Comments on: The Friday of Reaction and Bigotry

By: amina

amina — Thu, 18 Aug 2011 02:07:26 +0000

It’s good that we saw such an invasion of them because now we know basically what the numbers are, also remember that very same night there was an attack by armed Salafists in Sinai, the same one I have to assume who were allowed back into Egypt from Afghanistan….I’m still trying to figure out who let them in…I mean strange timing. The other good news is that it opened up the door in many talk shows & news shows in Egypt& world wide to discussions around this sect & on air discussions were rather frightening for all Egyptians, especially as Salafist movements are totally against many traditions the Egyptian people hold very dear religiously. It’s also good that they showed how hypocritical they are and that they do not hold their word, or keep their promises.Now the thing is to seize the momentum.There is no way that Sharia has worked anywhere,& each country that professes to rule by Sharia seems to have quite different Sharia than another.That is to say in KSA women aren’t allowed to drive, in Iran they can be race drivers, in Somalia they aren’t allowed to wear bras(?), in Malasia & Sudan they aren’t allowed to wear trousers, in Afghanistan they aren’t allowed to live basically; When the prophet pbu immigrated to Yathrib, it became “el Madina” the city, because he ruled over all religons fairly & justly;He also had an agreement with Koraish(Mecca)that no Muslim would go to Mecca for 10 years & v.v. so that when a group of Muslims from Mecca came to him seeking relocation to Madina, he refused & sent them back to Mecca saying that he had made an agreement & had to keep his word…..so it seems that our Salafists are behaving not only contrary to Gods laws but in addition to the Prophet’s pbu teachings, & this can hardly be described as Islamic by any means.Those who did prove they were truly Islamic in keeping their word & trying to resolve problems created by the Salafist attitude were the young members of the Brotherhood, kudos to them for being correct & keeping their word.
So all in all the Salafists had a much worse day than all of us because the facade of holier than thou has been destroyed.Now we must concentrate on more important issues…

By: Julian

Julian — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 09:49:32 +0000

Thanks for this. You guys don’t need any advice from me, but congratulations for sticking to the correct, as well as brave and principled, line in relation to the state and the islamists. The pressure must be enormous.

By: Tigger

Tigger — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 07:10:43 +0000

I’ve been watching Rageh Omaar’s “The Life of Muhammad” .

I’d have to say, I knew much of this already, having lived for many years in an area of London with many Muslims.

That said, it makes clearer than ever the degree to which The Prophet (PBUH) believed in different groups: Muslim and non-Muslim, living side by side in peace and equality.

I suppose it would be far too much to ask that moderate Muslims should denounce the Salafists as *profoundly* un-Islamic?

By: Reader

Reader — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 01:35:48 +0000

People should be free to express their views. I am happy that there was no violence and people from the far left to the far right could exist in the same square with opposing demands with no clashes. People who carry Salafi views are a segment of the Egyptian society that political parties can not ignore. The same apply to Christians too. I think the stage is set to have a centrist coalition that unite some Islamic centrist parties, centrist liberal parties and centrist social movements.

Salafi ideas flourish in societies where there is no chance to exchange and question ideas and that is why they flourished under Mubarak. Two or three years from now, they will lose a significant number of followers to political and social movements that can better address their needs. In addition, interaction with other forces will help improve their acceptance of others.

By: Joshua Dunn

Joshua Dunn — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 01:08:09 +0000

The Islamists seem to have a more competent strategy for acquiring power. You can’t break down something like SCAF easily, especially from the outside, especially from the outside AND non-violently.

That’s how it looks from here anyway. SCAF doesn’t seem to be backing down, so you’re going to have to either BEAT them, or JOIN them…

By: Atle

Atle — Sat, 30 Jul 2011 00:04:47 +0000

Thanks for this account, Hossam. Scary stuff.