Scroll down for report on "NYC: Jury Deliberates in Daniel
Penny Manslaughter Trial" by Sr. Aisha and
"A Guest House Rumi" by Sr. Yasmin
Syria
Dictator Assad Wanted His Family to Own Syria, But the
Muslims Decided Otherwise
By Kaukab Siddique
Starting around November 30, the people of Syria rose up in
the city of Aleppo. They had lived under the heel of Hafez
al-Asad, father of the current tyrant, since 1971. When that
dictator died in June 2000, his son, Bashar Al-Assad
immediately assumed power, never mind that Islam prohibits
dynastic rule.
Scores of Syrians were tortured under his reign. According
to the Syrian Observatory for Human Rights (SOHR), more than
7,000 people died under torture in Assad's prisons. Several
million Syrians left the country because of government
harassment, imprisonment, or the threat of imprisonment. As
a result of the dismal human rights situation, popular
sentiment against the regime snowballed. The government's
support base remained the Alawites (an offshoot of the Shia
sect to which Bashar al-Assad belongs), the Shia, and
various armed groups from across the region.
Finally, while the Assad regime was engaged with other
forces, including Israel, the Syrian people seized the
moment. They turned their guns on the forces of Bashar
al-Assad. There was an armed uprising in Aleppo. After
fierce fighting, Assad's forces were driven out, many of
them killed.
Fighting Spreads from Aleppo to Hama, then to Homs
By December 4, the fighting in Aleppo had shifted towards
Hama. After a stiff battle with Assad's troops, the
mujahideen drove them out.
The capture of Hama by mujahideen is hugely symbolic. This
is because the elder Assad (Hafez) brutally attacked and
conducted a month-long siege of the city beginning in
February 1982, killing or disappearing around 40,000 people.
Any young man Assad suspected of opposing him could be
arrested, tortured, or even killed. That calamitous event
became known as the Hama Massacre. Back then, the regime
destroyed most of the city using war planes and tanks.
In the current fighting, mujahideen entered and took over
the city of Hama after a severe battle. They captured it in
a matter of hours. Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) led the
offensive under the direction of Abu Mohammed al-Golani.
By December 7, they had taken Homs, a city viewed as
strategically important in accessing the Syrian capital of
Damascus. A couple of small towns near Homs are considered
Assad strong holds. For a while, the regime attempted to
deny that Homs had been taken, but it was clear from reports
by the Syrian Observatory on Human Rights that it was indeed
in the hands of Islamic fighters. In fact, Islamic fighters
released a large number of prisoners from that city's
prison. (BBC, December 7, 2024)
Early on December 8, Islamic fighters had taken Damascus,
with next to no resistance from the regime. One of their
first acts was to take over the state media. The fighters
issued a statement over that media characterizing the events
of the past few days as the "victory of the great Syrian
revolution and the downfall of the criminal Assad regime."
(Middle East Eye, December 8, 2024)
The People Destroy the Symbols of Their Oppression
In Jaramana, a neighborhood of Damascus, the statue of Hafiz
al-Assad has been torn down. And in Hama, a statue of Bashar
al-Assad's brother, who was military officer in charge of
the city's destruction in 1982, was torn down. Across the
country, posters of Bashar al-Assad were torn down by
jubilant crowds. These moves symbolize the peoples' anger
against the regime, and are a reminder of the fact that
Islam prohibits statues, particularly as a form of
self-aggrandizement by rulers.
Mujahideen Free Tens of Thousands of Prisoners
One of the first acts by Hayat Tahrir al-Sham (HTS) in
capturing Hama was the symbolic releasing of prisoners from
the city's central prison. (ABC News, December 5, 2024)
Similarly, the mujahideen freed prisoners, including many
women and children, from the Sednaya prison. This is a large
military prison on the outskirts of Damascus where the
Syrian government detained thousands. Their statement
afterwards read: "We celebrate with the Syrian people the
news of freeing our prisoners and releasing their chains and
announcing the end of the era of injustice in Sednaya
prison. (Reuters, December 8, 2024).
A video showing the release of women and children being
freed from the prison is here (Middle East Eye, December
8):
And in Homs, commander of the Islamic forces, Hasan Abdul
Ghani, announced over the social media outlet X that more
than 3,500 inmates had been freed from prison. (BBC,
December 7, 2024)
Where does the US stand on all this?
Clearly the U.S. did not view Assad as a danger to their
strategy to maintain hegemony in the region, and turned a
blind eye to his government's egregious human rights abuses.
As city after city falls to Islamic control, the US is
silent, and may be in a quandary. It has characterized Hayat
Tahrir al-Sham, the main Islamic group leading the
"insurgents," with the usual t- word reserved for groups it
cannot control, or which fight for national liberation. And
at the same time, the human rights abuses and murders at the
hands of the Assad regime are too great to ignore, far
greater, some experts say, even than those committed by
Israel against the Palestinians. For now, the official White
House line, is that President Biden and his team are
monitoring the "extraordinary events in Syria" and are in
touch with "regional partners." Who are the regional
partners with whom they are in touch? The munafiq Arab
regimes and Israel.
Breaking news: Bashar Al-Assad boarded a private jet and ran
away from Syria before the mujahideen reached Damascus. The
Muslims are saying Damascus is finally free of the tyrant
Al-Assad. The people are in Assad's house. (Middle East Eye,
December 8, 2024). Huge celebrations are ongoing in
Damascus' Umayyad Square.
Editorial comment: We praise Allah Almighty for the great
victory of Islam in Syria. One of the worst tyrants in the
history of the Middle East has run away. He should be
arrested and brought to trial.
Juma'ah at ISWA
On December 6, the editor attended juma'ah at the Islamic
Society of the Washington Area (ISWA). The masjid is located
just outside of metropolitan Washington, DC, in Montgomery
County, one of the most affluent counties in the nation. It
is attended by Africans, Indians, Pakistanis, Banglas, and
others.
It was one of the friendliest receptions the editor has
gotten at any masjid, since becoming wheelchair-bound. At
least three people offered to help him get from his vehicle
to the building, and others assisted him in the restroom and
prayer hall. ISWA's imam, Faizul Khan, was welcoming as of
him, as he was with all the juma'ah attendees.
Just inside the masjid, a table was set up by another
masjid, Al-Rashidun. Al-Rashidun is a grassroots mosque in
Northeast DC with a long-standing tradition of outreach to
unhoused DC residents, nursing homes, and others in need.
Masjid volunteers take the food, toiletries, and other
essentials to these populations. They hold events about
political prisoners, e.g. Imam Jamil Al-Amin. And the imam
of the mosque has spoken at multiple events for Pakistani
political prisoner Dr. Aafia Siddiqui.
But now, Al-Rashidun is being forced out by the property
owners, who have decided to sell the property. That is why
Al-Rashidun volunteers were in the halls of the host mosque,
ISWA, raising funds (while building community), as they work
toward relocating to another property they have identified
in Southeast DC.
Meanwhile, the ISWA khutbah, while non-political, was of
immediate social relevance. It was delivered by a young
khateeb who seemed very aware of the potential negative
effects of social media. He pointed out that many Muslims
waste their time on social media, posting videos which have
nothing to do with Islam. Sometimes they even post videos in
the middle of the night, he said. If you're awake at that
hour, you should instead get up and say the tahajjud prayer;
and you should be sure you can get up for the fajr prayer,
he emphasized.
After juma'ah salaat, the editor met Masjid Al-Rashidun's
imam, Imam Ali. The latter had been incarcerated at
Lewisburg Penitentiary at one point. Imam Ali immediately
recognized Br. Kaukab as the imam who visited Lewisburg to
support the Muslim inmates. The editor notes it was good to
see Imam Ali outside of the prison walls.
NYC: Jury Deliberates in Daniel Penny Manslaughter Trial
By Sis. 'Aisha Jamaat al-Muslimeen New York City
Daniel Penny is an ex-Marine on trial for killing Jordan
Neely, a former Michael Jackson impersonator. The jury is
still deliberating, but now it is only for criminal
negligence rather than the manslaughter charge because Judge
Maxwell Wiley dismissed it. The Prosecutor recommended the
judge dismiss it when the jury returned twice saying they
were deadlocked.
Penny's defense team requested a mistrial before Judge Wiley
dismissed the most serious charge. Criminal negligence not
only has a maximum sentence of only four years but, serving
any jail time is at the judge's discretion. So, Daniel Penny
can walk free!
Either the judge will eventually declare a mistrial or
Penny, who is white, will be acquitted of all charges in the
killing of Jordan Neely, who was black. I never believed
that the prosecutor's office was serious about getting
justice for Neely's family for two reasons:
The video showed three men kill Neely. The two other men
were never sought or charged.
The prosecutor wasted time seeking a grand jury indictment
when video evidence was enough for him to indict.
If the legal system is a chess board the prosecutor is the
queen.
In a Newsweek article, the New York Chapter of Black Lives
Matter (BLM) accused the jury and the judge of being white
supremacists. Hawk and Chivona Renee Newsome are New York
chapter founders.
After news of the manslaughter charge being dismissed after
just a few days of deliberations, Hawk, said, "Today, white
supremacy got another victory." Chivona criticized the jury
saying, "No matter the facts, no matter the expert
witnesses, no matter the people yelling on that train that
day to let Jordan go, you will kill him—they will not
find a white man guilty of killing a Black man in modern-day
America."
Hawk also accused the Penny defense team of using a white
supremacist specialist in selecting white racist jurors. The
prosecution also accused Penny's lawyers of eliminating
jurors based on race, but the prosecutor has the most power
in the jury selection process.
Why is the prosecution accusing the defense team of racism?
Since when is any defense team supposed to play fair with
the prosecutors? And, nowhere in the article did BLM direct
any criticism toward the prosecution. The judge worked in
collusion with the prosecutor to dismiss the manslaughter
charge.
The defense team is supposed to use whatever legal means to
defend their client. If the prosecutors are crying foul,
they could get away with claiming they could have won their
case against Daniel Penny were it not for his underhanded
defense team.
On May 1, 2023, an irate Jordan Neely was on a New York City
subway train. Passengers were unnerved by his behavior but
Neely touched no one.
Source: NYPost.com & Newsweek.com
Guidance from Sis. Yasmin
A Guest House (Rumi) - A Guide from Beyond (A Deep and
Ponderable Poem!)
A Guest House
This being human is a guest house
Every morning a new arrival...!
a Joy,
a Depression,
a Meanness,
some momentary awareness comes
as an unexpected visitor...{!}
Welcome and entertain them all {!}
Even if they are a crowd of sorrows...
who violently sweep your house
empty of its furniture !
still treat each guest honorably !
He may be clearing you out for
some new delight.
The Dark Thought,
the Shame,
the Malice,
meet them at the door laughing...!
and invite them in...!
Be grateful for whatever comes,
because each has been sent
as a guide from beyond.