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STRIKING BAATIL "In reality, We (Allah) strike baatil (falsehood) with the Haq. It then smashes out the brains of baatil. And, lo, it (baatil) suddenly disappears." (Qur'aan) BULLETIN No. 44 www.themajlis.co.za THE BAND OF HAQ "There will ever remain a band from my Ummah fighting on the Haq until the Day of Qiyaamah. Those who oppose them and those who do not aid them, will not be able to harm them." (Hadith) In the Kenyan atrocity perpetrated by foreign (Amercan/Israeli) sinister forces, an important clue which all the stupid and gullible 'intelligentsia' are overlooking is the collapse of three whole floors of the huge solid concrete structure. What had caused the collapse of the three floors? The alleged AlShabaab members allegedly stormed the complex with only guns and grenades. So what caused the collapse of the huge three floors? One stupid Kenyan official thinking the world is stupid explained that the cause of the collapse of three solid concrete floors was "caused by the terrorists setting fire to mattresses." It is obvious that this official with soft and numb brains labours under the impression that the whole world of people must also be having similar soft and numb brains to swallow the silly flotsam he has disgorged. Can burning mattresses cause three massive concrete floors to collapse? Even western journalists who saw the site say that "the extent of the damage indicates that explosives were probably used." Another Kenyan official said that "the military caused the collapse of the three floors, and had fired rocketpropelled grenades into the mall. But he would not say what caused the collapse." While it is alleged that the military caused the collapse, it is not explained how and why was the collapse caused. Another theory plied by some other stupid official is: "The attack ended on Tuesday when Kenyan troops detonated explosives to get through locked doors inside as they searched for militants or booby traps. …Three floors collapsed after the blasts and a separate fire weakened the structure of the vaulted, marble-tiled building. The fire began with attackers lighting mattresses as a decoy." Explosives were allegedly used by the troops to blast open doors, not to bring down three floors of a huge building. The blasts opened the allegedly closed doors to allow the troops admission. It is thus assumed that they entered after blowing open the doors and went about their searching operation. The three floors did not collapse on the troops. It is thus, moronic to link the collapse of the three floors with the relatively small amount of explosives used to blast open doors. The burning of a few mattresses "as a decoy" also debunks the extremely moronic claim that the couple of burning mattresses brought down the three floors. Hitherto they have not advanced any viable theory or cooked up a story to satisfactorily explain the collapse of the three floors in the same as to this day they have not satisfactorily explained the collapse of the American world-trade building by an implosion falsely attributed to a plane ramming into the building. To this day, more than a week after the atrocity, the details of the heinous act remain shrouded in mystery. Despite this, from America, the New York Times reports: "A hand-picked group of English-speaking fighters from alShabab had trained for the assault in Somalia for weeks beforehand." How is it that suddenly now the U.S. is aware of this phantom group which had been training for weeks beforehand in Somalia to commit this atrocity, yet had withheld the information from the Kenyan authorities? From where did they suddenly acquire this information published in the New York Times whilst the Kenyan government remains ignorantly unaware? This atrocity has all the hall marks of sinister forces whose agenda is to destabilize the world, drive a wedge between governments and Muslim communities, and to enable the economically and morally bankrupt U.S. to pirate off the wealth of the African, Asian and Arab countries to sustain its economy and way of life. As long as anarchy and corruption reign in the so-called third world countries, America's presence in them all is assured. And, U.S. presence in a country equates to billions of dollars of raw materials and resources for its bankrupt economy. Keep the stupid Sunnis and the moron Shiahs fighting and killing each other in Iraq, while you (U.S.) siphon off the billions of dollars of oil in peace. The atrocity in Kenya is not the enactment of Al-Shabaab. This group lacks the ability and the sophistication for executing such an atrocious operation. Israeli agencies were at hand to oversee the atrocity. Muslims who are fighting a genuine Jihad do not commit atrocities of this type. Those who claim to fight a Jihad in the Name of Allah Ta'ala do not kill women and children. They do not bomb market places and places of worship. Such dirty satanic atrocities are committed by agencies such as the CIA, Mossad and similar other evil outfits of the Devil. Many western sources are also convinced that the Kenyan atrocity is a false-flag operation. It is just as false as the false-flag atrocities of the trade-world centres and the Boston atrocity. America's survival in the opinion of the Mafia clique ruling that country, is to destabilize the world with anarchy and wars. They have now suddenly conjured up the "white widow" trick. Suddenly they know all about her – her exact movements and all her plans – yet they hopelessly failed to prevent the Kenyan atrocity. They suddenly claim that she was stalking and keeping under surveillance foreign embassies in Pretoria. They had all this information, but did nothing? This is indeed intriguingly interesting and mysterious. These evil forces also have a profound love for passports. After the destruction of the American world-trade buildings, suddenly the passports of the Arab youths allegedly responsible for the atrocity surfaced intact near to the then destroyed buildings. Now there is much talk about the passport/s of the "white widow" who had supposedly 'master-minded: the Kenyan atrocity. All of a sudden they know who the "master-mind" is, yet they could not prevent the atrocity? The vile forces are also alleging that Al-Shabab members had killed those non-Muslims who did not know the name of the mother of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam). This is a monstrous LIE. Mujahideen cannot and will not perpetrate such a heinous haraam misdeed. Those who claim to be fighting in the Path of Allah never commit such heinous atrocities. Every Muslim knows that Islam does not allow the perpetration of atrocities – killing and maiming women, children and civilians unconnected with the war -machinery. The objective of Jihad is I'la Kalimatullaah (Raising the Word of Allah). How can Allah's Word be propagated to people when they are brutalized and alienated? These atrocities are the satanic perpetrations of agencies such as the CIA, Mossad, and others of the same ilk. The Kenyan atrocity is now being utilized by the sinister agencies of the Devil to create hatred between Muslims and non-Muslims – to step up the Islamophobia bogey. MORSI'S ERROR Although the election victory of Morsi and the Muslim Brotherhood was a welcoming breath of fresh air in the noxious atmosphere of kufr, fisq and fujoor which had enveloped Egypt for decades under the reign of kuffaar masquerading as Muslims, the current kufr imbroglio orchestrated by the surrogates of the U.S.A., the mercenary Egyptian army, was an expected forgone conclusion. Whilst the Muslim Brotherhood is not a strict/orthodox Sunnah movement, rather it is an organization of liberal ghair muqallideen, nevertheless, it has always mounted its struggle from a proclaimed Islamic platform. It is for this reason that all Muslims who have Islam at heart were elated with the victory of Muhammad Morsi, and grieved by his fall. Our emotions and Duas are with Brother Morsi and his Muslim Brotherwood institution. But, despite the liberal brand of Islam which the Muslim Brotherhood very diplomatically attempted to introduce via the constitution during Morsi's Q. It is purported that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) had given the monks and priests of St Catherine Church in Mount Sinai a covenant to guarantee their safety and the protection of their religious institution. The document appears to be a forgery. However, Sultan Salim I and the Ulama of his time did not refute the document. On the contrary, copies of the document were given to the Christians. The Turkish authorities of the time ratified the treaty. What is the position of the monastery under Islamic rule in view of this document ascribed to Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam)? A. If there is no corroboration from the Muhadditheen or the Mutaqaddimeen Fuqaha for the covenant, then obviously it will be a forgery. If there is no reference for it in any of the authentic sources of the Shariah, then its authenticity will not be established simply on the basis of acceptance by the Ottoman Sultans whose policies were generally dictated by political expediencies. The monastery will be subjected to the rules as stated in the kutub of Fiqah, and as applicable to the Zimmis. It is possible that the Sultans had accorded a different and special treatment to the monastery on the basis of political considerations in the same was as they had done regarding the primary cross which is housed in the Jerusalem temple. Since this particular cross was an extremely valuable and prized item for the Christians, it was captured and held in Muslim custody, but not destroyed whereas intelligence and Imaan demanded its destruction. Even Salahuddin held it and used it as a bargaining chip when peace was entered into with Richard. Since there is no Islamic rule any where in the world today nor will there be in the foreseeable future, discussion on this issue is merely academic. Islamic rule on a global scale will return with the advent of Imaam Mahdi (alayhis salaam). He will then decide the fate of the monastery. short-lived presidential career, it was intolerable to the U.S.A., the kaafir Egyptian army and the hordes of the kuffaar segment of the population. By this segment, the reference is not to the Copts or to any other non-Muslim section o the Egyptian people. It refers to those who were born in Muslim homes and who profess themselves as Muslims, but whose hearts are sealed with nifaaq and kufr. With almost 50% of the population consisting of munaafiqeen and with a variety of kufr forces and institutions intact in Egypt, it was extremely shortsighted to expect the implementation of any brand of Islam in the prevalent arid and unfertile ground. Morsi's error was his failure to understand the extent of kufr strangling the country. He and his organization had failed to take note of the situation on the ground. The entire army is kuffaar and in the employ of the U.S.A. which lines the pockets of the army's top brass with 1.5 billion dollars annually. The police force is kuffaar. All security apparatuses are kuffaar. The judiciary is kuffaar. The overwhelming majority of every department of the civil service is kuffaar. Roughly half the population is kuffaar. Given this vile potion there was no possibility of any hue of Islamic government succeeding. At every level of government and society, the decrees of an Islamic government would be sabotaged and frustrated Morsi had clearly misjudged the combustible combination of an antiIslam populace and the satanic ambitions of a U.S. surrogate army which is in control of not only security, but of the economy itself. Like in Pakistan, Egypt is owned by the army. In this regard, a Pakistani army officer once remarked: "Every country has an army, but the Pakistani army has a country." The same dictum is applicable to the Egyptian scenario. The hollow assurance of the election victory gave President Morsi a bloated sense of confi- dence to attempt to ram a mild brand of Islam through a 'parliament' loaded with juhala, kuffaar and munaafiqeen backed by the U.S. Egyptian army and security institutions. The exercise was doomed for a failure, and that is precisely the consequence we are currently witnessing. One day Morsi was president, the next day he is a prisoner charged for 'terrorism' – the U.S. brand. The idea that Islam and its Shariah can be imposed by force or by governmental decrees on a population which flagrantly exhibits its animosity for the Shariah is extremely naïve. All ghair muqallid groups have strayed from the Sunnah, hence they seek solutions independent of the Sunnah. The current scenario in every Muslim country is akin to the Makkah period when the Mushrikeen had dominated, and the new Muslims, in Allah's Wisdom, had not yet attained the qualification for Jihad. For this reason there was no command and call for Jihad during the first era of Nubuwwat in Makkah Muazzamah. The imperative need for the success of any genuine Islamic movement is to first prepare a fertile terrain which is capable of readily absorbing the Deen. Whilst the Muslim Brotherhood has been in existence for about a century, its emphasis was not on the Islaah (moral reformation) of the Ummah. Its energies and efforts were expended in social and political activities. The spiritual bond with Allah Ta'ala was completely neglected. In the absence of a viable divine bond, the Nusrat (Aid) of Allah Azza Wa Jal cannot be expected. When the Sunnah is not the pattern of life, the attempt to impose Islam will be a new and an alien trajectory bedevilled by the animosity of a variety of satanic forces which will unite to destroy any nascent Islamic movement just as it has transpired in Egypt. The intelligent and Islamic prescription after assisting to remove Hosni Mubarak, was for the Muslim Brotherhood to have stepped aside. It was a monumental error to have participated in the political process in the fallacious belief that compromise and cooperation with the forces of baatil were possible. All kufr is a single breed, be it white, black, brown or yellow kufr. All forces of kufr are aligned against Islam and perpetually plotting to extinguish the Deen. Whilst they will have temporary success in their conspiracies to overwhelm Muslim groups clamouring for the Shariah, the kuffaar will fail in their nefarious plots to extinguish Islam. Allah Ta'ala Himself has undertaken to guard and perpetuate the Deen until the end of earthly time. WHILST MUSLIMS of all walks of life are appalled and pained by the suffering of the Burmese Muslims, the Ummah has failed to understand the problem, hence the solutions offered are stupid effects of misguidance. Modernist organization in the U.S.A., appallingly deficient in Imaan, advise Muslims to turn and pray to their 'god', Obama. Thus they have devised the following stupidity which they describe as 'URGENT ACTION NEEDED': 1. Pray for the victims in Burma and pray that the Buddhists taking part in this violence will be guided to be just. 2. Call President Obama at the White House and urge him to take immediate action. He needs to speak to Burmese President Thein Sein and tell him that he has a responsibility to safeguard ALL Burmese citizens. 3. Call Secretary of State John Kerry and tell him he must make the same calls to the Burmese President. Whilst part of the advice offered in No.1 is correct, the latter part at this juncture is not only stupid, but is intentionally designed to lick the boots of the West – to show that Muslims are a passive, boot-licking, interfaith moronic people who uphold the kufr concepts disgorged by the likes of Obama and his puppets. This is a time which calls for Muslims to supplicate to Allah Ta'ala for the destruction of Burmese barbarians. It is a time to invoke the La'nat (Curse) and Ghadhb (Wrath) of Allah Azza Wa Jal to overtake the savages. The Dua on these occasions when Muslims are being brutally decimated should be the Duas which Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) had instructed the Ummah to make. The Dua of Qunoot-e-Naazilah precludes the supplication of guidance for the savage zaalimeen at these junctures of brutality. The Dua should be restricted to the elimination of the brutal oppressors. The second and third ingredients of the suggested 'Urgent Action' are pure drivel and display not only deficiency of Imaan, but lack of Imaan. The Ummah's Duas must be directed to Allah Ta'ala. Obama and Kerry and the conglomerate of other marauders are part of the punishment which Allah Ta'ala is currently unleashing against Muslims for their gross transgression and treason against Allah Azza Wa Jal. Thus, all these kuffaar in the West and the East are part of the punishment. They are not the solution, and they cannot and will not do anything to aid the brutalized Muslims who are inviting Allah's Wrath on themselves with their kufr, bid'ah, fisq and fujoor. Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) has warned the Ummah that when the Ulama abandon the Waajib obligation of Amr Bil Ma'roof Nahy Anil Munkar, then Allah Azza Wa Jal will appoint over Muslims such cruel, brutal tyrants who will show neither respect to the elders nor mercy to the little ones. They will do what the Devils in Burma are currently enacting. The only solution is genuine repentance and adoption of the Sunnah – Sahaabah style. There is no other solution. But, in these times this expectation is a distant dream. Today there are more than 50 rubbish so-called 'Muslim' states. Since they are flotsam of the worst kind, subservient to the western kuffaar masters, they are all in cahoots in the conspiracy to destroy the Ummah. Today's reality is that the degraded and rotten condition of Muslims will continue to deteriorate. Things are not going to improve. The proof for this is the ever deteriorating moral and spiritual condition of the Ummah. Only Imaam Mahdi (alayhis salaam) will be able to effect the Islaah (Reformation) of this Ummah wallowing in the filth excreted by the world. Those who have some relationship with the Deen, should silently make dua, repent and seek Allah's protection. There remains no longer any other avenue of succour. ON THE OCCASION of the Battle of Yarmuk, Hadhrat Khalid Bin Walid (radhiyallahu anhu) selected 30 Sahaabah to confront Jablah Bin Aim who was at the head of an army of sixty thousand soldiers. Hadhrat Abu Ubaidah (radhiyallahu anhu) commented: "Do you want to destroy the Muslims?" Hadhrat Khalid Bin Walid (radhiyallahu anhu) said: "No! I have selected such men who are the equivalent of 60,000." But Hadhrat Abu Ubaidah (radhiyallahu anhu) was not satisfied. Hence, another 30 Sahaabah were selected The sixty Sahaabah went into battle against Jablah and his army. The battle raged fiercely all day long. Finally, the army of Jablah fled from the battlefield in defeat. (This was the Nusrat of Allah Ta'ala with the Sahaabah.) Sixty Sahaabah facing and fighting an army of 60,000 kuffaar, fully armed with the Best weaponry of the age! This equates to one Sahaabi for every thousand kuffaar. Is this possible, asks the materialist? Crass materialism which is the fundamental attribute of atheism inhibits the intelligence from comprehending transcendental and spiritual realities. Westernized Muslims – those whose intelligence has been colonized and brainwashed by the western kufr system of education, are also sceptical, hence they seek to argue away the literal meanings of certain Qur'aanic aayaat. They further deny miraculous episodes whose authenticity is established by authentic narration transmitted by reliable authorities. For the Mu'min with grounded Imaan, there is no conundrum in the fact of 60 facing and defeating 60,000. Allah Ta'ala is Qadeer. He has power over everything, and He intervenes and decrees as He deems fit. Allah Azza Wa Jal sent one person, Nabi Musa (alayhi salaam) with his Asaa (Staff) and Yad-e-Baidhaa' (his glittering hand)) to confront and defeat Fir'oun and his armies. Allah Ta'ala had dispatched a onelegged misquote to destroy the powerful king Namrud who had claimed to be god. Regarding battlefield victories for the Mu'mineen, the simple answer is the Nusrat (|Aid) of Allah Ta'ala, which He sends in a variety of ways. In Surah Aal-e-Imraan, Aayat 125, The Qur'aan Majeed states: "….If you have Sabr and Tawa…..your Rabb will help you with five thousand Malaaikah (Angels) specially marked (i.e. in uniform)." Since the Sahaabah, especially those selected by Hadhrat Khalid Bin Walid (radhiyallahu anhu), were men of the loftiest status of Sabr and Taqwa, he understood well that they would be the recipients of Divide Aid. The Malaaikah would be present to bolster and assist them against the powerful foe. For Muslims there is no surprise in the arrival of the Nusrat of Allah Ta'ala. On another occasion, the Commander of the Muslim army fighting in a distant kaafir land sent an urgent request to Ameerul Mu'mineen Hadhrat Umar (radhiyallahu anhu) for 3000 reinforcements for defeating the kuffaar army. Hadhrat Umar (radhiyallahu anhu) sent for one Sahaabi. When the Sahaabi arrived, Hadhrat Umar (radhiyallahu anhu) gave him some naseehat and ordered him to proceed to the battlefield and reinforce the Muslim army. After a few days when the Sahaabi reached the Muslim camp, the commander asked about the 3000 reinforcements he had requested. The Sahaabi replied that he was the 3000 reinforcements send by Ameerul Mu'mineen. With the presence of this single Sahaabi who, in the opinion of Hadhrat Umar (radhiyallahu anhu) was the equivalent of 3000 fighters, the Muslims decisively defeated the kuffaar army. THE AMEER (Commander) of the Jihad in Thanabovan and Shaamli in 1857 was the Leader of our Taaifah (Jamaat/Group), Hadhrat Haaji Imdaadullah (rahmatullah alayh). All his associates had participated in this Jihad. By the decree of Allah Ta'ala the Muslims were defeated. The British had issued orders for the arrest of the Mujaahideen. Hadhrat Maulana Rashid Ahmad Gangohi (rahmatullah alayh) was arrested and jailed. Hadhrat Maulana Muhammad Qaasim Nanotwi (rahmatullah alayh) went underground. He remained hidden for three days. After three days he emerged and stated that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) had been concealed in the Cave of Thaur for three days, hence he (Maulana Qaasim) also remained in concealment for three days. Now that he had fulfilled that Sunnah, he would no longer go into hiding. Allah Ta'ala had created such circumstances which defeated attempts to arrest him. Haaji Imdaadullah (rahmatullah alayh) also went into hiding.. One day whilst still in concealment, he went to the town of Gangoh to console the family of Hadhrat Maulana Gangohi (rahmatullah alayh). At their home, Ha- dhrat Imdaadullah lifted on to his lap, Safiyyah, the little daughter of Hadhrat Maulana Gangohi. He gave her gift of 2 rupees. The little girl placed the two rupees at the feet of Haaji Imdaadullah who commented that she will become a Zaahidah (a woman who will renounce the world). Hadhrat Gangohi frequently commented that Allah Ta'ala had made his daughter a Zaahidah just as Hadhrat Imdaadullah had predicted. When she grew up, Zakaat never became obligatory on her. Whatever money would come to her would be immediately distributed to the poor. KABUL – Taliban fighters launched a multiple rocket attack on the U.S.-run Bagram airfield in Afghanistan late Sunday, defense officials and representatives from the militant group said. In an e-mail to NBC News, Afghan Taliban spokesperson Zabihullah Mujahid claimed that its attackers destroyed an aircraft and other electronic stuff as well as damaging the base." Late Sunday night Taliban fighters in the Parwan Province attacked the US military base at Bagram Airfield. Firing at least a dozen and by some accounts 20 missiles against targets on the base. Reports of the casualties in the aftermath of the incident have been wildly conflicting, with the Taliban's own statement claiming the rockets destroyed a plane before targeting a residential complex for troops on the base and killed dozens…….. While it's not unusual for NATO and the Taliban to tell dramatically different stories, the reality likely falls somewhere in between, and it seems extremely unlikely that a dozen rockets fired at an air base would cause no damage at all (as claimed by NATO). (Report by NBC News) Q. Please explain what is happening in Egypt and Syria A. What is happening in Egypt and Syria is fitnah which is the consequence of gross transgression and rebellion against Allah Ta'ala by the Muslim populations of those countries. Currently in Egypt the ruling party is not Muslim. Whilst they have Muslim names, at heart they are kuffaar and munaafiqeen. They abhor Islam. The Muslim brotherhood whilst a Muslim party, has strayed far from the Sunnah. They are ghair muqallideen, nevertheless, our emotional support and duas are with Morsi and his people. At least they proclaim Islam. In Syria, two kaafir groups are fighting. One, is the extreme Shiah sect of Asad and his people. The other group consists of secularists who abhor Islam and who are fighting for a secular state. In the mix some Salafi Mujahideen are also participating. But in the end they will fail. The population consisting largely of Sunnis who in turn consist largely of Muslims who have practically abandoned Islam, is being punished. Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) has warned the Ummah of these types of Athaab which will settle on them when they turn their backs on to the Deen. "So all the talk about liberating women was pure gibberish, just like the nonsense about establishing a "western-style democracy". US war planners wanted to establish forward-bases in Eurasia to contain Russia and China, to be a main player in oil and natural gas extraction, and to spread US hegemony to this century's most dynamic "growth center". To that end the US plans to maintain a significant presence in Afghanistan, including large numbers of combat forces, lethal hightech weaponry, intel operatives, private contractors, and at least 4 military bases presumably on oil transit lines. The US is not leaving Afghanistan. It's merely abandoning the pretense that its motives are altruistic. But whatever the motives might have been, it's irrelevant now. The war is lost and the American people know it. (Mike Whitney) The Jihad in Afghanistan continues. Defeated on the battlefields of Afghanistan after eleven years of brutal aggression, the U.S. with its coalition of aggressors are in an advanced stage of withdrawal. With the Taliban riding on the crest of a wave of victory, the morale of the kuffaar forces of aggression has hit rock bottom. No longer are pursuit operations conducted by the U.S. and the other invaders. All forces and military equipment and hardware are grounded in barracks and warehouses awaiting the commencement of the retreating flight out of the Land of Jihad. The enemy has been compelled to concede defeat. Describing the lamentable plight of the aggressors, the U.S. government newspaper, New York Times writes: check-in calls to three neighboring base commanders. Two responded immediately — all clear. But there was no answer at the third, the Mahmud Agha outpost, several hundred yards away. SANGIN, Afghanistan — Some days, the Afghan soldiers worry that the mud walls around their headquarters in this embattled district are barely enough to keep the Taliban out. Perhaps more problematic is that the crumbling facade appears to be keeping the soldiers in. Nolay Base takes direct fire almost every day from the Taliban. With more forces lost here than almost any other district in the country, the Afghan soldiers seldom leave the installation, and mostly refuse to conduct missions — too dangerous, they say. And when soldiers head out to go on brief home leaves, a growing number of them desert rather than return, their commanders say. "It's difficult to find local people who are against the Taliban," said the executive officer of the brigade here, Col. Abdulhai Neshat. "This place is like a prison." In this corner of Helmand Province, widely agreed to be the most critical running battle in the country today, Afghan forces are in trouble. Sangin (pronounced SANG-in) offers a troubling portrait of life where the Taliban decides to make its mark and the Americans no longer fight, a situation that is likely to multiply as coalition forces completely withdraw next year. Since launching their major offensive in late May, the Taliban have easily weathered the halfhearted attempts by the Afghans to reclaim Sangin, despite aid from international forces. In the past week alone, the Taliban have cleared out several villages, displacing up to 1,000 people and overrunning several security checkpoints, locals and Afghan officials say. Coalition commanders are quietly growing alarmed, concerned that if the situation gets worse they may have to intervene for the second time this summer in an area officially turned over to Afghan security control. Since the war's beginning, the district, in the heart of Afghanistan's poppygrowing country, has been home to the fiercest fighting in the country. British and American forces struggled here for years, taking heavy casualties to create even just a modest security bubble to free the district center from insurgent pressure. Those gains have started to evaporate under the Afghans this year, as casualties mount and as a reluctance to confront the Taliban allows the insurgents to broaden their territory. About 120 soldiers and police officers have been killed this summer, with more than double that number wounded, according to the district governor and others. Among the ranks of soldiers, attrition hovers near 50 percent, counting deaths, debilitating injuries and soldiers who never return from leave, according to the executive officer of the main unit in northern Helmand Province, the Second Brigade of the 215th Afghan Army Corps. American commanders complain that their counterparts in Sangin have developed an "addiction to bases" — building new fortified posts instead of leaving the ones they have to attack the insurgents. Even then, they are losing ground. Afghan forces have dismantled many security checkpoints they felt they could not defend, and at least six have been captured and held by the Taliban since May. In the past week, more have been taken down, and at least four new posts have been overrun, local officials say. Desperate to regain momentum, the Afghan Army has been chewing through senior officers here. The commander of the Second Brigade has been fired, as has the battalion commander in Sangin. Casualties have taken a toll on the leadership, too: last month, the Taliban killed the district intelligence chief. "Right now, Sangin is like an open space for the Taliban," said the Sangin district governor, Habibullah Shamlanai. "Anyone can enter, and anyone can leave." Sangin became the focal point of the fighting season in late May, when the Taliban kicked off their biggest assault of the year. Massing around 600 fighters in a 36-hour blitz, the insurgents attacked about 20 Afghan patrol bases in a strategic area of the district that borders the river. The Afghans were overrun in some locations, while other outposts were abandoned when the local police staffing them ran out of ammunition. An initial attempt to reclaim the lost ground in the aftermath of the embarrassing assault was somewhat successful, but several bases still remain in Taliban hands. In July, the Afghans mounted a major counteroffensive, drawing in an entire battalion from the Third Brigade of the 215th Army Corps in Marja and bringing both British soldiers and American Marines onto the battlefield to assist. But after a strong start, participants say, the Afghans refused to continue. Losses mounted, momentum dissipated, and the mission was left less than half complete, leaving the green zone, a lush strip of foliage that hugs the waters of the Sangin River, largely in the control of the Taliban. In August, after the end of Ramadan, the Afghan commanders were nervous, expecting another major Taliban assault. To safeguard some of the more remote bases, the brigade sergeant major, Zabiullah Syeddi, assembled a quick reaction force to move farther into the hostile green zone. As his men prepared to leave Nolay Base, taking up positions beside a row of idling Humvees and tow trucks, a large explosion suddenly shook the ground. Several soldiers ran to see whether they were under attack. Sergeant Major Syeddi, a veteran soldier, swung the door of his Humvee open to investigate. When he returned, he ran his hand over his face and shrugged. The insurgents, he said, had laid an improvised explosive device on the driveway of the brigade headquarters, in plain sight of the guard towers. At 2 a.m. that night, the sergeant major began making a series of scheduled The next morning, on the way home, the convoy drove through the Sangin bazaar, the largest in Northern Helmand. Fabrics, food and electronics lined the shelves of dozens of storefronts as merchants and shoppers stood along the bustling road. A line of soldiers was on a rare foot patrol in the bazaar, bunched together, guns slung loosely over their shoulders. Near a central roundabout, the convoy stopped to allow reporters from The New York Times to speak with a handful of residents, who offered bleak assessments. "I just stay in the shop and don't go outside," said one merchant, Hayatullah, standing at the edge of his electronics store. "This is my job, how can I leave?" A crowd gathered, describing the district as a land divided — the center, which was somewhat secure, and everywhere else, a wasteland. "There is fighting every day — every day, bullets are flying," said Hayatullah, 20, who like many Afghans goes by a single name. Eager to leave, the soldiers returned to their vehicles. They roared past the foot patrol as they pulled out of the market. Suddenly a loud explosion ripped through the air, sending up a cloud of smoke and dust near the road. A rocketpropelled grenade aimed at the convoy had missed. The turret gunners aimed their weapons in the direction of the boom while the drivers sped off. Seconds later, the real ambush began — against the patrol left behind at the bazaar. A 10-minute firefight raged in the heart of the market district, claiming at least two soldiers, one shot through the eye. The Taliban, for all anyone knew, suffered zero casualties. The soldiers visiting the wounded in the brigade hospital, a clean facility manned by a single medic, offered words of comfort to their comrades. But a sense of fatalism had already gripped the base. O UR SALAF (Spiritual Forefathers) had such a simple outlook towards life that when Hadhrat Umar Faarooq (Radhiyallahu anhu) set out for Baitul Maqdis simplicity cascaded from every action and condition of his. [Baitul Maqdis was in the clutches of the Roman Christians at the time, just as today it is the control of the Zionists of Israel.] The Sahaabah (Radhiyallahu anhum) had surrounded the city of Baitul Maqdis. The Christians in the city were prepared to fight to the death to hold onto the city. They said that in their scriptures the description of the Conqueror of Baitul Maqdis was clearly depicted. They were only prepared to open the gates of the city for the person who fits the description. They, therefore, wished to see the Leader of the Muslims – the Khalifah. The Commander of the Muslim Army, Hadhrat Abu Ubaidah Bin Jarraah (Radhiyallahu anhu) wrote to the Khalifah, Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) for his graceful presence to break the deadlock. Thus Ameerul Mumineen Umar Bin Khattaab (Radhiyallahu anhu) set out on the long journey from Madinah Munawwarah through the arid desert to Shaam (the Levant). The first mark of simplicity was that he did not travel with a procession of ministers and bodyguards. There was no stately entourage with him. It was only him, his slave and one camel. And how was the journey undertaken? The two of them took equal turns to sit on the camel. When Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) would be seated on the camel, his slave would lead the camel by holding onto the rope of the camel. Then Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) would draw the camel whilst his slave would sit comfortably on the camel. Can any other nation produce a similar example of such equality and simplicity? Never! The second mark of simplicity was that when they arrived in Shaam at the camp of the Muslims outside Baitul Maqdis, and coincidentally at that time Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) was pulling the camel whilst his slave was on the camel, the Sahaabah (Radhiyallahu anhum) exhorted Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) to don a new set of garments and seat himself on an Arabian stallion for his appearance before the Christian leaders and rulers of the city. Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) was wearing a garment that was patched at many places and the long journey had borne its impressions on the ragged garment. In spite of this exhortation going against the grain of the Khalifah, he chose to please his advisers and therefore put on a new robe and got onto a majestic stallion. The proud Arab stallion kicked aloft its forelegs and neighed pompously. Immediately the Khalifah subdued the animal and got off the horse saying furiously to his advisers: "Do you wish to destroy Umar! We are a nation whom Allah has granted honour by virtue of Islam." Thus saying he removed the new robe and got onto his camel. Let us pause here and remove the cobwebs in our thinking. We are blissfully unaware of the reality of honour and awe. We labour under the misconception that awe and honour come with extravagant garments and flashy vehicles. This is highly erroneous. True honour is the product of perfection. What kind of honour is there in something fleeting? When one removes the extravagant garment one is stripped of one's so-called honour! As long as one is covered with the fanciful garment one is honoured. The moment one changes the garment one becomes disgraced! Is this called honour? Honour is that which remains with one all the time. That honour stems from perfection. And the honour of a Muslim is inextricably interwoven in the Garment of Islam. Adopt Islam perfectly, then – Insha-Allah – you will be honoured without any paraphernalia. Look at the dress of Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu)! Regardless, his awe and honour was such that when he departed from Madinah Munawwarah for Shaam the world shook with fear at the approach of the Khalifah of Islam. The kings of the world trembled and were struck with awe. What awe overwhelmed them? Was it awe for his dress? Never! His garment was such that Hadhrat Ali (Radhiyallahu anhu) states: "Once, I saw Umar making Tawaaf. The kurta he was wearing had twenty-one patches." People comment that Muslims are underdogs today on account of their poverty. Firstly, in spite of the [oil] riches of the Arab states look at their grovelling at the feet of their western masters. Secondly, if poverty was the reason for being losers how did the Sahaabah, in spite of their poverty, strike awe and respect into the hearts of the kuffaar? How did they conquer the world whilst being poor? Let it be known that awe and respect is not in fashionable clothing and being millionaires. A Muslim's honour lies solely in Islam. Muslims of yesteryear were Muslims in the true sense of the word and hence they achieved honour, whilst we are Muslims largely in name only and hence we are cringing in disgrace in spite of our relative affluence in relation to earlier Muslims. Look at the illustrious Sahaabah (Radhiyallahu anhum). On one occasion when Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) came to Shaam and alighted at the tent of Hadhrat Abu Ubaidah (Radhiyallahu anhu) who was the commander-in-chief of the Muslim forces, the commander-in-chief only had some dry pieces of roti and water to serve as meal. Hadhrat Sarmid's words come to mind here. He says: "The rich man eats his sumptuous dish, sips his sweet drink and passes away. Sarmid enjoys his dry roti and plain water and passes away." Tears swelled in the eyes of Hadhrat Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu). "O Abu Ubaidah," Hadhrat Umar started saying: "Allah Ta'ala has opened up avenues of lavishness for you through the conquests. Why are you still living frugally?" Hadhrat Abu Ubaidah (Radhiyallahu anhu) replied: "O Ameerul Mu-mineen! This world is merely provision for sustaining one on a journey. Since this [type of food which I have] is sufficient for me reaching my destination of the Aakhirat, what must I do with more?" Hadhrat Umar himself was asked once: "The victories on the battlefield have brought riches to your feet. Why do you still persist in living such an austere life?" Sayyidina Umar (Radhiyallahu anhu) replied: "Many of our brothers were martyred during the lifetime of Rasoolullah (Sallallahu alaihi wa sallam) in poverty. They achieved more in the Path of Allah and hardly enjoyed the pleasures of the world. Their full quota of thawaab has been reserved for the Aakhirah. We, on the other hand, have gained much wealth and riches with our conquests and our efforts have been rewarded here in this world. I fear that if I indulge in the luxuries of this world I will be rebuffed in the Aakhirat with the words: "You have withdrawn in the world the deposits of your pleasures and indulged in them. Now you will be given a disgraceful punishment for you desired selfaggrandizement." (Surah Ahqaaf, 20) We also learn from this that the poverty of our Salaf was not involuntary. They were not poor on account of having received nothing. Allah Ta'ala gave the illustrious Sahaabah ample wealth [when they undertook the mission of spreading the Deen of Islam]. But they would not horde wealth. They would munificently give to the poor and destitute, whilst preferring for themselves a humble life. Did this humble state reduce their honour in any way? In fact, Allah Ta'ala conferred them with such honour that Muslims of today can only dream about such honour. Thus it is a grave error to think that leading a simple and humble life brings disgrace to one. It is in fact the foundation of grand honour when coupled with perfection in Deen. (Modified from Asbaabul Fitnah of Hadhrat Moulana Thanwi Rahmatullahi alaih) "The AP reports that U.S. military suicides have surged to the highest level ever recorded. Pentagon figures obtained by The Associated Press show that the 349 suicides among active-duty troops last year were up from 301 the year before and exceeded the Pentagon's own internal projection of 325…Last year's total is the highest since the Pentagon began closely tracking suicides in 2001. It exceeds the 295 Americans who died in Afghanistan last year, by AP's count." (U.S. Military Suicides Exceed Combat Deaths", The Buzz) American wars have precipitated an epidemic of suicides in the military. These costs don't appear on the Pen- tagon's balance sheet, but they're devastating just the same……When these same soldiers return from active duty they are treated like garbage and they can't even get the help they need for Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) or other brain-related trauma like Traumatic Brain Injury, TBI. It's a disgrace." (Mike Whitney) What is intriguing, interesting and heartening from the Muslim's perspec- tive is that whilst thousands of America's 'garbage' have committed suicides and tens of thousands more are suffering from various forms of madness and brain damage, there is not a single case of suicide or insanity among the Mujahideen who have defeated the kuffaar superpowers on the Battlefield of Jihad. This surely indicates a mild form of Divine Punishment which has settled on the brutal oppressors "The Taliban claimed credit for the attack in a statement released on their website, VOICE OF JIHAD. The full statement is reproduced below: "Officials reporting from Zhari district say that foreign troops have suffered heavy losses in multiple IED attacks and two martyrdom strikes. According to information, foreign troops were air-dropped by helicopters at 02:00 a.m. local time to day in Sanzari region's Anarak Dara area prompting Mujahideen to immediately target them with IEDs. Two other martyrdom seekers (Sanaullah and Fareed Ahmad), both from Kandahar province armed with explosive vests later struck the invaders one after the other while the enemy was busy treating their casualties from the blasts. The twin martyrdom attacks and 10 IED blasts killed and wounded a total of 30 invaders who were later evacuated by medical helicopters according to witnesses who add that the body parts of the invaders are still scattered around the area." (End of Taliban's announce- ment) Bill Roggio continues: "Despite major offensives by US forces during the Afghan surge in Helmand and Kandahar, the Taliban remain a capable force in both provinces………….. And security setbacks are not confined only to the south. Afghan senators recently said that security is deteriorating in Ghazni, Logar, and Badakhshan while Afghan Defense and Interior officials "fudge" the security data to paint a very rosy picture. One year ago, Leon Panetta, then the US Secretary of Defense, said that the Taliban attacks, including the insidious green-on-blue or insider attacks, in which Afghan security personnel, often with the support of the Taliban, turn on their Coalition allies, were evidence of the "last gasp" of the Taliban. There have been three green-in-blue attacks in Afghanistan since September 21, including one yesterday that is said to have killed a "senior" ISAF officer. Unfortunately (for the U.S. and its coalition partners), the Taliban won't stop gasping." (Bill Roggio – Threat Matrix) "AMERICANS ARE SICK OF THE WHOLE DAMN THING" Mike Whitney writes: "The war in Afghanistan has never made any sense. From the bombing of Mazar-iSharif in November,2001 to the droning of children chasing birds in 2013, it's been one homicidal debacle after the other. On top of that, none of the strategic objectives have been achieved. The warlords and the Taliban still control much of the countryside; the reconstruction effort has been a complete farce; women are no safer today than they were when the invasion was first launched, and the central government is a comical Potemkin regime riddled with corruption and incompetence. Oh yeah! And the dirt-poor country now produces 90 percent of the world's opium. The only area of commerce in which post-invasion Afghanistan excels is the production of illicit narcotics. Is it any wonder why the American people are sick of the whole damn thing and want to get out now?" (1) From the perspective of the MafiaZionist clique ruling the U.S.A. the brutal war of aggression in Afghanistan makes much sense. Unknown to the American masses and most people of the world, the evil excursion into Afghanistan was not undertaken lightly or for no valid – valid for the MafiaZionist clique – reason. The invasion of the aggressors is part of a wellconspired nefarious plot motivated by the desperation of survival. Everyone who has even a minimal degree of intelligence is aware and understands that the U.S.A. is absolutely bankrupt. It currently floats on a bubble of deception – even the bubble is hallucinatory. Whole towns in America have been laid to waste by the epidemic of economic ravage. Many towns have been transformed into ghost towns. Thousands of former inhabitants of these town are prowling the highways and the streets in search of livelihood. The famously prosperous motorcapital city of Deltroit has applied for bankruptcy. America is hopelessly bankrupt. At least the Mafia-Zionist clique does understand that the hallucinatory pillar of paper-toilet dollars being printed by the billion must vanish. The only hope which the U.S. sees for its survival as a world power is to pirate the wealth of the wealthiest lands – the countries of Arabia, Africa and Asia. These so-called 'third world' countries are the wealthiest. Real material wealth is not U.S. dollars. Wealth is the oil and the raw material and products of these 'Third World' countries. The only way for laying hands on and stealing the wealth of Arabia, Africa and Asia is to foment wars and internecine conflicts in these countries. Such anarchy ensures an 'honourable' presence and a stranglehold for the U.S. So, while the U.S. has succeeded in maintaining the conflagration in the cities of Iraq by means of the daily Shiah-Sunni killings and mayhem, it (the Pirate U.S.) is comfortably siphoning off billions of dollars of oil from the oilfields which are far from the arena of anarchy. Throughout the world, America is fomenting anarchy and conflict to ensure its presence in these lands. The corrupt Saudi regime has to fork out billions to ensure that its U.S. master protects it from the expected Iranian depradation. In Egypt, Al-Sisi, a Zionist Jew has been installed to ensure that Egypt remains a province of Israel to guarantee the latter's safety and to starve the Palestinian people out of ex- istence. The primary constituent of the conspiracy in Afghanistan is to establish a firm and enduring military presence to check China in the event war breaks out, hence the Bagram air base has been developed for just this purpose. So while the U.S. with its coalition of pirates will withdraw from the fight against the Taliban who have roundly defeated the super powers on the Battlefield of Jihad, there is no talk of withdrawing from Bagram. It is only force which can secure U.S. withdrawal from Bagram. While the U.S. has suffered defeat upon defeat on the Battlefields of Jihad, and experienced debacle on debacle in almost every sphere in Afghanistan, it has hitherto secured itself in Bagram, which is among the fundamentals of the conspiracy which spawned the invasion. (2) It is incorrect to conclude from the battlefield defeat of the U.S. that "none of the strategic objectives have been achieved" as averred by Mike Whitney. U.S. successes in the sphere of its strategic objectives are: (a) Establishing a powerful foothold in Afghanistan by securing Bagram Airbase. (b) Return of the immoral warlord era which the Taliban had eliminated during their reign. (c) Introduction of the West's cult of immorality in a large measure. (d) The instability which will now develop in the wake of a Taliban takeover of the government. Anarchy similar to the Iraqi scenario will be fomented by the U.S. There exists the dark plot of creating a deep rift in the Taliban hierarchy or of creating movements even in the name of 'jihad' to maintain the tempest of in-fighting which in turn will assure and ensure the U.S. of its presence in Afghanistan. (3) "The Taliban control much of the countryside" is an understatement. The greater part of the country is under Taliban control. The fighting has ended in the greater part of the country. Currently the Taliban are taking the fight to the cities where they attack the invaders slinking in their barracks and behind their 'green zone' barricades. Hundreds of small bases and barracks throughout the country have either been overrun by the Taliban or abandoned by the U.S. & Coalition and the puppet Afghan army. The elimination of the warlords will pose no problem for a triumphant Taliban government. However, the real danger is a possible rift in the Taliban hierarchy – a rift which the U.S. has already plotted. (4) "Women are no safer today than at the time of the invasion". The comparison is fallacious. During the rule of the Taliban, women had enjoyed the greatest measure of safety. No one dared interfere with a woman. Female molestation was a torrid dream of the preTaliban era of immorality, injustice and oppression. That satanic error was reenacted by the invasion of the kuffaar coalition. There is nothing to ensure women's safety other than strict Islamic Law. (5) "90% of the world's opium". Yes, this is part of the American plot. During the reign of the Taliban prior to the kuffaar invasion, opium production was being eradicated. The Taliban had achieved a great measure of success in eradicating the opium trade. But, fostering this trade is to the American advantage. (6) The reasons for the American masses being sick of the whole damned thing and want to get out now, are simple to understand. It is the logical consequence of defeat on the Battlefield of Jihad. A NATO soldier in an assessment of the Taliban states: "The enemy (i.e. the Mujaahideen) is different. The mujahideen and Taliban have the same basic skills, but the Taliban seem better organized. The mujahideen had more heavy weapons. The Taliban have some well-trained specialists – gunners who can hit your 100to 200-square metre camp with a 107 mm rocket from seven kilometers away on the first shot…….. They have gone to 60 mm mortars because our counter-battery radar can detect 82 mm mortars, but often misses smaller rounds. Once, a Taliban for- ward observer chased my command post and me with some 40 rounds of 60 mm mortar fire. He knew what he was doing, had good communications, and kept us running." (Major Eero Kinnunen – Two Tours in Afghanistan) HIS LAST LETTER The Last Letter A Message to George W. Bush and Dick Cheney From a Dying Veteran From: Tomas Young I write this letter on the 10th anniversary of the Iraq War on behalf of my fellow Iraq War veterans. I write this letter on behalf of the 4,488 soldiers and Marines who died in Iraq. I write this letter on behalf of the hundreds of thousands of veterans who have been wounded and on behalf of those whose wounds, physical and psychological, have destroyed their lives. I am one of those gravely wounded. I was paralyzed in an insurgent ambush in 2004 in Sadr City. My life is coming to an end. I am living under hospice care. I write this letter on behalf of husbands and wives who have lost spouses, on behalf of children who have lost a parent, on behalf of the fathers and mothers who have lost sons and daughters and on behalf of those who care for the many thousands of my fellow veterans who have brain injuries. I write this letter on behalf of those veterans whose trauma and self-revulsion for what they have witnessed, endured and done in Iraq have led to suicide and on behalf of the active-duty soldiers and Marines who commit, on average, a suicide a day. I write this letter on behalf of the some 1 million Iraqi dead and on behalf of the countless Iraqi wounded. I write this letter on behalf of us all—the human detritus your war has left behind, those who will spend their lives in unending pain and grief. I write this letter, my last letter, to you, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney. I write not because I think you grasp the terrible human and moral consequences of your lies, manipulation and thirst for wealth and power. I write this letter because, before my own death, I want to make it clear that I, and hundreds of thousands of my fellow veterans, along with millions of my fellow citizens, along with hundreds of millions more in Iraq and the Middle East, know fully who you are and what you have done. You may evade justice but in our eyes you are each guilty of egregious war crimes, of plunder and, finally, of murder, including the murder of thousands of young Americans—my fellow veteranswhose future you stole. Your positions of authority, your millions of dollars of personal wealth, your public relations consultants, your privilege and your power cannot mask the hollowness of your character. You sent us to fight and die in Iraq after you, Mr. Cheney, dodged the draft in Vietnam, and you, Mr. Bush, went AWOL from your National Guard unit. Your cowardice and selfishness were established decades ago. You were not willing to risk yourselves for our nation but you sent hundreds of thousands of young men and women to be sacrificed in a senseless war with no more thought than it takes to put out the garbage... The Iraq War is the largest strategic blunder in U.S. history. It obliterated the balance of power in the Middle East. It installed a corrupt and brutal pro-Iranian government in Baghdad, one cemented in power through the use of torture, death squads and terror. And it has left Iran as the domi- nant force in the region. On every level—moral, strategic, military and economic—Iraq was a failure. And it was you, Mr. Bush and Mr. Cheney, who started this war. It is you who should pay the consequences. I would not have to lie in my bed, my body filled with painkillers, my life ebbing away, and deal with the fact that hundreds of thousands of human beings, including children, including myself, were sacrificed by you for little more than the greed of oil companies, for your alliance with the oil sheiks in Saudi Arabia, and your insane visions of empire. My day of reckoning is upon me. Yours will come. I hope you will be put on trial. But mostly I hope, for your sakes, that you find the moral courage to face what you have done to me and to many, many others who deserved to live. I hope that before your time on earth ends, as mine is now ending, you will find the strength of character to stand before the American public and the world, and in particular the Iraqi people, and beg for forgiveness. Admitting the retention of control by the Taliban, the enemy says: "The situation in Afghanistan continues to deteriorate. The Taliban-led insurgency retains control of the strategic initiative, and the International Coalition lacks clear direction. The insurgency has made significant inroads in the past months, consolidating its grip in the South and East, securing its sanctuary in Pakistan, and opening new fronts in the North. Taliban leaders are now convinced that the International Coalition will soon be compelled to accept the facts on the ground and abandon Afghanistan….. Since the Bush administration's departure, the United States has tried to develop a strategy for defeating the Taliban. Nonetheless, the recent initiatives lack coherence and do not offer a credible response to the advance of the insurgency. ……. The Taliban's strength explains why the reinforcements sent in 2009 (21,000 troops) cannot beat the Taliban in their southern and eastern strongholds. One of the key reasons for the lack of a productive International Coalition strategy is the IC's and broader western misperception of the Taliban. They are often characterized as "backward", "medieval", and "reactionary", and as an association of loosely organized groups……..In fact the Taliban are quite capable of strategic planning and coordinated action. This means that they will adapt to and counter any moves by the International Coalition. On-the-ground observations and reliable evidence suggest that the Taliban have an efficient leadership, are learning from their mistakes, and are But the cadre had all told us: "If they send you to Kandahar, hang yourself, because that is true hell." (Major Eero Kinnunen) quick to exploit the weaknesses of their adversaries. They are building a parallel administration, have nationwide logistics, and already manage an impressive intelligence network." (The Taliban's Winning Strategy in Afghanistan by Gilles Dorronsoro – Carnegie Endowment) By Dr.Kevin Barrett The Greater Israel Project – a longstanding Zionist scheme to steal all the land between the Nile and the Euphrates – is halfway there. They just stole the Nile. The problem is not that Egypt's new thug-in-chief, General Abd al-Fattah alSisi, is a Jew. (His mother, Malikah Titani, is a Moroccan Jew from Asefi, which makes al-Sisi a Jew and an automatic citizen of Israel.) If the Egyptian people want to elect a Jew president in a free and fair election – like they elected the Muslim Brotherhood (MB) to the Lower House with 73% of the vote, the Upper House with 80% of the vote, the presidency with 52% of the vote, and approved the MB Constitution with 64% of the vote – that's fine with me. The problem is that al-Sisi has concealed his Jewish identity and Israeli connections from the Egyptian people…and destroyed their nascent democracy through deception and mass murder. An even bigger problem: al-Sisi is almost certainly a Mossad agent. That means al-Sisi's Egypt is not just a bru- tal, banana-republic-style dictatorship. It is Israeli-occupied territory: The newest and largest province of everexpanding Greater Israel. No wonder the Israeli ambassador called al-Sisi "a national hero for all Jews." Al-Sisi's uncle, Uri Sibagh (sometimes spelled as Sabbagh) served in the Jewish Defense League (Hamagein) from 1948 to 1950, made his aliyah to Israel, and became a bigwig in Ben Gurion's political party, serving as the secretary of the Israeli Labor Party in Beersheba from 1968 to 1981. Uri's sister – alSisi's mother – presumably emigrated to Egypt on a mission from the Mossad. That mission culminated when the Mossad overthrew President Morsi and installed its agent al-Sisi in the coup d'état of July 3rd, 2013. The implication: Al-Sisi has been a lifelong Mossad agent. His mission: infiltrate the highest levels of power in an Arab Muslim country. Al-Sisi is today's version of Elie Cohen, who infiltrated the highest levels of power in Syria under the name Kamal Amin Thabet before he was exposed and hanged in the public square in Damas- cus. George H.W. Bush's famous line, "If the people knew the truth, they would chase us down the street and lynch us" applies – in spades – to al-Sisi. It has been widely reported in the mainstream media, as well as by more reliable sources, that al-Sisi has long served as the Egyptian military's liason with Israel. During the coup d'état of July 3rd, al-Sisi was in permanent liason by telephone with the Israeli and American militaries. (Israel promised its full support, and guaranteed that US aid would not be cut off, while the US waffled.) The Egyptian coup, especially its propaganda component, had all the earmarks of an Israeli black op. A massively financed campaign run through Egypt's Israeli-linked mainstream media (yes, the same folks own big media there as here) repeatedly compared President Morsi to Adolf Hitler! The fact that "Morsi = Hitler" was the number one talking point of the forces behind the coup reveals that those forces were Zionists, not Egyptians. Apparently the Zionists couldn't stop themselves from making reflexive Dr. Strangelove- style anti-Hitler salutes while they were orchestrating the al-Sisi coup – thereby giving their game away. Since the coup, Israel has been lavishing praise, money, and support on alSisi. Mossad agent al-Sisi has virtually declared war on Palestine by going allout to close the Gaza border tunnels that keep the people of Gaza alive. Meanwhile, al-Sisi has taken billions of dollars from the Rothschild puppets and likely donmeh crypto-Jews who call themselves the "House of Saud." Obviously the Zionist-dominated West and its Middle Eastern puppets will not allow Muslims to elect relatively honest leaders in free elections. Instead, they will use deception and violence to pursue their schemes for regional and global domination. The Egyptian people – who elected the Muslim Brotherhood by a greater landslide than any US political party has won in all of American history – need a real Islamic revolution to create a genuine democracy. Without it, Egypt will indefinitely remain "a boot stamping on a human face – forever"…and a permanent province of Greater Israel, ruled by a Jewish-Zionist thug who has appointed himself pharaoh, while hiding his real background and loyalties. A TEMPORARY 'VICTORY' FOR ISRAEL "The Israeli ambassador in Cairo has told a minister in the interim government that the people of Israel look upon General Abdul Fattah Al-Sisi as a "national hero". According to Israel Radio, the ambassador rang Agriculture Minister Ayman Abu Hadid to congratulate him on his new post and said: "Al-Sisi is not a national hero in Egypt, but for al Jews in Israel and arund the globe." (Middle East Monitor) Once again, Solomon, the socalled 'expert' on the so-called 'Islamic terror' mirage has demonstrated his gross ignorance and aversion for Muslims and Islam with his attempt to portray Islam and Muslims as fomenters of 'terrorism' in terms of the American conception It appears that Solomon, in obedience to his Israeli handlers, is painfully labouring to create jitters in government circles here in South Africa by subtly painting Muslims as 'terrorists' to drive a wedge between the authorities and the community. Brother Iqbal Jassat of the Media Review Network has given Solomon's blatantly baseless propaganda a deserving response which is reproduced hereunder. True to form, South Africa's controversial Israeli-linked and self-styled "Islamist Terror Expert" Hussein Solomon, has made a shameless re-entry to claim his "I told you so" moment in the wake of Kenya's tragedy. Opportunist and expediently exploitative, Solomons is being courted by a few sym- pathetic media allies to create a renewed frenzy on the emotive subject of "Islamic terrorism" without regard for facts and accuracy. Thus far his remarks have been no more than a regurgitation of stale unverified allegations. Despite this glaring weakness, these repetitive claims seek to position himself as an authority on what he derogatively describes as "Islamofascism". Not only does he yet again fail to back his false claims with evidence, he naively believes that South Africa and its government will embrace his alarmist theories by Palestinian activism. After all, he makes no attempt to conceal his links to Israel. His latest offering is sensationally titled "Jihad – A South African Perspective". Not surprisingly, the only endorsements are from Israeli-linked right wing "think tanks" such as Global Research in International Affairs [GLORIA] Centre and FRGS, Institute for National Security Studies, TelAviv. As the author, Solomons is identified as a Senior Research Associate with Re- search for the Study of Islam and Muslims in Africa [RIMA] based in Israel. Moshe Terdiman, the founder and director of RIMA glorifies Solomon's book as a must-read for "experts in terrorism and radical Islam in South Africa". Terdiman's alarmist fear-mongering urges readers as follows: "What role has South Africa played within global Jihad? How have the South African government and security apparatus perceived the terrorism threat facing the country? And, what can be done in order to better respond to the terrorism threat?" Such rhetoric is in keeping with RIMA's anti-Muslim propagandist role. Belonging as it does to a cluster of Israel's well-resourced "Hasbara" outfits, it is expected that Terdiman and GLORIA's Barry Rubin will team up with Solomon. Unfortunately for Rubin who claims that Solomon's latest drivel will be "totally new", it will be a complete let down. Though being a current publication [2013], all the "research" he unpacks can best be described as "infolaundering" or "inforecycling". For example he dips back to the 80's to the era of Qibla and jumps to PAGAD during the 90's in support of his ridiculous thesis. In displaying his naïve reliance on questionable media reports and sources, he cites a 2002 Wall Street Journal piece on "concerns" over AlQaeda "presence" in South Africa. And a 2003 declaration by the Israeli Security Service that there is "recognizable Hamas activity" in South Africa. He goes on to repeat unverified allegations against Muslim individuals and families. These include Dr Feroz Ganchi, Zuber Ismail and the Dockrat cousins. With scant regard to the corrective action undertaken by the editor of the Daily Maverick to apologise and retract a slanderous report by De Wet Potgieter, Solomon unashamedly revives his questionable probes on socalled "military training camps". To my amazement but not surprise he throws in the arrest of Sheryl Cwele during 2010 claiming that she's linked to Nigerian drug cartel. What's her connection to Jihad many will wonder? Indeed what is the relevance of her mention except to confound and conflate criminal operations with legitimate Muslim aspirations for restoration of justice in Palestine and elsewhere where the "War on Terror" has unleashed horrible pain and suffering! Solomon's penchant for sensationalist reports is neatly embodied in all his writings and utterances directed against "Islamism" which he claims to be "proving altogether more lethal than a Hitler or Mussolini…". To illustrate how outdated his "totally new" pack of info is, he cites Mo Shaikh as "the current head of the South African Secret Service [SASS]…"! Not only does it point to a shoddy cut and paste job, it also reflects his deep-seated antagonism towards Muslims in South Africa. (Issued by UUCSA) "The Taliban are a revolutionary movement, deeply opposed to the Afghan tribal system and focused on the rebuilding of the Islamic Emirate. Their propaganda and intelligence are efficient, and the local autonomy of their commanders in the field allow them bothflexibilityandcohesion…………….. In a country with a long history of determined, effective fighters, today's Taliban are without question the strongest and most effective guerilla move- ment in Afghanistan's history. The insurgency is able to mobilize thousands of fighters nationwide…..They are able to coordinate complex attacks, are mobile, and are improving their use of improvised explosive devices (IEDs). Whether the International Coalition wants to admit it or not, the Taliban soldiers are also courageous…… The British soldiers in Helmand were surprised in 2006 to find an enemy able to stop them in direct confrontation. (Carnegie Endowment) As a result of the numerous "green-inblue attacks (Afghan soldiers killing U.S. military personnel), trust between American forces and Afghan soldiers and police has completely eroded. The very Afghan soldiers the Americans are training are turning their guns on them. These attacks have constrained the US to institute a program called 'guardian angel' whereby US military units are selected to watch their fellow soldiers as they eat, sleep, go for defecation, or patrol with Afghan soldiers whom they have trained. So far about 100 American soldiers were killed by 'green-in-blue' attacks. This is an account of a Taliban attack given the U.S. Marine Corps Intelligence. It is an account by an enemy source acquired from the Marine Corps Intelligence Document, Insurgent Tactics in Southern Afghanistan. "The tactics witnessed around Now Zad would be seen again and again throughout Helmand. From 2006 to 2008, the Taliban showed themselves to be skilled in several aspects of small unit tactics. Most of all, their field craft was superb. The lush Helmand River valley proved surprisingly fertile ground for guerrilla tactics. The insurgents used two-meter-high poppy fields, orchards, thick mud walls, and a system of interlocking canals and irrigation ditches for cover and concealment. Near the river, British patrols could see no further than 100 meters. The insurgents waited for British patrols to get within a few meters and then spring an ambush. Sometimes they hid in irrigation ditches or a poppy fields until a patrol passed, and then attacked from behind. The terrain was also a means of masking flanking movements, a frequent insurgent tactic." The Taliban used irrigation ditches and canals to outflank or encircle the British. On foot, they easily outdistanced the gearladen British." The terrain dictated very close-in fighting. Unlike in northeastern Afghanistan, where engagement ranges tended to exceed 400 meters, in Helmand (based on interviews) they tended to fall under 200 meters. AH-64 Apache attack helicopters often fired at targets within 150 meters of British troops (danger-close). British officers described Taliban discipline under fire as "phenomenal." They held position against mortar and artillery fire. Even 30mm gunfire from an Apache attack helicopter did not always cause the Taliban to flee. They often just stayed under cover." The British fought countless engagements with the Taliban between the summer of 2006 and the end of 2008. An entire insurgent attack could involve 50 insurgents. The insurgents usually divided themselves into teams of four to six fighters." British outposts were frequent targets. One of these, FOB Robinson in Sangin district near the Helmand River, was the subject of many attacks. One attack, in April 2008, illustrates well how the Taliban used the terrain around the river for cover and concealment. April is poppy harvesting time in Helmand. During this month, fighting can be somewhat reduced because Afghan men are paid to harvest poppy. The soldiers stationed at FOB Robinson had seen no fighting that month. FOB Robinson was held by a British company-sized unit, a US Special Forces detachment, British logistics and engineering elements, and an ANA platoon. In early April, a MEDCAP, planned by the US Special Forces, took place at the front gate of FOB Robinson. It was meant to provide medical care to locals, who could walk in from the villages. At the time of the incident the Royal Marines were taking over control of FOB Robinson from a company from 2nd Battalion, the Parachute Regiment (2nd Paras). A mixture of both units was at the base. No one was on patrol. In addition to these infantry, the British logistic and engineering elements, US Special Forces detachment, and the ANA platoon were present. The 30 men of the ANA platoon were outside the gate monitoring the MEDCAP. Despite the poppy harvest, the insurgents decided this would be an opportune moment to attack - either because Afghan soldiers from the base would be outside and vulnerable or because an attack would remind civilians not to work with the British or the Afghan government. FOB Robinson was essentially a large square. Fortifications were HESCO barriers, old compound walls, and barbed wire. Outside the front gate, a canal ran past the FOB with a raised towpath on the far side. Around the canal were trees. A dirt road ran over the canal to the front gate of the FOB. The insurgents waited to act until the MEDCAP was in full swing. Six to seven insurgents with RPGs, light machineguns, and Kalashnikovs snuck up to a man-made ditch that ran parallel to the tow path for the canal. The ditch was 200 meters from the British defenses. It is believed that locals attending the MEDCAP saw what was happening. They started to disperse. A few warned the British and US troops that an attack was imminent. Thirty seconds later, at roughly 11:00 am the insurgents opened fire with a volley of nine to ten RPGs. One struck a vehicle. ……. Between the Paras, US Special Forces, and the Afghan soldiers, the response to the Taliban attack was chaotic. Everyone started returning fire, obeying their own rules of engagement. The insurgents' use of cover and concealment was good. They used the trees and dead ground to great effect. It was difficult for the British, American, and Afghan soldiers to make out targets, and no one could confirm that any insurgents were being hit, though they suspected that at least one insurgent had been injured. After the initial volley, insurgents fired machine guns and Kalashnikovs, interspersed with more RPGs. Overall, their fire was pretty inaccurate. None of the defenders were injured. The firefight lasted 15 minutes. The weight of US and British fire was huge. Eventually, it caused to insurgents to withdraw. (An account of the attack by the U.S.Marine Corps Intelligence) "At the same time, the Taliban moved against the back position. The Taliban had dug a hole up to the platoon house's perimeter. They snuck up out of the hole and threw grenades at the ANA. …… The next day, the British agreed to a truce with the insurgents, which allowed the Taliban to collect their dead. A handful of insurgents came and did so. The Taliban attacked again the next night. The Gurkhas dropped a IDAM on them. 23And on it went. As attacks continued, often of a probing nature, the Gurkhas improved their fortifications, building more sangars. A major attack occurred on 12 July. Early in the morning an ANP patrol intercepted Taliban moving through the town. The Taliban wounded one ANP and forced the rest to withdraw. At nearly the same time the Taliban opened up on the district center from multiple well-prepared positions 200 meters away with RPGs, AK-47s, and machine guns. Some positions were in a tree-line and a building to the north. A-lOs and Apaches hit these positions. The Taliban were not cowed. They withdrew from their positions until air support left, and then returned and reengaged. The battle wore on for six hours. Two more airstrikes were called in. The high point was when the Taliban coordinated an assault on the dis- trict center from three directions. Using covering fire, the Taliban approached to within 50 meters of the district center. RPGs struck the sangars and the district center building itself. Airstrikes and fire from the Gurkhas eventually drove off the Taliban." The respite was short. The next night (13 July), the Taliban launched anther full-scale assault. The Taliban occupied positions as close as 100 meters from the district center, under the cover of nearby alleyways and buildings. The attack started with a massive amount of fire. RPGs once again struck sangars and the district center building, The Gurkhas turned back one direct assault on a sangar. The main positions were once again to the north. After nearly three hours of fighting, an A-lO hit the northern position, ending the battle. 25 The Taliban held off until the night of 16 July when insurgents surrounded the compound and hit every sangar, Insurgents got to within 20 yards of the sangars by using dried watercourses to move men and ammunition around the position. The Gurkhas threw 21 grenades before an Apache arrived overhead. According to some reports, the insurgents attempted to use an anti-aircraft gun to shoot down the Apache." For all intents and purposes, Now Zad was under siege. Between the major attacks, the Gurkhas, ANA, and ANP faced sniper and mortar fire. The snipers would take positions two rooms back in any building and cut holes through walls to conceal their location. At least three mortar teams fired on the district center and ANP Hill. Shooting against the latter was particularly accurate. Two of the mortars were destroyed by US airstrikes, but a third kept up the fire until a British machine-gunner located it and shot it up. Conclusion The attacks on the Now Zad district center highlighted several aspects of insurgent tactics. First, the insurgents once again demonstrated excellent use of cover and concealment and an ability to use fire and movement. Their RPG fire was accurate and helped other fighters move into close positions. They also understood how to get out of the way of Coalition air power yet keep on fighting. In an editorial, the New York Times wrote: "After more than a decade of having American blood spilled in Afghanistan...it is time for United States forces to leave… The United States will not achieve even President Obama's narrowing goals, and prolonging the war will only do more harm. ...the idea of fully realizing broader democratic and security aims simply grows more elusive… More fighting will not consolidate the modest gains made by this war, and there seems little chance of guaranteeing that the Tal- iban do not "come back in... Post-American Afghanistan is likely to be more presentable than North Korea, less presentable than Iraq and perhaps about the same as Vietnam. But it fits the same pattern of damaging stalemate. We need to exit as soon as we safely can. America's global interests suffer when it is mired in unwinnable wars in distant regions." ("Time to Pack Up", New York Times) It's time to end the killing, Mr. President. Do not shrug your duty. End the war today. "O Nabi!Encourage the Mu'mineen to wage Qitaal (Jihad). If among you there are twenty Saabiroon, they will defeat two hundred (of the kuffaar). And, if among you there are a hundred (Saabiroon), they will defeat a thoiuand from the kuffaar. That is because they (the Kuffaar) are a nation who lack intelligence." (Anfaal, Aayat 65) The kuffaar, regardless of their vast numerical superiority and abundance of their fearsome military equipment, are no a match for such Mujaahideen who have Taqwa and Sabr. According to the Qur'aan, the 10 to 1 ratio mentioned in the above aayat is the minimum degree of Divine Aid in hand to hand combat, promised for Muslim fighters with Taqwa. Past and recent history bear testimony that small groups of Muslims had fought against vastly superior kuffaar armies where the ratio was thousands of kuffaar to one Muslim. According to U.S.-NATO sources the Taliban have about 10,000 fighters spread through the country whereas the combined coalition forces together with their surrogate Afghan army consist of 400,000 soldiers. Thus, the ratio is 40,000 kuffaar soldiers to one Mujaahid. This mind-boggling disparity loudly testifies for the presence of Allah's Nusrat (Aid). And, when taking into account the military arsenal at the disposal of the U.S.-NATO forces, the miracle becomes more mindboggling. This question is best answered by the enemy himself. The tribute paid by Western sources, albeit grudgingly, to the Talibaan Mujahideen, is conclusive evidence to testify that the Talibaan and the Mujahideen in general constitute the worlds best and most feared fighting force. After Allah Azza wa Jal caused the humiliating and abject defeat and collapse of the USSR, and of the current era's major 'superpowers' with their coalition of 50 countries, at the hands of the Mullahs of Afghanistan, many honest western reporters, commentators, and military experts have been impartial enough to concede a reality that is bitter for the palates of most westerners and even modernist 'Muslims' hovering on the brink of kufr. It is further proof that those who are the closest to the orthodox, untainted teachings of Islam, are the most deserving recipients of Allah's Nusrat (Divine Help). What follows is a small sample of unbiased reports, conceding to the reality that the coalition of 'superpowers' has indeed been defeated by those whom they had derisively branded a 'rag-tag terrorist' group of "mountain bandits", and with whom they now desperately wish to sit at the same table for 'talks'. After all, the victorious Talibaan are Allah's 'Rag Tag' Army of Mujahideen. "Taliban: The True Story of the World's Most Feared Fighting Force" "Taliban: The True Story of the World's Most Feared Fighting Force" is a book authored by British journalist, James Fergusson. It describes the miraculous rise to ascendancy of a relatively ill-equipped group of religious students. The synopsis of the book is as follows: "Fifteen years ago, southern Afghanistan was in even greater chaos than it is now. The Russians, who had occupied the country throughout the 1980s, were long gone. The disparate ethnic and religious leaders who had united to eject the invaders – the famous mujaheddin - were at each others' throats. For the rural poor of Kandahar province, life was almost impossible. On 12 October 1994 a small group of religious students decided to take matters into their own hands. Led by an illiterate village mullah with one eye, some 200 of them surrounded and took Spin Boldak, a trucking stop on the border with Pakistan. From this short and unremarkable border skirmish, a legend was born. The students' numbers swelled as news of their triumph spread. The Taliban, as they now called themselves – Taliban is the plural of talib, literally 'one who seeks knowledge' – had a simple mission statement: the disarmament of the population, and the establishment of a theocracy based on Sharia law. They fought with a religious zeal that the warring mujaheddin could not match. By February 1995, this people's revolt had become a national movement; 18 months later Kabul fell, and the country was effectively theirs. James Fergusson's fascinating account of this extraordinary story will be required reading for anyone who wishes to understand the situation in Afghanistan, now and for the future…" Here are a few extracts from the author's article, "Meet the Taliban: not as bad as you think": The paradox of Afghanistanone that also confounded the Soviets in the 1980s—is that the more troops and resources we pour in, the more the insurgents seem determined to resist. So the more fighting there is, the more civilians are killed, and the weaker the west's ultimate negotiating position becomes as we lose ever more local hearts and minds. Afghans suffered 1million dead in their war against the Soviet Union. Compared to these losses, this insurgency has barely started. And the battles are intensifying, while the only sign of attrition is in the west, where support for the war is sliding, and leaders on both sides of the Atlantic have publicly discussed dates for their exit. Last month in the Nad Ali district of Helmand, the venue for Nato's latest operation, residents interviewed by the BBC were unanimous in their wish for the Taliban to be in charge rather than President Hamid Karzai or his Nato backers. It is not hard to see why. The western military presence has brought little economic benefit and much civilian suffering. According to the UN, more than 1,250 civilians were killed in the first half of 2010—a year-on-year increase of 30 per cent, which made it the deadliest six-month period of the war…. "The Coalition Force Led by the USA Has Indeed Been Defeated" General Leonid Ivashov, a decorated and retired Russian Army General, prominent military expert, and director of the Academy on Geopolitical Affairs in Moscow, assessed what is happening in Afghanistan: 'The Taliban is right. The coalition force led by the USA has indeed been defeated. All of the goals, those which were both announced and implicitly heard—bringing order, democratization, and establishing a sovereign government in Afghanistan — they all failed… The Taliban is right about the Americans failing to achieve victory here and that they are leaving in disgrace, not to mention how demoralizing it is for their troops. The fact that US losses were higher due to suicide than to the Taliban says that the Army has done a poor job. These are the results that the Americans are leaving with…" (Source in Russian: Odnako Translated by Oriental Review) "The Taliban Will Never Be Completely Defeated" The Taliban in Afghanistan will never be completely defeated and this year's fighting season is still "up for grabs," the commander of NATO-led forces in southwestern Afghanistan said Wednesday. "If we think the Taliban will be completely destroyed, that's not feasible. They'll continue to show up," Major General Lee Miller told reporters at the Pentagon during a briefing via satellite from Afghanistan. [NBC news] "Brute Strength of the Taliban Fighter" "The real-life Rambo: Brute strength of the Taliban fighter caught on camera as he brandishes TWO machine guns at once. This Taliban seem to be channelling Rambo as he fires two heavy machine guns at once completely unaided. A video clip surfaced online of the man holding up two PKM machine guns and firing them – not unlike Sly Stallone's infamous character in the Rambo films. The unnamed Taliban fighter is showing incredible strength as these weapons are so heavy they normally demand a tripod to hold them up."[Daily Mail] Nato prediction of Taliban victory in Afghanistan is immensely damaging The Nato report on the Taliban and the timing of the leak have serious negative implications on a range of fronts. The leaked Nato report predicting eventual Taliban victory in Afghanistan is immensely damaging. Its potential impact is akin to that of a hand grenade carelessly rolled across the floor of a crowded room. The resulting mayhem, if it explodes, could be both extensive and indiscriminate. Little wonder Nato spokesmen and Pakistan's foreign minister are fervently insisting the report is a dud… But the fact that senior Americans inside Nato appear to share this view, and that they – or French colleagues keen to justify the recently announced early French withdrawal – have allowed their conclusions to find their way into the hands of the media, has seriously negative implications on a range of fronts… Whatever the truth of the leak, France's accelerated retreat has raised fears that other panicky Nato allies may follow suit in a disorderly rush for the exit. Even Britain, Washington's most loyal satrap, has let it be known that it will not be left "holding the baby" in Helmand province as others pull out. The leaked report, undermining political will and eroding military morale, renders all these issues more problematic. It also raises a question mark over the Nato heads of government summit in Chicago in May, when Obama is hoping to celebrate achievements in Afghanistan, Libya and elsewhere as part of the warm-up to his November re -election bid…If top commanders already feel the war is lost, then the question must be asked for the thousandth time: why are we still fighting?" [The Guardian] "They Have Shown That They Cannot Be Militarily Defeated" "They have to be dealt with one way or the other and they have shown that they cannot be militarily defeated, no matter how many pushes and upsurges and the drones and special operations the Americans put into it." [Ian Williams, Political commentator] "Washington Has Known For Years That it Had No Hope" "Washington has known for years that it had no hope of destroying the Taliban, and that it would have to settle for a compromise political solution with an indigenous insurgency that remains sufficiently popular to have sur- vived the longest U.S. military campaign in history. Still, as late as 2009, the U.S. had hoped to set the terms of that compromise and force the Taliban to find a place for itself in the constitutional order created by the NATO invasion and accept a Karzai government it has long dismissed as "puppets." This was the logic behind President Obama's "surge," which sent an additional 30,000 U.S. troops into the Taliban's heartland with the express purpose of bloodying the insurgents to the point that their leaders would sue for peace on Washington's terms. But the surge ended last month with the Taliban less inclined than ever to accept U.S. terms as the 2014 departure date for U.S. forces looms." [Time] "The Taliban – Who As It Turns Out, Are Indestructible" ghanistan a decade on from September 11 A British SAS officer told journalist James Fergusson, author of the 2010 book Taliban: "In 2006 when the fighting started, we called everyone who resisted us 'Taliban'. But they really weren't, necessarily. They were just the community's warrior class who had always defended their community against outsiders, and were bound to do so again. The 'Taliban' in that sense were an enemy of our own creation." Long after bin Laden and his group had re-located to Pakistan, the American and Australian governments continued to insist their fight in Afghanistan was with Al Qaeda and the terrorists. "We were told for years afterwards, 'Al Qaeda is still here.' It was like the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. They weren't there, they were gone," says Fergusson. By failing to distinguish between Al Qaeda and the Taliban, the US and its allies lost the opportunity to divide and weaken their enemy and isolate bin Laden's group. As they sought to destroy the Taliban – who, as it turns out, are indestructible – the US embarked on a new strategy, set out in The US Army/Marine Corps Counterinsurgency Field Manual, released in 2006. It was based on the classic counterinsurgency – or COIN in military jargon – maxim of winning the hearts, minds and acquiescence of the population… [The Monthly] Iraqi bombings kill 35, wound dozens A NEW wave of insurgent attacks, mostly car bombs targeting Shi'itedominated cities in central and southern Iraq, killed at least 35 people yesterday, officials said. The attacks continue a surge in bloodshed that has engulfed the country for months. No one has claimed responsibility for the blasts, which targeted commercial areas in seven cities. But systematically organised waves of bombings are used by the alQaeda branch called the Islamic State of Iraq, to undermine the Shi'ite-led government. The deadliest was in Hillah, 95km south of Baghdad, where a car bomb explosion killed nine civilians and wounded 15 others, police said. In lskandariyah a car bomb killed four civilians and wounded nine. In Karbala, four were killed and 25 wounded. Other fatal explosions were reported from Kut, Baghdad, Basra and Nasinyah. -Sapa-AP The Herald 16/Sep/13 (By Jonathan S.Landay – McClatchy Newspapers) "WE'RE PINNED DOWN: 4 U.S. MA- RINES DIE IN TALIBAN AMBUSH GANJ GAL, Afghanistan —— We walked into a trap, a killing zone of relentless gunfire and rocket barrages from Afghan insurgents hidden in the mountainsides and in a fortress-like village where women and children were replenishing their ammunition. "We will do to you what we did to the Russians," the insurgent's leader boasted over the radio, referring to the failure of Soviet troops to capture Ganj gal during the 1979-89 Soviet occupation. Dashing from boulder to boulder, diving into trenches and ducking behind stone walls as the insurgents maneuvered to outflank us, we waited more than an hour for U.S. helicopters to arrive, despite earlier assurances that air cover would be five minutes away. U.S. commanders, citing new rules to avoid civilian casualties, rejected repeated calls to unleash artillery rounds at attackers dug into the slopes and tree lines — despite being told repeatedly that they weren't near the village. "We are pinned down. We are rumiing low on ammo. We have no air. We've lost today," Marine Maj. Kevin Williams, 37, said through his translator to his Afghan counterpart, responding to the latter's repeated demands for helicopters. Four U.S. Marines were killed Tuesday, the most U.S. service members assigned as trainers to the _ Afghan National Army to be lost in a single incident since the 2001 U.S.-led invasion. Eight Afghan troops and police and the Marine commander's Afghan interpreter also died in the ambush and the subsequent battle that raged from dawn until 2 p.m. around this remote hamlet in eastern Kunar province, close to the Pakistan border. Three Americans and 19 Afghans were wounded, and U.S. forces later recovered the bodies of two insurgents, although they believe more were killed. The Marines were cut down as they sought cover in a trench at the base of the village's first layer cake-style stone house. Much of their ammunition was gone. One Marine was bending over a second, tending his wounds, when both were killed, said Marine Cpl. Dakota Meyer, 21, of Greensburg, Ky., who retrieved their bodies. A full moon was drenching the mountains in ghostly light as some 60 Afghan soldiers, 20 border police officers, 13 Marine and U.S. Army trainers and I set out for Ganj gal at 3 a.m. from the U.S. base in the Shakani District. The operation, proposed by the Afghan army and refined by the U.S. trainers, called for the Afghans to search Ganj gal for weapons and hold a meeting with the elders to discuss the establishment of police patrols. The elders had insisted that Afghans perform the sweep. The Americans were there to give advice and call for air and artillery support if required. Dawn was breaking by the time We alighted for a mile-long walk up a wash of gravel, rock and boulders which winds up to Ganj gal, some 60 rockwalled compounds perched high up the terraced slopes at the eastern end of the valley, six miles from the Pakistani border. Small teams of Afghan troops and U.S. trainers headed to ridges on the valley's southern and northern sides, setting up outposts as the main body headed slowly up toward the village and, unbeknownst to us, into the killing zone. The terrain — craggy ravines and sweeping,tree-studded mountains riddled with boulders and caves — was made for guerrilla warfare. The ethnic Pashtun villagers pride themselves on their rejection of official authority, their history of resistance and their disdain of foreign forces that many regard as occupiers. A possible clue to what was to come occurred when the lights in Ganj gal suddenly blinked out while our vehicles were still several miles away, crashing slowly through the semi-dark along a rutted track toward the village. The first shot cracked out at 5:30 a.m., apparentlyjust as the four Marines and the Afghan unit to which they were attached reached the outskirts of the village. It quickly swelled into a furious storm of gunfire that we realized had been prepared for our arrival. "Whatever we do always leaks," said Marine Lt. Ademola Fabayo, 28, a New Yorker who was born in Nigeria and is the operations officer for the trainers fiom the 3rd Marine Division. "You can't trust even some of their soldiers or officers." Sniper rounds snapped off rocks and sizzled overhead. Explosions of recoilless rifle rounds echoed through the valley, while bullets inched closer to the rock wall behind which I crouched with a handful U.S. and Afghan officers. Lt. Fabayo and several other soldiers later said they'd seen women and children in the village shuttling ammunition to fighters positioned in windows and roofs. Across the valley and from their ridgeline outposts, the Afghans and Americans fired back. At 5:50 a.m., Army Capt. Will Swenson, of Seattle, WA, the trainer of the Afghan Border Police unit in Shakani, began calling for air support or artillery fire from a unit of the Army's 10th Mountain Division. The responses came back: No helicopters were available. "This is unbelievable. We have a platoon (of Afghan army) out there and we've got no Hotel Echo," Swenson shouted above the din of gunfire, using the military acronym for high explosive artillery shells. "We're pinned down." The insurgents were firing from inside the village and from positions in the hills immediately behind it and to either side. Judging from the angles of the ricochets, several appeared to be trying to outflank us to get better shots. We soon noticed that the insurgent snipers were trying to outflank us again. I saw one up on a small rise fire and miss us by several feet. My companion decided that it was time to go and bolted away across the wash, but the gunfire grew too intense, and again I pulled my body into the dirt and rocks. I knew it was time to move when I saw a gaggle of Afghan soldiers pounding through the boulders past me, their commander, a bright 26-year-old lieutenant named Ruhollah, hopping between two of them, a bullet wound in his groin. Staying put was no longer an option. Bundling my legs beneath me and grabbing the small bag I use to carry my pad, pens, glasses and other necessities, I sprang and ran, trying to weave as bullets kicked up dust around me. I reached the next wall and plunged behind it, nearly falling on top of Swenson, Fabayo and several badly wounded U.S. soldiers. As Fabayo cracked off rounds, Swenson lay flat on his back, clasping a pressure bandage to the shoulder of one soldier with one hand and holding the microphone of his radio in the other, calling out insurgents' positions to two U.S. helicopters that finally had arrived. It was now 7:10 a.m., and with the helicopters prowling overhead and firing into the hillsides, the incoming gunfire slackened enough for us to move again. I stumbled down the valley to safety after I helped one of the injured soldiers into a medevac helicopter. Capt. Swenson and Lt. F abayo headed off to find vehicles and, together with Cpl. Meyer, crashed back up the Way We'd just fled to retrieve the bodies of the dead Marines and any other casualties they could find. (End of report) A genuine tribute is the tribute by the enemy. THIS IS THE FREQUENT QUESTION ON THE LIPS OF BILLIONS OF PEOPLE. Every power – every empire – has a fixed term by Allah Ta'ala. This appointed moment of destruction cannot be hastened or postponed. The Qur'aan states in this regard: "Should Allah apprehend people for their zulm (oppression), He will not leave on earth even a single creature. But, He grants them respite until an appointed time. Thus, when their ap- pointed time arrives, they will not be able to delay it nor advance it." There are no accidents and no misses in Allah's system of governance. Every iota in the universe is fixed and operates according to precision timing. The sign of a nation's/empire's impending doom and destruction is its zulm (oppression and injustice). Our Mashaaikh say: "An empire can endure even with kufr, but not with zulm." The zulm of America has exceeded all bounds. The horrendous misdeeds of torture perpetrated on thousands of people all over the world will not go by unpunished. But atheists and satanists do not understand. They do not derive lesson from history. Just as the USSR had suddenly collapsed into history, so too shall this U.S. cardboard 'superpower' soon collapse into oblivion, Insha-Allah. In fact, the process of its destruction has already begun. With its coalition of 50 countries, the superpower with its tail between its legs is ignominiously flee- ing from Afghanistan having been humiliatingly defeated by Allah's Rag Tag Taliban Army. The U.S. no longer has an economy. It survives by pillaging. plundering and pirating the wealth of the 'third world' countries. It manages to siphon off the wealth of these lands governed by its stupid surrogates, by creating perennial conflicts and engineering genocides. As long as conflict and anarchy reign in a country, the presence of the U.S. in that land is assured. Such conflict is vital for the survival of America. This process of oppression and plunder will continue until the appointed moment of destruction sets in. We all simply have to supplicate and wait patiently. (Extracts from the New York Times) "THE AMERICANS NO LONGER FIGHT" "Nolay Base takes direct fire almost every day from the Taliban. Nolay Base takes direct fire almost every day from the Taliban. With more forces lost here than almost any other district in the country, the Afghan soldiers seldom leave the installation, and mostly refuse to conduct missions — too dangerous, they say. And when soldiers head out to go on brief home leaves, a growing number of them desert rather than return, their commanders say. "It's difficult to find local people who are against the Taliban," said the executive officer of the brigade here, Col. Abdulhai Neshat. "This place is like a prison." In this corner of Helmand Province, widely agreed to be the most critical running battle in the country today, Afghan forces are in trouble. … Sangin (pronounced SANG-in) offers a troubling portrait of life where the Taliban decides to make its mark and the Americans no longer fight, a situation that is likely to multiply as coalition forces completely withdraw next year. Since launching their major offensive in late May, the Taliban have easily weathered the halfhearted attempts by the Afghans to reclaim Sangin, despite aid from international forces. In the past week alone, the Taliban have cleared out several villages, displacing up to 1,000 people and overrunning several security checkpoints, locals and Afghan officials say. Since the war's beginning, the district, in the heart of Afghanistan's poppygrowing country, has been home to the fiercest fighting in the country. British and American forces struggled here for years, taking heavy casualties to create even just a modest security bubble to free the district center from insurgent pressure. Those gains have started to evaporate under the Afghans this year, as casualties mount and as a reluctance to confront the Taliban allows the insurgents to broaden their territory. About 120 soldiers and police officers have been killed this summer, with more than double that number wounded, according to the district governor and others. Among the ranks of soldiers, attrition hovers near 50 percent, counting deaths, debilitating injuries and soldiers who never return from leave, according to the executive officer of the main unit in northern Helmand Province, the Second Brigade of the 215th Afghan Army Corps. …Even then, they are losing ground. Afghan forces have dismantled many security checkpoints they felt they could not defend, and at least six have been captured and held by the Taliban since May. In the past week, more have been taken down, and at least four new posts have been overrun, local officials say. "Right now, Sangin is like an open space for the Taliban," said the Sangin district governor, Habibullah Shamlanai. "Anyone can enter, and anyone can leave." Sangin became the focal point of the fighting season in late May, when the Taliban kicked off their biggest assault of the year. Massing around 600 fighters in a 36-hour blitz, the insurgents attacked about 20 Afghan patrol bases in a strategic area of the district that borders the river. The Afghans were overrun in some locations, while other outposts were abandoned when the local police staffing them ran out of ammunition. An initial attempt to reclaim the lost ground in the aftermath of the embarrassing assault was somewhat successful, but several bases still remain in Taliban hands. In July, the Afghans mounted a major counteroffensive, drawing in an entire battalion from the Third Brigade of the 215th Army Corps in Marja and bringing both British soldiers and American Marines onto the battlefield to assist. But after a strong start, participants say, the Afghans refused to continue. Losses mounted, momentum dissipated, and the mission was left less than half complete, leaving the green zone, a lush strip of foliage that hugs the waters of the Sangin River, largely in the control of the Taliban. In August, after the end of Ramadan, the Afghan commanders were nervous, expecting another major Taliban assault. To safeguard some of the more remote bases, the brigade sergeant major, Zabiullah Syeddi, assembled a quick reaction force to move farther into the hostile green zone. As his men prepared to leave Nolay Base, taking up positions beside a row of idling Humvees and tow trucks, a large explosion suddenly shook the ground. Several soldiers ran to see whether they were under attack. Sergeant Major Syeddi, a veteran soldier, swung the door of his Humvee open to investigate. When he returned, he ran his hand over his face and shrugged. The insurgents, he said, had laid an improvised explosive device on the driveway of the brigade headquarters, in plain sight of the guard towers. At 2 a.m. that night, the sergeant major began making a series of scheduled check-in calls to three neighboring base commanders. Two responded immediately — all clear. But there was no answer at the third, the Mahmud Agha outpost, several hundred yards away. His voice grew more desperate with each call, until finally he disappeared out of sight. He reappeared a few minutes later, walking slowly. "They were sleeping," he said. The next morning, on the way home, the convoy drove through the Sangin bazaar, the largest in Northern Helmand. Fabrics, food and electronics lined the shelves of dozens of storefronts as merchants and shoppers stood along the bustling road. A line of soldiers was on a rare foot patrol in the bazaar, bunched together, guns slung loosely over their shoulders. Near a central roundabout, the convoy stopped to allow reporters from The New York Times to speak with a handful of residents, who offered bleak assessments. "I just stay in the shop and don't go outside," said one merchant, Hayatullah, standing at the edge of his electronics store. "This is my job, how can I leave?" A crowd gathered, describing the district as a land divided — the center, which was somewhat secure, and everywhere else, a wasteland. "There is fighting every day — every day, bullets are flying," said Hayatullah, 20, who like many Afghans goes by a single name. Eager to leave, the soldiers returned to their vehicles. They roared past the foot patrol as they pulled out of the market. Suddenly a loud explosion ripped through the air, sending up a cloud of smoke and dust near the road. A rocketpropelled grenade aimed at the convoy had missed. The turret gunners aimed their weapons in the direction of the boom while the drivers sped off. Seconds later, the real ambush began — against the patrol left behind at the bazaar. A 10-minute firefight raged in the heart of the market district, claiming at least two soldiers, one shot through the eye. The Taliban, for all anyone knew, suffered zero casualties. The soldiers visiting the wounded in the brigade hospital, a clean facility manned by a single medic, offered words of comfort to their comrades. But a sense of fatalism had already gripped the base." "For those who are uprighteous and him over, the munaafiqeen (the government and army of Pakistan) sought to instill fear into the Taliban. They urged the Taliban to hand over Osama to the Americans for torture and execution. The Pakistani government even dispatched a delegation of senior Ulama to Kabul to convince the Taliban of the imperative need to hand over Osama to the U.S. The rationale of the Pakistan government was that it was unwise and illogic for the whole Afghan nation to suffer because of one man (Osama). The U.S. superpower would pulverize the country with its vast and fearsome military arsenal. The American kaafir had in fact vowed to bomb Afghanistan into the 'stone age'. The U.S. would put together the most powerful coalition, the likes of which history had never yet witnessed to teach the Taliban a lesson. The more the threats and sombre warnings emanated from the U.S. and Pakistan, the stronger became the Imaan of the Taliban. The Ulama surrogates of the Pakistani government returned empty-handed without achieving the goal the munaafiqeen had set for them. The resolute response of the Taliban was: "We are prepared to lose the country and be destroyed. But we shall not renege on our pledge and betray our guest." Yes, they also said: "Allah is a sufficient Protector, and He is a wonderful Protector." Allah Ta'ala heard and accepted their supplication. Today, the U.S. with its coalition of 50 countries have their tails between their legs set to flee after suffering humiliating defeats. In 13 years of brutal occupation, the might of the kuffaar superpowers with their coalition has been defeated by the Taliban –Allah's 'Rag Tag' Army. The Qur'aan says: "And if Allah helps you, then who is there to vanquish you?" who fear, will be a great reward. They are those to whom the people (the munafiqeen) said: 'Verily, the people have united (formed a coalition) against you, therefore fear them. (But their threats) only increased their Imaan, and they (the true Mu'mi- neen) said: 'Sufficient for us is Allah, and He is an adequate Protector……….. Verily, it is only shaitaan who (endeavours that they) should fear his friends (the kuffaar). But, do not fear them, and fear only Me (Allah) if indeed you are Mu'mineen." (Aal Imraan, 174, 175) This Qur'aanic verse mentions three groups of people: The Muttaaqeen (Pious Muslims), the kuffaar and the munaafiqeen (hypocrites). The munaafiqeen masquerading as Muslims sought to instill fear for the kuffaar in the hearts of the Muttaqeen, saying that the kuffaar are uniting their forces for an imminent attack. Therefore, 'fear them',said the munaafiqeen. However, instead of causing fear and panic in the Muslims, the threat served to strengthen their Imaan and resolve to be steadfast and fight in the Path of Allah. They responded: "Allah is an adequate Protector." Consoling the Mu'mineen, Allah Ta'ala instructs them to ignore the threats of the munaafiqeen. In reality they are the agents of shaitaan in cahoots with the kuffaar. They should not be feared. Fear is for only Allah Azza Wa Jal. Although these Verses refer to a specific occasion, the generality of the Qur'aan brings within its purview the Afghan scenario which had prevailed just prior to the invasion by the U.S. with its coalition of 50 countries. When America (the kuffaar) had demanded that the Taliban should betray their host, Osama Bin Laden and hand All the battlefield reports in Al-Haq are from enemy sources. Whilst conceding being trapped in the Hell- Hole, they do not admit to the huge amount of casualties they suffer in both men and military equipment. Their own admission of their dire plight confirms their misery, disgrace and defeat at the hands of the Taliban. IRAQ: Sectarian violence, deaths approach 1000 THE UN mission in Iraq said yesterday that 979 Iraqis were killed in violence in September — down from July's toll but still among the highest recently. In July the death toll was put at 1 057. The report says the worst-affected area was Baghdad, where 418 people were killed. It said 2133 people were wounded there in last month's violence. Iraq is going through its worst surge of violence since 2008, much of it said to have been provoked by a deadly crackdown by the Shia-led government on a Sunni protest camp in northern Iraq in April. More than 5 000 Iraqis have been killed since then. — Sapa-AP The Times 2/Oct/13 Five market blasts kill 20 and wound more than 50 BOMBINGS hit two markets in Baghdad province yesterday, killing at least 20 people, while gunmen shot dead five members of a family south of the capital, officials said. Iraq is experiencing its worst violence since 2008, when it was emerging from a brutal sectarian conflict, and more than 240 people have been killed in just seven days. Four bombs in a market north of the capital killed at least 13 people, while another hit a market in a predominantly Sunni neighbourhood in south Baghdad, killing seven. The attacks also wounded more than 50 people, the officials said. Militants have struck at markets, football pitches, cafes, mosques, weddings and funerals. — Sapa-AFP The Times 27/Sep/2013 UN Warns against revenge attacks THE UN warned yesterday against revenge attacks in Iraq after two blasts killed 73 people in a Shia area of Baghdad an day after a Sunni mosque was bombed. Saturday's twin bombings were near funeral tents for a tribal sheikh in the Sadr City district of north Baghdad and wounded more than 200 people. The carnage was the latest attack in an upsurge of violence that has brought death tolls to their highest since 2008, when Iraq was emerging from brutal sectarian conflict. — Sapa-AFP The Times 23/Sep/13 PAKISTAN: OF SHIAH MOBS Mob armed with guns, knives, sticks and other weapons attacked Darululoom Taleemul-Qur'aan in Rawalpindi and killed 11 students, 4 people (in Sa- lah) and injured over 100. Attack was done during Friday Khutbah where the mob entered the Darul-uloom after breaking the main gate and randomly started attacking people engaged in listening to the Khutbah. After entering they sprayed those in the Masjid with gasoline and tried to set people alight! Mob then also set alight shops next to the Darul-uloom and then proceeded to BLOCK the fire brigade from responding to the fire at the Darul-uloom and the market. This is one of the worst attacks of its kind and first on a Darul-uloom in broad daylight! The mob was involved in celebrating Ashura (10th of Muharram). After killing they proceeded to deface and degrade the dead bodies of the students of Darul-uloom! COMMENT: According to reliable Pakistani sources, the actual number killed by the brutal Shiah barbarians is 90. Refusing acceptance of Rasulullah's Dua for the unity of the Ummah, Allah Azza Wa Jal said to Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) that internecine warfare and infighting will prevail in the Ummah as a punishment for their transgression. So, the conflagration and mighty upheavals of mutual killing, turmoil and mayhem wrecking the Ummah are the consequences of the fisq, fujoor, zulm and bid'ah of Muslims. It appears that the villainy of Muslims is eliciting the Wrath and Punishment of Allah Ta'ala. QUESTION A Mufti, in his talk, said that in Jihad it is permissible kill the women and children of the kuffaar even if they do not participate in actual fighting. He justifies his views on the basis of certain Ahaadith which mention that Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) had allowed a fort of the kuffaar to be assaulted with 'bombs' (rocks) from huge catapults which were used during times of war to batter forts and walls. This was allowed despite women and children having taken refuge inside the fort. The Mufti contends that it is permissible to do to the kuffaar what they do to Muslims. Since they kill our women and children indiscriminately, it is permissible for Muslims to do the same to their women and children. Is the Mufti correct? ANSWER No! The Mufti is in grievous error. Jihad is a sacred institution of Islam. It is encumbered with many rules and regulations. Its primary objective is to spread and establish on earth the Deen of Allah Ta'ala. Its objective is not to kill people unnecessarily, especially in ways which are nugatory of the objective of Jihad. Those who propagate the permissibility of indiscriminate killing of women, children and even males who are non-participants in the actual fighting suffer from myopic mental vision. His view is moronic. Muslims are not expected to behave like the barbarians of the Western world who excel in torture and brutality. Torture, mutilation and indiscriminate killing are haraam. The Ahaadith explicitly prohibit killing women, children, monks in their monasteries, the blind and physically deformed persons. Also prohibited by Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) is unnecessary killing of animals, setting fire to vegetation and destroying orchards, All acts of unnecessary destruction are prohibited in Jihad. This command of Rasulullah (sallallahu alayhi wasallam) was strictly implemented by the Khulafa-e-Raashideen. If indiscriminate killing was allowed, then Rasulullah's prohibition to kill women, children, etc. would be meaningless. However, when those who are exempted from being killed also participate in the fighting or aid the fighting against Muslims or the kuffaar soldiers use them as shields, or they happen to be in the kuffaar barracks and fortresses which Muslims are attacking, then killing them becomes either unavoidable or necessary. But when they pose no threat to the Muslim army, it will not be permissible to kill them To kill women and children in retaliation for the barbarous acts of the kuffaar army is not permissible. Kuffaar are barbarians. Muslims are not supposed to acquit themselves as barbarians and savages. Placing bombs in marketplaces, churches, on trains and planes used by the general public and in other public places frequented by the ordinary people who are not involved in the actual fighting nor are they part of the war machinery, is not permissible. Those who advocate indiscriminate killing, either intentionally or stupidly, cast a blind eye on the Ahaadith and the rulings of the Fuqaha prohibiting such killing. Since they are not grounded in Knowledge, they lack the understanding of reconciling the apparently contradictory narrations. Killing those who are normally exempted, is the exception to the general rule, and is dictated by special circumstances. "Manning a machine gun on a ridge overlooking this remote Afghan village, U.S. Marine Cpl.Steven Norman tried desperately to lay down covering for some 90 Afghan security forces and U.S. military trainers who were trapped in an ambush in the valley below. Each time he'd raise his head to let loose a burst, however, the insurgents (i.e. the Taliban) in the encircling mountains would drive Norman down, drenching his position with cascades of machine gun and rocket-propelled grenade fire. "I was pinned down hard core.", recalled the 21-year-old from the 3rd Marine Division. ……Norman and other combat veterans who were caught in the ambush said it was the deadliest, most intense combat they'd faced in Afghanistan or Iraq. The insurgents never ran out of ammunition, and even wore helmets, flak jackets and military-style magazine pouches. "They were firing from every direction. They were well placed. We could hardly see them," Norman said. "They were very coordinated in their fire. When we'd suppress that fire, they'd hit us from somewhere else."……………. "The failed operation drove home other problems and complexities that U.S.-led forces are grappling with…. The Ganjgal people have an expression, he said: "It's up to you to come into the valley, but up to us to let you out." "And it's like all hell breaks loose. Literally, all hell breaks loose," remembers Major Shef Ford. The enemy (the Taliban) is firing from all directions at us. They had completely surrounded us and were firing at us with multiple systems." ………..But Ford and Sergeant Brendan O'Connor say they were shocked by the sustained, organized assault in the village. "We had not seen this disciplined execution of infantry tactics":, Sgt.O'Connor explains……..At one point the Taliban even broke through the Green Berets' perimeter…….. Maj.Ford called in air support. But the bombs couldn't stop the Taliban – they were everywhere. Over the radio, the translator, named Jacob, told Ford the situation was so dire that he was prepared to kill the two wounded Americans and himself just so they wouldn't be taken hostage…..Apache gunships were continuing to hammer Taliban positions, but the Green Berrets were still surrounded. They (the Taliban) surprised the Green Berrets with their skill on the battlefield. "And now I'm sitting here and you're talking about a force that not only uses American style combat and infantry tactics, but is able to engage America's finest warriors," Logan remarks. "That's correct," one of the soldiers replies. Two years after the battle, the village where the fighting took place – and much of southern Afghnistan – remain under Taliban influence." (Extracts from a report prepared by Tom Anderson, Max Clellan and Jenny Dubin) In fact the greater part of Afghanistan is under Taliban control. The Taliban are repeatedly making attacks on city barracks where the U.S. and its coalition forces are literally holed-up.