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There has been some back and forth debate among policy makers the past few years about whether or not to categorize waterboarding as torture, as it is one of the interrogation techniques that have been used against our brothers in Guantanomo Bay.

Hitchens writes in his VF article that waterboarding was originally a method of torture Special Forces underwent as part of their SERE (Survival, Evasion, Resistance, Escape) Training component in the event they were captured by an enemy who ignored the Geneva Conventions.

Perhaps even more telling was the waiver he was required to sign, which stated the following:

“Water boarding” is a potentially dangerous activity in which the participant can receive serious and permanent (physical, emotional and psychological) injuries and even death, including injuries and death due to the respiratory and neurological systems of the body.

The agreement went on to state that even with the safeguards provided:

…during the ‘water boarding’ process, however, these measures may fail and even if they work properly they may not prevent Hitchens from experiencing serious injury or death.

Hitchens goes on to quote Malcolm Nance, a man who has been involved in the SERE training program for some time, who states:

“Torture advocates hide behind the argument that an open discussion about specific American interrogation techniques will aid the enemy. Yet, convicted Al Qaeda members and innocent captives who were released to their host nations have already debriefed the world through hundreds of interviews, movies and documentaries on exactly what methods they were subjected to and how they endured. Our own missteps have created a cadre of highly experienced lecturers for Al Qaeda’s own virtual SERE school for terrorists.”

I’ve underlined a serious moral dilemna which the US government and their dogmatic followers have ignored, and that is that Guantanomo prisoners who are innocent by even their own definition of innocent have been tortured using this technique (and others). No surprise here, just a reminder of what we’ve all known now for some time.

Interesting as this story is, Hitchens does not break new ground per se, as he is re-iterating much of what was stated in this Washington Post article which additionally goes on to state that during WWII, Japanese soldiers were convicted for torturing American POWs due to their use of waterboarding techniques against them (Frustrating, I know). What separates Hitchens’ article is his reversal of position on waterboarding due to his firsthand experience.

May Allah subhaana wa ta’aala reward and bless greatly those of our brothers and sisters who have been subjected to such harsh treatment, and give them patience and strength to endure the after effects of such techniques.

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[Image Credit: umar nasir]

I first came across the munaqqabah mutant when avidly devouring the graphic novel collection of The New X-Men: Hellions. I was stunned and delighted to discover the existence of a character who is not only a strong, intelligent young woman but is a practicing Muslimah to boot - who makes it clear to readers why she chooses to observe correct hijaab.

(Source)

Here’s a bit more info about my new favourite superhero (Wiki bio):

Dust is an adolescent Sunni Muslim girl who possesses the mutant power to turn herself into a sand-like substance. Born in Afghanistan, Sooraya is kidnapped by a slave-trading ring after she is separated from her mother. While one of her slavers tries to remove her niqāb, she instinctively lashes out with her powers and flays them all alive with her dust form before passing out. She is subsequently discovered and rescued by Wolverine and Fantomex. Wolverine takes her to the X-Corps base in India. Sooraya hides herself from the X-Men stationed there by turning into sand and spreading herself around the complex. Phoenix senses Sooraya’s presence and telepathically convinces her to reveal herself to everyone present. Sooraya reforms and announces her presence by speaking a single word: Turaab (Arabic for dust).

More here at her official Marvel database page.

If you’re as nerdy as I am, then no doubt you find it pretty darn cool… but of course there’s always that doubt that springs up immediately after you get excited about how there’s finally some positive representation of Muslims in the media (as fictional as it may be!) - how long it will be before the desire to make “Dust” more sexy overtakes any desire for editors to keep up with her proper hijab? How long before the commercial need to sell femininity, as is the case with all other female superheroes with exaggerated figures to make them more desiring for teen boys, will cause Dust’s abaaya to be a figure-hugging uniform? In the world of reel-bad Arabs, it may be a small consolation to see at least an attempt to sell the hijab in a positive manner, but how sincere and long-lasting will the effort be?

Some artists depict Sooraya’s abaya incorrectly, having it tightly cinched around her waist and breasts, which questionably disregards the purpose of wearing an abaya.

Ah well… for now I’m just glad that we’ve got Muslimaat represent in the comic book world - boo yah!

In this khutbah, Sheikh Younus Kathrada from Dar al-Madinah Islamic Society of Vancouver, Canada, shares the divine wisdom behind trials and tribulations, explaining how to deal with calamities in an Islamic manner.

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Part 2:

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Download the latest MM podcast to hear Sh. Yaser Birjas talk about the importance of physical fitness in Islam.

Does that mean the MM Staff have to start dieting now?

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On one of the evenings of the course, the brothers all met up at a local volunteer’s house to chill with Shaykh Riad where he gave this short 10 minute talk on tips for the dai’yah (caller to Islam). The talk is recorded for your watching pleasure here.

How about you? Got any tips for those involved in Da’wah? Any awesome techniques or wonder stories that you’ve experienced or heard? Know something we should be careful of?