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The Legal Project, an activity of the Middle East Forum, works to protect the right in the West to freely discuss Islam, radical Islam, terrorism, and terrorist funding. [More]
Commentary & Analysis
EU Challenges the UN and OIC on Press Freedom
by Nathaniel Sugarman • June 18, 2013 • American Thinker
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ShareThe European Parliament (EP) in Strasbourg passed two resolutions Thursday, each detailing a set of recommendations to protect the rights of journalists to speak and print freely. 21
"The EU, as a community of values, should aspire to lead in ensuring the free word, whether blogged or spoken, and information, whether researched or photographed, are protected. Journalists and a free, pluralist media, are essential for democracies and checks on power. Freedom of speech and freedom after speech are at the core of open and free societies," said Marietje Schaake (ALDE, NL), rapporteur for press and media freedom in the world. The EP is the directly elected parliament of the European Union.
Full Text...
The Center for American Progress' Willful Blindness
by Andrew E. Harrod • June 9, 2013 • American Thinker
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The Center for American Progress (CAP) unveiled its report Foreign Law Bans: Legal Uncertainties and Practical Problems at a May 16, 2013, event at CAP's Washington, DC, headquarters. CAP's analysts are unconcerned by the influence of sharia and other foreign laws in America.
DISTORTING NIAC'S COURT DEFEAT
by Sam Nunberg • May 26, 2013 • Breitbart Big Journalism
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But on May 5 M.J. Rosenberg wrote an article that turns upside down the trial outcome and even the facts established in the case. This article points out Rosenberg's many errors.
U.S. Praises Sharia Censorship
by Deborah Weiss • May 24, 2013 • Frontpage Mag
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The United States is silent as the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) passes its most recent UN Resolution that unravels global consensus to support freedom of speech.
From 1999-2010, the OIC succeeded in passing its "defamations of religions" resolutions, which ostensibly would protect Islam from all criticism, including true statements of fact. Though the name of the resolutions indicated that it would pertain to all religions equally, in the OIC's interpretation, it applied to Islam only.
Realizing the clash that this concept holds with that of free expression, the US State Department urged the OIC to produce an alternative resolution which would address the OIC's concerns about "Islamophobia" and still protect free speech.
German Government Ramps Up Monitoring of Conservatives
by Andrew Harrod • May 23, 2013 • Frontpage Mag
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The recent controversial decision by the Bavarian Office of Constitutional Protection (Verfassungsschutz) to monitor the popular conservative German website Politically Incorrect (PI) has only subsequently become more questionable. Contrary comments by the director of Germany's Federal Office of Constitutional Protection (Bundesamt für Verfassungsschutz), public statements by local authorities in Munich, and suspicions of political calculations all raise grave doubts about the propriety of PI's official "anti-constitutional" branding. Irrespective of motive, PI's predicament demonstrates yet again how public authorities can have a proverbial "chilling effect" upon free speech with respect to Islam.
Catholic Cardinal Calls for End to Blasphemy Laws
by Andrew Harrod • May 21, 2013 • Frontpage Mag
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Speaking at a conference in Milan, Italy, on May 8, 2013, that city's archbishop, Cardinal Angelo Scola, called for the abolition of blasphemy laws worldwide. Such a step would significantly help protect globally the freedom of speech and religion desperately needed by Christians in particular while countering Islamic fanaticism with freedom.
UN Pressures Germany to Bow to 'Hate Speech' Hysteria
by Andrew Harrod and Sam Nunberg • May 16, 2013 • Frontpage Mag
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A recent decision by the United Nation's (UN) Committee on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination (CERD) foreshadows an ominous future for free societies should Muslim entities like theOrganization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) achieve their goal of having "Islamophobia" defined internationally as a form of prejudice.
The Media's Muhammad Blackout Defers Again to Islam
by Andrew Harrod • May 10, 2013 • Frontpage Mag
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Yet again depictions of Islam's prophet Muhammad are causing controversy. The French satire magazine Charlie Hebdo has published a special edition released in January 2013 entitled La Vie de Mahomet, 1ère partie: Les débuts d'un prophète ("The Life of Muhammad, Part One: The Debut of a Prophet"; part two will follow in June 2013). Press reaction in both France and Germany, however, has not been uniformly welcoming, demonstrating once more a media aversion to open examination of Islam.
'THE INNOCENT PROPHET' NARRATOR AND CHRISTIAN CONVERT DEFEATS ISLAMISTS' HATE SPEECH CHARGE
by Sam Nunberg • May 6, 2013 • The Blaze
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On April 29, 2013, a Spanish court dismissed a hate speech charge filed against Imran Firasat. While this is an important victory for Freedom of Expression, Imran's case is far from over. He is still under the threat of having his refugee status revoked by the Spanish government for his critique of Islam. Should he be deported to Pakistan, Imran will face certain death for his conversion from Islam to Christianity.
SPAIN ACQUITS ISLAM CRITIC OF 'HATE CRIME' CHARGES, MAY DEPORT
by AWR Hawkins • May 5, 2013 • Breitbart Big Peace
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Imran Firasat, who has been in limbo in Spain for months with a growing list of charges over his vocal stance against what he considers the dangers of Islam, has been acquitted of "hurting the religious sentiments of Muslims."
This specific charge revolved around Firasat's YouTube film, The Innocent Prophet.
While the acquittal is great and welcome news for Firasat, he still faces the threat of deportation from Spain back to Pakistan. And throughout the proceedings he has made it clear than a return to Pakistan will almost certainly mean death for him--Shariah death.
by Andrew Harrod • May 4, 2013 • American Thinker
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Bavaria's Interior Ministry announced April 12, 2013, that the provincial Office of Constitutional Protection (Verfassungsschutz) will monitor local chapters of the website Politically Incorrect (PI) and the small conservative Freedom Party (Die Freiheit). As reported in the media, Bavaria is the first province in Germany to take this step, an important German milestone in ostracizing criticism and/or condemnation of Islam.
Anti-Islamist Imran Firasat Acquitted of Hate Crime Charges in Spain
by Jim Hoft • May 3, 2013 • Gateway Pundit
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Earlier this year anti-Islamist Imran Firasat was charged with hate crimes in Spain for producing a movie on Islam's prophet Muhammad's life. Islamists demanded he be deported over the YouTube movie on Muhammad. But according to Firasat's attorney Sam Nunberg, "the Spanish Government has not cited once instance where Imran's video has caused a national security disturbance or a single complaint."
A landmark victory for the freedom of expression in Europe: Imran Firasat acquitted of hate crime
by Robert Spencer • April 30, 2013 • Jihad Watch
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I just received this message from Imran Firasat:
Hi friends. As you all know that a few months ago my refugee status was revoked by the Spanish government over producing a movie on Islam's prophet Muhammad's life.After that I was also accused of hate crime (hurting religious sentiments of Muslims) and was being prosecuted. There was a huge pressure on me to leave Spain or to be prepared for deportation or detention. But I decided to stay here and fight for my right to freedom of expression.
The appeal I have lodged against the decision of the ministry to revoke my refugee status is still in the process in the Spanish high court. But today I have got great news which is a landmark victory for the freedom of expression in Spain and in Europe.
by Secular Humanism Forum • April 30, 2013 • Change.org
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Please consider signing the following petition at the link above.
Imran Firasat is a citizen of Pakistani origin living in Spain to the Spanish government granted political refugee status in 2005.
Following the announcement of a film critical of Islam which is an author, Firasat is undergoing a process of prosecution by the Spanish state, which has revoked his work permit and has threatened to extradite. This persecution is based on an alleged threat to the national security of Spain and the alleged violation of Article 510 of the Spanish Penal Code, which provides for the offense of "hatred inicitación" religious.
Turkey Convicts World-Renowned Pianist for 'Defaming' Islam
by Andrew Harrod • April 23, 2013 • Frontpage Magazine
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A Turkish court on April 15, 2013, convicted world-renowned pianist Fazil Say under Article 216(3) of the Turkish Penal Code. This article punishes "[a]nyone who openly denigrates the religious values of a part of the population" with imprisonment of six months to a year. Say's case highlights once again the limits to free speech in Muslim-majority countries including Turkey, often touted in the past as an example of Islamic faith coexisting with freedom. The world as well should note this clear warning about ongoing Muslim assaults upon free speech internationally.
Sanctioning Iran's American Allies
NIAC ordered to pay nearly $200K in legal fees
by Adam Kredo • April 22, 2013 • Washington Free Beacon
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An Iranian-American group suspected of acting as Tehran's lobbying shop in Washington, D.C., was ordered to pay nearly $200,000 in "sanctions" April 9 after launching a failed defamation lawsuitagainst one of its chief critics.
The left-leaning National Iranian American Council (NIAC) was ordered earlier this month to pay $183,480 to the legal defense fund of Hassan Daioleslam, an Iranian-American writer who hasaccused NIAC of failing to disclose its clandestine lobbying efforts, which are believed to include efforts to roll back sanctions on Tehran.
NIAC, which describes itself as a nonprofit educational organization, sued Daioleslam in 2008, alleging he defamed the group by claiming NIAC has lobbied U.S. government officials on Tehran's behalf.
Predatory Lawsuit Rebounds Back on Iranian Front Group
[Federal Court penalizes Islamist group with a massive discovery sanction penalty]
by Sam Nunberg • April 16, 2013 • Breitbart Big Peace
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On April 8th D.C. District Court Judge John D. Bates ordered this huge penalty because of the abuses which NIAC and Parsi's perpetrated for over two years during discovery (pre-trial phase where parties exchange evidence) in their nuisance suit brought against Hassan Daioleslam, an Iranian immigrant and editor of the Iranian American Forum.
by Hamid Yazdanpanah • April 14, 2013 • Stop Fundamentalism Blog
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The National Iranian American Council (NIAC) has long been accused of acting as the Iranian regime's lobby in the US. Putting aside the ample evidence which has been uncovered in this regard, one needs look no further than NIAC's conduct to see the true nature of the organization.
The most telling example of this conduct comes from the lawsuit which NIAC filed and subsequently lost against Iranian journalist Hassan Daioleslam. The suit culminates a four-year legal battle which not only revealed the depths of NIAC's duplicity and deception, but demonstrated the complete lack of foundation for the suit in the first place.
True to form - NIAC has continued its policy of distortion and downright dishonesty.
NIAC's initiation of the suit was clearly meant to silence Daioleslam's criticism of the organization. Yet when it lost the case, NIAC attempted to cast itself as the victim.
The Muslims with No Name: Islamists Cover Up Their Existence in the Media
by By Andrew E. Harrod and Sam Nunberg • April 14, 2013 • American Thinker
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As reported by U.S. News & World Report on April 4, 2013, the Associated Press (AP) has revised its definition of "Islamist" in the latest edition of the AP stylebook after the AP announced that it would likewise no longer approve of "illegal immigrant." This move, advocated precisely by a troubling Muslim group justifiably called Islamist in the past, shows once again how difficult it is for modern free societies even to identify their Islamist foes in the face of politically correct pressures.
Added to the AP stylebook in 2012, Islamist initially had the following entry: "Supporter of government in accord with the laws of Islam. Those who view the Quran as a political model encompass a wide range of Muslims, from mainstream politicians to militants known as jihadi." The updated entry reads:
Shadowing Europe with the 'Islamophobia' Canard
by Andrew Harrod • April 12, 2013 • Family Security Matters
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After Pressure From CAIR, the Associated Press Revises the Term 'Islamist'
by Madeleine Morgenstern • April 5, 2013 • The Blaze
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Two days after the Associated Press announced it was nixing "illegal immigrant" from its influential stylebook, it's also revising the meaning of the term "Islamist."
The AP made the change Thursday after a push by the Council on American-Islamic Relations, which said the term "has become shorthand for 'Muslims we don't like'" and "is currently used in an almost exclusively pejorative context."
A Muslim 'Reformer's' Idea of Free Speech
by Andrew Harrod • March 27, 2013 • Front Page Magazine
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KARAMAH is a self-proclaimed group of "Muslim women lawyers for human rights" that "contributes to the understanding and promotion of human rights worldwide, particularly the rights of Muslim women under Islamic and civil law." On March 19, 2013, KARAMAH hosted at Howard University School of Law in Washington, DC, in conjunction with the local chapter of theMuslim Law Students Association (MLSA), the presentation "The Limits of Free Speech in a Global Era: Does America's Free Speech Model Endanger Muslim Americans?" Strangely enough for a self-professed "human rights" organization, this presentation outlined precisely a legal understanding restricting freedom, namely with respect to speech. In all, the evening lecture called into question the commitment of Muslims to human rights and only highlighted the opposition worldwide to the unhindered debate and discussion protected in America.
Islam's Attack on Free Speech
Blurred Image: How Even Free Speech's Defenders Must Defer to Islam
by Andrew E. Harrod • March 24, 2013 • American Thinker
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Silent Conquest documents multiple examples of militant Muslims using various legal means both domestically and internationally to suppress criticism and condemnation of Islam. Appearing along with four panelists in the film are a veritable who's-who of militant Islam's opponents in the last years, including Caroline Cox, Nonie Darwish, Mark Durie, Brigitte Gabriel, John Guandolo, Pamela Geller, Lars Hedegaard, Daniel Huff, Zuhdi Jasser, Charles Jacobs, Erza Levant, Clare Lopez, Malcolm Pearson, Daniel Pipes, Fleming Rose, Mark Steyn, Lars Vilks, Allen West, Kurt Westergaard, Geert Wilders, and Elisabeth Sabaditsch-Wolff. The numerous incidents of speech under assault from defenders of Islam profiled in the film include Pope Benedict XVI's September 12, 2006 Regensburg address, the South Park Muhammad controversy, and the going into hiding of cartoonist Molly Norris in the face of death threats.
Spanish Government Charges Imran Firasat With Hate Crimes
by AWR HAWKINS • March 22, 2013 • Breitbart Big Peace
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Now, the Spanish government has upped the ante by charging Firasat with a hate crime, meaning the Spanish government has put Firasat in a position where he faces deportation and likely death under Sharia Authority. On the other hand, he faces imprisonment for hate crimes and therefore a complete loss of freedom.
Thrown in Prison for Shredding the Koran
by Andrew Harrod • March 13, 2013 • Frontpage Magazine
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A Bruges, Belgium criminal court convicted a man for shredding a Koran on March 6, 2013. The court imposed a four-month prison sentence and a 600 euro fine upon him. He now additionally faces a revocation of a previous suspension of an 18-month prison sentence for having set a fire in a wood. This case highlights yet again the greater restrictions on speech in free societies outside of the United States and how these restrictions can limit open debate about Islam.
[Defending Lars Hedegaard:] "A Stew of Anti-Muslim Bile and Conspiracy-Laden Forecasts"
by Dr. Daniel Pipes • March 6, 2013 at 5:33 pm
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At 11:20 a.m. on Feb. 5, Lars Hedegaard answered his door bell to an apparent mailman. Instead of receiving a package, however, the 70-year-old Danish historian and journalist found himself face to face with a would-be assassin about one third his age. The assailant shot him once, narrowly missing his head. The gun locked, Hedegaard wrestled with him, and the young man fled.
Documents: Hagel staffers met with 'front group' for Iranian regime
by Charles C. Johnson • February 20, 2013 • The Daily Caller
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Documents obtained by The Daily Caller show that staffers for then-Sen. Chuck Hagel met repeatedly with a controversial pro-Iran lobby group, and some met with the organization's president.
Hagel is President Barack Obama's choice to be the next secretary of defense. Arizona Sen. John McCain and other Republicans have conceded that a vote — and likely confirmation — will take place during the week of Feb. 25.
Iranian state-run media have referred to the National Iranian-American Council (NIAC) since at least 2006 as "Iran's lobby" in the U.S.
Islamists Demand Imran Firasat's Deportation Over YouTube Video
by Awr Hawkins • February 19, 2013 • Breitbart: Big Peace
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Those calling for his deportation largely justify it by pointing to a film he made about the Prophet Mohammed. However, according to Firasat's attorney Sam Nunberg, "the Spanish Government has not cited once instance where Imran's video has caused a national security disturbance or a single complaint."
What seems to be happening is not so much some outlandish offense on Firasat's part as much as it is a zero tolerance for different viewpoints by the Islamists calling for his deportation.
by Andrew C. McCarthy • February 8, 2013 • National Review Online
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Powerline's John Hinderaker thinks former Sen. Chuck Hagel's nomination to be Obama's defense secretary is already dead. He may be right.
by Taylor Rose • February 7, 2013 • World Net Daily
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WASHINGTON – Could Sen. Chuck Hagel, whose Senate vote on his nomination as the next secretary of defense has been delayed until next week because of controversies over his work, be a potential lobbyist for Iran? After all, he's already been endorsed by the rogue nation for the administrative post.
Clare Lopez, a senior fellow at the Center for Security Policy, spoke to WND on the subject, asserting that Hagel "is associated … with people who are associated with" the National Iranian American Council. And that, Lopez explains, is "the center of the Iranian lobby in America."
Hagel, though not directly tied to NIAC, is affiliated with other groups that are directly tied into the funding and supporting of NIAC.
Another Anti-Muhammad filmmaker could be deported to Pakistan to face an imminent death
by John-Pierre Maeli • February 7, 2013 • American Thinker
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After being granted asylum in Spain to escape threats to his life, Imram Farasat, might be deported back to Pakistan.
Why would he be deported after being granted asylum? Well it's all because he had the guts to voice his opinion. More specifically, he created a film on Mohammad titled, "The Innocent Prophet" which goes through Muhammad's life and reveals the real Muhammad.
Now most of you who are familiar with Islam know the true story of Muhammad, but for many Muslims and non-informed individuals the truth can be revolting to say the least. And that's what happened to Farasat. The simple act of speaking out against Islam has put Farasat in a dangerous situation.
If he is sent back to Pakistan he will most likely be assaulted or killed by those who don't take criticism of Islam lightly. Even his attorney, Same Nunberg, fears for his life.
Spain: Former Muslim Could Face Deportation for Speaking Against Islam
by Awr Hawkins • February 6, 2013 • Breitbart: Big Peace
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If deported he will be sent back to Pakistan, a move which Farasat and his attorney Sam Nunberg believe will almost certainly result in death.
Welcome to the world of Sharia.
Farasat says that he converted to Christianity after 26 years in Islam because he became convinced Islam was "not a religion," but a "political dictatorship which persecutes and teaches to persecute." He began speaking out against this persecution upon his conversion, and for this is now being pursued by Sharia enforcers.
This is Farasat's observation:
by Adam Turner • February 4, 2013 • American Thinker
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Imran Firasat, a Muslim-turned-Christian from Pakistan who currently resides in Spain, is facing down a Spanish government that seems determined to punish him for his film, The Innocent Prophet, about the prophet Muhammad. The Spanish government has: 1) revoked his Spanish residency and now threatens to extradite him; and 2) initiated a prosecution for violating a Spanish hate speech law. The Spanish authorities have justified their revocation of his residency on the grounds that he is "threatening national security with the production of this video." Although Mr. Firasat is originally from Pakistan, the Spanish authorities might also deport him to Indonesia, where his wife is from (and still lives) and where Firasat lived from 2008 through 2010. Meanwhile, the accompanying hate speech prosecution filed against Mr. Firasat is because his film violates section 510 of the Spanish Penal Code, which is a crime that punishes incitation to hatred and violence for racial, ideological or religious reasons. More facts about Imran Firasat's case may be found in an earlier column I wrote, here. In interest of full disclosure I should note, that the Legal Project is providing financial assistance to his attorney.
CRITICIZING ISLAM CONSIDERED NATIONAL SECURITY THREAT
by Taylor Rose • January 13, 2013 • World Net Daily
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WASHINGTON – As tensions continue to surge over the expansion of Shariah law both in the Middle East and in Europe, a new speech rights case has emerged in Spain where an ex-Muslim Christian convert is threatened with deportation for speaking out against Islam.
Imran Farasat, who was interviewed by WND, is a Pakistani Christian who converted from Islam in 2004, after, he said, "I realized that what I was following for 26 years of my life is not a religion but in reality is a political dictatorship which persecutes and teaches to persecute through the orders and teachings of a self-proclaimed prophet (Muhammad)."
After his conversion to Christianity, he began to speak out against Islam. He told WND, "Muslims are involved everywhere in terrorism. Christians are being persecuted in Islamic countries to the maximum level of torture and suffering and Islam is trying to invade the Western world and kill our values. Who will stop this all?"
A Response to NIAC's Deceitful Fundraising Letter
by Sam Nunberg • January 9, 2013 • Frontpage Magazine
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Tehran's informal lobby in Washington just suffered a massive defeat in court. Rather than acknowledge this fact, its president, one Trita Parsi, sent out an extraordinary fundraising letter in which he takes perilous liberties with the truth.
by Adam Turner • December 31, 2012 • The Blaze
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In September of 2012, supposedly because of an obscure "anti-Islam" film named "Innocence of Muslims," the Islamic world erupted with violent protests towards Westerners for exercising their right to free speech. Since then, Western government's have shown extreme sensitivity to free speech in the West regarding Islam. Just this December, we saw another person targeted by European nations for his critical speech about Islam.
Middle East Forum bankrolls free speech defenses for critics of 'Islamist threat'
by Eli Clifton • December 24, 2012 • The American Independent
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When the people sounding alarms over the 'Islamist threat' run into trouble with the law, the Middle East Forum's Legal Project is increasingly the go-to funder tapped to mount defenses here and abroad.
In September, Reuters revealed that the Legal Project paid legal bills for Dutch anti-Muslim politician Geert Wilders. Wilders faced charges in the Netherlands for inciting hatred against Muslims in interviews, articles, and his short film, "Fitna," which compared "Islamic ideology" to Nazism and Communism.
Wilders was acquitted on all charges in June 2011.
Have the Islamists already won on Defamation of Religion?
by Adam Turner • December 20, 2012 at 10:24 am
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On Monday, December 3, members of the Legal Project at the Middle East Forum participated in a Capitol Hill panel discussion about "The Istanbul Process and the OIC's Continuing Efforts to Implement Restrictions to Prevent the Defamation of Islam: Part II".
by Adam Turner • December 10, 2012 • Frontpage Magazine
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Only a week after being praised by the Obama Administration for his supposed helpfulness in ending the fighting in Gaza between Palestinian Hamas terrorists and Israel, Muslim Brotherhood (MB) Member and Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi apparently decided to cash in his praise "chips" early. Most prominently, President Morsi made himself immune from the Egyptian Supreme Constitutional Court's oversight, thereby essentially assuming dictatorial powers over his nation. Less prominently, one of his appointed judges convicted eight persons, including seven Americans, for their "blasphemy" towards Islam. Included in this group were well-known Florida Pastor Terry Jones, who has burned several Korans in the United States, and Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, one of the people behind the controversial American film "Innocence of Muslims." So far, the Obama Administration has lodged no complaints (and here) with the Egyptian regime over either action.
Fatal Attraction: US Flirts with International Speech Codes
by Nathaniel Sugarman • December 9, 2012 • American Thinker
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This past week, the United States met with the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) in London to discuss whether speaking about religion can violate international law. The meeting represents round three of the "Istanbul Process," an effort Secretary of State Hillary Clinton launched in July 2011 in the eponymous Turkish city. The initiative's goal is to implement non-binding UN Human Rights Council Resolution 16/18, which itself calls for the criminalization of various forms of speech concerning religion. The OIC, an association of 56 Islamic member states and the Palestinian Authority, represents the largest voting bloc in the United Nations.
Case Against 'Innocence of Muslims' Filmmaker Raises Eyebrows
by Adam Turner • November 19, 2012 • The Blaze
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Nakoula Basseley Nakoula, (or Mark Basseley Youssef) the American Coptic filmmaker partly responsible for the film clip that President Barack Obama, Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, and U.N. Ambassador Susan Rice initially and incorrectly blamed for inciting the terrorist attack on the U.S. consulate in Benghazi that killed the American Ambassador and three other Americans, was recently sentenced to a one year prison term for violating his probation.
Anti-Sharia Activist Takes Leeds City Council To Tribunal
by Chris Knowles • November 5, 2012 • ICLA Blog
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5 November 2012, Wakefield, UK: Chris Knowles a human rights activist from the International Civil Liberties Alliance (ICLA) has confirmed that he has initiated Employment Tribunal proceedings against Leeds City Council. Mr Knowles' case for unfair dismissal is scheduled to be heard by the Employment Tribunal on 13 March 2013. Mr Knowles who is assisted by the United States based The Legal Project, an activity of the Middle East Forum, said:
When a Judge Defends the First Amendment
by Adam Turner • November 3, 2012 at 1:40 pm
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On October 4, 2012, a First Amendment free speech case was argued before the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia. Pamela Geller, a prominent blogger and activist, had – through her organization called the American Freedom Defense Initiative – paid for ads to run on billboards in the Washington DC metro that said: "In any war between the savage and the civilized man, support the civilized man. Support Israel. Defeat Jihad."
Bashy is Back: The Still Strange Views of Mr. Quraishy on Free Speech
by Andrew E. Harrod • October 20, 2012 at 12:42 pm
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Bashy Quraishy, the Pakistani-Danish Muslim familiar to Legal Project (LP) readers from past articles by Adam Turner and me (see here and here), is back at his old stomping ground, the Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (OSCE). Speaking at the OSCE's 2012 Human Dimension Implementation Meeting (September 24, 2012-October 5, 2012, in Warsaw, Poland), Quraishy showed that he and his Islamic supremacist, anti-free speech agenda has not changed.
Daniel Pipes: Anti-Muslim Film Did Provoke Real Outrage
by Henry J. Reske and John Bachman and Daniel Pipes • October 7, 2012 • Newsmax
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Even though the attack on the U.S. diplomatic post in Libya is now being attributed to terrorism it is a mistake to overlook the rage that the YouTube video mocking Mohammed sparked, Daniel Pipes, president of the Middle East Forum, tells Newsmax TV.
Pipes, who is also a Taube Distinguished Visiting Fellow at the Hoover Institution of Stanford University and author of a column that appears in the Jerusalem Post, said that while the video didn't have much importance in either Libya or Egypt, "the perception worldwide by Muslims that their prophet Mohammed is being attacked, mocked is something that stirs emotions powerfully and has nothing to do with the United States."
Pipes said that since Ayatollah Khomeini, in 1989, issued a death sentence on Salman Rushdie for his novel Satanic Verses the West has responded with satirical depictions of Mohammed, which provoke Muslims.
by Billy Hallowell • October 5, 2012 • The Blaze
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Every once-in-a-while a story emerges that distinguishes itself as too-good-to-be-true, but somehow — the facts seem to check out. Last October, TheBlaze reported on one of these uniquely bizarre stories when we brought you the details surrounding "Zombie Muhammad," an atheist activist who was purportedly attacked by a Muslim during a Halloween parade in Pennsylvania.
Postmortem on the Mohammed Protests
by Daniel Pipes • October 2, 2012 • National Review Online
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As Muslim crowds dissipate and American diplomatic missions return to normal activities, here are three final thoughts on the riots that began this September 11 and killed about 30:
When a Constitutional Scholar Goes Bad
by Adam Turner • October 1, 2012 • The Blaze
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On September 11 and 12, 2012, all hell broke loose in the Arab world. On September 11, the U.S. Embassy in Egypt was invaded by hordes of Islamists, who tore down the American flag and unfurled a black Islamist triumphalist flag similar to that of al-Qaeda. On September 12, in Libya, in an organized attack, Libyans destroyed the American consulate in Benghazi and killed four Americans, including the U.S. Ambassador. Since then, Yemen, Pakistan, Indonesia, Tunisia, the Sudan, India, the United Kingdom, Germany, and many more nations have seen tremendous protests and/or riots on the street.
Director Sam Nunberg's Interviews on The Source
by Sam Nunberg • September 28, 2012 at 7:58 pm
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Last week, The Legal Project's (LP) Director Sam Nunberg appeared on The Source, a cable show for the SUN News Network hosted by Ezra Levant for two separate interviews.
Mocking Muhammad is not hate speech
by Daniel Pipes • September 24, 2012 • Fox News
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To stop Islamist violence over perceived insults to Muhammad, I argued in a FoxNews.com op-ed Friday, editors and producers daily should display cartoons of Muhammad "until the Islamists get used to the fact that we turn sacred cows into hamburger."
This appeal prompted a solemn reply from Sheila Musaji
of The American Muslim website, who deemed it "irresponsible and beyond the pale." Why so? Because, as she puts it, "The solution to escalating violence and hate speech is not more hate speech."
by Daniel Pipes • September 19, 2012 • Fox News
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When Salman Rushdie mocked Islamic sanctities in his magical 1989 realist novel "The Satanic Verses," Iran's Ayatollah Khomeini did something shockingly original: He issued a death edict on Rushdie and all those connected to the production of his book. By doing this, Khomeini sought to impose Islamic mores and laws on the West. We don't insult the prophet, he effectively said, and neither can you.
That started a trend of condemning those in the West deemed anti-Islamic that persists to this day. Again and again, when Westerners are perceived as denigrating Muhammad, the Koran, or Islam, Islamists demonstrate, riot or kill.
Khomeini's edict also had the unexpected side effect of empowering individuals – Western and Islamist alike – to drive their countries' policies.
Iranian Regime Loses to Legal Project in Federal District Court
by Sam Nunberg • September 18, 2012 at 8:51 am
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PHILADELPHIA, September 14, 2012 – Federal District Court Judge John B. Bates for the District of Columbia yesterday granted summary judgment for Seid Hassan Daioleslam, editor of the English Iranian Lobby website "In Search of Truth: Reports on Mullahs's lobby in US," the defendant in a defamation suit brought by Trita Parsi and the National Iranian American Council (NIAC). Judge Bates also ordered sanctions against Parsi for failure to comply with the discovery phase of the litigation. The Legal Project coordinated and financed the defense of Mr. Dai; Sidley Austin LLP represented him pro bono.
Another Islamist Assault, Another Western Cringe
by Daniel Pipes • September 14, 2012 • Boston Herald
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Attacks on Tuesday against American missions in Cairo and Benghazi fit into a familiar pattern of Islamist intimidation and Western appeasement that goes back to the Salman Rushdie affair in 1989. The Obama administration's supine response to the murder of American diplomats increases the likelihood of further such assaults.
by Sam Nunberg • September 10, 2012 at 6:16 pm
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PHILADELPHIA, September 10, 2012 – The Legal Project (LP), an activity of the Middle East Forum, today filed a formal request with the Pennsylvania Judicial Conduct Board for an investigation into the judicial misconduct of Cumberland County Magisterial District Judge Mark W. Martin. The LP filed in the matter of Commonwealth of Pennsylvania v. Talaag Elbayomy on behalf of Ernest Perce V, the victim of Talaag Elbayomy's harassment during a Halloween parade in Mechanicsburg on October 11, 2011 where Mr. Perce was dressed in a 'Zombie Mohammed' costume.
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