Shedding some light on how the media can twist any story to suit them
Our Islamic views are stated below
WASHINGTON, DC - 11/16/99) - The Council on American-Islamic
Relations (CAIR), a Washington-based Islamic advocacy group, today
issued a statement calling on journalists and commentators to
exercise restraint in reporting allegations that a crew member of
EgyptAir Flight 990 recited a "prayer" before that plane crashed in
the Atlantic. CAIR also offered an outline of some religious phrases
that Muslim use on a daily basis.
The statement read as follows:
"Based on past experience with incidents such as the Oklahoma City
bombing and the crash of TWA Flight 800, it is clear that this type
of developing story requires hard information, not just speculation.
"Unfortunately, we are already reading and hearing about linkages
between the alleged 'prayer' of a EgyptAir crew member and the
deaths of more than 200 innocent people. This linkage comes before
anyone has an opportunity to know exactly what was said, when it was
said or in what context it was uttered.
"One of the most difficult challenges for any media professional is
reporting on an unfamiliar culture or religion. The potential for
misunderstanding and misinformation resulting from such reporting
mandates an extra degree of caution.
"Religious phrases that any Muslim would utter on a daily basis
include:
1) Alhamdulillah, "Praise be to God" - This phrase is used to
express acceptance of God's will. For example, when a Muslim is
asked how he or she is feeling, the answer would be alhamdulillah.
2) Bismillah ar-Rahman ar-Rahim, "In the Name of God, the
Compassionate, the Merciful" - This sentence is used before eating,
driving a car or at the commencement of any number of actions.
3) La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah, "There is no strength or
power except with God" - This is said in times of crisis.
4) La illaha il-lallah, Muhammadan rasul Allah, "There is no deity
but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God" - This is the Islamic
declaration of faith.
"The last phrase may also be used when someone is near death.
"These are just a few of the religiously-oriented phrases an Muslim
might repeat. None of them would indicate any criminal intent.
"Religious and cultural misinformation will not produce the result
we all seek; accurate and objective reporting."
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EgyptAir 990 Pilot's Prayer A Criminal Act?
WASHINGTON, D.C. -- A Muslim pilot's prayer as an
EgyptAir plane was going down is said to point toward a
criminal act, and the investigation into last month's
crash off Massachusetts may be turned over to the U.S.
Federal Bureau of Investigations.
The Washington Post reported today: "The voice and data
recorders from EgyptAir Flight 990 reveal that just
before one of the pilots, apparently alone in the
cockpit, turned off the autopilot, he uttered a very
short Muslim prayer, government sources said. National
Transportation Safety Board officials found the evidence
so disturbing they are considering turning the probe
over to the FBI."
Television news today displayed the words of the Islamic
prayer, known as the Shahadah, as the prayer uttered by
the EgyptAir pilot.
Until now aviation experts have stated that there could
be benign reasons for taking the plane off autopilot,
and shutting down the engines, but the utterance of the
Shahadah has caused the NTSB/FBI team to classify the
investigation as a criminal matter.
If this is all the evidence available to date, then this
is a grievous act of bigotry by representatives of the
U.S. government.
A Hindu, Buddhist, Jew, or Christian may well utter a
prayer when confronted with a potentially deadly
situation. A prayer so uttered is not in itself evidence
of a deliberate criminal act.
The Shahadah is one of the five "pillars of Islam." It
is a short prayer: "There is no god but God; Muhammad is
the Messenger of God." The four other pillars of Islam
are prayer five times daily, fasting, alms-giving, and
the pilgrimage to Mecca.
To become a Muslim, one has only to recite the Shahadah.
Like the pilgrimage to Mecca, it is required only once
in a lifetime. However, pious Muslims recite the
Shahadah throughout their lives, even as often as
several times each day -- particularly in times of
distress. It is recited as one is dying, and if one
cannot do so someone else may recite the Shahadah for
them.
It is normal for the Muslim pilot of EgyptAir 990 to
have uttered the Shahadah if confronted with a deadly
situation beyond his control. What is not normal is to
consider this a criminal act.
Normally the transfer of an investigation from one
agency to another would not be a matter of concern. But
we question the transfer of the investigation to the FBI
whose case against the blind, Egyptian, Muslim cleric
was not one which would inspire confidence.
The New York Times (October 2, and September 22, 1995)
reported that there was scant evidence that Sheikh
Rahman even knew of the plan to bomb the World Trade
Center, and other buildings in New York. The
government's primary witness against Sheikh Rahman was
an FBI informant, Mr. Emad Salem, who confessed to lying
under oath in a previous trial. Six months before the
World Trade Center bombing, the FBI terminated Mr. Salem
after he failed several lie detector tests. Then
following the bombing Mr. Salem was rehired for a fee of
over $1 million.
The Shahadah is the last sentence of The Wisdom Fund's
600 word introduction to Islam, known as "The Truth
About Islam," available on the Internet at
htt://www.twf.org, and which has been displayed in
international journals and in Washington Metro rail
stations.
END
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