KOSOVO - A Muslim Kosovar mother of 4 and grandmother of 8 converted ⅓ of the Qur'an into Braille Albanian. This will be used by blind in Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro. Islam is the official religion of Kosovo, which wants independence from Serbia, with Muslims making up 95% of the population. (IOL, Jan 5)
PAKISTAN - Benazir Bhutto, former PM, killed Dec 27 in gun attack. (BBC, Jan 7)
PALESTINE - 1. Egypt allowed 2,150 Palestinian Hajj pilgrims, including senior Hamas members, stranded in the country to cross into Gaza. Egypt originally insisted they use a Jewish border post. The Palestinian Authority, Israel and Egypt have isolated Gaza since Hamas took control in June after winning elections. 2. A Gaza rocket landed the farthest ever inside Israel reaching Ashkelon, 15km from Gaza. (BBC, Jan 2,7) 3. 26 Palestinians killed in 3 days of Jewish raids on Gaza. Hamas replied with 87 light rockets injuring 10 Jews. (BBC, Jan 17)
INDIA - Hindu fundamentalist BJP party won elections in Gujarat. The BJP aided in anti-Muslim riots that left 1,000 dead in 2002. (AP, Dec 24)
UZBEKISTAN - Tyrant ruler Karimov re-elected pres in illegal election. His govt is the most repressive in former Soviet Asia. 8,000 Muslim prisoners in jail as part of crackdown on Islamic activity. His regime became more brutal since massacring 1,000 Muslims in May 2005. (Guardian, Dec 24)
IRAQ - 200 women, many with children, held in Khadimiya Jail as their husbands are accused of terrorism. Some of the babies were born in jail. Most women held with no evidence, hope of legal advice, or court date, some for over 2 years. They accuse their captors of raping them. (CBSNews, Dec 23)
SOMALIA - Islamic Court fighters gained control of ⅓ of Somalia, seizing 2 key towns, forcing Ethiopian troops to withdraw Dec 29. Dec 28, hundreds of Somalis protested in Finland, accusing Ethiopia of genocide and demanding US stop supporting Ethiopia. (BBC, Dec 29)
UK - Senior Church of England bishop Michael Nazir-Ali attacked UK Muslims claiming they’ve turned parts of UK into no-go areas for other religions(IOL, Jan 7)
FRANCE - Créteil council in Paris helping build Musjid complex. The nearly-finished building has a 24,7m minaret and will hold 2,500 worshippers. Costing R51.8 million, it overlooks Créteil's lake and city hall. The council has given R10.5 million. France has 6 million Muslims and 400 Musjids. Muslims across Europe are facing campaigns against building Musjids. (Darul Ihsan, Jan 7)
SAUDI ARABIA - King Fahd Holy Quran Printing Complex in Madinah distributed 25 million copies of the Quran till 2007. The Quran is translated into 47 languages. (Darul Ihsan, Jan 5)
UK - Dewsbury and District Hospital in West Yorkshire, a region with a large Muslim population, agreed to turn seriously ill Muslim patients' beds to face the Ka’bah, in an effort to improve services for Muslims. (Darul Ihsan, Jan 7)
RUSSIA - Russia's first Muslim clinic opened in Moscow. It has a prayer hall, ablution room and snack bar for halaal foods. Hijab-clad female doctors treat women. Men are treated by males in a separate section. Russia has 23 million Muslims. (IOL, Jan 7)
SAUDI ARABIA - Plans in place to expand Haram’s northern courtyard by 300,000m². Other projects worth R20 billion include expanding the track between Safa and Marwah, and a 14-meter wide, 70-meter long pedestrian bridge across the courtyard of the Ka’bah. (Darul Ihsan, Jan 7)
MIDDLE EAST - 10 killed in Saudi snowfalls. In Syria, temperatures dropped to -16ºC. Damage to crops in Syria, Jordan and Palestine. Snow in Baghdad for first time in living memory. (BBC, Jan 17)
MOROCCO - A 2-storey building collapsed in Khenitra killing 11 and injuring 26. Many trapped under rubble. (BBC, Jan 17)
PAKISTAN - 1. 2 army forts in South Waziristan captured by pro-Taleban Mujahideen. 2. A snow leopard, one of the most secretive animals, was fitted with a GPS collar that tracked it in Pakistan/Afghanistan. Researchers hope this will tell them about the snow leopard’s habits. (BBC, Jan 16,17)
SAUDI ARABIA - A Saudi has became the oldest pilgrim to perform the Hajj at 124 years of age. It is his 95th Hajj. (Darul Ihsan, Dec 25)
WORLD NEWS JANUARY 2008
