Mohamed Al Azaki is a journalist working in Yemen, the horn of Africa and a correspondent for OpEdNews. I interviewed him after publishing several of his articles which reported some disturbing developments in the Arab world.
rob kall: Tell me.. from your latest article, it appears that Muslims have a choice between loyalty to Islam or to Democracy-- that they cannot have both. Is this your observation, or also your opinion?
mohamed al Azaki: look, this is my observation, but the results and expectations in the article was my clear opinion based on tangible facts and information from many sources.
The article doesn't reflect my status, and doesn't mean that I'm extremist Muslim or that sympathizing with al-Qaeda, not at all.
I'm a moderate Muslim journalist, and I have many lovely foreign friends in the US, Canada, Britain, France, Spain and India, in addition also to many foreign friends working in western embassies and foreign companies here in Yemen.
I have also extremist Muslim friends claiming sympathy for al-Qaeda in many Arab countries. Well, I will not talk about those extremists because their positions - from the start of entering democracy into their world – were clear and strict towards refusing the democracy.
In fact, after adopting and living with the democracy system by moderate Muslim groups for approximately 15 years, the majority of moderate Muslims – yes I confirm this word "majority" – are now agreeing that Democracy was just an American trick aiming to destroy Islam principles and turn them into secularists due to the clear contradiction between Islam and democracy that backed by the US.
Of course, this is not happening in Yemen alone, but this is a voice of the Arab public, Arab streets in Yemen, Jordan, Egypt, particularly in Iraq and Palestine according to many programs, analysis and interviews made by the widespread Arab Al-Jazeera satellite television channel .
rob kall: It would be interesting to hear their perspectives and points of view. Regarding your current article-- it does appear, from the article that you may approve of jihad. You might want to add a comment that these are your observation. Or you may frighten some of your embassy friends.
mohamed al Azaki: As I have said, I'm just a Journalist and researcher on Islamic militants in which I must to write what I see and hear from the majority, not from the minority. And, of course, I'm not approving of Jihad, I rather try to convey their voices, ideas and intentions to the world; because the western and American media dislike paying attention towards them, on the contrary those media hear to the close friends and play the same role that Bush's administration plays, forgetting what the US government call it "enemies or terrorists."
rob kall: I want to be careful, because sometimes, in translation, the wrong message can be created unintentionally.
mohamed al Azaki: Mr. Kall, I think the good and neutral journalist is the journalist who sees and hears from both, friends and enemies...because the hearing just only from one side is a clear fraud and deception. I think you and others have the right to oppose someone's opinion, but it's not fair to force people to accept your opinion.
rob kall: Of course.
mohamed al Azaki: There is a difference between a man lives in the battlefield testing soldiers, and a man sits down in his office watching TV or reading magazine and then hailing the false victory of democracy or the fake triumph of Bush's war against terrorists.
When I say Jihad is coming, I say it according to the latest developments in Afghanistan, Iraq and Palestine that show the increasing of extremists and terrorists and the fast growing of their power, in addition to the strong sympathy and reaction in the other Arab and Muslim countries. Well, as Al-Jazeera's veteran journalist, Yousri Foudah, always likes – in his weekly TV programme - to comment on the sympathy and reactions of Muslim youths in different Arab states by calling them "Real fighters are coming".
Rob Kall is executive editor and publisher of OpEdNews.com, President of Futurehealth, Inc, inventor . He is also published regularly on the Huffingtonpost.com. He is a frequent Speaker on Politics, Impeachment, The art, science and power of story, heroes and the hero's journey, Positive Psychology, Stress, Biofeedback and a wide range of subjects. He is a campaign consultant specializing in tapping the power of stories for issue positioning, stump speeches and debates. He recently retired as organizer of several conferences, including StoryCon, the Summit Meeting on the Art, Science and Application of Story and The Winter Brain Meeting on neurofeedback, biofeedback, Optimal Functioning and Positive Psychology. See more of his articles here and, older ones, here.
To learn more about me and OpEdNews.com, check out this article.
and there are Rob's quotes, here.
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A few declarations.
-While I'm registered as a Democrat, I consider myself to be a dynamic critic of the Democratic party, just as, well, not quite as much, but almost as much as I am a critic of republicans.
-My articles express my personal opinion, not the opinion of this website.
Mandatory- the second change brought because of VultureTX
rob kall: Tell me.. from your latest article, it appears that Muslims have a choice between loyalty to Islam or to Democracy-- that they cannot have both. Is this your observation, or also your opinion?
Excuse me Turkey. Ya know the gateway to the Middle East? That acknowledged muslim democracy. Or did you screw up the translation and he meant ARABS instead of Muslims.
Gotta Wonder.
by
Vulture (0 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 150 comments)
on Sunday, October 8, 2006 at 5:05:55 PM
He said Muslims. Keep in mind it's his view of the Muslim world. I didn't translate. The interview was in English. In Iraq, I have a feeling there will be three nations, and the Kurdish one will have a chance at becoming a democracy. I doubt the Shia third will. The mullahs in Iran will be in charge, by proxy.
by
Rob Kall (804 articles, 3911 quicklinks, 329 diaries, 1693 comments)
on Sunday, October 8, 2006 at 5:54:16 PM
interesting perspective, but lacks factual accuracy
the fact is, the arabs have toiled under tyrannical regimes for decades; and even movements like the muslim brotherhood in egypt are trying to mobilize through the existing (flawed and corrupt) democratic process. popular movements in the middle east are routinely suppressed, to extent that civil society as such has been crushed and dismembered. the idea that they're rejecting democracy as a "trick" sounds like something out of bin laden's cia psyop handbook! they're yearning for democracy out there.
while there's no doubt that political aspirations in the region are mobilized within an islamic worldview, these movements would get nowhere if they didn't have a fundamental basis in popular legitimacy. the measure of success of these movements is whether they successfully articulate and practice a democratic, participatory islamic politics.
and the idea that al-qaeda type "jihadi" ideology is taking over the region is also simplistic and untrue. we had a report here from the royal institute of international affairs which confirmed precisely the opposite. yes, our interventions in iraq and afghanistan are a recruiting sergeant for terrorism; but on the 'muslim street' al-qaeda is being increasingly rejected.
by
Nafeez Mosaddeq Ahmed (23 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 4 comments)
on Tuesday, October 10, 2006 at 7:04:43 AM
Arab or Muslim, there is no difference...just get it!
Arab or Muslim, there is no difference...just get it!
Firstly: I would like to tell anyone who say that the Arab and Muslim world are yearning for democracy in their world, he was right...this idea is correct particularly when Palestinian Hamas movements won the elections and hold the government.
This person - who says that our world is over eager to adopt democracy – was right when Iraq carried its first free elections.
But now, if this person insists on his view, it's my pleasure to tell him that you are right now in definitely wrong. Why? I will tell you. Just be patient for few next weeks and see the huge supporters of Hamas...simply they will renounce their offices in the government; they will leave their ambition in democracy to something called "Jihad".
Here is a question, do you know that many supporters of Hamas have resigned from the movement in protest against Hamas' new policy towards Palestinian president and Israel and the world? If you said no, I will response you that you just follow the official news in many world media, and you lacked information and untold stories about what is happening in the Palestinians streets especially inside Hamas.
I think, Iraqi democracy is clear to open you eyes on the competition between Sunnis and Shiites and Kurds that even Iran itself fiercely wants to share the Democracy in Iraq. Of course, President Bush himself knows that Shiite are the dirty right hand of Iran in Iraq. Here is a link explaining this phenomenon including some information from Iraqi streets, not from state offices or American media, show who kills civilians.
In Egypt, Muslim brotherhood in Egypt ((since 1900)) has had tried to mobilize through the existing (flawed and corrupt) democratic process...that's right in Egypt, Jordan and Kuwait and Yemen...what is the new results? Just few seats in parliament or Nothing!
If any Muslim brotherhood parties in the Arab world win the elections, they will not be better than Hamas government, and all of them
**********
Secondly: the saying that the idea that al-qaeda type "jihadi" ideology is taking over the region is also simplistic and untrue. we had a report here from the royal institute of international affairs which confirmed precisely the opposite. yes, our interventions in iraq and afghanistan are a recruiting sergeant for terrorism; but on the 'muslim street' al-qaeda is being increasingly rejected.
Simply, ask yourself, why the Arab satellite channel Al-Jazeera TV insists to broadcast every new al Qaeda's type? Why al-Jazeera TV dedicated three or four program for al Qaeda?
Absolutely, Al-Jazeera clearly know how many many fans of al-Qaeda in the Middle East...the Arab and Muslim and the governments of all European countries and the United States, all trust al-Qaeda as a leading Islamic power...the news about al-Qaeda are the only thing trusted among poor Arab people. To be sure, you can phone al-Jazeera to get the right answer.
Go and get into mosques, examine what youths – from afar- are talking about, what kinds of papers they hide inside their clothes and pockets? Of course, they fear of police...but their heart and minds are forming to be other Zarqawisss in the region.
They publicly reject al-Qaeda's ideas because of police and security forces...but secretly they deliciously eat all things related to al-Qaeda.
You know the latest fashion at Arab youths, they wear al-Zarqawi's black hat, and calling it "Zarqawi hat"...you can find many western reports about this phenomenon that spread among youths particularly in Gaza strip.
You know what women and old sheiks and youths discussing when they gather drinking tea or coffee whether in Iraq, Jordan, Saudi Arabia, Yemen or Palestine...they say al-Qaeda is the only solution against America and Israel.
Over again, this is not my opinion, this is my observation from Media, streets, friends, secularists, socialists, moderate Muslims and extremists from Iraq, Palestine, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Somalia.
Finally, I'm not supporting jihad, rather I like to live in a peace world. I'm not against democracy, rather I would like to live in a peace transforming of power like what has happened in the latest peace and fair elections in my country, in which the moderate Muslim Brotherhood party, as usual, got a big loss since the beginning of democracy in Yemen in 1990.
by
Mohamed Al-Azaki (4 articles, 0 quicklinks, 0 diaries, 3 comments)
on Tuesday, October 10, 2006 at 3:29:46 PM
4 comments
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