Women’s Rights In Egypt: Islamist Parliament Members Introduce Several Controversial Draft Laws That Will Bring Egypt Back To Middle Ages If Passed

By Anna Mahjar-Barducci, Gatestone Institute – “Islamist Members of Parliament in Egypt are trying to deprive Egyptian women of their basic rights by introducing several controversial draft laws that, if passed, will bring Egypt back to the Middle Ages:

— The website Ahram Online reports that Islamists wants to cancel Law 1 of the year 2000, known as the Khula Law, which acts as an alternative route for women whose husbands refuse to grant them a divorce. Through the Khula Law, courts grant women a divorce so long as they return the dowry paid by her husband prior to the marriage. Law 1 of the year 2000 was considered a step forward in women rights. Before that, Egyptian women did not have the right to divorce their husbands on their own terms.

Khula Law’s opponents argue that a woman should not be able to ask for divorce, as it is against Islamic Sharia law. As reported by the news agency AINA, the Islamist lawmaker and main Khula Law’s opponent, Mohamed El-Omda, has argued that the process is an offense to the Sharia and that is a poorly hidden attempt to Westernize Egypt.

— According to media reports, Islamist parties are also preparing a draft law for early marriage that would permit girls to get married at the age of 14 instead of 18. As reported by Ahram Online, in the past few months, Salafist MPs have argued that there should be no minimum age for marriage for either sex, explaining that in the Sharia Law, an age for marriage is not specified.

Women activists are trying to campaign against this draft. ‘A license to drive, and to even vote, requires you to be 18 years old or older. Are those things more important than being a parent and forming a family?’ said Azza Soliman, a legal assistant at the Centre for Egyptian Women. As reported by Ahram Online, she added she believes it is wrong to set the age of marriage below 18, or even ’12, as some imply.’

— A controversial statement was instead made by Azza El Garf, a woman and a parliamentarian belonging to the Freedom and Justice Party, the political wing of the ruling Islamist group the Muslim Brotherhood ruling . Al-Garf clearly points out that she disagrees with the Egypt’s 2008 ban on genital mutilation, to which she referred as a barbaric practice as beautification plastic surgery.

– Egyptian media recently reported about a draft law that would allow a husband to have sex with his dead wife within six hours after her death. Members of the Egyptian parliament said that the draft does not exist and that it was a story made up by the media. However, as reported by Al-Arabiya, the ‘Farewell Intercourse’ is not a new proposal. Last year

China: Authorities Investigate Cause Of 50,000+ Fish Killed Overnight In Southern City Of Shenzhen

“Over 50 thousand fish in a pond near an industrial area in the southern Chinese city of Shenzhen died overnight on Monday, CRI Online reports.

The dead fish are mostly concentrated in the northern corner of the pond, and half of the body of water is now covered with rotting fish.

Located in the Qiangxiaxin Village at the junction of the Guangming New District and Dongguan in Shenzhen, the fish pond is larger than two basketball courts in area.

‘We have invested a total of 350 thousand yuan (about 56 thousand USD) in the form of 60 thousand fish; now it’s all over,’ said Ms. Liu, the fish pond owner. ‘These fish have been raised for one year, and could have been sold at market three months later.’

Liu said she will not sell the dead fish at market despite suffering great financial losses as a result. She also suspects that heavy rain may have led to the pond being contaminated by toxic and harmful substances from a nearby building site in the Maike industrial area.

A manager surnamed Wen at the building site said that he is willing to cover any losses but stated that he is unaware of the presence of toxic materials at the site.

The Guangming New District environmental protection office has already begun investigating the case.” Source – CRI English.

Alabama: Hundreds Of Dead Fish Found In Mobile Bay, Cause May Never Be Known

By Jeff Dute, Press-Register – “MOBILE, Alabama — Scientists say it is highly possible they will never be able to determine what caused the deaths of hundreds of bull red drum on Mobile Bay over the past couple days.

What they believe is that the deaths of the highly regulated fish, which at this size are the primary spawners, likely won’t have significant or long-lasting impacts on populations in Alabama.

Kevin Anson, Alabama Marine Resources chief fisheries biologist, reassured people who have reported seeing the dead red drum, commonly called redfish, that the population is healthy enough to sustain such a one-time loss…

Estimates from reports of dead fish to the newspaper on Sunday put the total at between 400 and 500 fish. Most of the those fish were seen between Mullet Point and Point Clear on the east and from south of Gaillard Island to Dog River on the west.

Additional sightings from the weekend put dead redfish being seen from as far north as the Mobile River and Arlington Ship Channel to Weeks Bay on the southeast.” Read more.

Earthquakes, Dead Fish Causes Panic In Western Turkey

İZMİR – Doğan News Agency – “Locals in Izmir’s Tahtalı district are in a panic due to the appearance of dead fish in the area. Şaşal Village locals believe fire extinction planes, which are currently being used in the area for trial flights, are the cause behind the dead fish.

Many dead fish have washed up on shore around the village due to waves and wind, said locals speaking to Doğan news agency.

‘This is the first time that we have experienced such an event here. Sometimes the river basin becomes the area for test fligths. We think that this is affecting the current situation of dead fish.'” Source – Hurriyet Daily News.

4.4-magnitude quake hits western Turkey – “A magnitude 4.4 earthquake has struck Western Turkey at a depth of 35 km (21.7 miles), the quake hit at 17:10:10 UTC Thursday 3rd May 2012. The epicenter was 14 km (8.6 miles) East of Simav, Turkey. No Reports of Damage or Injuries at this time.” Source – Coming Crisis.

5.1-magnitude quake hits western Turkey – “A 5.1-magnitude earthquake hit the Kutahya province in western Turkey, the Istanbul-based Kandilli seismology center reported. The quake occurred at 6:20 pm local time with its epicenter in Tokat village of Hiharcik town in Kutahya, according to the seismology center affiliated to Bogazici University. The epicenter, with a depth of 3.1 km, was felt in some towns near Hiharcik and many citizens ran out of their houses in the province with panic.” Source – YNet News.

May’s ‘Supermoon’ To Be Closely Followed By Meteor Shower, Annular Solar Eclipse

Annular Solar Eclipse

By Tariq Malik – “The month of May looks to be a promising one for skywatchers around the world, with the largest full moon of the year — a so-called ‘supermoon’ — kicking things off this weekend. But the moon is just one of several tantalizing sky events this month, which include a meteor shower from Halley’s comet and the first solar eclipse of the year.

The skywatching action starts with a celestial double-feature. On Saturday and Sunday (May 5- 6) a ‘supermoon’ of 2012 and the Eta Aquarid meteor shower will both hit their peak.

While the bright full moon could interfere with the Eta Aquarid meteor display, some of the shower’s brightest fireballs should still be visible late Saturday and early Sunday, NASA scientists say.

Then, on May 20, the moon will pass in front of the sun but not completely block it, creating what scientists call an annular solar eclipse. Parts of the eclipse will be visible from much of North America, though the western U.S. states are in prime position for the best viewing experiences, according to SPACE.com skywatching columnist Geoff Gaherty.” Read more.

Israel Receives Fourth German-Made Submarine Capable Of Launching Nuclear Warheads

By TIA GOLDENBERG, Associated Press – “JERUSALEM (AP) — Israel on Thursday received its fourth German-made submarine capable of launching nuclear warheads, expanding a fleet that experts say could be used in an attack on Iran.

Defense Minister Ehud Barak said that the submarine would increase Israel’s capabilities and strength “in the face of the growing regional challenges.”

The Dolphin-type military submarine is one of six Israel has ordered from Germany, which subsidizes the submarines. Each submarine costs half a billion dollars. The sub was presented to Israeli officials in Hamburg, Germany, on Thursday and is expected to arrive in Israel in 2013, following final tests.

Israel is already in possession of three other German-made Dolphin-class submarines capable of carrying nuclear-tipped missiles. However, there is no evidence that Israel has armed them with such weapons and the country has never confirmed reports that it possesses a nuclear arsenal.” Read more.

Flashback: Israel Has Prepared for Possible Iranian Nuclear Strike for Years, May Have Developed Its Own Bunker Buster – “For more than a decade, Israel has systematically built up its military specifically for a possible strike on Iranian nuclear facilities. It has sent its air force on long-distance training missions, procured American-made ‘bunker-busting’ bombs and bolstered its missile defenses. […] Israel has developed an improved precision, bunker-burrowing weapon which Israeli Military Industries (IMI) unveiled on March 6. The 500-pound MPR-500 is an electro-optical (laser-guided) bomb that can penetrate double-reinforced concrete walls or floors without breaking apart.” Read more.

Pakistan: British Red Cross Worker Beheaded By Islamists

By KEITH GLADDIS and IMTIAZ HUSSAIN – “A British aid worker was found beheaded and riddled with bullets on a roadside in Pakistan yesterday because his kidnappers have not been paid the ransom they demanded.

Khalil Dale, 60, was taken at gunpoint in January while he was working with the Red Cross in the south-west city of Quetta.

His head and body were discovered wrapped in a plastic bag with a note addressed to the chief of police, which read: ‘This is the body of Khalil who we have slaughtered for not paying a ransom amount’.

Local police said the Pakistani Taliban had claimed responsibility.

David Cameron last night described the killing of Mr Dale, a Muslim convert who was also known as Ken, as a ‘shocking and merciless act’.

The Prime Minister said: ‘I was deeply saddened to hear today about the brutal murder of Khalil Dale – a man who was killed whilst providing humanitarian support to others.

‘This was a shocking and merciless act, carried out by people with no respect for human life and the rule of law.'” Read more.

Libya: Insult Islam, Spend Life In Prison

Sharia Laws imposed while lawlessness reigns …

“Tripoli (AsiaNews/Agencies) – The Islamisation of Libya puts national reconciliation in jeopardy. Yesterday, the National Transitional Council (NTC) adopted a number of laws that include life in prison for glorifying Moammar Gaddafi, insulting Islam or denigrating the 17 February Revolution. For the Libya’s rulers, the country is still at war and such restrictions are needed to prevent it from beings destabilised ahead of next June’s parliamentary elections.

According to one law, disseminating information that harms state-building is an insult to the people that deserves incarceration. Another law seizes the assets of the late dictator’s relatives and those of former regime officials.

Experts note that since Gaddafi’s death and the capture of his son Saif al-Islam, Libya has fallen to Islamist extremists inside the NTC who want to impose Sharia on the country.

At the same time, Libyan villages and towns are flooded with weapons, local sources say.

As insecurity persists, people take the law into their own hands.

In the prevailing legal and law enforcement vacuum, organised criminal gangs are taking advantage of the situation to traffic in food, weapons and money, as well as control aqueducts.

In order to stop extremism and tribal revenge, NTC leaders issued a law last week that bans political parties based on religion, tribe or ethnicity. Groups close to the Muslim Brotherhood have come out against it and tried to get the NTC to change the law.

Like in Morocco, Tunisia and Egypt, the Muslim Brotherhood and Salafists are imposing their line.

Outlawed under the old regime, they quickly took over oil installations, presenting themselves as strategic partners to foreign companies brought to Libya by Gaddafi.

Backed and funded by Qatar and Saudi Arabia, the Brotherhood will run in the June election. Given its organisational strengths, it is likely to win.” Source – AsiaNews.it.

David Wood of ACT 17 Apologetics @ the Jessica Mokdad Human Rights Conference

Please watch the video below and tell me: Is this the America that the generations before us gave their lives for? …