Posted on 10/07/2005 6:24:23 PM PDT by Pikamax
OU's Muslim Students Fearful After Explosion Authorities: No Evidence Hinrichs Had Ticket, Tried To Buy Ticket To Game
POSTED: 9:42 am CDT October 7, 2005 UPDATED: 11:11 am CDT October 7, 2005
NORMAN, Okla. -- Many Muslim students at the University of Oklahoma are laying low after rumors spread that a terrorist plot was behind a deadly explosion near a packed football stadium, Muslim leaders say.
"A lot of students are taking precautions, staying at home," said Houda Elyazgi, an officer with the Muslim Student Association. "I wear the scarf, so I fear for my security now because of all this speculation."
In an e-mail sent Thursday afternoon to students, faculty and staff members, OU President David Boren encouraged all not to "judge others or jump to conclusions about others on the basis of color, race, gender, economic status or freely exercised religious beliefs.
"To rush to judge others or make assumptions about them on that basis is nothing short of prejudice. It has no place in America and it certainly has no place at the University of Oklahoma."
Investigators believe the bomb blast that killed OU engineering student Joel Henry Hinrichs III, 21, was a suicide. Boren reiterated in the letter that there is "no evidence of a conspiracy involving others which creates an ongoing threat to our OU community."
Oklahoma Muslim leaders feared their community would be targeted after the explosion.
"When it first happened, we said, 'Oh, God. Here we go again,"' said Imad Enchassi, president of the Islamic Society of Greater Oklahoma City.
Enchassi remembered how suspicion fell on the Muslim community in the days after the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing, as did Boren, who noted that some speculated early on that the explosion that killed 168 people was the work of a Middle Eastern terrorist.
"As we all now know, the person responsible was not someone from the Middle East but was Timothy McVeigh and at least one other American who assisted him," the statement read. "We can only hope that all of us, including some media outlets, would have learned from that recent rush to incorrect conclusions."
At least four Muslim students were handcuffed and questioned after the OU explosion, and Muslim leaders fielded telephone calls from reporters.
Hinrichs' Pakistani roommate, Fazal M. Cheema, is Muslim, although not particularly religious, according to regulars at the Norman mosque.
Cheema worked at the football stadium, according to the OU student directory, and the men lived at Parkview Apartments, a university-owned property popular with Islamic students because it is adjacent to the local mosque.
Some media reported that Hinrichs spent time recently at the mosque, which was denied by the president of the mosque, who asked that his name not be used for fear of retaliation.
Hinrichs' father, Joel Hinrichs Jr., said this week his son was skeptical of ideology and was not Muslim.
Meanwhile, OU officials addressed allegations that Hinrichs had tried to enter the Gaylord Family-Oklahoma Memorial Stadium, which sits about 100 yards from the spot where the explosion happened.
University spokeswoman Catherine Bishop said OU officials reviewed their ticket records and determined that Hinrichs, of Colorado Springs, Colo., didn't purchase a football ticket from any university outlet.
Bishop also said university officials hadn't heard anything to indicate Hinrichs tried to buy a ticket from one of the fans selling them outside the stadium.
The FBI has reviewed video surveillance tapes and, so far, haven't uncovered anything that indicates Hinrichs tried to enter, Boren said.
Norman police, however, reported that an officer became suspicious when he overhead Hinrichs trying to purchase ammonium nitrate fertilizer from a local feed and seed store two days before he died.
The manager of Ellison Feed and Seed said the store no longer carried that kind of fertilizer, which was used in the 1995 Oklahoma City bombing.
As for the Muslim community, Elyazgi said it has been particularly difficult because Wednesday marked the first day of the Muslim holy month of Ramadan, when the faithful fast from dawn to dusk.
"I'd rather be focusing on my fast and this joyous month than having to worry about my back," Elyazgi said.
The Board better get him out of there now.
I just don't get you guys. Didn't the Senate pass a bill yesterday telling us to be nice to terrorists? (Sarcasm for those just learning how to read)
"My first reply was, 'oh God here we go again.'"
Funny, that was my response too, when I heard about ANOTHER SUICIDE BOMBER in the United States, trying to kill innocent people. YOU MUZZIES ARE NOT THE VICTIMS. I REPEAT, YOU ARE NOT THE VICTIMS HERE.
Oh, I'm sure it is just a coincidence that his roommate worked at the stadium. And he probably just needed all that fertilizer for his apartment garden. No cover up here.
Did I miss anything? I was busy drying my potbellied pig with pages from the Koran.
Today we celebrate the Battle of Lepanto, in which the Christians turned back the Turks on OCTOBER 7, 1571. "It was the first great defeat of the infidels on the sea," says the Catholic Encyclopedia.
Traditionally celebrated by making ship-cakes. Well, tonight I am making some!!! And I am celebrating that battle.
Also read on a source that we are not supposed to link to that Cheema had an airline ticket to Algeria in his room. Also, there were other documents and evidence leading investigators to more cell members.
The MSM is jsut reporting information FR had on the first night and haven't caught up yet. Need to fire their reporters.
If they're so affraid that this kind of things would happen again, why didn't they emphasize on the importance of not-being-a-suicide-bomber in their mosques, meetings, etc. ?
Ship-cakes? Well, maybe if washed down with some rum...
"Hello, fellow muslim. You've reached the Muslim Student Association support hotline.
"Please listen to the following options.
"Press 1 if you're fearful.
"Press 2 if you're enraged.
"Press 3 if you're being profiled because a fellow muslim blew himself up again.
"Press 4 if you're feeling suicidal and need the address of a nitrogen fertilizer distributor and tickets to a local sporting event."
Article also says his roommate " Cheema worked at the football stadium,.."
Frightening that he could have had a "friend" allow him to pass through the gate.
More carefully worded double talk from the OU bunch IMO.
Article also says his roommate " Cheema worked at the football stadium,.."
If this is the case, Cheema could very well know where all the video surveillance cameras are located and he could have told Hinrich so he could avoid being seen.
Not to mention that Cheema would have easy access to "undocumented" tickets to pass to Jihad Joel.
MKM
Not much sympathy here. If you aren't part of the solution, you're part of the problem.
Post 50, continued:
"Press 5 if you feel like assimilating and becoming a productive member of the community (just kidding, inside joke)."
Did the AP put as much into the reporting of the incident itself as they have in trying to make me feel sorry for Muslims after the incident?
"I wear the scarf,so I fear for my security now because of all this speculation."
So take off the F#@%$&*% scarf!!!
Yummy. Can you bring enough for everyone?
At first I figured the lack of MSM coverage was simply because the MSM would rather lick the dirt off the bottom of a Budweiser Clydsdale's hoof than admit there might be a legitimate reason for President's WOT. Or that they were just idiots, either reason seemed acceptable to me.
But now I have to conclude they hate the President so much they would rather see Americans vulnerable to terror attacks than report the real story. They want us to believe in the " all Muslims love us" fairy tale and they don't give a shiite who gets hurt. Of course if the threat, credible or not is in a bastion of liberal politik then the news is trumpted from on high. But Oklahoma, home of a bunch of rubes, screw em. They are just hateful bigots wanting to pick on the pooor iddle, iddle mooslems.
The Stadium hold 80,000. Is she trying to say they know the name of each and every ticket purchaser? Students show an ID and hand over cash, but who knows what they do with that ticket after that?
Further, the gate gaurds refused to answer when asked if Hinrichs tried to get in, and they are still refusing to talk.
If you did your job so well that you turned away a bomber nor once but three times (as has been reported elsewhere), wouldn't you be at least a LITTLE bit proud? You'd have to ORDER me not to tell someone, under penalty of losing my job.
By the way, the vast majority of the muslim students at OU are receiving heavy scholarships. As OU is a public university, that means the taxpayers are footing the bill. I went to grad school at OU, all of the foreign kids had a free ride because the Deans wanted to pat themselves on the back for having an diverse student body.
Well, there they go again.
We heard the same carp after 9/11.
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