Salman Al-Farsi
25-11-05, 01:24 AM
Something rather repugnant ....
By
Yvonne Ridley
mail@yvonneridley.com (http://uk.f255.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=mail@yvonneridley.com)
While the killing of innocent people is to be condemned without question, there is something rather repugnant about some of those who rush to renounce acts of terrorism.
They rather remind me of trembling slaves all scuttling forth for the approval of the boss class in the hope of receiving a few crumbs from the big man's table ... oh, if only they knew how pathetic they really are.
I was reminded of such a vision just the other day when family members of Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi renounced the terrorist leader after he claimed responsibility for the November 9 bomb attacks on three Amman hotels that killed 61 people.
The extended family of al-Zarqawi, whose real name is Ahmed Fadheel Nazzal al-Khalayleh, not content with condemning his actions then went one step further - they reiterated their strong allegiance to Jordan's King Abdullah II in half-page advertisements in the kingdom's three main newspapers.
I'm not sure of their sudden urge to swear an oath of allegiance to the monarch was prompted by the fact al-Zarqawi had threatened to kill the king in an audiotape released two days earlier.
"A Jordanian doesn't stab himself with his own spear," said the statement by 57 members of the al-Khalayleh family, including al-Zarqawi's brother and cousin. "We sever links with him until doomsday."
I doubt the statement will be regarded as a serious blow to al-Zarqawi. I know he loves his mum - let's face it, we all love our mothers but who could really give a flying fig about some great, great aunt or ancient uncle once removed from a half cousin's wife's mother? OK, so he will no longer enjoy the protection of the tribe ... well that's not going to be a big deal either because they don't sound like the sort of tribe which would head off to help him in Iraq.
I mean he is hardly likely to bump into his cousins in downtown Fallujah or Ramadi to repel the foreign invaders and occupiers (that's the Americans and Brits to you and me).
The newspaper adverts droned on: "As we pledge to maintain homage to your throne and to our precious Jordan ... we denounce in the clearest terms all the terrorist actions claimed by the so-called Ahmed Fadheel Nazzal al-Khalayleh, who calls himself Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. We announce, and all the people are our witnesses, that we - the sons of the al-Khalayleh tribe - are innocent of him and all that emanates from him, whether action, assertion or decision."
The statement said anyone who carried out such violence in the kingdom does not enjoy its protection.
The al-Khalayleh tribe is a branch of the Bani Hassan, one of the area's largest and most prominent Bedouin tribes, which help form the bedrock of support for the royal family's Hashemite dynasty.
Relatives hold senior posts in the army and other government departments. Obviously they are keen to maintain that tradition.
Look, every family has its black sheep or that mad little aunt in the attic, but most of us just keep our own counsel.
However, this decision by al-Zarqawi's clan is a cowardly move. I mean who is benefiting from these newspaper adverts?
Several days before the adverts appeared, dozens of men from the al-Khalayleh tribe held a rally to denounce al-Zarqawi. "If my son was a terrorist, I wouldn't hesitate to kill him," said distant relative Mousa al-Khalayleh during Friday's rally, claiming he spoke on behalf of the tribe. "This is the slogan raised by the tribe as of this moment." Hmm, I wonder if Mousa would be that vocal if he was sitting in the company of al-Zarqawi.
This is not the first time the extended family has publicly washed its dirty linen. There was a similar message sent last year by some members of al-Zarqawi's clan to Abdullah. That message, which contained fewer signatories, severed links with the terrorist for claiming a failed plot in April 2004 that targeted the Amman headquarters of Jordan's intelligence agency, the prime minister's office and the US Embassy.
Officials have said thousands of people would have been killed had the attacks been carried out.
And how are the Jordanian royals reacting to this attack and threat? Well I suspect they are the real family which is quaking with fear and were so intimidated that they felt bound to 'ask' al-Zaqarwi's family to renounce his actions.
After the hotel explosions we had Queen Noor of Jordan, looking more like a Bollywood actress than a queen, delivering a little lecture on Islam to the effect that she and the Jordanian monarchy love Islam while the "terrorists" hate Islam.
What Queen Noor failed to explain on her CNN broadcast was that the three hotels, Hyatt, Days Inn and Radisson, are all US-owned and are seen as dens of iniquity by Jordan's reserved Muslim community.
Western TV viewers were also treated to images of "demonstrators" in Amman, waving Jordanian flags, condemning the assailants and telling Zarqawi to "burn in hell." What I can now tell you is that according to my man in the local Amman souk these demonstrators were Jordanian troops out of uniform as well as government lackeys. Their numbers were swollen with Christian and Muslim bedouins, all funded by the government ... no doubt courtesy of the boys from Virginia (CIA).
Few Jordanians would be seen dead carrying those tiny little flags which had been mass produced in a nearby factory only hours earlier.
Of course the Jordanian media - not the sharpest tools in the box - failed to ask any of the relevant questions.
I would want to know, for instance who paid for the half page adverts taken out in the country's top three newspapers? I would want to know who PAID for the 'spontaneous' demonstrations? Why did the security services - naturally a wee bit edgy after the bombings - allow such a demonstration to take place?
King Abdullah's name would be near each answer, I reckon. Naturally jumpy, I bet he panicked and, realising that he's no longer immortal, tried to put on a show to the world that he's really loved and adored by his people.
So for two days we were treated to a motley crew of around 1000 marching and protesting up and down the streets. I'm sorry Abdullah, I wasn't convinced.
That isn't to say I wasn't upset by the images which came blasting out of my TV. I mean we can not simply shrug our shoulders at the deaths of 61 people. But let's have a closer look at those who perished:
* Five of those who died were Iraqis who were working closely with America? in other words, collaborators. One Saudi, Indonesian and three Chinese intelligence officers were also wiped out. Shame, but those who live by the sword .....?
* And then there was the wedding party. OK, so the guests were part of Jordan's upper echelons of society, others had flown in from America and were known for their close ties to the monarchy. But that still doesn't mean they should be punished for their status in life.
Interesting though, that the bombers chose the bars serving alcohol for their martyrdom operations in two of the hotels. Now while we know alcohol is strictly haram, it's an Islamic ruling which the King of Jordan chooses to openly ignore, and in a Muslim country.
King Abdullah is a chip off the old block, really. Well they say the apple does not fall far from the tree. You see he is protected by his CIA bosses and looked after by Mossad. Daddy Hussain, was also a CIA stooge who was even prepared to openly support Israel at a time when the secular Arab regimes were supposedly united against Israel. Abdullah's grandfather too betrayed the Palestinians which also explains why he was killed by a Palestinian.
The late King Hussain slaughtered thousands of Palestinians during the notorious days of Black September. So bad was his retribution that Palestinians preferred to suffer the self-humiliation of seeking refuge in Israel than remain at the mercy of King Hussain.
And let's not forget it was King Hussain who handed over Jerusalem after pretending to put up a resistance.
Like his son, he couldn't care less what his own people think. Despite their overwhelming opposition to the illegal war in Iraq, the wishes of the Jordanian people were ignored - so much for democracy in the Middle East.
This is one of the most backward states in the whole region when it comes to democracy.
The regime routinely tortures its subjects - and anyone else's come to that. There's almost a shuttle service running to Jordan where obliging grunts from Jordan's intelligence services happily torture 'clients' sent to them by Uncle Sam.
In fact, to be brutally frank, Jordan provides backing, support and intelligence to the American military which is carrying out genocide in neighbouring Iraq. Thousands of residents have been wiped out in the cities of Tal Afar, Qaim, Karabila, Haditha and Husayba, as they had done earlier with Falluja. Masjids, schools and hospitals have been trashed, but not one peep of criticism comes out of Jordan or its mealy-mouthed media.
How on earth can these malignant rulers and corrupt journalists sleep at night? Hmm, I suppose when you have no backbone or conscience then it doesn't matter how lumpy the mattress is.
As I said earlier in this column, it is very hard to justify the deaths of innocents. But you know, I wonder if you see that attack on the Jordanian hotels in a different light now?
But let's get back to the original theme of this column - black sheep and family honor. I think I'd rather put up with a brother like Abu Musab al-Zarqawi any day than have a traitor or sell-out for a father, son or grandfather.
By
Yvonne Ridley
mail@yvonneridley.com (http://uk.f255.mail.yahoo.com/ym/Compose?To=mail@yvonneridley.com)
While the killing of innocent people is to be condemned without question, there is something rather repugnant about some of those who rush to renounce acts of terrorism.
They rather remind me of trembling slaves all scuttling forth for the approval of the boss class in the hope of receiving a few crumbs from the big man's table ... oh, if only they knew how pathetic they really are.
I was reminded of such a vision just the other day when family members of Jordanian-born Abu Musab al-Zarqawi renounced the terrorist leader after he claimed responsibility for the November 9 bomb attacks on three Amman hotels that killed 61 people.
The extended family of al-Zarqawi, whose real name is Ahmed Fadheel Nazzal al-Khalayleh, not content with condemning his actions then went one step further - they reiterated their strong allegiance to Jordan's King Abdullah II in half-page advertisements in the kingdom's three main newspapers.
I'm not sure of their sudden urge to swear an oath of allegiance to the monarch was prompted by the fact al-Zarqawi had threatened to kill the king in an audiotape released two days earlier.
"A Jordanian doesn't stab himself with his own spear," said the statement by 57 members of the al-Khalayleh family, including al-Zarqawi's brother and cousin. "We sever links with him until doomsday."
I doubt the statement will be regarded as a serious blow to al-Zarqawi. I know he loves his mum - let's face it, we all love our mothers but who could really give a flying fig about some great, great aunt or ancient uncle once removed from a half cousin's wife's mother? OK, so he will no longer enjoy the protection of the tribe ... well that's not going to be a big deal either because they don't sound like the sort of tribe which would head off to help him in Iraq.
I mean he is hardly likely to bump into his cousins in downtown Fallujah or Ramadi to repel the foreign invaders and occupiers (that's the Americans and Brits to you and me).
The newspaper adverts droned on: "As we pledge to maintain homage to your throne and to our precious Jordan ... we denounce in the clearest terms all the terrorist actions claimed by the so-called Ahmed Fadheel Nazzal al-Khalayleh, who calls himself Abu Musab al-Zarqawi. We announce, and all the people are our witnesses, that we - the sons of the al-Khalayleh tribe - are innocent of him and all that emanates from him, whether action, assertion or decision."
The statement said anyone who carried out such violence in the kingdom does not enjoy its protection.
The al-Khalayleh tribe is a branch of the Bani Hassan, one of the area's largest and most prominent Bedouin tribes, which help form the bedrock of support for the royal family's Hashemite dynasty.
Relatives hold senior posts in the army and other government departments. Obviously they are keen to maintain that tradition.
Look, every family has its black sheep or that mad little aunt in the attic, but most of us just keep our own counsel.
However, this decision by al-Zarqawi's clan is a cowardly move. I mean who is benefiting from these newspaper adverts?
Several days before the adverts appeared, dozens of men from the al-Khalayleh tribe held a rally to denounce al-Zarqawi. "If my son was a terrorist, I wouldn't hesitate to kill him," said distant relative Mousa al-Khalayleh during Friday's rally, claiming he spoke on behalf of the tribe. "This is the slogan raised by the tribe as of this moment." Hmm, I wonder if Mousa would be that vocal if he was sitting in the company of al-Zarqawi.
This is not the first time the extended family has publicly washed its dirty linen. There was a similar message sent last year by some members of al-Zarqawi's clan to Abdullah. That message, which contained fewer signatories, severed links with the terrorist for claiming a failed plot in April 2004 that targeted the Amman headquarters of Jordan's intelligence agency, the prime minister's office and the US Embassy.
Officials have said thousands of people would have been killed had the attacks been carried out.
And how are the Jordanian royals reacting to this attack and threat? Well I suspect they are the real family which is quaking with fear and were so intimidated that they felt bound to 'ask' al-Zaqarwi's family to renounce his actions.
After the hotel explosions we had Queen Noor of Jordan, looking more like a Bollywood actress than a queen, delivering a little lecture on Islam to the effect that she and the Jordanian monarchy love Islam while the "terrorists" hate Islam.
What Queen Noor failed to explain on her CNN broadcast was that the three hotels, Hyatt, Days Inn and Radisson, are all US-owned and are seen as dens of iniquity by Jordan's reserved Muslim community.
Western TV viewers were also treated to images of "demonstrators" in Amman, waving Jordanian flags, condemning the assailants and telling Zarqawi to "burn in hell." What I can now tell you is that according to my man in the local Amman souk these demonstrators were Jordanian troops out of uniform as well as government lackeys. Their numbers were swollen with Christian and Muslim bedouins, all funded by the government ... no doubt courtesy of the boys from Virginia (CIA).
Few Jordanians would be seen dead carrying those tiny little flags which had been mass produced in a nearby factory only hours earlier.
Of course the Jordanian media - not the sharpest tools in the box - failed to ask any of the relevant questions.
I would want to know, for instance who paid for the half page adverts taken out in the country's top three newspapers? I would want to know who PAID for the 'spontaneous' demonstrations? Why did the security services - naturally a wee bit edgy after the bombings - allow such a demonstration to take place?
King Abdullah's name would be near each answer, I reckon. Naturally jumpy, I bet he panicked and, realising that he's no longer immortal, tried to put on a show to the world that he's really loved and adored by his people.
So for two days we were treated to a motley crew of around 1000 marching and protesting up and down the streets. I'm sorry Abdullah, I wasn't convinced.
That isn't to say I wasn't upset by the images which came blasting out of my TV. I mean we can not simply shrug our shoulders at the deaths of 61 people. But let's have a closer look at those who perished:
* Five of those who died were Iraqis who were working closely with America? in other words, collaborators. One Saudi, Indonesian and three Chinese intelligence officers were also wiped out. Shame, but those who live by the sword .....?
* And then there was the wedding party. OK, so the guests were part of Jordan's upper echelons of society, others had flown in from America and were known for their close ties to the monarchy. But that still doesn't mean they should be punished for their status in life.
Interesting though, that the bombers chose the bars serving alcohol for their martyrdom operations in two of the hotels. Now while we know alcohol is strictly haram, it's an Islamic ruling which the King of Jordan chooses to openly ignore, and in a Muslim country.
King Abdullah is a chip off the old block, really. Well they say the apple does not fall far from the tree. You see he is protected by his CIA bosses and looked after by Mossad. Daddy Hussain, was also a CIA stooge who was even prepared to openly support Israel at a time when the secular Arab regimes were supposedly united against Israel. Abdullah's grandfather too betrayed the Palestinians which also explains why he was killed by a Palestinian.
The late King Hussain slaughtered thousands of Palestinians during the notorious days of Black September. So bad was his retribution that Palestinians preferred to suffer the self-humiliation of seeking refuge in Israel than remain at the mercy of King Hussain.
And let's not forget it was King Hussain who handed over Jerusalem after pretending to put up a resistance.
Like his son, he couldn't care less what his own people think. Despite their overwhelming opposition to the illegal war in Iraq, the wishes of the Jordanian people were ignored - so much for democracy in the Middle East.
This is one of the most backward states in the whole region when it comes to democracy.
The regime routinely tortures its subjects - and anyone else's come to that. There's almost a shuttle service running to Jordan where obliging grunts from Jordan's intelligence services happily torture 'clients' sent to them by Uncle Sam.
In fact, to be brutally frank, Jordan provides backing, support and intelligence to the American military which is carrying out genocide in neighbouring Iraq. Thousands of residents have been wiped out in the cities of Tal Afar, Qaim, Karabila, Haditha and Husayba, as they had done earlier with Falluja. Masjids, schools and hospitals have been trashed, but not one peep of criticism comes out of Jordan or its mealy-mouthed media.
How on earth can these malignant rulers and corrupt journalists sleep at night? Hmm, I suppose when you have no backbone or conscience then it doesn't matter how lumpy the mattress is.
As I said earlier in this column, it is very hard to justify the deaths of innocents. But you know, I wonder if you see that attack on the Jordanian hotels in a different light now?
But let's get back to the original theme of this column - black sheep and family honor. I think I'd rather put up with a brother like Abu Musab al-Zarqawi any day than have a traitor or sell-out for a father, son or grandfather.