persecuted than Muslims. Unfortunately for myself, I have had dear friendships end simply because of the intel fed to their families due to the media. It's quite bizarre and alarming.
Now, Nato, a force that is supposed to foster peace has its troops doing perhaps the most blatant hateful act anyone can do to an entire religious group. If Bibles or Torahs were burnt in Pakistan, what do you think would be the international response? Let me guess, first comes sanctions, then comes a violation of political sovereignty, then comes our wonderful intelligence agency infiltrating, killing, and then being acquitted of any wrong doing. The funny thing is, all this has already happened to Pakistan, except for the sanctions, although, do sanctions really have to be called sanctions to feel the effect of them?
What about Syria? The West prides itself, especially Americans, among whom I count myself, as a force of mediation and peace throughout the world. Is anyone caring at all what's going on in Syria? Hundreds, if not thousands, of people are dying every day there! Why aren't we bringing "democracy" to Syria like we did to Iraq? Perhaps Syria needs to attack us first on our own soil before we will help them, or perhaps Syria needs to have some valuable resource that we would like to steal from them. I don't know. But those tactics worked for Iraq. Actually, only the second one did, Iraq never attacked the US. People from inside Afghanistan attacked the US and the whole country is invaded. That's the same as saying if I am attacked by one person of a family, I have the right to take my justice on all 5 members of that family, not just the one. That makes NO sense. That is NOT justice.
I will stop here, for now. Please read the following article and share your thoughts.
What about Syria? The West prides itself, especially Americans, among whom I count myself, as a force of mediation and peace throughout the world. Is anyone caring at all what's going on in Syria? Hundreds, if not thousands, of people are dying every day there! Why aren't we bringing "democracy" to Syria like we did to Iraq? Perhaps Syria needs to attack us first on our own soil before we will help them, or perhaps Syria needs to have some valuable resource that we would like to steal from them. I don't know. But those tactics worked for Iraq. Actually, only the second one did, Iraq never attacked the US. People from inside Afghanistan attacked the US and the whole country is invaded. That's the same as saying if I am attacked by one person of a family, I have the right to take my justice on all 5 members of that family, not just the one. That makes NO sense. That is NOT justice.
I will stop here, for now. Please read the following article and share your thoughts.
Nato apologises for Afghan Koran 'burning'
A large crowd of protesters gathered outside the sprawling Bagram air base
The Nato commander in Afghanistan has apologised over reports foreign troops may have burnt copies of the Koran.
Announcing an inquiry, US Gen John R Allen said any "improper disposal" of religious materials was inadvertent.
Reports suggest the books were taken from prisoners after the US uncovered a secret Taliban message system.
Rumours that a Koran had been burnt led to protests outside the US base at Bagram north of Kabul. One man was hurt when Nato troops fired rubber bullets.
President Hamid Karzai condemned the reports that the Koran had been burnt, as did the Taliban who said the incident would hurt the feelings "of one billion Muslims around the world".
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta called the incident "inappropriate and deeply unfortunate".
"These actions do not represent the views of the United States military," Mr Panetta said in a statement apologising to the Afghan people. He promised to review the results of the investigation.
Police told the BBC that at least 1,000 people took part in the demonstration earlier on Tuesday and that some elders went into the base to talk to Nato officials.
Afghan officials told the AP news agency that the Korans were in rubbish that two soldiers with the US-led coalition transported in a lorry late on Monday night to a pit on the base where waste is burned.
When five Afghans working at the pit noticed the religious books in the rubbish, they stopped the disposal process.
"Foreign troops tried to burn a container of holy Koran books at three o'clock in the morning, but the Afghan mujahideen employees working at the base did not allow them," protester Mohammad Zahir told the BBC.
A BBC reporter at the protests said he saw people crying over claims that foreign troops had set fire to the Koran, while others threw stones and fire bombs at the security forces.
A photographer for the AFP news agency said that guards at the base fired rubber bullets from a watchtower as the crowd shouted "Allahu akbar" (God is great).
Afghan officials told the BBC that the Americans had confiscated books and other documents from suspected Taliban prisoners at the Parwan detention centre next to Bagram base because they believed they were using them to send messages to each other.
It is thought that documents containing extremist inscriptions were taken from the library, says the BBC's Andrew North in Kabul. An unknown quantity of these materials were then burnt, according to military officials, among them some Korans.
'Sincere apologies' In his statement, Gen Allen said that the investigation would examine whether troops "improperly disposed of a large number of Islamic religious materials which included Korans".
"The materials recovered will be properly handled by appropriate religious authorities," the statement said.
"We are thoroughly investigating the incident and we are taking steps to ensure this does not ever happen again. I assure you… I promise you… this was not intentional in any way."
Gen Allen went on to offer his "sincere apologies for any offence this may have caused", to the president of Afghanistan, the Afghan government and "the noble people of Afghanistan".
Later, the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) force said it intended to invite Afghans to join the investigation "so we are transparent with this issue".
"These were religious materials that were gathered up at the detention facility in Parwan and inadvertently given to troops for burning," the Isaf statement said.
"We are still trying to determine if and/or how much got burned before the mistake was discovered.
"If a Koran was damaged, we will find out how it happened and make certain that this does not happen again."
Correspondents say that it was a remarkably candid statement by Gen Allen - played repeatedly on Afghan television - apparently aimed at damage limitation after similar incidents led to violence and attacks on foreigners.
Kandahar Governor Tooryalai Wesa strongly condemned the alleged Koran destruction, which he described as a "shameful move by some stupid individuals".
The BBC's Andrew North says reports of the Islamic holy book being mistreated, whether substantiated or not, have proved incendiary in Afghanistan in the past.
The Taliban and other groups have sometimes been accused of spreading such reports to spark violence, but last year protests erupted in Afghanistan after news emerged that an American preacher had set a Koran on fire in Florida.
At least 14 people, seven of them UN workers, were killed in the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif. Another 10 people died in unrest in Kandahar the following day. Dozens of others were injured.
Announcing an inquiry, US Gen John R Allen said any "improper disposal" of religious materials was inadvertent.
Reports suggest the books were taken from prisoners after the US uncovered a secret Taliban message system.
Rumours that a Koran had been burnt led to protests outside the US base at Bagram north of Kabul. One man was hurt when Nato troops fired rubber bullets.
President Hamid Karzai condemned the reports that the Koran had been burnt, as did the Taliban who said the incident would hurt the feelings "of one billion Muslims around the world".
US Defence Secretary Leon Panetta called the incident "inappropriate and deeply unfortunate".
"These actions do not represent the views of the United States military," Mr Panetta said in a statement apologising to the Afghan people. He promised to review the results of the investigation.
Police told the BBC that at least 1,000 people took part in the demonstration earlier on Tuesday and that some elders went into the base to talk to Nato officials.
Afghan officials told the AP news agency that the Korans were in rubbish that two soldiers with the US-led coalition transported in a lorry late on Monday night to a pit on the base where waste is burned.
When five Afghans working at the pit noticed the religious books in the rubbish, they stopped the disposal process.
"Foreign troops tried to burn a container of holy Koran books at three o'clock in the morning, but the Afghan mujahideen employees working at the base did not allow them," protester Mohammad Zahir told the BBC.
A BBC reporter at the protests said he saw people crying over claims that foreign troops had set fire to the Koran, while others threw stones and fire bombs at the security forces.
A photographer for the AFP news agency said that guards at the base fired rubber bullets from a watchtower as the crowd shouted "Allahu akbar" (God is great).
Afghan officials told the BBC that the Americans had confiscated books and other documents from suspected Taliban prisoners at the Parwan detention centre next to Bagram base because they believed they were using them to send messages to each other.
It is thought that documents containing extremist inscriptions were taken from the library, says the BBC's Andrew North in Kabul. An unknown quantity of these materials were then burnt, according to military officials, among them some Korans.
'Sincere apologies' In his statement, Gen Allen said that the investigation would examine whether troops "improperly disposed of a large number of Islamic religious materials which included Korans".
"The materials recovered will be properly handled by appropriate religious authorities," the statement said.
"We are thoroughly investigating the incident and we are taking steps to ensure this does not ever happen again. I assure you… I promise you… this was not intentional in any way."
Gen Allen went on to offer his "sincere apologies for any offence this may have caused", to the president of Afghanistan, the Afghan government and "the noble people of Afghanistan".
Later, the Nato-led International Security Assistance Force (Isaf) force said it intended to invite Afghans to join the investigation "so we are transparent with this issue".
"These were religious materials that were gathered up at the detention facility in Parwan and inadvertently given to troops for burning," the Isaf statement said.
"We are still trying to determine if and/or how much got burned before the mistake was discovered.
"If a Koran was damaged, we will find out how it happened and make certain that this does not happen again."
Correspondents say that it was a remarkably candid statement by Gen Allen - played repeatedly on Afghan television - apparently aimed at damage limitation after similar incidents led to violence and attacks on foreigners.
Kandahar Governor Tooryalai Wesa strongly condemned the alleged Koran destruction, which he described as a "shameful move by some stupid individuals".
The BBC's Andrew North says reports of the Islamic holy book being mistreated, whether substantiated or not, have proved incendiary in Afghanistan in the past.
The Taliban and other groups have sometimes been accused of spreading such reports to spark violence, but last year protests erupted in Afghanistan after news emerged that an American preacher had set a Koran on fire in Florida.
At least 14 people, seven of them UN workers, were killed in the northern city of Mazar-e Sharif. Another 10 people died in unrest in Kandahar the following day. Dozens of others were injured.
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