China takes foreign diplomats to Lhasa

BEIJING  ( 2008-03-28 09:58:01 ) : 

A group of Beijing-based foreign diplomats were scheduled to leave for Tibet's riot-hit capital Lhasa on Friday for a two-day trip organised by the Chinese government, embassy officials said.
Diplomats from a number of countries including the United States, Britain, France, Australia and Italy were to participate in the trip, which came on the heels of another government-arranged tour for foreign journalists.
"I suppose the objective of the Chinese foreign ministry is to basically answer the international calls including from the Australian government to have diplomatic access to Tibet," said Janaline Oh, an Australian embassy official.
She said embassies in Beijing were only informed about the planned trip on Thursday, while an Italian embassy spokeswoman said the representatives were expected back on Saturday night.
One diplomat said that the embassies had been allowed to send one official each, although there was no official comment on the trip from Beijing and it was not clear how many countries were going or had been invited.
In Washington, State Department spokesman Sean McCormack welcomed the move, but said it was not enough.
"We see this as a step in the right direction, but it's not a substitute for the ability of our diplomats, as well as others, to travel not only to Lhasa, but into the surrounding area specifically," he told reporters.
China took a foreign media delegation to Lhasa on Wednesday for a three-day trip following international pressure to allow independent reporting from the Tibetan capital after it was sealed off due to the unrest.
AFP and some other major news organisations were not invited.
Two weeks of deadly demonstrations against China's rule of Tibet have put China under international pressure as it prepares to host the Olympics in August.
China has insisted its response to the protests, the biggest challenge to its rule of Tibet in decades, has been restrained and that it has brought the situation under control.

Plane with Comoran rebel leader lands in Reunion

 

SAINT DENIS  ( 2008-03-28 11:15:53 ) : 

The rebel leader of the Comoros island of Anjouan, Mohamed Bacar, arrived in Reunion on Friday to an uncertain future, two days after his ouster by Comoran and African Union forces.
He was flown in on a French military C-160 Transall plane from Mayotte, another French possession in the Indian Ocean, where Bacar asked for asylum after being driven off Anjouan on Wednesday.
Twenty-three Anjouan soldiers accompanied him on the flight to Reunion.
French officials had declared on Thursday that, upon his arrival in Reunion, Bacar would be placed under investigation for landing illegally on Mayotte in possession of weapons.
At the same time, they were weighing whether to grant his asylum request.
In the Comoros capital of Moroni, security forces on Thursday used tear gas to disperse 1,000 people trying to march on the French embassy demanding that Bacar be sent back to face trial on charges of torturing opponents.
Groups of youths made renewed attempts to reach the embassy and were again fought back by police, while Comoran Defence Minister Mohamed Bacar Dossar demanded that France to hand the French-trained officer over.
"We understand the disappointment of our Comoran brothers, we will do everything we can to ensure that Bacar and his accomplices are brought back and sent to court in the Comoros," Dossar said.
A Frenchman who heads a primary school in Moroni was attacked by a mob as he headed to work, a French diplomat told AFP. He was not seriously wounded.
Anjouan exiles also staged angry protests in Mayotte on Thursday in which cars were burned and houses damaged, witnesses said.
Bacar defied months of warnings to end his self-proclaimed presidency of Anjouan -- the third largest island in the Comoros archipelago -- before he was finally ousted on Tuesday by the invasion force.
The Comoran Human Rights Foundation called on France to extradite the ousted rebel leader immediately.
The group urged France "to prove its solidarity with Comoros and the Comoran people by extraditing him without delay and avoiding bothersome administrative and diplomatic procedures."
Yves Jego, the French secretary of state for overseas territories, said France was studying Bacar's request for political asylum and an answer would be given "as fast as possible, I hope".
In parallel to the asylum request, "Mr Bacar will be the subject of appropriate judicial procedures," foreign ministry spokeswoman Pascale Andreani told journalists in Paris.
French security forces guarded the main Pamandzi airport on Mayotte where Bacar was taken Thursday and closed off the road linking it to the main police station where several angry Anjouan exiles had gathered.
Demonstrators hurled stones at cars belonging to French nationals and two were injured, witnesses said. Exiles said they were outraged at the protection given to Bacar, who faces accusations of torturing his opponents.
Mayotte is in the same chain of islands as the Comoros, but opted to remain French when the Comoros became independent in 1975. Bacar, and 23 of soldiers and associates, arrived there on Wednesday and sought refuge with a brother.
Bacar "entered Mayotte illegally where he was immediately apprehended and disarmed by the French authorities," Andreani said in Paris.
France backed the invasion by 1,400 Comoran and African Union troops and loaned the AU force the ships used to take them to Anjouan at dawn, but it has no extradition agreement with the Comoros.
The Comoran and African Union forces battled die-hard supporters of Bacar on Wednesday as the central government vowed to set up an interim administration on Anjouan this week.
At least 11 civilians were wounded in the operation, hospital sources said.
Comoran Vice President Ikililou Dhoinine is running an interim administration on Anjouan ahead of a new transitional government expected by the weekend. New elections have been slated for May.

Zimbabwe security forces on full alert ahead of polls

HARARE  ( 2008-03-28 15:31:03 ) : 

Zimbabwe's army and police were placed on full alert on Friday on the eve of the country's general election as security chiefs vowed to thwart any Kenya-style violence in the poll's aftermath.
"The defence and security forces of Zimbabwe are on full alert from now onwards covering the election period and beyond," said Augustine Chihuri, commissioner general of the police, in a statement read on behalf of the country's security chiefs on Friday.
Chihuri said anyone who harboured "evil" intentions should be aware that "the defence and security forces are up to task in thwarting all threats to national security."
His comments came at a news conference attended by all security chiefs, including the head of the army, prison service and intelligence services.
"We discourage acts that could lead to anarchy," they said.
"Also those who have been breathing fire about the Kenyan-style violence should be warned that violence is a poor substitute for intelligence and that it is a monster that can devour its creator, as it is blind and not selective in nature," he said.
The warning came as the opposition and witnesses said security forces had started deploying water cannons and tanks in some parts of the capital.
President Robert Mugabe, facing his fiercest battles since sweeping to power 28 years ago, this week issued a stark warning to his challengers that he would not tolerate post-election violence.
In power since independence in 1980, Mugabe has been taken on in the race in the joint parliamentary and presidential polls by long-time opposition leader Morgan Tsvangirai and his finance minister Simba Makoni.

Dalai Lama appeals for talks with Beijing

NEW DELHI: The Dalai Lama appealed to China Friday to enter into "meaningful dialogue" over the crisis in Tibet, asserting he did not want to undermine the Beijing Olympics and was not seeking independence.
In an open letter to his "Chinese brothers and sisters," the exiled spiritual leader said he was a "simple monk" trying to preserve "the Tibetan people's distinctive culture, language and identity."
He warned, however, that Chinese "state media's portrayal of the recent events in Tibet, using deceit and distorted images, could sow the seeds of racial tension with unpredictable long-term consequences."
"Even at this juncture I have expressed my willingness to the Chinese authorities to work together to bring about peace and stability," he said in the statement, carried by his exiled administration's website Tibet.net.
"I have appealed to the leadership of the PRC (People's Republic of China) to clearly understand my position and work to resolve these problems. I urge the Chinese leadership to exercise wisdom and to initiate a meaningful dialogue with the Tibetan people," the message said.

Arab leaders gather for low-turnout summit in Damascus

DAMASCUS: Almost half of Arab leaders are boycotting a weekend summit hosted by Syria, an Arab League official said on Friday, as US allies snub Damascus over the political crisis in Lebanon.
Syrian President Bashar al-Assad will host the leaders of Algeria, Comoros, Kuwait, Libya, Mauritania, the Palestinian Authority, Qatar, Sudan, Tunisia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, the official said.
With US allies Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan sending only low-level delegations, only 12 leaders from the 22-member body will attend the two-day summit which opens on Saturday.
The leaders of Iraq, Morocco and Oman will also be absent, while Lebanon is boycotting the event.
As leaders began gathering in Damascus on Friday, Assad greeted the first arrival Comoran President Ahmed Abdallah Sambi, followed by Iraqi Vice President Adel Abdel Mahdi.
Damascus airport has been closed to all commercial flights until Sunday for the leaders' arrivals.
On Thursday, Syria's press hailed the summit a success due to the absence of US influence, a reference to the boycott by the heads of state from several regional US-friendly heavyweights.

Eight killed in Indian temple stampede

 

BHOPAL  ( 2008-03-27 10:33:25 ) : 

At least eight people were trampled to death and 10 seriously injured in a stampede at a Hindu temple in central India, officials said.
The stampede happened late on Wednesday, when thousands of villagers were making their way to a temple during an annual fair in remote Karila village, about 260 km (160 miles) from Bhopal, the capital of Madhya Pradesh state.
"It was simply an accident as people who attempted to enter the temple by climbing over a railing fell," Geeta Mishra, a senior government official, said on Thursday.
Authorities sealed the temple gates and were investigating the stampede.
In rural India, insufficient security to control crowds often causes stampedes and deaths.
In 2005, about 265 pilgrims were killed at a stampede near a temple in the western state of Maharashtra.

Bush, Hu press North Korea over nuclear arms declaration

 

WASHINGTON  ( 2008-03-27 11:13:44 ) : 

US President George W. Bush and his Chinese counterpart Hu Jintao pressed North Korea on Wednesday to come clean over its nuclear arms program, as South Korea warned that time and patience were wearing out on Pyongyang.
In a day of intensive diplomacy, the White House said Bush telephoned Hu to help get North Korea to make a full declaration of its nuclear arms program, while Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice met with her South Korean counterpart to keep up the heat on the Stalinist state.
"The two presidents pledged to continue to work closely with the other six-party partners in urging North Korea to deliver a complete and correct declaration of all its nuclear weapons programs, and nuclear proliferation activities and to complete the agreed disablement," a statement said.
"Bush expressed appreciation to President Hu for the important role China has played within" the six-party talks, which it chairs and are aimed at ending North Korea's nuclear weapons drive, added the statement. North Korea has refused to make a "complete and correct" declaration of its nuclear weapons program and alleged proliferation activities as part of an aid-for-disarmament deal agreed to by the six parties -- the United States, China, the two Koreas, Japan and Russia.
"It's time to bring this to a conclusion," Bush's National Security Advisor Stephen Hadley said of the ongoing effort by the parties to get North Korea to come forward with a full declaration. "This has been going on for a while."
The declaration was supposed to havtion to Syria.
"It was time, I think, for the president to signal to Hu Jintao that it's time for all of the parties of the six-party talks, including China, to re-engage with North Korea," Hadley told reporters.
Rice said Pyongyang's reluctance to provide the declaration was holding up the six-party talks, which had to lay the groundwork for North Korea to dismantle its nuclear arsenal -- the final phase of its denuclearization effort which Washington wants concluded before Bush retires in January 2009.
"It is really time now for there to be movement on the declaration so that with that declaration we have, we can move forward on the next phase," Rice told reporters after talks with South Korean foreign minister with Yu Myung-Hwan.
Yu said, "I think time and patience is running out.
"I hope North Korea will submit the declaration as soon as possible so as not to lose good timing," he said.
Rice said the declaration and any associated documents should show the full range of the North Korean nuclear programs and activities "so that there can be an effort to verify and to deal with anything that has happened concerning North Korean programs and proliferation and the like.
"We've been concerned about North Korean proliferation for quite a long time. The six-party framework should be able to deal with this problem or these problems so that we can stay on course to the denuclearization of the Korean peninsula," she said.

Govt to unveil policies soon’

ISLAMABAD: The new government will soon unveil its programme to deal with serious problems confronting the country including fight against scourge of extremism and terrorism, Interior Ministry Spokesman Brig (retd) Javed Iqbal Cheema said here Tuesday.

The situation is fast returning to normal in Swat, he said, adding after the policy guidelines by the Prime Minister the Interior Ministry will then spell out its action plan for maintaining law and order to curb the menace of terrorism.

He said the security forces seized three illegal FM radio stations in Swat last week for broadcasting messages of militants. In addition twelve suspects were arrested and a large quantity of illegal small arms, ammunition, audio cassettes and provocative literature was recovered and confiscated during the week, he told weekly media briefing.

To a question he said the Ministry is negotiating with the government of China for purchase of explosive detectors and scanners to avoid suicide attacks.

These equipment would be installed at entry and exits points of main cities, border and other security zones.

He said the last eight days witnessed momentous national events including inaugural session of National Assembly, Eid-e-Milad un Nabi (peace be upon him), Pakistan Day and Good Friday festivities of the Christian community.

The law enforcement machinery remained on high alert and no incident of disruption or violence by anti-state elements was reported from any part of the country despite strong indication of terrorists attacks, he added.

To a question about probe by UN investigation team into Benazir assassination, Cheema said "it will be government's discretion."

China tries to isolate Dalai Lama, speaks out against France trip

 

BEIJING  ( 2008-03-26 15:01:04 ) : 

China stepped up pressure to isolate the Dalai Lama on Wednesday, opposing talks between the Tibetan spiritual leader and French officials during his proposed trip to France in August.
China's foreign ministry said it was firmly against meetings between the Dalai Lama, whom it blames for recent deadly unrest in Tibet, and officials from any other country.
"The Chinese government resolutely opposes official contact of any kind between any country and the Dalai Lama," said foreign ministry spokesman Qin Gang.
"China resolutely opposes the Dalai Lama going to any other countries in any capacity to promote his separatism from China."
Qin was responding to a question about the Dalai Lama's proposed trip to France in August and possible meetings with French officials, including President Nicolas Sarkozy.
China has already this week denounced US House speaker Nancy Pelosi for meeting with the Dalai Lama, and last week spoke out against a plan by British Prime Minister Gordon Brown to meet him in May.
A Tibetan spokesman said on Tuesday that the Dalai Lama would visit France in August. Beijing is playing host to the Olympic Games from August 8 to 24.
French Foreign Minister Bernard Kouchner, in an interview published Wednesday, recommended that Sarkozy meet with the Dalai Lama during the trip.
France's junior minister for human rights, Rama Yade, said she intended to meet with the Tibetan Buddhist leader.
China has branded the Dalai Lama a separatist and said he masterminded this month's unrest in the Himalayan region which has left at least 140 dead, according to Tibetan exile groups. China has put the toll at 20.
Kouchner said the ordinary people of Tibet had a different view of the Dalai Lama than the Chinese government.
"For the people he is a religious leader, a guide to the Tibetan people. I think one should meet with him ... but it is not me who decides," Kouchner told the daily Le Parisien.
Sarkozy has spoken out against the crackdown in Tibet and said on Tuesday a boycott of the Beijing Olympics opening ceremony was possible.
The Dalai Lama, who won the 1989 Nobel Peace Prize, has repeatedly denied Chinese charges that he has orchestrated the recent unrest and that he wants independence for his homeland.
He has said only wants greater autonomy under Chinese rule for Tibet, and for an end to the repression there.
The Dalai Lama fled Tibet in 1959 following a failed uprising against Chinese rule, which officially began eight years earlier.

FUTURE FLIGHT

Kaine Defends Va. Tech Settlement Efforts

RICHMOND, March 25 -- Gov. Timothy M. Kaine (D) today defended efforts to reach a settlement with families of the victims of last year's Virginia Tech massacre, saying the state and families need "to move forward together."

Speaking on his monthly call in show on WTOP radio, Kaine said he and Attorney General Robert F. McDonnell (R) are seeking a settlement that is "creative, fair and justifiable."

"We are going to continue to have a dialogue to see if we can move forward together, rather than being pitted against each other," Kaine said.

After weeks of closed door talks between attorneys for the state and the families, state officials are offering $100,000 to the 32 families of those killed providing they give up their right to sue. Those injured could also receive up to $100,000, depending on the severity of their injuries.

Under the proposed offer, the state would not admit liability but would justify the payments as a way to avoid a series of lawsuits.

As part of the deal, the state would create a fund to help pay for the medical expenses of some of the more than two dozen students and faculty members injured in the shooting, state officials familiar with the offer said.

The families would also be eligible to receive money from a separate multimillion dollar fund that would offer aid to victims or family members suffering from hardship or post-traumatic stress, an official familiar with the settlement said today.

The state would make contributions to charitable organizations or colleges on behalf of the victims.

Virginia also would cover the families' legal expenses, which could approach $1 million, the officials and family members said. More than two dozen of the family members are being represented by the Washington law firm of Bode & Grenier, which declined to comment.

Several family members cautioned today that negotiations are ongoing and the offer could change. In interviews last night with the Associated Press and the Virginian Pilot, some family members said the state's offer did not go far enough.

The families were initially told they had until March 31 to accept the offer. But some family members said today the state is extending that deadline to give them more time to consider their options.

Kaine declined to talk about the specifics of the offer, but described the recent discussions as "productive."

"I give everyone credit for sitting down and being willing to have an honest dialogue," Kaine said.

Zimbabwe police to crush premature election celebrations

HARARE  ( 2008-03-25 19:57:47 ) : 

Zimbabwe's police vowed on Tuesday to crush any premature victory celebrations ahead of the official release of results from this weekend's general elections.
"Let me at the onset indicate that we will not brook any situations of chaos or conduct likely to cause a breach of peace, pandemonium, commotion, tumult or disturbance of peace," assistant police commissioner Faustino Mazango told a news conference in the capital Harare.
"We will not countenance any mischievous claims by anyone winning an election just because they have led in one part of the constituency whether it is council, parliamentary, senatorial and presidential election.
"We urge politicians not to excite members of the public when they have a lead at one time or the other in any part of the constituency."
Mazango urged people to rejoice only after announcement of official results but warned against provocative celebrations.
"We are more than prepared to deal a deadly blow to any such repugnant forces," Mazango said.
"These are not mere threats, but words of advice to our brothers and sisters and indeed everyone, lest people fail to understand and appreciate our actions to situations of anarchy."
Last month, police commissioner-general Augustine Chihuri warned that his force was prepared to use firearms to stamp out violence during or after joint presidential and legislative elections this month.
The police have also banned the carrying of weapons such as knives, catapults, axes and clubs in the run-up to the polls, and for two weeks afterwards.

Afghan army dismisses new Taliban 'operation'

KABUL  ( 2008-03-25 20:07:27 ) : 

The Afghan defence ministry said on Tuesday its security forces were stronger than ever this year and dismissed a Taliban threat to expand its operations countrywide starting this spring.
The US-funded Afghan army in particular was in a "very, very good position" compared with a year ago, it said, describing the Taliban as fragile.
A Taliban representative called media with a statement said to be from one of the insurgent movement's most senior members, Mullah Bradar, to announce Operation Ebrat, which means "lesson" in Pashtu.
"This will be a new type of operation to expand operations countrywide and surround the enemy wherever they are and encounter them," according to the statement read to an AFP reporter over the telephone.
It said the Taliban's war would continue until international troops left Afghanistan and President Hamid Karzai's administration collapsed.
The defence ministry said the announcement was part "of a psychological campaign and not a reality which could implemented on the ground."
"The national army has significantly improved in terms of capability, capacity and skills compared to the beginning of last year," it said, referring to the start of the Afghan year on March 20.
"New and modern equipment has been given to the national army. The air force has been revived and activated."
Afghan National Army (ANA) Commando battalions have been formed and engineering battalions are working across the country, it said, adding that international forces are providing security.
The Taliban had meanwhile lost its leading figures, it said, claiming there were also disputes in the group's ranks.

Malian soldiers held by Tuareg rebels in Niger: source

BAMAKO  ( 2008-03-25 18:10:57 ) : 

Malian soldiers taken hostage last week by local Tuareg rebels have been moved across the border to Niger where they are being kept by another Tuareg group, a western military source said Tuesday.
"The Malian soldiers, some of whom are wounded, have been sent to be guarded by the Nigerien MNJ rebels," the source said in Bamako, referring to the Movement of Niger People for Justice.
About 20 hostages have been taken to Niger where they are being held by Tuaregs loyal to rebel leader Ibrahim Ag Bahanga, she added.
They count among some 29 wounded Malian troops who were abducted in northern Mali on Friday, following clashes between the army and the rebels in the mountainous Tinzaouatene region.
Four other soldiers were taken prisoner the day before in the area which is considered Ag Bahanga's stronghold.
The Malian government has since reinforced troops in the restive region.
Ag Bahanga's group, "supported by other Tuareg bands from countries neighboring Mali, attacked military supply convoys and planted mines," Mali's Foreign Minister Moctar Ouane said.
A nomadic people who have roamed the southern Sahara for centuries, Tuaregs have staged uprisings over the years both in Mali and Niger claiming autonomy for their traditional homeland.
But Ag Bahanga has refused to go along with the peace deal agreed by the majority of former rebels from the Tuareg tribes, and the Malian government believes his group is cooperating with Niger-based militants to launch attacks.
In Niger, Tuareg rebels want a share in the country's revenue from uranium.

Russia, Egypt to seal nuclear power deal in Mubarak visit

 

NOVO-OGARYOVO  ( 2008-03-25 18:02:34 ) : 

Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak met Tuesday with Russian leaders to close a deal allowing Moscow to join a tender for Egypt's first civilian nuclear power station.
The agreement, which has taken years to draw up, opens the way for Russia to bid for a 1.5-1.8 billion dollars (970 - 1.16 billion euros) reactor project on Egypt's Mediterranean coast.
The nuclear cooperation accord was to be signed by Russia's Rosatom nuclear energy agency chief, Sergei Kiriyenko, and Egypt's energy minister, Hassan Younis.
Mubarak said that after "difficult" negotiations the deal was ready, Interfax news agency reported.
Meeting with Mubarak at Novo-Ogaryovo outside Moscow, President Vladimir Putin praised Egypt as "one of the leaders of the Islamic and the Arab world" and said Russian-Egyptian relations were of "strategic importance."
Putin's incoming successor Dmitry Medvedev, who takes over the Kremlin in May, told Mubarak that he expected a "productive partnership" in the nuclear sphere, ITAR-TASS news agency reported.
Russia -- which is close to completing Iran's controversial first nuclear facility in Bushehr, and also recently signed a contract for a reactor in Bulgaria -- is keen to reestablish a commercial and diplomatic presence in the Middle East.
The region was a stronghold of Soviet influence before the end of the Cold War and subsequent surge of US dominance.
Today, nuclear technology and conventional weapons sales are again giving Moscow a foot in the door, and Mubarak was expected also to discuss possible arms deals on Tuesday.
Even if ties are a long way from the days when Middle Eastern elites routinely studied and trained in the Soviet Union, throngs of sun-seeking Russians are making their own mark by flooding to Egypt's coastal resorts in growing numbers.
In an interview with state-owned Rossiiskaya Gazeta daily, Mubarak voiced "full satisfaction with the level of international political consultations between Cairo and Moscow."
"However, since friends must always be open with each other, I must say that I am not as happy with the volume of Russian investment into Egypt's economy," Mubarak added.
"The chief issue on the agenda is the signing of an accord on Russian-Egyptian cooperation in the peaceful uses of nuclear energy," the
Kommersant daily wrote. The paper added that its sources hinted that "Moscow gave some ground to Cairo and now expects an answer."
The daily added: "Moscow particularly hopes that Cairo will return to buying Russian arms."
The Nezavisimaya daily echoed that theme in its headline: "Cairo is interested in Russian nuclear technologies and (conventional) weapons."

The Qur'an (Quran, Koran) is the Holy Book of Islam and the religion's most sacred writing.  The word itself means "recitation."  It is a series of "revelations" that Muhammad claimed to have received from Allah at various (often highly convenient) times in his life and then dictated to scribes. 

The book is divided into 114 Suras (chapters) that contain ayat (verses).  The Suras are not arranged chronologically, but rather by size, with the larger ones appearing first. 

The Qur'an was compiled in the years and decades following Muhammad's death from snatches of writings on papyrus leaves, wood carvings, animal bones and especially the memory of his companions, who were beginning to die off.  There is generous redundancy within the text as well as contradictions - which are said to be resolved through "abrogation," whereby later verses have authority over earlier ones when there is an apparent dispute between them.

Although the words in the Qur'an are believed by Muslims to be those of Allah, and not Muhammad, there are several places in the narration where this simply doesn't make sense.  In some cases, Muslim scribes mended the problem by inserting the word "say" in front of certain text to make it appear as if Allah is commanding Muhammad to speak in the first person.  In other cases, their clean-up work was not quite as thorough (such as the famous 27:91, in which the word "say" is not in the original Arabic).

The words of the Qur'an are said to be the literal, eternal words of Allah himself, relevant to all people at all times (it is unclear why personal directives such as 33:53 were included).  It Qur'an is not a book of history (although there is some badly garbled Biblical narration scattered about).  The verses that issue rules and edicts are generally open-ended.  Very few are bound by historical context within the actual text.

In fact, the Qur'an is almost incomprehensible in and of itself.  Directives, topics, diatribes and incomplete accounts of Old Testament and mythological characters seem to appear from out of nowhere and then disappear just as quickly with very little stream-of-thought consistency.  Themes are disjointed and shifting, something that would not be expected of a perfect book of instruction.

External sources, such as the Hadith (narrations of Muhammad's words and deeds) are essential for understanding not just the context of what is being said, but often the very meaning of critical passages.  Even so, interpretations are often arbitrary and, since there is no longer a central authority in Islam, various Muslim factions often claim confidence in remarkably different applications of the religion and its "true meaning."

Older versions of the Qur'an would be helpful in the study of certain words (since vowels are often left out of transcriptions) but unfortunately ancient texts are usually either destroyed or hidden from public view by authorities, since they differ somewhat from modern versions - and thus throw into question the Qur'an's internal claim to be the invariable word of God.

The Suras of the Qur'an can be grouped into two distinct periods in Muhammad's life.  There is the earlier "Meccan" period, when Muhammad had little to say about violence or "fighting in Allah's way."  Then there are the "Medinan" Suras and later, in which the commands to violent Jihad and intolerance increase corresponding to Muhammad's military strength.  The bloody 9th Sura (the Verse of the Sword) is one of the very last to be handed down by the prophet of Islam, and it came at a time when the Muslims had already achieved power over their neighbors, forcing into exile those who would not convert.

Every 12th verse of the Qur'an speaks of either earthly or divine punishment against unbelievers.  Other religions are said to be "cursed by Allah."  The more tolerant verses (though popular with contemporary apologists) are less numerous than the later, more violent ones - which are believed to abrogate those that precede them.

Grammatical, theological and scientific errors abound within the Qur'an, but they are "explained away" through elaborate and complicated theories that may seem absurd to the more objective, but serve to reinforce the faith of those who will believe that the book is perfect in every way regardless of what it contains (to say otherwise is to incur a death sentence).

The exaggerative praise that accompanies the Qur'an (a book that literally tells Muslim men to keep women as sex slaves) makes Christian fundamentalist claims about the Bible "containing God's word" seem rather tame by comparison.  Syllables of the Qur'an continue to be committed to memory with a level of fanaticism that has not diminished over the generations.

Allah apparently spoke in the obscure Quraish dialect, which few Arabs at the time understood all that well (and even fewer still today).  This is significant because Muslim apologists often use this point advantageously, particularly with regard to the passages of the Qur'an that are contrary to modern sensibilities.  Often the apologist will cynically insist that such verses have a different meaning in the "original Arabic" (even if this alternate meaning seems to have eluded thirteen centuries worth of Arabic-Islamic scholars).

The most honest English-language versions of the Qur'an are probably the earlier ones (Yusuf Ali, Pickthal and Shakir).  More recent translations are usually tainted by the personal preferences of the interpreter, which is very often dictated by the palatability of contemporary Western tastes. 

A quick test for determining whether a version of the Qur'an is true or "PC" is to turn to verse 4:34 and check whether the word "beat" or "scourge" is used in the instruction to discipline belligerent wives.  If it is there, then the copy is probably closer to the original Arabic than the more recent "whitewashed" versions.

If you are serious about acquiring a Qur'an, however, then also check to be sure that verses 4:24, 23:6, 33:50 and 70:30 all stay faithful to the Arabic by using the word 'captive,' 'slave,' or 'those whom thy right hand possesses' in reference to the women authorized by Allah for a man's sexual use.  Contemporary translators are notorious for ignoring the original Arabic and pretending that Muhammad is speaking only of wives, when, in fact, he is speaking of two distinct groups: wives and non-wives.

The Qur'an distributed by CAIR, Muhammad Asad's "The Message of the Qur'an," is a 20th century Westernized translation that is designed to manipulate the naive reader into preferred conclusions by changing the wording of unflattering verse and offering mitigating commentary to convince readers that they are not seeing what they are really seeing. 

We recommend the highly readable non-Muslim translation from CSPI (or the abridged version), but balancing it with occasional references to the MSA website, which contains the Pickthall, Shakir and Yusuf Ali Muslim translations.

Bilawal Bhutto Zardari