The poets of old Arabia were equivalent to our TV presenters. They tended to make fun of Muhammad and his claims of prophethood. Muhammad was determined to eliminate this mockery.

Muhammad was sorely tried by several poets. One was Asma bint Marwan. When her latest verses were recited to the Prophet, he cried out, "Will no one rid me of this daughter of Marwan?" Umayr ibn Ali, a clansman of hers volunteered. That night she was sleeping, her youngest child still at her breast, when her clansman thrust his sword through her. On that day new converts were won as they could see the power of Islam.24

A month later an almost identical situation occurred. This time it was the poet Abu Afak, reputedly over a hundred years old, who raised the Prophet's ire. Muhammad exclaimed: "Who will avenge me on this scoundrel?" and Salim ibn Umayr was the helper of God.

A poet, Ka'b ibn al-Ashraf who was partly Jewish was deeply upset by Muhammad's actions. Ka'b went to Mecca to agitate the Quraysh against the Prophet, who determined to rid himself of Ka'b and his satire. Kab's foster-brother and some accomplices pretended that they were conspiring against the Prophet so that they could lure Ka'b out of his fortress. They succeeded in tbis and having killed him exultantly presented the head of Ka'b to the Prophet.
On one occasion after the Prophet had recited from the Revelations, a poet Nadr by name rose to his feet and said that he also had tales of old but that, unlike Muhammad, he admitted that his were only stories. Sura 83 was Allah's reply:

"Woe on that day, to those who treated our signs as lies,
Those that deny the Day of Judgement.
None can deny it but the transgressor, the criminal,
Who when Our signs are rehearsed to him, says
"Tales of the Ancients".
By no means, but on their hearts is the cover of rust ...

Muhammad's old enemy, Abu Jahl was killed and his head brought triumphantly to him. The Muslims lost fifteen dead but the Meccans about seventy and, in addition about the same number were captured. Two of these the Prophet had executed-Nadr for laughing at him and his divine revelations and Uqba for throwing offal at him in Mecca. When Uqba asked him, "But who will take care of my sons, Muhammad?", he answered him "Hell!"24
The worst five mockers of Muhammad had been warned in Revelation thus: "We shall suffice thee against the mockers who worship another god with Allah; they will know." 11 Indeed they did find out. Gabriel came to the Prophet while the five were ambulating around the Ka'bah. "When the first mocker passed by, Gabriel threw a green leaf in his face and he became blind. He pointed to the abdomen of the second, who died of dropsy. The third had a scar on his heel which opened again and killed him. When the fourth passed by he pointed to the soul of his foot, and thereupon a thorn penetrated it and the man died. When the fifth man passed by Gabriel pointed to his head and it began to ferment with poison and he died." 12

Aba Dawud Book 38, Number 4348
A blind man had a slave-mother who used to abuse the Prophet and disparage him. He took a dagger and killed her Judging him, the Prophet said, " Oh be a witness, no retaliation is payable for her blood." And similarly (38A349) "A Jewess used to abuse the Prophet. A man strangled her till she died The Apostle of Allah declared that no recompense was payable for her blood."

3 Nov 97 Sectarian Murders in Pakistan
Over 370 people have been killed in Karachi so far this year for religious and political motives.
1 Nov Seventy five year old Shiite cleric, Syed Shamin Hasan Kazi was gunned down in his mosque. The next day, in retaliation, three Sunni clerics were shot and burnt to death while travelling in a van in Karachi.

11 April, 1997 Iranian State Terrorism
A German court has found an Iranian and two Lebanese (Iran payrolls Hizbollah) guilty of the murders of Sadeh Sharafkandi, exiled leader of the Iranian Democratic Party of Kurdistan and three other dissidents. The assassinations took place in the Mykynos Restaurant, Berlin in 1992. Implicated were Iranian President Rasfanjani and Islamic leader Ayatollah Khameini.

To digress, even in Australia there have been suspicious deaths including that of the Chairman of the Coptic Human Rights Commission, Dr Makin Morcos. On the very night in 1991, after he had given a talk on ethnic radio about the persecution of Christians in Egypt, he was gunned down presumably by the Gama'a Islami.

6 Jan. 1999 Hardline Fundamentalists Assassinate Critics in Iran
Today the Ministry of Intelligence of the Islamic Republic of Iran admitted that "rogue elements" in its own ranks had been arrested for the killings of dissidents.
Majid Sharif, a translator and journalist who contributed to the now banned publication Iran-e-Farda, was found dead in a morgue in Tehran on 24 November 1998; Mohammad Moukhtari, a poet who was one of six writers questioned for trying to set up an independent writers' association called "Kanoun" was found dead on 3 December 1998 bearing marks of having been strangled; and Mohammad Ja'far Pouyandeh, an essayist and translator was found strangled on 11 December. We reported last month the murder of two other dissidents, Dariush and Parvaneh Foruhar who had been stabbed to death.

12 May 1998 Attempt to Kill Human Rights Activist in Turkey
Two men dressed in dark suits demanded an interview with Mr. Akin Birdal, President of the Association of Human Rights. They shot him 8 times and he is in a private hospital in Ciyigi in a critical condition.

24/4/98 Iran Accuses Iraq over Leading Cleric's assassination
Iran blames Iraq over the killing of 70 year old Sheikh Morteza Ali Mohammed Ebrahim Borujerdi, Shiite leader in the holy city of Najaf, southern Iraq. In London, the Iraqi opposition group, the Al-Khoei Foundation accused Saddam's agents for the attack, saying the Sheikh had been a senior candidate for the position of grand spiritual leader of Shi'ite Muslims worldwide
23/3/98 Twelve GIA members have been charged with the murder of French Roman Catholic bishop at Oran in August 1996. It is claimed that the group planted the bomb which killed Monsignor Henri- Pierre Claverie and his bodyguard during a ceremony for 7 French priests also killed by Islamic militants.

Algeria - A Few Days in December
10 Dec 1998 GIA (Armed Islamic Group) bands attacked three villages near Tadjana, 170 km southwest of Algiers killing 81 people on their hit lists. (They singled out families with relatives in the civil defence forces.) They slashed the throats of children, cutting off the arms and legs of one of them. Killing children does not follow the role model of the Prophet. (As in the previous article, he would not kill males who did not have pubic hair.) They also kidnapped 20 women who in the past

31/10/98 Rushdie Still Under Threat
Although the moderate President of Iran has softened his stance on the British author of the "Satanic Verses", Salman Rushdie's life is still in danger. Thousands of Iranian clerics and theological students have pledged a month's salary for the killing.
October 1993 As predicted, Salman has apostacised from Islam. He is probably no worse off as his earlier conversion did not mitigate the fatwa against him. In 1991, the Japanese translator of "The Satanic Verses" was stabbed to death and the translator of the Italian version was knifed. A few days ago, his Norwegian publisher was shot twice in the back.


27/11/95 Release 13 Persecution of Christians in Turkey
Resurgence of Islam in Turkey threatens the few remaining Christians in that country. (One and a half million Armenian and six hundred thousand Greek Orthodox and Catholics were killed between 1913 and 1922.)
They are being assassinated and girls abducted to marry Muslims. Christian schools are forced to teach Islam and conscripts are forcibly circumcised. Churches are attacked and some even converted to mosques. Grave-yards have been violated. Theological seminaries have been closed and whole villages evacuated.
Hezbollah (Party of God) can thus act with impunity while the Turkish Army stands by.

18/11/95 Release 11 Elections in Algeria
Congratulations to the Algerian people for defying the Armed Islamic Group (GIA) and going to the poll in droves (74 per cent turnout). They had been threatened with death for voting but they are tired of the civil war which has cost over 30,000 lives.
Assassinated have been journalists, government bureaucrats, pop singers and even girls who went bathing in Western costumes or who did not wish to cover their hair.

17/6/99 Twenty Islamists Jailed in Egypt
Twenty members of al-Gamaa al-Islamiya received jail terms ranging from 5 years to life for planning an attack on the palace of President Mubarak in 1996. In 1995 Islamists fired on his car while he was visiting Ethiopia. Since 1992 when the campaign began over 1200 people have been killed. The Islamic group aims to overthrow the secular Egyptian government and replace it with a strict Islamic state.

From "Some Islamic History"
It was ironic when, on the 6th October 1981, the Ikhwan (Muslim Brotherhood) assassinated President Sadat for the "appeasement of Israel", because his domestic policy was actively promoting their cause

23/5/97 Kidnapping and Assassination Attempts in Chechnya
Gunmen fired on the car of the Chechen Islamic Republic, Aslan Maskhadov as he was driving to work on Sunday. The president was unhurt but Adam Tamkayez was killed and his brother, Danilbek Tamkayev, top presidential aide, critically wounded. In March, a remote-controlled mine exploded near Maskhadov's motorcade.

25/3/99 Germany Arrests Islamic Leader
Muhammad Metin Kaplan, leader of a fundamentalist group within Hilafet Devleti ("Islamic State") has been charged with forming a terrorist organization, to wipe out critics and defectors and ordering the murder of his rival- Halil Ibrahim Sofu was shot to death in Berlin in May 1997. Kaplan's group seeks to overthrow the Turkish government and install fundamentalist rule.

Rushdie still Targeted
Ayatollah Hassan Saneii says that Salman Rushdie will be killed when the time is right. His Khordad Foundation has offered $US 2.8 million to anyone who commits the deed. Apostates (those who desert Islam) were killed by Prophet Muhammad so the custom is Shariah (Islamic Law).

28/11/99 Moderate Muslim Assassinated in Algeria
Algerian police have rounded up dozens of Islamic radicalsfor questioning about the murder of the third-in-command of FIS (Islamic Salvation Front) Abdelqader Hachini. Hachini was committed to ending the conflict in Algeria which has claimed 100,000 lives since 1992. The GIA (Armed Islamic Group) opposes the peace plan and wishes to set up an Islamic state
.
21/10/99 Kislali Assassinated by Bomb in Turkey
Prominent secularist university lecturer and academic Ahmet Taner Kislali,60,father of three, died on Thursday when he picked up a parcel left on the roof of his car in an Ankara street. Kislali was critical of fundamentalism and was an advocate of a secular, democratic Turkey. He had traded words with a Muslim sect which had said that the deadly earthquake in Turkey in August was divine retribution for the country's rejection of Islamic law. (See August "Left Shoe News") No one has claimed responsibility but police suspect the outlawed IBDA-C (Great Islamic Eastern Raiders Front)

2 Oct. '99 Sectarian Violence Continues in Pakistan
Two activists of the Shiite Muslim Tehrik-e-Jafria party were killed today by two men on a motorcycle. The night before four Sunni Muslims were gunned down outside a religious school in Karachi. Earlier in the day a Shiite doctor, vice president of the PMA in the Punjab, an assistant and a patient were gunned down in Lahore. Nine worshippers were killed when Sunni gunmen attacked a Shiite mosque in Karachi during prayers.

From "Two Faces of Islam"
The other face of Islam is power: "Religion and politics are two sides of the same coin in Islam." (G.H.Jansen, a Muslim, in "Militant Islam"). Similarly Siddiqi notes "that Christianity in its early history did not aim at setting up a state, whereas Islam, from the very beginning was a politico-religious institution."2 For example, while human life is sacred, execution in Dar-al-Islam and assassination in Dar-al-Harb may be necessary to protect the interests of Allah for as the Qur'an says, "Mischief is more grievous than homicide."3 The nawwam (sleeper) in Dar-al-Harb who has been kept for such a special task for 5 or even 20 years will unwrap his gun and carry out his long-awaited orders.
Iran is now murdering Christian leaders. The Reverend Mehdi Dibaj had converted from Islam to Christianity 45 years ago. On 21/12/93 he was sentenced to death on charges of apostasy. Released on appeal his body was found on 5 July 1994. The Reverend Haik Mehr, Superintendent of the Church of the Assemblies of God, who had campaigned against Dibaj's death sentence was found dead on 20/1/94. On 2 July 1994 the body of the Reverend Tatavous Michaelian, Chairman of the Council of Protestant Ministers in Iran was found with several gun shots to the head.

19/7/98 The GIA has claimed responsibility for the death of Berber singer Lounes Matoub. "It is common knowledge that the slain Lounes Matoub was among the most stubborn enemies of religion and the Mujahideen (Holy warriors)", their statement read.