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Mon, Oct. 03, 2005

Arab world jittery on eve of Ramadan

NADIA ABOU El-MAGD

Associated Press

http://www.tallahassee.com/mld/tallahassee/news/breaking_news/12807626/12807626.htm

CAIRO, Egypt - The Middle East is jittery as it heads into Ramadan, the
Islamic holy month of fasting and spiritual introspection that has
become a time of increased attacks by suicide bombers who believe they
receive extra blessings.

From Iraq to Lebanon to the Sinai, the month of prayer and after-dark
feasting is now a month of heightened security.

Egyptian police planned increased watchfulness throughout the month,
while insisting no specific threats had been received. But Israel warned
its citizens to stay away from Egypt's beach resorts in the Sinai
peninsula, calling the threat of attacks substantial.

Militants have not issued specific Ramadan-related threats, but the
spike in violence in recent years - especially suicide attacks in Iraq -
has been notable.

One possible reason is the belief by some Islamic extremists that those
who die in combat for a holy cause during Ramadan are especially
blessed.

"This is a month that has a spiritual feel to it, which condones the
issue of jihad (holy war)," said Diaa Rashwan, an Egyptian expert on
Islamic groups. Tradition holds the Prophet Muhammad led his forces in
winning battles against nonbelievers during Ramadan, the ninth and holiest
month on the Islamic calendar, which is based on the cycles of the
moon.

Observance this year starts Tuesday across much of the Middle East,
following the announcement by religious officials that the new crescent
moon had been sighted Monday night.

Saturday's blasts in Bali came as Indonesia - the world's most-populous
Muslim nation - was preparing to celebrate Ramadan, which begins there
on Wednesday.

Muslims believe God began to reveal the Quran, the Islamic holy book,
to Muhammad more than 1,400 years ago during Ramadan. Muslims are
expected to abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex from dawn to dusk in
order to focus on the spiritual.

Muslims spend long periods in mosques and attempt to read the entire
Quran during the month. It is believed that during Ramadan, good deeds
are rewarded 10 times.

But, in countries like Egypt and Saudi Arabia, Ramadan is also a month
of festivities, large after-dark meals and endless TV specials. Cafes
and special Ramadan tents stay packed until dawn and traffic jams snarl
streets late into the night.

In Lebanon, Ramadan comes at a time of high tension as a U.N.-mandated
probe into former Prime Minister Rafik Hariri's assassination nears its
end. The Lebanese fear the continuation of a series of bombings that
have rattled the country since Hariri was killed.

Nevertheless, the bustling sidewalk cafes, restaurants and shops in
downtown Beirut are jammed these days with local residents and tourists
from other Mideast countries who come to dine, smoke water pipes or just
stroll through the district.

In Egypt, an Islamic group that previously claimed responsibility for
this summer's attacks at Sharm el-Sheik vowed Sunday to launch an
all-out war against Israelis, Americans and Egyptian police. An Egyptian
security official said security was high across the country. He spoke on
condition of anonymity because he is not authorized to talk to the press.

Israel urged its citizens not to travel to Egypt's Sinai peninsula
during the upcoming Jewish holidays, which coincide with Ramadan's start,
because Arab militants were planning to kidnap Israeli tourists there.

Only about 1,000 Israelis were in the Sinai on Monday, the start of the
New Year holiday, Yitzhak Hai, manager of the Taba terminal, told the
Yediot Ahronot daily.

"This time I can say that we have very substantial information,"
Defense Minister Shaul Mofaz told Israel TV.

Kfir Pavzaner, an Israeli who had just returned from Sinai's Ananda
Beach, described the scene: "As soon as the warning was announced it
became like a huge storm that washed the Israelis out of Sinai. Suddenly
there were rumors that Israelis will be kidnapped and they kept circling."

Debates about Islamic extremism have also become a routine part of
Ramadan.

"Political and economic reform can't take place without religious
reform," Ahmed al-Rubei, a liberal Kuwaiti columnist, wrote Monday in the
pan Arab daily Asharq al-Awsat. "Religious reform requires courage from
preachers and religion scholars. There is a majority that is afraid of
expressing its ideas."

The countries that announced Tuesday as the beginning of the fast were:
Bahrain, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Kuwait, Lebanon, Libya, the Palestinian
territories, Qatar, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, Syria, the United Arab Emirates
and Yemen. Oman was an exception. Its Islamic clerics told Omanis to
start fasting Wednesday after they failed to see the moon on Monday
night.