(Saudi King) Abdullah: Extremists Have Hijacked Islam

[ovidsen]

From the (Beirut) Lebanon Daily Star

Compiled by Daily Star staff
Thursday, December 08, 2005

Abdullah: Extremists have hijacked Islam

Saudi Arabia's King Abdullah appealed to Muslim leaders on Wednesday to unite and tackle extremists who he said have hijacked their religion. At a meeting of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) - the world's biggest Muslim body - in the holy city of Mecca, Abdullah said the world's 1 billion Muslims were weak and divided, a description echoed by other leaders.

"It bleeds the heart of a believer to see how this glorious civilization has fallen from the height of glory to the ravine of frailty and how its thoughts were hijacked by devilish and criminal gangs that spread havoc on earth," Abdullah said.

The King seems to be pushing for a kinder, gentler Islam. You be the judge.

http://www.dailystar.com.lb/article.asp?edition_id=10&categ_id=2&article_id=20611

[C_U_L8R]

1. Hey Abdullah.. Same here

Extremists have hijacked Christianity.

With hope, Jesus or Mahdi or The Spaghetti Monster will come
down in his Flying Saucer (or in FSM's instance...Pasta Bowl)
to take all these Kooked-Out Krazies up into space and then let them go.

Lord hear our prayer.

[punpirate]

2. Hmm... the same Prince Abdullah who...

... tolerates the religious police and secretly pays off the radical mullahs who run the madrassas which teach Islamic extremism.

Now I get it....

[ovidsen]

3. Exactly my thoughts

Here the King is wondering what in Allah's name could have driven people of his faith to acts of violence and extremism.

And one of the answers, the Wahabi thought police, is right under his nose.

It's Islamic "puritans" such as these who are giving a very good religion a very bad reputation.

[AntiFascist]

5. At least al-Qaida won't be attacking the Saudi royals.....

since they're getting paid!

[madmark]

4. well the rhetoric is right and a start; but is the ruler of the country

most responsible for spread of the wahabi/al quada ethos throughout the world actually going to do anything more to reverse it.

[rodeodance]

7. He has money and power and should do something about it rather than

expect us to solve the problem (which Bushco oblidging is doing--poorly).

[enigma000]

6. Gerbel: Extremists have hijacked Nazism n/t

[The_Casual_Observer]

8. The "royals" live in constant fear that the "fundamentalists" will

eventually run their royal asses out of the House of Saud.

[sofa king]

9. Yeah, turn the plane back over to the kinder, gentler Islam of Wahhab.

...Because the Wahhabis are at least good enough pilots to fly a plane into a building.

[Igel]

10. I'm not sure he's pushing for a kinder, gentler Islam.

There aren't multiple distinct themes in the quotes and the points of views expressed: eschew extremism, be educated, have a united Muslim 'body politic'. There is but one theme.

And that thread is the dominance of Islam, specifically a Salafi or Wahhabi version. When Wahhabis and Salafists look down at others, all is fine. When others look down at Wahhabis' brand of Islam, all is emphatically not fine. Memri may be one sided, but one thing it pointed out recently is that Zarqawi's thugs looked down at the kind of Islam that bin Laden preached--and bin Laden's is very close to the official Sa'udi line (taken to it's logical and ineluctable conclusion) from the early '90s.

When things go 'boom!' and kill Jews or Westerners, it's not a problem. When groups operate and make things go boom! in Sa'udi Arabia, it's inconvenient. Unless they target Muslims. Then it's a problem. Division is weakness.

When non-Muslims are ignorant, it's as it should be. When Muslims are ignorant, it's wrong. Ignorance is weakness. Mahathir's point was the same: Muslims have to learn technology so as to kick ass, not just be independent.

When Muslims conquer far and wide, it's as it should be. When Muslims are conquered, it's wrong. Submission to others is weakness.

Islam must not be weak. Islam must manifest its true glory.

[ovidsen]

12. Serious food for thought, and I thank you. n/t

[Megahurtz]

11. For somebody rubbing elbows

with the Bush Cabal for you-know-why it kinda makes ya wonder where that idea come from. :eyes:

[madeline_con]

13. He's just now figuring that out?! n/t