Sunni extremists threaten to kill Christian converts in north

[Barrett808]

Source: IRIN

SULAIMANIYAH, 21 May 2007 (IRIN) - A Sunni extremist group - al-Qaeda in Iraq - has threatened to kill Muslim youths in the northern city of Sulaimaniyah should they convert to Christianity or Zoroastrianism.

"We are hunting those who have converted to Christianity or Zoroastrianism as we consider them renegades and God's punishment must be implemented by killing them," said a statement posted on the al-Farouk website on 22 April and signed by al-Qaeda in Iraq.

The statement, whose authenticity could not be immediately confirmed, also urged the youth to join " Mujahedin and hoist the jihad flag against the crusaders who are occupying Iraq, instead of supporting them."

"We are not afraid of them; in fact, they are welcome if they want to kill us," said Sabeer Ahmed, 37, who converted to Christianity seven months ago and works at Christ Church in the town of Pishdar in Sulaimaniyah province.

"We will be happy to be martyrs when we sacrifice ourselves for our religion," said Ahmed who works as a freelance journalist with Kurdish media groups.

Read more: http://mobile.alertnet.org/thenews/newsdesk/IRIN/7ca46a406345bbdcc66cbe239c85ebae.htm

[YOY]

1. Somebody needs a hug

n.t.

[Crayson]

2. They're all insane...

The djihadis as well as the converts... the whole bunch... they all live in the there-after because the now doesn't offer them anything.

All you can hope for is that this sickness doesn't spread.
Medieval europa was the same... followed by a period of science and sanity.
Also the middle east had such a period a looong time ago before the crusades.

[B3Nut]

3. God's punishment? Sounds like man's to me

"We are hunting those who have converted to Christianity or Zoroastrianism as we consider them renegades and God's punishment must be implemented by killing them"

If it's god's punishment, why does he need your help? If an all-powerful god exists he can do his own killing if he's that bothered, asshat. Only imaginary dieties need humans to do their killing for them.

But as long as we insist on continuing to stir up that hornet's nest, we keep fueling this crap.

Todd in Cheesecurdistan

[Chemical Bill]

4. Are the fundies still celebrating...

that we invaded Iraq and killed Saddam?

Bill

[mallard]

5. Re: news from the western front

Those adventerous enough in the media to reach the frontier areas between Shi'ite and Kurd might get a couple more inclusive interviews from the both sides. More reasons to hate Muslims. Boy these guys do put it out hard!

Bad imagery of another dimension. none of this shit would be happeneing if we hadn't satrted it - giving them all the valid reasons to hate us and leaving us with margin-filler media out risking their necks in the field to come back with this kind of crap to keep their precious occupation afloat.

Bilge away all you want, you're way below the waterline on reporting what aggregious acts go on daily now in Iraq, alternet.com!

[damntexdem]

6. Both 'people of the book.'

Members of both religions to be protected, according to the Quran.

Not that Al Qaida has anything real to do with the Quran.

[Igel]

7. But a convert from Islam to Xianity is an apostate.

He has left the superior revelation and gone to an inferior one.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Apostasy_in_Islam does a fairly neutral job: It points out that the various fiqhs allow for the death penalty in this case, based not on the Qur'aan but on the Ahadith. (Some allow it, others argue that it's an obligation.)

However, the fiqhs have been long established. More recently arguments based on the interpretation of a blip from the Qur'aan have been advanced; they're accepted by some, but denounced by others.

Even the status of the 'protected' people in Iraq is up for grabs; sure, they've properly submitted, but there are Xians that haven't submitted. Since most of the Middle East is communal to the core by tradition, that means--esp. for conservatives--that Xians are in a state of revolt. Welcome to that. Liberals are less communal, and see the "crime" of Xian 'oppression' either in individualistic or secular terms.