NationStates Jolt Archive

Group linked to al Qaeda starts 'relief' work in Aceh

By Chris Brummitt
ASSOCIATED PRESS

BANDA ACEH, Indonesia — An extremist Islamic group with links to al Qaeda has set up relief operations in Aceh province on Sumatra island, raising concerns that international relief workers will become terrorist targets as in Iraq.
Amid hundreds of aid workers near the airport in Banda Aceh, Laskar Mujahidin posted an English-language sign that reads "Islamic Law Enforcement."
The group, known for hunting down and killing Christians during a long-running sectarian conflict in another part of Indonesia, said yesterday it is collecting corpses, distributing food and spreading Islamic teachings among refugees.

EDIT: Related Article

Once Critical Indonesians Are Grateful To U.S. For Aid
New York Times - Free Registration Required (JAKARTA, Indonesia JAN. 07)

The United States military's huge relief effort for tsunami victims in South Asia is producing something of a political upheaval here, in the world's most populous Muslim country: America is being praised, even by some of its harshest critics, while Arab countries are being questioned. "I am getting messages from friends saying, 'Why have the Muslim countries been so slow and stingy?' " said Goenawan Mohamad, one of the country's leading intellectuals. Washington's campaign against terrorism, its staunch support of Israel and its occupation of Iraq have been widely interpreted by Indonesians as a war on Islam, and the Bush administration's various efforts to influence public opinion have failed to counter that impression. The American military came in for particular criticism in the Muslim world, after the shocking and continuing revelations of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere.

The Muslim countries, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, some of the wealthiest in the world have not contributed very much money at all to the relief efforts. Why? They don't want to be seen as helping the West.

I saw on CNN and read in my paper that Nort Korea is giving 150.000$. Hope the children of the deaths due to starvation in that country don't hear that.

Jezus, the combination of the regime and refusal of international aid, like the one offered by the UN aso ( they only accept some aid from China, wich aid?, Weapons?) must drive people crazy when they hear about that plan of there regime.

Poor people. I heared that about 800.000 to 2.000.000 died of starvation there last years. They are not in a good possition to afford aid.

The Muslim countries, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, some of the wealthiest in the world have not contributed very much money at all to the relief efforts. Why? They don't want to be seen as helping the West.

Could it not be that they're run by tight-fisted unaccountable dictators who don't give a damn about anyone other than themselves?

I saw on CNN and read in my paper that Nort Korea is giving 150.000$. Hope the children of the deaths due to starvation in that country don't hear that.

Jezus, the combination of the regime and refusal of international aid, like the one offered by the UN aso ( they only accept some aid from China, wich aid?, Weapons?) must drive people crazy when they hear about that plan of there regime.

Poor people. I heared that about 800.000 to 2.000.000 died of starvation there last years. They are not in a good possition to afford aid.


yes, we realize by this point North Korea is insane

The Muslim countries, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, some of the wealthiest in the world have not contributed very much money at all to the relief efforts. Why? They don't want to be seen as helping the West.
Here's a related article that may help explain:

Once Critical Indonesians Are Grateful To U.S. For Aid
New York Times - Free Registration Required (JAKARTA, Indonesia JAN. 07)

The United States military's huge relief effort for tsunami victims in South Asia is producing something of a political upheaval here, in the world's most populous Muslim country: America is being praised, even by some of its harshest critics, while Arab countries are being questioned. "I am getting messages from friends saying, 'Why have the Muslim countries been so slow and stingy?' " said Goenawan Mohamad, one of the country's leading intellectuals. Washington's campaign against terrorism, its staunch support of Israel and its occupation of Iraq have been widely interpreted by Indonesians as a war on Islam, and the Bush administration's various efforts to influence public opinion have failed to counter that impression. The American military came in for particular criticism in the Muslim world, after the shocking and continuing revelations of prisoner abuse at Abu Ghraib and elsewhere.

I saw on CNN and read in my paper that Nort Korea is giving 150.000$. Hope the children of the deaths due to starvation in that country don't hear that.

Jezus, the combination of the regime and refusal of international aid, like the one offered by the UN aso ( they only accept some aid from China, wich aid?, Weapons?) must drive people crazy when they hear about that plan of there regime.

Poor people. I heared that about 800.000 to 2.000.000 died of starvation there last years. They are not in a good possition to afford aid.


Doubt it's 2 million. That's 10% of their population. Probably more likely to be about 400,000, not that anyone can find out the slightest thing that's going on in there.

And they refuse the aid because they'd have to switch off their nuke reactor, so they couldn't produce weapons-grade radioactives any more. And they're waaaaaaaaaaaay to paranoid for that since the US theratened them.

I saw on CNN and read in my paper that Nort Korea is giving 150.000$. Hope the children of the deaths due to starvation in that country don't hear that.

...


Poor people. I heared that about 800.000 to 2.000.000 died of starvation there last years. They are not in a good possition to afford aid.

Yes, that $150,000 could have been evenly divided amongst those dying of starvation in North Korea, giving them anywhere between 7.5 and 18.75 cents to live on.

The Muslim countries, like Kuwait and Saudi Arabia, some of the wealthiest in the world have not contributed very much money at all to the relief efforts. Why? They don't want to be seen as helping the West.

if a country's disaster doesn't get a lot of media coverage in the US, The US will donate very little money to the cause.

Doubt it's 2 million. That's 10% of their population. Probably more likely to be about 400,000, not that anyone can find out the slightest thing that's going on in there.

And they refuse the aid because they'd have to switch off their nuke reactor, so they couldn't produce weapons-grade radioactives any more. And they're waaaaaaaaaaaay to paranoid for that since the US theratened them.
I've seen lots of "reality challenged" comments on here, but this one takes the cake! Just when, oh great swami, did the US "threaten" N. Korea? REPUTABLE sources please!