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The aspiration of the Media Review Network is to dispel the myths and stereotypes about Islam and Muslims and to foster bridges of understanding among the diverse people of our country. The Media Review Network believes that Muslim perspectives on issues impacting on South Africans are a prerequisite to a better appreciation of Islam.

Demascas international declaration right to return

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DAMASCUS, (SANA)-Participants in the International-Arab Forum on the Right to Return Monday underlined that the Palestinian right to return home comes in the core and essence of the Palestinian issue and a firm right to all Palestinian refugees.

"The right to return home is a natural and legitimate, single and collective right guaranteed by religions, conventions and international laws… it’s a firm and absolute right that no one or side has the right to abandon it," Damascus International Declaration on the right to return announced in a final statement, concluding two-day meetings.

The declaration showed support to the Palestinian people in their permanent assertion on commitment to their land, civilized heritage, Arab and Islamic identity and adherence to unity.

 

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Not an analogy Isarael and the crime of apartheid

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Not an analogy: Israel and the crime of apartheid


By HAZEM JAMJOUM

 

In recent years, increasing numbers of individuals around the world have begun adopting and developing an analysis of Israel as an apartheid regime. This can be seen in the ways that the global movement in support of the Palestinian anti-colonial struggle is taking on a pointedly anti-apartheid character, as evidenced by the growth of Israeli Apartheid Week ( http://apartheidweek.org/). Further, much of the recent international diplomatic support for Israel has increasingly taken on the form of denying that racial discrimination is a root cause of the oppression of Palestinians. This has taken on new levels of absurdity in Western responses to the April 2009 Durban Review Conference, a follow-up to the 2001 World Conference Against Racism held in Durban, South Africa in which Palestinians were identified as victims of racism (the US, Israel, Canada and Italy have already announced that they will not participate because of the potential for criticism of Israel).

Many of the writings stemming from this analysis work to detail levels of similarity and difference with apartheid South Africa, rather than looking at apartheid as a system that can be practiced by any state. To some extent, this strong emphasis on historical comparisons is understandable given that boycott, divestment and sanctions is the central campaign called for by Palestinian civil society for solidarity with the Palestinian liberation struggle, and is modeled on the one that helped end South African apartheid. However, an over-emphasis on similarities and differences confines the use of the term to narrow limits. With the expanding agreement that the term "apartheid" is useful in describing the level and layout of Israel’s crimes, it is important that our understanding of the "apartheid label" be deepened, both as a means of informing activism in support of the Palestinian anti-colonial struggle, and in order to most effectively make use of comparisons with other struggles.

 

 

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Russian muslims between oil and federalism

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Russian Muslims Between Oil and Federalism

By  Elmira Akhmetova

 
 
Although Russian authorities carried out massacres against Muslims in Chechnya, some Russian Muslims prefer not to secede, (Reuters photo)
 
Muslim republics in Northern Caucasus are rich in oil, natural gas, coal, gold, and many other mineral resources.  
According to Ariel Cohen, a research fellow at the Washington-based Russian and Eurasian Studies at the Heritage Foundation, the huge oil reserves are estimated to be over 25 billion barrels under the Caspian Sea.

He estimated that oil reserves in the Central Asian republics of Kazakhstan, Turkmenistan, and Uzbekistan are similar to those in Kuwait and larger than those in Alaska’s Northern Slope and the North Sea combined.

 

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