Free Republic

A Germany correspondent for Turkish pro-government newspaper Sabah has tweeted that the June election should represent the end of the Turkish republic and the beginning of a caliphate, left-nationalist OdaTV said . “95 years ago Atatürk got rid of both the Ottoman state and the caliphate with the words ‘Gentlemen, tomorrow we announce a republic’,” Martin Lejeune said on Twitter. “On June 24, the Kemalist republic will be gotten rid of, and with Allah’s blessing when the time comes the caliphate will again be born in Turkey. May Allah protect Muslims.”

Malaysian security forces on Tuesday began attacking a group of armed men from the Philippines who had clashed with police after staking a claim to a remote part of the island of Borneo, authorities said. The group of Filipino men, believed to number between 100 and 300, arrived three weeks ago on the east coast of the Malaysian state of Sabah, on Borneo, demanding to be recognized as representatives of a sultanate that used to rule the area. Malaysian authorities initially tried to persuade the men to return peacefully to their homes in the nearby southern Philippines. But the intruders...

Mysterious lights streaking across in the night sky here Tuesday had Sabahans abuzz in social media, with no one able to give a clear explanation on the incident. Meteorologists, policemen and firemen were unable to explain the pillar-shaped lights that moved across the sky in the Putatan area, around 9.30pm, for several minutes. Some netizens said the lights came from lanterns or flares from the Sabah Oil and Gas Terminal in Kimanis. Others claimed alien spaceships were responsible, among a host of other possibilities. Such lights appearing over the coastal waters of western Sabah are not rare and have been...

Ailing Kuwaiti Emir Sheikh Saad al-Abdullah al-Sabah officially asked to take the oath of office on Sunday, parliament speaker Jassem al-Khorafi said Saturday. "I have received a letter from his Highness the Emir asking for convening parliament to take the oath ... on Sunday," Khorafi told reporters as The announcement came as the cabinet met to discuss constitutional procedures to ask parliament to consider removing Sheikh Saad, who is said to be too ill to read out the two-line oath.

TAWAU, SABAH (4/17/2005)--I am woken by the sad wail of an imam at a nearby mosque. I look at my watch. It is 4.45am on a hot, humid Saturday, and the first of five calls to prayer that I will hear that day, though mercifully I will be out of town visiting Anglican parishes in the area when some of the calls are sounded. A tall single spire with speakers at the top of it is clearly visible for miles around and the gold shaped crescent at the top of a green-colored dome has a loud speaker placed in it...

<p>The U.S. State Department on Saturday warned about risks to American citizens and interests in Malaysia, citing terrorist threats in Southeast Asia.</p> <p>In a statement published on its Web site, the State Department expressed particular concern about security in the eastern state of Sabah, on Borneo island, where unidentified gunmen kidnapped six foreign workers from a resort last month.</p>