Israel: Militants display pictures of torn Qurans ('copycats' ?)

Bakersfield Californian ^ | 6/8/05 | Mark Lavie - AP

[NormsRevenge]

JERUSALEM (AP) - The militant Islamic Jihad on Wednesday presented pictures of torn copies of the Islamic holy book, the Quran, claimed they were taken inside an Israeli prison and said soldiers were responsible for the desecration. Israel denied the charge and said the pictures were a fabrication.

The Islamic Jihad transmitted the pictures by e-mail to a reporter in the West Bank. They show two Qurans with torn pages. The militants said prisoners took the pictures with cellular telephones sent them electronically to militant leaders.

The militants said Wednesday that soldiers desecrated six or seven Qurans as they searched Palestinian prisoners' cells at the Megiddo jail in northern Israel early Tuesday. The prisoners were outside the cells at the time but could see what was going on, the Islamic Jihad militants said.

The charges closely followed a report in Newsweek - later retracted - that American soldiers flushed a Quran down the toilet at the Guantanamo Bay prison in Cuba. The report set off deadly riots in the Muslim world.

The Pentagon later issued a report of its own in which the military acknowledged five instances of mistreatment of the Quran at Guantanamo Bay.

The charges against Israeli soldiers originally surfaced on Tuesday, when prisoners charged that soldiers tore three Qurans and stepped on them. In a later version, they said soldiers ripped pages out of one Quran.

The Israeli Prisons Authority had its own conflicting versions on Tuesday as well. At first, a spokesman said that as a soldier searched an old Quran, pages fell from it, and he put them back.

Later that day, the authority showed reporters the book they said was at the center of the affair. The pages that were replaced were larger than those in the rest of the book, and the Prisons Authority concluded the whole matter was a fabrication by the Palestinian prisoners.

On Wednesday, Prisons Authority official Orit Stelser said the pictures and new charges were fabricated.

During the search on Tuesday morning, soldiers confiscated dozens of cellular phones, forbidden among the prisoners. Stelser said it was unlikely that there were many left behind to take such pictures.

"They have staged things like this in the past," she said. "This is staged." She noted the early, conflicting stories and said, "If there were really torn Qurans (Tuesday), they would have presented them then. There are no more books, period."

The pictures transmitted Wednesday showed Qurans with several pages torn in the middle. It was impossible to tell from the pictures themselves where they were taken or when.

[NormsRevenge]

AP Photo/HO This picture provided by the Islamic Jihad in the West Bank town of Jenin said to be taken with a mobile phone by Palestinian inmates at the Israeli prison of Megido in nothern Israel, shows the torn pages of a copy of the Quran, Islam's Holy book. The image was alledgedly taken Tuesday June 7, 2005 , according to Islamic Jihad representatives, Israeli soldiers tore three copies of the Quran while searching Palestinians and their possessions on Tuesday morning. Israel denied the charge and claimed the pictures were staged.

[travlnmn41]

Move over, Charmin! This looks like good toilet paper to me.

[Alouette]

Palestinians proudly showing off Jewish prayer books and tefilin burned when they sacked Joseph's Tomb.

Here is what I think of their koran:

[Reactionary]

It's amazing, isn't it, that some Third World cockroach can take a picture with his phone and it ends up blasted across every newspaper around.

Do the liberals have an agenda? You bet they do. And they hate America.

[Alouette]

FRmail me to be added or removed from this Judaic/pro-Israel ping list.

WARNING: This is a high volume ping list

[VaRepublican]

Break out the tires and lets have ourselves a riot.

[eureka!]

"...said to be taken with a mobile phone by Palestinian inmates at the Israeli prison of Megido in nothern Israel..."

Yeah, right. Then they downloaded and e-mailed the photos from their laptops in prison. Sheesh. Meanwhile, the al-Presstitutes will report it as fact....

[Random Nonsense]

Did they also present pictures of the destruction of Joseph Tomb in Nablus ?

[Xenophobic Alien]

WTFC!

I am so sick of this koran BS!

Hypocrites, all of them!

[Sabramerican]

Make sure you check the latest in cellphone news before you attempt to kill any Jews.

What happens if you get caught, are put into an Israeli prison, and you get issued an old model cell phone just before that new model with bluetooth is out.

[Wiz]

Al Jazeera should be happy to tackle against Israel again.

[tessalu]

Please someone, tell these barbarians that the USA does not follow Sharia law. If we did, we would be killing all of
the infidel Muslims right where we find them.

[SJackson]

If you'd like to be on this middle east/political ping list, please FR mail me.

[zygoat]

Muslims held in prisons for terrorist activity should be restricted from any and all reference to their "religion". From Korans to prayer mats to those stupid little doilies they wear on their heads.

It's what caused the problem in the first place.

[joesnuffy]

Jesus said that Satan was a liar from the beginning and the Father...of all lies (and all liars)...

What kind of a human being would lie to their own brothers in order to get them filled with hate and blood lust..urging them to consumate that lust with the blood of innocents...?

What kind of religion would promote such values?

[processing please hold]

They must really think the public is gullible to fall for that. Weird how it never happened before the newsweak article came out.

[processing please hold]

I am so sick of this koran BS!

You and me both. I can't wait to get my koran I ordered, have I got plans for it. (((snicker)))

[nosofar]

The militants said prisoners took the pictures with cellular telephones sent them electronically to militant leaders.

Cell phones? Is this a prison or a hotel?

[Baraonda]

"The militant Islamic Jihad on Wednesday presented pictures of torn copies of the Islamic holy book, the Quran,"

Expect more worlwide riots against the Jews.

These muslims have no sense of humor at all.