Bosnian imam attacked 7 times over call to stay out of Syria

[garbon]

http://news.yahoo.com/bosnian-imam-attacked-7-times-over-call-stay-161722154.html

The long-bearded man burst into the mosque's yard and pinned Selvedin Beganovic to the ground. Shouting "Now I will slaughter you!" he plunged a knife three times into the imam's chest and fled.

It was no random attack: Beganovic has suffered seven assaults blamed on Muslim extremists in the past year — with three just last month.

The apparent reason for the jihadi wrath? Beganovic uses his pulpit to tell the faithful in predominantly Muslim Bosnia they have no business fighting in Syria or Iraq. And he vows to keep preaching the message no matter how many times extremists try to silence him.

"That is not our war," the imam told The Associated Press in his small northwestern town. "Our jihad in Bosnia is the fight against unemployment. The care for our parents who have small pensions. The care for the socially jeopardized."

Some 150 Bosnians have joined Islamic militants in Syria or Iraq, officials estimate, with many fighting for the Islamic State group. All are apparently members of a small community that follows an ultra-conservative interpretation of Islam. Last month, a court in Bosnia charged a man believed to be the spiritual leader of the group with recruiting Bosnians to fight with Islamic militants in Syria and organizing a terrorist group.

Beganovic, who preaches every week to a full mosque, tells his followers that groups like IS are spreading a "perverted version of Islam."

"When did (the Prophet) Muhammad ever behead anyone?" he said. "When did he take a knife and slaughter an innocent journalist?"

Of Islam's 99 names for God — including The Mighty and The Avenger — the ones Beganovic likes most are The Exceedingly Merciful and The Exceedingly Gracious.

"That is what we teach our children here," he said.

Dragan Lukac, the director of federal police, blamed fighters returning from Syria's front lines for the attacks against Beganovic, which include severe beatings and knife slashes to the face, shoulders and hands. Investigators are still hunting for the attacker in last week's knife assault.

"Every person who comes back from that front line is a danger," said Lukac. "These people are able to perform attacks on citizens, on property, on state institutions."

Militant Islam was all but unknown to Bosnia's mostly secular Muslim population until the 1990s Balkans wars when Arab mercenaries turned up to help the outgunned Bosnian Muslims fend off Serb attacks. These fighters, many of whom settled in Bosnia, embraced a radical version of Islam that Bosnia's official Islamic community opposes.

The community's leader, Husein Kavazovic, has repeatedly warned Bosnians not to fall for extremist rhetoric aimed at pulling them into the fight in Syria.

"Our job is to keep repeating, to keep warning that this is evil and cannot be justified," he said.

That's exactly what Beganovic has been doing — at the risk of his life.

"These are dangerous people," he said. "Their place is in a mental institution."

[The Brain]

Is your favorite The Exceedingly Fabulous?

[Valmy]

That is the thing about Muslim extremism: it is much more dangerous to Muslims than the rest of us.

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

[Jacob]

That is the thing about Muslim extremism: it is much more dangerous to Muslims than the rest of us.

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

I think it's always been the case, depending on context. When radicals tend to radicalize from a conservative context, they're called ultra-conservative; when they radicalize from a left-wing context they're called ultra-leftist, etc.

In all cases it seems they want to overthrow the existing social order to achieve an ideal society. In the case of ultra-conservative radicals, that ideal society is expressed as a yearning for a past golden age, while progressive radicals are yearning for a future golden age. In both cases the golden age is to be achieved by strictly adhering to the creed, taking extreme action, and overthrowing the current social order. The differences lie in whether we are supposed to look forward or backwards to find Utopia (and, of course, in some of the details of the content of the hoped for Utopia).

[CountDeMoney]

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

Anything that begins with "ultra" is a bad thing.  Except Ultraman.

[Sheilbh]

I think it's always been the case, depending on context. When radicals tend to radicalize from a conservative context, they're called ultra-conservative; when they radicalize from a left-wing context they're called ultra-leftist, etc.

In all cases it seems they want to overthrow the existing social order to achieve an ideal society. In the case of ultra-conservative radicals, that ideal society is expressed as a yearning for a past golden age, while progressive radicals are yearning for a future golden age. In both cases the golden age is to be achieved by strictly adhering to the creed, taking extreme action, and overthrowing the current social order. The differences lie in whether we are supposed to look forward or backwards to find Utopia (and, of course, in some of the details of the content of the hoped for Utopia).

It's also one of the many problems of applying political labels onto religious views - same as the unbelievably insulting idea of a 'moderate' Muslim and the kind of annoying use of 'radical' in a negative way. Theologically an ultra-conservative, Salafist preacher is very radical and novel as opposed to a traditional Bosnian preacher who would be considerably less conservative.

[Viking]

When did Muhammed behead anybody?

No woman of Banu Qurayza was killed except one. She was with me, talking and laughing on her back and belly (extremely), while the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was killing her people with the swords. Suddenly a man called her name: Where is so-and-so? She said: I I asked: What is the matter with you? She said: I did a new act. She said: The man took her and beheaded her. She said: I will not forget that she was laughing extremely although she knew that she would be killed.
Sunan Abu Dawud 14:2665

It's hard to combat extremism when you don't have the facts on your side; or by straight up lying.

[Razgovory]

Okay, that's enough.

[Malicious Intent]

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

Anything that begins with "ultra" is a bad thing.  Except Ultraman.

Marneus Calgar disapproves.

[garbon]

When did Muhammed behead anybody?

No woman of Banu Qurayza was killed except one. She was with me, talking and laughing on her back and belly (extremely), while the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was killing her people with the swords. Suddenly a man called her name: Where is so-and-so? She said: I I asked: What is the matter with you? She said: I did a new act. She said: The man took her and beheaded her. She said: I will not forget that she was laughing extremely although she knew that she would be killed.
Sunan Abu Dawud 14:2665

It's hard to combat extremism when you don't have the facts on your side; or by straight up lying.

When I read that in the article, I thought to myself "which bitch will complain about that?" and the answer was obvious.

[Razgovory]

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

Anything that begins with "ultra" is a bad thing.  Except Ultraman.

Marneus Calgar disapproves.

It looks like he's on the Shitter.

[Valmy]

When did Muhammed behead anybody?

No woman of Banu Qurayza was killed except one. She was with me, talking and laughing on her back and belly (extremely), while the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was killing her people with the swords. Suddenly a man called her name: Where is so-and-so? She said: I I asked: What is the matter with you? She said: I did a new act. She said: The man took her and beheaded her. She said: I will not forget that she was laughing extremely although she knew that she would be killed.
Sunan Abu Dawud 14:2665

It's hard to combat extremism when you don't have the facts on your side; or by straight up lying.

Meh.  Probably never happened.  Granted, though, we are talking about the big Mo as portrayed in Islamic tradition.

[The Minsky Moment]

When did Muhammed behead anybody?

No woman of Banu Qurayza was killed except one. She was with me, talking and laughing on her back and belly (extremely), while the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was killing her people with the swords. Suddenly a man called her name: Where is so-and-so? She said: I I asked: What is the matter with you? She said: I did a new act. She said: The man took her and beheaded her. She said: I will not forget that she was laughing extremely although she knew that she would be killed.
Sunan Abu Dawud 14:2665

WTF?
I have no idea what this says as the Wikipedia supplied translation is not in any form of cognizable English.  However, it doesn't have Muhammad doing any beheading as far as I can see.

The underlying Quranic verse doesn't say anything of the sort.

[Razgovory]

When did Muhammed behead anybody?

No woman of Banu Qurayza was killed except one. She was with me, talking and laughing on her back and belly (extremely), while the Apostle of Allah (peace be upon him) was killing her people with the swords. Suddenly a man called her name: Where is so-and-so? She said: I I asked: What is the matter with you? She said: I did a new act. She said: The man took her and beheaded her. She said: I will not forget that she was laughing extremely although she knew that she would be killed.
Sunan Abu Dawud 14:2665

It's hard to combat extremism when you don't have the facts on your side; or by straight up lying.

Meh.  Probably never happened.  Granted, though, we are talking about the big Mo as portrayed in Islamic tradition.

Well, to be fair he didn't actually say who didn't have the facts on their side and was straight up lying.

[Viking]

When did ultra-conservative start to mean ultra-radical?  I thought those were contradictions.

Anything that begins with "ultra" is a bad thing.  Except Ultraman.

At least one Ultraman is evil.