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Muslim cleric triggers outrage by blaming women for rape
Times Online ^ | 2006-10-26 | Elsa McLaren and agencies

Posted on 10/26/2006 5:36:11 AM PDT by cartan

Australia's most senior Muslim cleric has triggered international outrage for describing women who dress immodestly as “uncovered meat” who are inviting a sexual attack.

Sheik Taj Aldin al-Hilali—the Mufti of Australia—condemned women who “sway suggestively”, wear make-up and no hijab or Islamic headscarf, in a Ramadan sermon to 500 worshippers, The Australian reported.

Islamic leaders are today meeting in Sydney to discuss his future and are considering whether to sack him from his role as the most senior cleric at the city's largest mosque.

John Howard, the Prime Minister, said that the cleric's comments were “appalling and reprehensible”.

He told reporters: “The idea that women are to blame for rapes is preposterous. I not only reject the comments, I condemn them unconditionally.”

Mr al-Hilali, who arrived in Australia in 1982 from Lebanon on a tourist visa and later fought attempts to deport him, has triggered controversies in the past.

In 2004 he said in a sermon in Lebanon that the September 11 attacks were “God's work against the oppressors.” The cleric later said that he did not mean that he supported the attacks, or terrorism.

Race relations in Sydney are volatile following riots between the white and Middle Eastern youths last December. As summer arrives the city's authorities fear that troubles may explode again and police have begun patrolling the area where the riots took place.

In a statement today, the outspoken cleric apologised for his comments and said: “I had only intended to protect women's honour, something lost in The Australian presentation of my talk.”

He was reported in the newspaper as saying that he only meant to refer to prostitutes as meat, and not any woman who does not wear a hijab, but the paper said there was no mention of the word prostitute in the sermon.

A spokesman for the Egyptian-born cleric said that his comments, made last month, had been taken out of context in the newspaper report, but did not challenge the accuracy of the paper's translation.

During the sermon al Hilali said: “If you take out uncovered meat and place it outside on the street, or in the garden, or in the park, or in the backyard without cover, and the cats come to eat it…whose fault is it, the cats' or the uncovered meat?

“The uncovered meat is the problem. If she was in her room, in her home, in her hijab, no problem would have occurred.”

The Australian also reported that he said that women were “weapons” used by “Satan” to control men.

Pru Goward, Australia's Sex Discrimination Commissioner, said that Mr al-Hilali had a history of making such comments and should be thrown out of the country.

“It is incitement to a crime. Young Muslim men who now rape women can cite this in court, can quote this man, their leader in court,” she told Australian television.

“It's time we stopped just saying he should apologise. It is time the Islamic community did more then say they were horrified. I think it's time he was asked to go.”

Islamic groups have tried to disassociate themselves from Mr al-Hilali's remarks. The Islamic Council of New South Wales said his comments were “un-Islamic, un-Australian and unacceptable”.

Waleed Aly, a member of the Islamic Council of Victoria state, said that the comments would result in more antagonism toward Muslims.

“I am expecting a deluge of hate mail. I am expecting people to get abused in the street and get abused at work,” he said.


TOPICS: Australia/New Zealand; Extended News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: australia; islam; rape; religionofpieces; religionofrape
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To: indcons

There are 20 muslim groups in Australia who have been trying to get rid of this scumbag. Attempts have been made to deport him, he was saved at the last moment by a left wing politician...he was arrested for his smuggling activities in Egypt, the charges were dropped...he talks about CATS! his nine lives are just about all used up. However, he has the support of the Lebanese muslims in Sydney (his praise of Hezb'allah is well documented) and getting rid of him is not going to be easy. He's cunning, and so are his supporters at the Lakemba Mosque.

But look on the bright side...his filthy mouth has exposed islam even further, and this time, even the MSM is not pulling any punches. He's toast!


41 posted on 10/26/2006 3:19:37 PM PDT by Fred Nerks ("Illegitimi non carborundum",)
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To: cartan
I'm re-posting this from a post I made on this topic with a different news article.

I already figured out part of what's wrong with Islam. Before Mohammed started saying he got 'the word' from allah AFTER the fact, his hallucinations were quite innocuous. It wasn't until he got so conceited that he thought everything he did or said or thought or wanted to do was 'okay by allah' (and he had the prophetic words to prove it), that he went off the deep end.

Unfortunately Mohammed thought he was above reproach and he forced this devotion on his followers by claiming that "gabriel" spoke directly to him, therefore anything he (Moham) said was 'writ in stone' and could not be changed. Not only that, but that the only way to "really understand" Mohammedanism is to read it in Arabic. Translations "miss" something in the translation. (The TRUTH is that translations tell the truth about Mohammed and the one thing he hated more than anything else was to be confronted with truth. He even gave his followers permission to lie so that they didn't have to be confronted with the truth.)

BUT IT IS ALL A LIE. A lie concocted to appease his own guilty conscience and to allow himself and all men who are in league with him to act like barbarians while the remainder of the world becomes civilized.

Someone needs to tear the Koran into two sections. The "true" section prior to his first "after the fact" proclamation from allah giving him permission to act as an animal or worse than an animal. And the "false" section starting at his first "after the fact" permission granted from allah to cover up his uncouth, uncivilized, demented behavior.

ONLY THEN will there be any chance of a "moderate Mohammedanism" to coexist with the remainder of "civilized" (such as we are) societies.

42 posted on 10/27/2006 4:10:41 PM PDT by HighlyOpinionated (Mohammed Lied; Jesus Died (For Your Sins) and Rose Again.)
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To: YOUGOTIT
That is what the Religion of Peace says. If a woman is raped it is her fault and she should be stoned or buried alive.

More than that, if a woman is accused of adultery (or sex with someone not her husband), she has to find 4 men "who were there" who can testify on her behalf. If she can't find anyone and she decides to try to get some judicial satisfaction, she is accused of being a prostitute/harlot and is guilty of death by stoning.

Being a woman living under Islam is a death sentence without mercy.
43 posted on 10/27/2006 4:15:18 PM PDT by HighlyOpinionated (Mohammed Lied; Jesus Died (For Your Sins) and Rose Again.)
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To: cartan

This pig should be castrated.


44 posted on 10/27/2006 4:17:13 PM PDT by freeangel ( (free speech is only good until someone else doesn't like what you say))
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To: HighlyOpinionated

And I just thought of something else.

There is no mercy in Mohammedanism.

There is no joy in Mohammedanism.

There is no connectedness to other people in Mohammedanism.

There is no self-control in Mohammedanism.

There is no gentleness in Mohammedanism.

There is no patience in Mohammedanism.

There is no faith in Mohammedanism.

There is no self-giving love in Mohammedanism.

Mohammedanism is all about death. There is no life in Mohammedanism.

So WHY would anyone want to remain a Mohammedan?

I mean, other than that they'd kill you for apostacy.


45 posted on 10/27/2006 4:26:55 PM PDT by HighlyOpinionated (Mohammed Lied; Jesus Died (For Your Sins) and Rose Again.)
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