After the deadly Christchurch attacks that took place on March 15, the Jewish Federation of Greater Pittusburgh started raising donations for the bereaved families of the attack victims.

The New Zealand Jewish Council president along with some 25 to 30 people arrived at the mosque for a lunch time ceremony, and handed over the cheque to the Christchurch Foundation—with the aim to establish the Abrahamic fund.

Visitng mosque for the first time was a marvellous experience for Yasmin Sellars, a member of Canterbury Hebrew Congregation.

Most of the Jewish visitors visited the mosque for the first time, and they were more inquisitive about connecting the dots of similarities between Islamic and Judaic faiths. For them the ceremony was much valuable to understand each other’s faith than a mere money transfer.

“I have obviously seen a Mosque in movies and television before. All I was doing was comparing how do we do things, and the first thing was there’s no chairs,” exclaimed Sellars.

After both the communities interacted, they joined Christchurch mayor Lianne Dalziel for lunch and hand over the extraordinary gift to the Muslim community.

“The world will remember the response long after they remember the person who committed this atrocity. They will never forget those whose lives were so cruelly taken on that day,” said the mayor.

Christchurch Muslim society applauded the grand gesture expressed by the Jewish community whereas on the other-side of the globe ongoing Palestinian and Israeli conflict has brought utter disgust and hatred between the two communities. Members of both the communities see such genuine acts as “extinguisher” to put off the hatred between them.

The Muslim Brotherhood after them have only expounded on the fascist policies of Nazi Germany and created a huge rift between people.

Turkish President Recep Tayib Erdogan never fails to try gaining political brownie points out of every Muslim tragedy.

Erdogan is a chronic war-monger and his political party (the  Muslim Brotherhood or Ikhwanul-Muslimeen) is the one that is responsible for Islamophobia in the first place.

Let us also not forget for one second that this same political party (the Muslim Brotherhood) was aligned with the Nazi party of Hitler to expand the fascist communist ideologies of the Nazi party in Middle East.

If anyone has any issues with this claim, then please feel free to see the photos on the internet from the many meetings between Palestinian Mufti Haj Amin Al Husseini and the leader of the Third Reich Adolf Hitler.

To put matters into context, Hajj Amin Al Husseini was Grand Mufti of Jerusalem and he was also the leader of the Arab Higher Committee. Though his goals of pan-Arabian unity and his denunciation of the Balfour declaration may seem noble and heroic to some Muslims, his policies and methods are far too sinister.

He is also said to have reached an understanding with the Nazi Party’s second in command, SS chief Heinrich Himmler to ensure that the Jews being expelled from Germany and German occupied territories do not migrate and settle into Palestine. The ReichFuhrer Himmler is said to have reassured the Mufti that they have “found a solution for this issue” and offered assurances that this would not happen.

Let us contrast this with the methods of the great conqueror Salahuddin Al Ayyubi (may Allaah have mercy upon him). He conquered Jerusalem without bloodshed and allowed its inhabitants to live within it in peace. And the second Caliph of Islam, the Amir Al Mumineen Omar ibn Khattab (may Allah be pleased with him) before him did the same.

The Christians and Jews have always lived in peace in Muslim lands but the policies of the Arab Higher Committee and then the Muslim Brotherhood after them have only expounded on the fascist policies of Nazi Germany and created a huge rift between people letting Muslims believe that ALL people of other faiths are our enemies set to destroy us and hence they must always be treated with hostility, contempt and often violence. This led the youth to resort to extremism and violence throughout the years which has directly contributed to Islamophobia and the present situation.

So the most peaceful and just religion in this world is now most feared and people are killing Muslims just for being Muslims.

And we come back to this war mongering Turkish leader who is fuelling the fire that his ideology helped spark in the first place. It’s a full circle.

Amanda Gillies, the AM Show news anchor said that she agonized over whether to cover her hair with a peach-colored scarf.

TV news in New Zealand on March 22. #HeadScarfForHarmony pic.twitter.com/6hn3zW7g74

— World HijabDay (@WorldHijabDay) March 22, 2019

“There’s no way a week ago that I would have, because I would have thought it would have been deemed inappropriate, not right, that I was insulting the Muslim community,” Gillies said.

“I’ll be honest – I did angst over it today whether I should wear it, because I didn’t want to be inappropriate or offend the Muslim community. But I know that they are so welcoming and accepting of it, and I know that a lot of women will wear it today because it just shows that we are united – the solidarity is there, the love and support is there.”

Rafaela Stoakes, a 32-year-old mother of two, said wearing the Islamic head covering gave her an insight into what it means to stand out and feel part of the minority.

Female Police officers and non-Muslim volunteers who were directing the crowds near the mosque in Christchurch were all wearing headscarves. In fact, all of them wore if for the first time.

“It is amazing how different I felt for the short time I was out this morning,” Stoakes told AFP.

“There were a lot of confused looks and some slightly aggressive ones,” she said.

“I did feel a sense of pride to honour my Muslim friends, but I also felt very vulnerable and alone as I was the only person wearing one,” she added.

Kate Mills Workman, a 19-year-old student from Wellington, posted a selfie on Twitter wearing a green headscarf.

“If I could I would be attending the mosque and standing outside to show my support for my Muslim whanau (extended family in Maori language) but I’ve got lectures and I can’t really skip them,” she told media.

“Obviously this is all spurred on by the terrible tragedy in Christchurch, but it’s also a way of showing that any form of harassment or bigotry based on a symbol of religion is never okay,” she added.

“As New Zealanders, we have to make a really strong stand,” she enthused.

Friday’s memorial incident boosted motivation in the Muslim women of New Zealand to take pride in their Hijab, and a courage to stand against the odds, despite the Islamophobes continue to abhor them, but all regular citizens of New Zealand stand as an extended family to the Muslim women.

The Australian National Imams Council has called on Imams to dedicate this Friday’s Khutbah (sermon) to the Christchurch mosque terrorist attack.

“This is a human and an international tragedy, not only a Muslim and NZ tragedy. These acts of terror are there to divide us…and we reject this in all its forms and ways, but rather we will stay united and strong,” said PM Ardern.

“I cannot tell you how gutting it is… a family came here for safety and they should have been safe here,” she added.

She has declared a ban on semi-automatic and military-style rifles on Thursday, within six days of the massacre. Her prompt and proactive response to the terrorist attack has won global applause.

On the other hand, the bodies of victims from New Zealand’s mosques mass shooting were carried in open caskets on the shoulders of mourners into a large tent at Christchurch’s Memorial Park Cemetery on Wednesday — the first burials of the 50 victims.

The majority of the victims in the South Island city were migrants and refugees from countries like India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia, Turkey, Somalia, Afghanistan, and Bangladesh.

The youngest was a boy of three, born in New Zealand to Somali refugee parents, while the first two victims buried were a father and son Khaled and Hamza Mustafa, who came from war-torn Syria.

“Seeing the body lowered down, it was a very emotional time for me,” said Gulshad Ali, who had traveled from Auckland to attend the first funeral.

Male mourners were dressed in long thobes, Kurta-Payjama, while female mourners wore abaya, hijaabs, and scarfs.

Heavy Police protection was granted, who stood guarding the funerals with flowers in their revolver holsters and on their high powered rifles.

Al-Noor mosque has been cleaned and is repaired for the Friday prayers, while the Muslim community show resilience to return to the mosque.

The terrorist Brenton Tarrant was remanded without a plea and is due back in court on April 5, when police said he was likely to face more charges.

Global intelligence agencies from America, Australia, Canada and Britain are building up a profile of the terrorist Tarrant.

“I can assure you this is an absolute international investigation,” Police Commissioner Mike Bush said at a media briefing in the capital Wellington.

PM Ardern visited Cashmere High School earlier this week in Christchurch which lost two students in the attack, Sayyad Milne and Hamza Mustafa.

She addressed over 200 students at the school auditorium about racism and changes in gun laws. She urged students not to mention the terrorist’s name —“Never mention the perpetrator’s name … never remember him for what he did, rather focus on victims.” she said. — Reuters

King Salman during a cabinet meeting reiterated that religions are made to sustain peace rather violence, and urged everyone to fight against those who incite hatred, SPA reported.

All the council ministers expressed utter grief over the unfortunate deaths of over 50 people during the Christchurch terrorist attack in New Zealand.

Saudi’s Information Minister, Turki bin Abdullah al-Shabana said, “The cabinet reiterated the Kingdom’s condemnation of the terrorist attack.”

“We stress the kingdom’s encouragement of respect for all religions, and we call to criminalise and fight all hate speech that can lead to terrorism,” al-Shabana added.

The Friday’s terror-act was the outcome of constant and subtle Islamophobia that went unnoticed for years in the western countries, which led a White-supremacist terrorist Brenton Tarrant to carry out horrible terrorist attack against the Muslim community of New Zealand.

President Recep Tayyip Erdogan screened a montage of videotaped snippets from the attack on Muslim houses of worship in an apparent attempt to galvanize his pious, conservative base ahead of March 31 local elections. At televised rallies in Istanbul and Tekirdag to the west, he showed blurred fragments of suspected attacker Brenton Tarrant’s online manifesto and his livestream from the massacre in Christchurch, New Zealand, which claimed the lives of 50 people.

The suspected attacker, who ranted about Turkey in his manifesto, “targeted Turkey and me,” Erdogan said. The Turkish leader then pivoted to assail the leader of Turkey’s main opposition CHP party, Kemal Kilicdaroglu, who was shown in the campaign video, for talking about “terrorism rooted in the Islamic world.”

A CHP spokesman denounced Erdogan for trying to make political capital out of the killings. “Is it worth showing this bloody massacre in order to gain a few more votes?” Anadolu news agency cited spokesman Faik Oztrak as saying on Sunday.

Erdogan invoked anti-Muslim sentiment to prod his devout supporters to close ranks at the polls amid an economic slump that’s taking a toll on the nation of 82 million. Turkey’s economy entered a technical recession last year following a crash in the lira that also sent inflation to more than five times the official target of 5 percent.

In his manifesto, Tarrant railed that Turks must get out of the country’s European sector, vowing to “kill you and drive you roaches from our lands.”

“We are coming for Constantinople and we will destroy every mosque and minaret in the city,” which will be “rightfuly Christian-owned once more,” he said, referring to modern-day Istanbul.

Tarrant twice visited Turkey for a total of 43 days in 2016, Erdogan said, vowing to “uncover the connection soon.”—Bloomberg

Australian Senator Fraser Anning made disgusting remarks on the New Zealand Shootings, however, I regret to have to mention his name, as he is not worthy to mention, but he took it upon himself to begin his memo by condemning the actions of the terrorist Brenton Tarrant, the sick gunman who took a video of his rifle killing Muslims in two different mosques, then he continued his memo in a fiasco of blaming Muslim immigration for this event.

Here are some of his points along with my responses:

Allegation: “However, whilst this kind of violent vigilantism can never be justified, what it highlights is the growing fear within our community…of the increasing Muslim presence.”

Response: Fraser is letting the action of a single lunatic represent the feelings of the general masses.  So he is basically saying that ordinary Australian and New Zealand citizens are no different than Brenton Tarrant.  Anyone can act out of fear, take a gun, and go into houses of worship and kill Muslims indiscriminately.

Allegation: “The real cause of bloodshed on New Zealand streets today is the immigration program which allowed Muslim fanatics to migrate to New Zealand in the first place.”

Response: Fraser is fueling Islamophobia.  The old story of demonizing a minority is all too fimilar, governments do this in order to create a boogeyman to justify their actions of state terrorism.  Has Fraser not studied what happened to the Jews in World War II?

Allegation: “Let us be clear, while Muslims may have been the victims today, usually they are the perpetrators.  World-wide, Muslims are killing people in the name of their faith on an industrial scale.”

Response: Bring us statistics of attacks on innocent people in Australia and New Zealand, or any other Western country, and please tell us what percent of the perpetrators of all of the attacks are Muslims.  The catch here is that attacks on innocent people are terrorism by definition, so Fraser must call all such attacks as acts of terrorism, otherwise, statistics will be biased because terrorism seems to only be used when Muslims do such things.

Allegation: “The entire religion of Islam is simply the violent ideology of a sixth century despot masquerading as a religious leader, which justifies endless war against anyone who opposes it and calls for the murder of unbelievers and apostates.”

Response: Muhammad, Allaah’s praise and peace be upon him, was respected by his contemporaries and even by his worst enemies during his time.  Those who treated him and his followers the worst by killing, torturing, boycotting and so on,  were all forgiven when Muslims ultimately had the upper hand after conquering Mecca.  So please explain to us, from classical Islamic scholarship, where we Muslims are instructed to kill disbelievers indiscriminately.

Allegation: “The truth is that Islam is not like any other faith.  It is the religious equivalent of facism.  And just because the followers of this savage belief were not the killlers in this instance, does not make them blameless.”

Response: Yes, Islam is not like any other faith, it is a complete way of life based on singling out Allaah in worship without associating any partners with Him in what exclusively belongs to Him.  This includes practicing Islam both on a personal and public level.  Islam is the antithesis of secular democracy, human beings are not allowed to legislate man-made laws at the expense of divine laws.  This is not facism, rather, it is monotheism.

Allegation: “As we read in Matthew 26:52, ‘all they that take the sword, shall perish by the sword’ and those who following a violent religion that calls on them to murder us, cannot be too surprised when someone takes them at their word and responds in kind.”

Response: World War I + World War II = 105,000,000 dead.  Go back to the crusades and tell us about European Christians killing Muslims, Jews and East Orthodox Christians in the holy land.  Tell us about today’s ongoing “crusade” as described by George W. Bush, the so-called war on terror, the millions of Muslims who died in Iraq and other places around the world.

Conclusion

Fraser should know that those of religion who kill indiscriminately are not truly following God.  In Islam in particular, there are limits that a believer is to adhere to. The Noble Qur’an is full of verses with stern warnings on this major sin, for example, and this applies to all, not just the Children of Israel (Jacob peace be upon him):

“Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption [done] in the land – it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one – it is as if he had saved mankind entirely. And our messengers had certainly come to them with clear proofs. Then indeed many of them, [even] after that, throughout the land, were transgressors.”   [Noble Quran 5:32]

Professor Wasim Ismail originally belongs to Palestine settled in Canada. He writes under his Facebook account Objective Truth Seeker.

The Director, as-Sudays, also stressed that Islaam’s teachings treat the sanctity of people’s lives as a very serious matter and its teachings seek to protect them.

Director of General Presidency for Affairs of al-Masjid al-Haraam and the Prophet’s Masjid states that targeting of two New Zealand mosques is a terrible crime in a chain of reckless acts of terrorism and turmoil.

The Director of the General Presidency for Affairs of al-Masjid al-Haraam and the Prophet’s Masjid, his eminence ash-Shaykh ‘Abdur-Rahmaan ibn ‘Abdil-‘Azeez as-Sudays, issued a statement on his behalf as well as on behalf of all the Imaams, Khateebs, scholars, teachers, and staff at al-Masjid al-Haraam and the Prophet’s Masjid. In it, he condemned the terrorist attacks in which two New Zealand mosques were targeted. He underscored that what took place constituted a crime and an act of corruption, hostility, terrorism, and oppression.

His eminence cited the statements of Allaah, the Most Exalted, “You must not take the life of anyone whom Allaah has forbidden, unless he is proven guilty of a crime which merits punishment”—Quran 6:151, as well as, “If someone deliberately kills a believer, his recompense will be the hellfire where he shall dwell permanently, and Allaah will be angry with him, expel him from His mercy, and prepare for him a severe torment”—Quran 4:93.

His eminence also cited the statement of the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), “The entire world coming to an end is less significant to Allaah than the life of a Muslim being taken without right.”

The Director of the General Presidency called for people to fulfill Allaah’s commands and avoid His prohibitions, and to also beware of all acts of crime, violence, and terrorism since these are tremendous evils which demolish societies and their stability. Instances of terrorism like the ones perpetrated are deceitful criminal acts which opponents of Islaam utilize to make nations of the world an arena for carrying them out and they aim to have them happen even more in lands of Muslims, especially the Land of the Two Holy Mosques.

The Director further noted that unlawfully taking anyone’s life is oppression, aggression, and terrorism which completely contravenes Islaam’s teachings. The Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) stated, “A person has much reason to continue hoping for Allaah to grant him mercy and direct him to perform righteous deeds, as long as he does not shed anyone’s blood unlawfully.”

The Director, as-Sudays, also stressed that Islaam’s teachings treat the sanctity of people’s lives as a very serious matter and its teachings seek to protect them.

His eminence called for people in general to beware of deviant ideologies. He also encouraged all people to work towards establishing safety in all its forms, especially when it comes to safeguarding people’s lives and wellbeing. He emphasized the gravity of making mosques, places of worship, and worshippers the targets of acts such as the recent atrocities that were perpetrated.

Mosques are to be maintained, populated for worship, and kept clear of anything that detracts from the message they fulfill; let alone be made a scene of crime, destruction, and violation of sanctity. Allaah, the Most Exalted, said, “No one could be more unjust than those who prevent the name of Allaah from being mentioned in His mosques and strive to ruin them. Such people are not to enter them except in fear of Allaah’s punishment for their wrongdoing. In this world they will be subjected to humiliation, and in the hereafter they will face severe punishment”—Quran 2:114.

The Director of the General Presidency underscored that these terrorist acts will only serve to strengthen our unity and steadfastness. He remarked that by Allaah’s permission, the bullets of terrorism will fall when they hit the rock-solid mountain of the unity that exists among our leaders and general public.

In closing, his eminence prayed for Allaah to grant the deceased His mercy and forgiveness, and to be pleased with them. He prayed for the recovery and wellbeing of the injured, prayed for the leaders of Muslims, and extended his condolences to the families of the deceased.

He prayed that the families be granted steadfastness, and that they be guided to seek Allaah’s reward by persevering through this difficult time.

He further prayed that Allaah protect this nation, as well as all lands of Muslims, from the hostility of opponents and the terrorism of the malicious who lie in wait for an opportunity to attack. He also implored Allaah to grant continued safety, security, stability, and tranquility to this nation, as well as all lands of Muslims, since Allaah is the One who hears all prayers and responds.

“We condemn in the strongest terms the terrorist attack that took place in New Zealand. We condemn terrorism in all its forms, regardless of its source, and that terrorism has no religion and no homeland,” the official Jamiat statement stated.

“We strongly denounce the horrific incident that targeted worshippers in two mosques in New Zealand, resulting in dozens of people being killed and injured,” it added.

It further stated, “We express our deep sorrow and condemn the terrorist operation that claimed dozens of lives and injuries which clearly reflected one of the worst forms of inciting hatred in a world that is in dire need of the values of love, harmony and peace.”

Jamiat also condemned the ISIS and Al-Qaeda, and requested Government to impart justice and prosecute the terrorists.

“This barbaric work is added to the parallel models of the acts of ISIS and Al-Qaeda, and our league always emphasizes the importance of tackling extremism and to counter extremism. Particularly, to act upon the legislation that prevents all forms of incitement of hatred, including religious and ethnic contempt.”

“We request the government to bring those involved in this crime to justice and to prosecute them as terrorists,” it added.

The Ulema council said, “We strongly condemn the recent terrorist attacks that have targeted Muslims praying at two mosques in New Zealand which has resulted in several deaths and injuries, including children.”

“We expressly condemn, in the strongest possible terms, this brutal and savage crime carried out by radicalized terrorists,” the Ulema council added.

They appealed the global community to establish a law to criminalize racist speeches since it breeds extremism and terrorism.

The Ulema council said, “We call upon global community, organizations and institutions in all countries, to hasten to legally criminalize all racist speech as it fuels extremism and terrorism and leads to such savage terrorist attacks.”

“We are certain that standing up to all forms of racist speech which marginalizes and ostracizes the other, in an obligation. This is because such divisive speech does not serve global peace and security,” it added.

The brutal terrorist attack on Friday in New Zealand has claimed 49 innocent deaths of Muslim worshipers while 40 are critically injured. The terrorist barged into the mosque and blindly shot at anyone whom he sighted.

The first victim was a 71-year-old Afghan refugee who greeted the terrorist with a smile yet he received dozens of bullets into his feeble body.