My two cents on the past few days...

Cover of Time magazine's special edition due this week

*** Fact: Time magazine has only done 4 such covers; 3 of those pictured are Muslims. Really, no one else deserved this? How about Slobodan Milosevic, who was responsible for the deaths of 146,000 Muslims during the ethnic cleansing in Bosnia/Herzegovnia? This number is from a CIA memo btw. I am sick of media promoting Islamophobia.

Or... how about showing the US Flag, along with President Bush's photo. The number of civilians killed in Afghanistan since the start of "Operation Enduring Freedom" in 2001 numbers over  20,000 CIVILIANS, woman and children included, were killed by Allied forces.

8 of these were schoolchildren. Inna ilayhi wa inni lillahi rajioon.

How can anyone read this and NOT be sickened by it? Because one man decided to carry out his vendetta against the US for their foreign policies, it gave a right to the US to kills THOUSANDS of innocent civilians??? These numbers are verifiable and easy to find online.

Also easy to find is how much cover-up went on. For example, a pregnant woman (among others) was killed in a botched raid. Only innocent noncombatants were in the house. The soldiers pulled the bullets out of the bodies and stated all were dead when they got there. Later, they admitted to killing them and covering up their crime.***

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. I've noticed the Muslim blogging world (my little corner of it, anyway) has been pretty quiet on the recent events which have transpired. What, you-who-lives-under-a-rock, asks? I am referring to the killing of Osama bin Laden.

Just like my post about islamic_rage_boy's picture, I am over it, finished, stick-a-fork-in-me done. However, just to clarify, here is my stance:

The man responsible for planning the 9/11 terrorist attack on the US is dead. I don't believe most of the hype surrounding this story and let me tell you, I am not a conspiracy theory kinda gal. However, the perfect timing of the event (re-election, the whole "birther" debate, etc) the lack of a body, the media frenzy, all of it... well it just looks awfully convenient. Allahu alim.

I disagree with how they said they treated his body. Contrary to their statement, they did NOT follow proper Islamic protocol. Even child molesters and rapists are buried in a respectable manner, according to their religious beliefs. I cannot imagine no country would have taken his body but I can imagine many reasons why the US didn't try very hard to find a place. Once again, Allah alim.

I am disgusted by the behavior of many of my fellow Americans. Unless you actually lost a loved one on 9/11 why the heck are you looking for revenge? It didn't happen to you personally, get over it.

I believe everyone is entitled to a trial and if the US's intent was to capture him but things went awry, well ok so what. But if their intent was to assassinate him I believe that is wrong. I don't think our democratic ideals should only apply to a select few. That's a slippery slope.

I believe Osama bin Laden was misguided; I believe what he did was wrong. Muslims do NOT take the lives of innocent non-combatants. He has to answer to Allah for his sins. That said, the US and its allies should also observe the Geneva Conventions and uphold UN resolutions and stop thinking they are the police, judge and jury for the entire world.

I hated seeing the demonstrations in the streets, celebrating his death. I hate seeing the demonstrations in the Middle East or Afghanistan or wherever, celebrating the death of an American solider. It isn't civlized and it isn't good Islamic manners.

Are you all aware that in the battle of Badr the Prophet Muhammad saws insisted the Muslimeen bury all of the kaffiroon who died? Who died in hand-to-hand battle with the muslimeen? And yet, they buried them, digging 80+ graves in the burning sun. They buried them respectfully and at great physical cost to themselves; battle-worn and weary.

I think that is the least the US could have done for his body. Now let's see if they will get out of Afghanistan and leave those people alone. Their country cannot take much more American "assistance" that's for sure.

A thought on RasoolAllah's (saws) last words

A'salaamu alaikum ya'll. Sorry I've been neglecting; I had a bit to do to get my new health and fitness blog up and running. So back to our regular chats!

I was speaking with my husband tonight about how our ummah has gone from being at the forefront of health, mathematics, natural sciences, and human rights to the state so many of our brothers and sisters are in right now. (Please, if this is suprising to you, do some research! There is a fun little film produced in the UK with has Sr. Ben Kingsley (if I'm not mistaken) and it highlights just a few of the wondrous advances made by Muslims. However this is the subject for another post; tonight I want to speak about another issue.)

Afghanistan comes to mind when we discuss human rights because of the rule of the Taliban in that country which has historically been very harsh with women. Wallah it breaks my heart to see so many of our brothers and sisters who never understand the beauty of our deen! To never know Allah as Ar-Rahman-ir-Raheem, the merciful, the compassionate. Those who only take what has been placed before them and either don't care to find the truth or simply cannot, given their circumstances (illiteracy being the main one).

I brought up a few cases of mistreatment of our sisters and my husband related to me a hadith I had NEVER heard before now. We've all heard of the last sermon of the Prophet Muhammad saws. 1400 years before Dr. King called for equality, our beloved Prophet told us an Arab isn't better than a non-Arab, that a white isn't better than a black. We are all EQUAL in the sight of Allah. Subhanallah.

No he told me about his actual last words before he died. Any person, upon feeling death imminent, will strive to tell what is most important to them. They will call out for a loved one or ask forgiveness. Of course RasoolAllah (saws) wanted to give advice to us, the future generations, to call attention to those things that are just too important to mess up. So what did he say?

He (saws) said, "Treat your wives JUSTLY and do not neglect your salaat (prayer)."  Subhanallah. We, my sisters, we were one of the last thoughts on his mind. He extorted the brothers to treat us justly. What is just? Everything the Qur'an has told us about the treatment of women and girls, every word from the mouth of our beloved Prophet (saws) explains how justice for women is to be found. We are to be cherished and upheld, we are to be sought after and prized, we are to be protected and cared for, and we are to be equal in our religous duties and in the eyes of man.

Our fate, our treatment at the hands of those who all too often have the power to oppress us, was ranked with not forgoing our prayers to the Creator. What can this say to us now? It says (to me) that Allah swt, in His most infinite wisdom, knows the heart of man and his inclination to rule by force. He, subhana wa ta'ala, knows that some of what the beautiful Prophet said would be lost and He wanted this last thing to be fresh on their minds.

It says to me that we are worthy, a thing of love and respect, and to be treated thusly. It speaks to me of the worry the Prophet Muhammad saws had about what he viewed as 2 of the weaknesses of men.

I can only pray that these words will not be lost to time and that our brothers and sisters who struggle now to get out of the darkness of jahiliyya (ignorance) will seek our their deen, will study and find for themselves exactly what it means to be Muslim. Amin.

The plight of our Afghani sisters

A'salaamu alaikum sisters, I felt I needed to share this with you. I enjoy learning about different cultures and regions and realized I knew very little about Afghanistan so I decided to do some research.

One of the recurring themes I found was the appallingly high maternal mortality rate in rural Afghanistan. One particular area, Badakhshan, has the second highest rate in the world. Second only to the Sierre Leone.

As I looked at these photos of our sisters suffering I was overcome by tears. I prayed for them, for them and all of our culturally-oppressed sisters, I prayed that Allah swt would increase their iman and sabr and grant them Jannah, amin. I wanted to stroke their hair and whisper to them, "I am your sister and I love you for the sake of Allah swt".

One sister I read about was an especially heart-rending, although all too-common case. She somehow alhamdulillah was able to make it to Faizabad Hospital from her rural home. Normally this entails 12 hours to 3 days of travel through mountainous passes, often on the back of a donkey. :-( Many women cannot make the trip at all but alhamulillah Sr. Qamar's husband knew she needed medical assistance and he was not too proud to take her.

After the grueling journey they arrived at the hospital and alhamdulillah she gave birth to a healthy baby boy. However, the ravages of tuberculosis had taken a severe toll on her body and she began to fall more ill. Eventually Sr. Qamar succumbed to the combined effects of meningitis, hypothermia, and toxoplasmosis. The hospital staff was unable to do anything more for her than give her oxygen and watch her health decline.

Now her husband is left with a baby boy to raise, no job, no prospects, no way to provide the milk Sr. Qamar's baby so desperately needs. Ukhtis, this broke my heart. Alhamdulillah according to the report Sr. Qamar was buried in a respectable and Islamic manner and may Allah swt grant her the highest stations of paradise and give her recompense for the harshness she endured in this life amin.

I don't consider myself an overly-emotional person but seeing the faces of my sisters in pain was more than I could bear stoically. I had tears in my eyes as I made du'a for them and for all of our ummah. The small things most of us take for granted, such a clean surgery room or sterile bandages, these women do not have access to such luxuries. A pint of blood can cost upwards of $100 there; a staggering amount for some of the poorest on our planet.

Please this Ramadan let's remember our brothers and sisters who never have enough to eat, who struggle to find clean water, who cannot access the most basic of medical care. Let's fast and when we feel the hunger gnawing at our gut take comfort in the fact that we will eat that day insha'allah. And let's remember those who won't.

May Allah swt have mercy on us all,

Umm Aaminah