Hamas Will Declare War If President Obama Visits The Temple Mount

Hamas: Obama Visit To Temple Mount - A Declaration Of War -- Arutz Sheva

Hamas and Islamic Jihad say that a visit by Obama to the Temple Mount will be a declaration of war on the Islamic world.

The Hamas and Islamic Jihad terror groups threatened on Friday that a visit by U.S. President Barack Obama to the Temple Mount during his upcoming visit to Israel will be a declaration of war on the Arab and the Islamic world.

A Hamas representative in the Al-Aqsa mosque, Mushir al-Masri, even called for a third intifada (uprising) and for Egyptian assistance in the "resistance" if Obama chooses to visit the Temple Mount.

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Update: Hamas: ‘Declaration Of War’ If Obama Visits Temple Mount -- CBS/AP

My Comment: President Obama now finds himself in a difficult position. To avoid exacerbating tensions President Obama will probably not visit the Temple Mount .... but the result will be one in which he will now perceived in the Middle East as someone who is weak and someone who will retreat when facing threats. Yup .... one of those annoying damn if you do and damn if you don't situations.

U.S. Is Preparing For A Long Period Of Muslim Unrest

U.S. Is Preparing For A Long Siege Of Arab Unrest -- New York Times

WASHINGTON — After days of anti-American violence across the Muslim world, the White House is girding itself for an extended period of turmoil that will test the security of American diplomatic missions and President Obama’s ability to shape the forces of change in the Middle East.

Although the tumult subsided Saturday, senior administration officials said they had concluded that the sometimes violent protests in Muslim countries may presage a period of sustained instability with unpredictable diplomatic and political consequences. While pressing Arab leaders to tamp down the unrest, Mr. Obama’s advisers say they may have to consider whether to scale back diplomatic activities in the region.

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My Comment: On the other side of the political spectrum, The Wall Street Journal is saying the same thing.

Global Protests Spread Against Anti-Islamic Film

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Protests Spread Against Anti-Islamic Film -- The Telegraph

The violent backlash against an American-made amateur film mocking the Prophet Mohammed spread to new countries in the Islamic world, dashing hopes in the West that the furore might fade away.

Despite appeals for calm from the senior cleric in Saudi Arabia, the first protests against the film took place in Indonesia, the West Bank and the Philippines on Monday.

Demonstrators came out again in force in Afghanistan and Yemen as well as Pakistan, where a protester was killed in clashes with police.

Some demonstrations, which began on the anniversary of the September 11 attacks, have been spontaneous, but many have been called by leaders of religious parties seeking to advance their Islamist credentials.

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More News On Global Protests Against The Anti-Islamic Film

Anti-Islam film: Thousands protest around Muslim world -- BBC
Fresh anti-US protests erupt as Western missions tighten security -- NBC
Protests spread over Islam film -- Press Association
Wave of protests continue against anti-Islam film -- Christian Science Monitor
Violent clashes over anti-Islam film in 3 nations -- CTV News/AP
Protests Over Contentious Film Spread to Afghanistan, Indonesia -- New York Times
Anti-U.S. Protests Spark Up Again in Afghanistan, Pakistan, and Beyond -- New York Magazine
Thousands of Hezbollah supporters protest anti-Islam film in Lebanon -- Newser/AP

Afghan protest over anti-Islam film turns into melee -- CNN
Kabul film protesters fire weapons and set cars alight -- BBC
50 Police Injured in Kabul Protests -- RIA Novosti
Afghanistan protests against anti-Islam film turn violent -- The Guardian
Riots break out in Afghanistan in protest of anti-Islam film -- L.A. Times
Hundreds of Afghans protest near US military base, protests continue in Pakistan and Indonesia -- FOX News/AP
Protests erupt in Afghanistan as Muslim anger over film simmers -- Reuters
Violence erupts as protesters burn cars and throw rocks at U.S. military base in Afghan capital over anti-Islam video -- Daily Mail

White House: Middle East Protests Not Directed At The United States

Carney: Protests Not Directed At The United States -- Washington Free Beacon

'This is not a case of protests directed at the United States writ large or at U.S. policy, this is in response to a video that is offensive to Muslims'.

White House press secretary Jay Carney said Friday the violent protests throughout the Middle East are not directed at the United States or U.S. policy but are a response to a YouTube video:

CARNEY: We also need to understand that this is a fairly volatile situation and it is in response not to United States policy, and not to, obviously, the administration, or the American people, but it is in response to a video, a film that we have judged to be be reprehensible and disgusting. That in no way justifies any violent reaction to it, but this is not a case of protests directed at the United States writ large or at U.S. policy, this is in response to a video that is offensive to Muslims.

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My Comment: I must be living in an alternate reality.

Mass Protests Against The U.S. Across The Muslim World

Mass Protests Intensify Across Muslim World -- Al Jazeera

Demonstrations against US, sparked by anti-Islam video, continue in Egypt, Yemen, Bangladesh, Iraq and other countries.

Demonstrators furious at a film trailer they say insults the Prophet Mohammad clashed with police near the US embassy in Cairo despite a nationwide protest that was called off by the country's powerful Muslim Brotherhood.

Protesters also clashed with police in Yemen on Friday, where one person died and 15 were injured the day before when the US embassy compound was stormed. Crowds also gathered against the California-made film for the second day in Malaysia, Bangladesh and Iraq.

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More News On Continued Protests Across The Muslim World

Protests spread against US over anti-Islamic film - live updates -- The Guardian
U.S. braces for new violence over anti-Muslim film -- CBS/AP
U.S. Braces for Protests in Egypt and Yemen -- ABC News
Caught off guard by Libya attack, US braces for more violent fallout from anti-Muslim film -- Washington Post/AP
U.S. embassies tighten security as protests rage over anti-Islam film -- CNN
German embassy stormed, KFC torched, as anger over anti-Islam film rages -- NBC
US fears more violence over video -- Press Association
Nigeria: Embassy Attacks - U.S. Issues Warning to Citizens in Nigeria -- allAfrica
What Muslim nations' leaders are saying -- and not -- about embassy violence -- CNN

Is President Obama's Middle East Policy Now In Shambles?

New Attack On Americans; Obama Foreign Policy In Disarray -- Jennifer Rubin, Washington Post

The political media saw yesterday’s events through the prism of a presidential campaign. But in fact it was a national security development with long-term implications for U.S. foreign policy, including widespread doubt about the administration’s approach to the region and, in the short run, our decision to give more than a billion in aid to the Muslim Brotherhood-controlled government of Egypt.

Today, attacks on Americans continued, evidence that our reaction yesterday did nothing to deter would-be assailants. The newest target was in Yemen. Reuters reported: “Hundreds of Yemeni demonstrators broke through the main gate of the heavily fortified compound in eastern Sanaa, shouting, ‘We sacrifice ourselves for you, Messenger of God.’ Earlier they smashed windows of security offices outside the embassy and burned cars.” Apparently, expressions of sympathy for hurt feelings was not enough to quell the anti-American sentiments of jihadists. Well, it never is, is it?

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Update: Storming Embassies, Killing Ambassadors, and ‘Smart’ Diplomacy -- Victor Davis Hanson

My Comment: It will be hard to argue that President Obama's Middle East policy is working. On the flip side .... I would like to hear what a Mitt Romney administration would do if they were in the White House .... but aside from framing their remarks differently .... I doubt that there will be any significant changes in U.S. policy towards the Middle East. The sad reality is that the entire region is in turmoil with radical Islamists leading the unrest .... and the U.S. (and everyone else) are powerless to stop it.

Protests Spread Over Anti-Islam Film

Demonstrations Spread Over Anti-Islam Film -- Al Jazeera

Protests in Yemen, Iran, Tunisia and Gaza now echo anger in Egypt and Libya over film made in US that disrespects Islam.

Protesters angered by an anti-Islam film have stormed the US embassy compound in Yemen's capital, Sanaa, as similar demonstrations have spread to several countries across the Middle East.

The protesters on Thursday removed the embassy's sign on the outer wall and brought down the US flag and burned it, according to witnesses.

A number of diplomatic vehicles were torched as security forces used water cannons and warning shots in a bid to drive them out.

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My Comment: Obscure anti- Muslim films do not kill people .... in this crisis we have Muslims killing people. Here is an easy prediction .... Friday is the day when mosques in the Middle East are filled .... expect even more demonstrations and protests tomorrow.

White House Searching For Common Ground With Muslims

Rashad Hussain, 31, a White House lawyer, was appointed to become the United States' special envoy to the Organization of the Islamic Conference. Brendan Smialowski for The New York Times

White House Quietly Courts Muslims in U.S. -- New York Times

When President Obama took the stage in Cairo last June, promising a new relationship with the Islamic world, Muslims in America wondered only half-jokingly whether the overture included them. After all, Mr. Obama had kept his distance during the campaign, never visiting an American mosque and describing the false claim that he was Muslim as a “smear” on his Web site.

Nearly a year later, Mr. Obama has yet to set foot in an American mosque. And he still has not met with Muslim and Arab-American leaders. But less publicly, his administration has reached out to this politically isolated constituency in a sustained and widening effort that has left even skeptics surprised.

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My Comment: I am shocked .... NOT.

But Daniel Pipes gives an accurate assessment when he remarks that President Obama's policy is just an extension of what President Bush was doing when he was in office .... with far more similarities than what the New York Times reporter is willing to admit.

As to what is my take, as long as there are a sizable number of Muslims who wish to pursue Jihad and Holy war against non-Muslims, all the outreach that you can do will have little if any impact on a community that either chooses to ignore such extremists, or who are tacitly and privately supporting their religious objectives.

Obama Declares US Not At War With Islam

President Obama, with Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan of Turkey, spoke to the Turkish Parliament in Ankara on Monday. Todd Heisler/The New York Times

From Yahoo News/AP:

ANKARA, Turkey – Barack Obama, making his first visit to a Muslim nation as president, declared Monday the United States "is not and will never be at war with Islam."

Urging a greater partnership with the Islamic world in an address to the Turkish parliament, Obama called the country an important U.S. ally in many areas, including the fight against terrorism. He devoted much of his speech to urging a greater bond between Americans and Muslims, portraying terrorist groups such as al Qaida as extremists who do not represent the vast majority of Muslims.

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More News On President Obama And Islam

In Turkey, Obama Says U.S. ‘Never’ at War With Islam -- New York Times
Obama: The U.S. is not at war with Islam -- L.A. Times
Obama says US not at war with Islam, vows outreach -- AFP
Obama: U.S. 'not at war' with Islam -- UPI