SHAFAQNA

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) — The 2012 Olympics is leaving a bad taste in many Athletes mouths since they found out the British assured food standard meat is 100% Halal! This is the deceit and hypocrisy of UK supermarket chains and slaughter houses which, whilst trumpeting the ‘Britishness’ of their products, surreptitiously purvey Halal meat to the general public and the Olympic teams.

Halal is the Islamic method of religious slaughter whereby a live animal has its throat slit whilst being blessed in the name of Allah and it can take up to six minutes to die.

In a investigation it was revealed that supermarkets, butchers and other retailers, restaurants, cafes and the food production and catering industry as a whole, all source from suppliers who serve Muslim as well as non-Muslim customers.

Some of these suppliers process all their meat to Halal standards. For example, all New Zealand lamb meet’s Halal standards. And all British lamb and chicken is Halal. In these cases all processes still meet the same stringent animal welfare requirements it is claimed and some animals are stunned prior to slaughter whether the meat is sold as Halal or non-Halal but all is Islamically blessed so it can be used for both the Muslim and non-Muslim market.

The American Olympic national team are being forced fed by this crawl meat which is blessed with the same words used by the 911 hijackers in the cockpit as they crashed into the world trade centre, French Athletes from their national squad whose country has just suffered a Islamic terrorists killing, Jewish children outside a school are also being forced fed by London 2012 officials with Halal meat.

The meat is not Labeled in the UK, So shoppers and catering industry do not know they are in fact eating Halal. It’s hidden truth came out from email press statements made by several supermarkets that meat sourced in the UK is all pressed Halal so they can serve the 4% of the population with religious slaughter Islamically blessed meat.

India whose Olympic team might also object under religious grounds being Hindus and Spain, Denmark and Russia are just a few who could ask London 2012 organizers what are we eating as British Red Tractor meat according to all major supermarkets is in fact now slaughtered islamically to save packaging costs.

As the world looks at London, the British meat industry gets ready to show off some of it’s finest meat, forgetting to tell anyone that in fact there's not much that is British in the method it is slaughtered. The reason why the abattoirs are slaughtering most meat Halal now, is to sell the parts of the carcass that most British people 96% of them don't use, to other markets 4% Muslims who do use it.

This minimizes food waste, keeps prices down for customers and helps our farmers say’s meat retailers.

Christian Athletes who are being forced fed Islamic meat in the Olympic village like the American team!—www.shafaqna.com/english

Source: Asian Tribune

SHAFAQNA (Shia International News Association) — Jordan’s Prince Feisal Bin Al- Hussein, a member of the International Olympic Committee, says Muslim athletes should be excused from fasting during the London games.

Muslim athletes are among those from more than 200 nations who’ve traveled to the British capital for the Olympics, which begin with the soccer tournament tomorrow. Participants from Libya have been waiting on the country’s top Islamic scholar to make a decision about whether they could delay fasting during Ramadan, which started last week. Fasting is one of the five pillars of the faith.

“You’ll have some people who like any religion take a very, very strict view but in the Koran it says basically God doesn’t want to make it difficult and impossible for people to do things and there is dispensation for people who are either on travel or other things to make it up the rest of the year,” Prince Feisal, who is the younger brother of Jordan’s King Abdullah II, said in an interview in London.

During the month of Ramadan, Muslims are expected to fast between sunrise and sunset. In many Islamic countries life slows and business hours are changed to help believers meet the challenge of the month-long abstention from food and water.

Libya’s Olympic Committee expressed concern earlier this month that top scholar Sheikh Sadik Al-Ghariani has yet to rule on whether athletes competing in London could eat regularly. In Egypt, the Fatwa Council of El-Azhar, the country’s main religious authority, said athletes could break their fast.

“I’m hoping that the athletes will take that view but at the end of the day it’s their personal conviction,” said Prince Feisal.

Relations between Israel and Arab nations have become a talking point ahead of the 30th summer games. IOC President Jacques Rogge warned on July 21 athletes faces punishments if they refuse to compete against a rival on the basis of their nationality after being told some Egyptians were considering the option. Prince Feisal said any boycott would be wrong. Jordan is not among the mainly Muslim countries that don’t recognize Israel.

“I appreciate for some people it will be but I don’t think boycotts but I don’t believe boycotts do anything or any good for anybody,” Prince Feisal said at London’s Grosvenor House hotel where he’s attending the IOC’s 124th annual session.

“In original games the Greek states used to be fighting each other but for the Olympic games they would stop, they would compete and celebrate the victors and the competitors and then afterwards, after the Olympic truce was over, they’d get back to fighting.”

The 48-year-old royal has been with the IOC since 2010. For much of that time he’s been trying to promote the access to the games to women. Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Brunei became the last to send women to the games after naming females on their game’s teams for the first time in London.—www.shafaqna.com/english

Source: Bloomberg

SHAFAQNA (Shia international Association) — This week, most of London 2012's 17,000 athletes and officials arrived at the Olympic village, where they would have found comfortable if cramped living quarters. Each athlete sleeps in a single bed, though US water polo goalie Chay Lapin (6ft 5in) says there are extensions for "the tall dudes".

Of the myriad facilities inside the village, none is as popular as the 24-hour dining room, which seats 5,000 people and offers cuisine from all five continents.

Cameroon judo athlete Diedeudonne Dolassem, 32, is delighted by it. "We went to the restaurant - and, oh, it was so big," says Dolassem. "There is Halal food, European, African, Asian; no one will go hungry here. It is very, very good."

Hungarian team official Judith Farkas likes the fact the village is compact and close to many of the competition venues. "It is not easy travelling in London because of the traffic. The accommodation is nice, though, and the view - especially at night with all the lights - is wonderful. I like being in the same block as the New Zealanders, because they do the Haka all the time, and we are learning how to do it, too."

Judo player Audrey Koumba Imanda, 23, from Gabon, is at the salon having braided hair extensions done. "This is my first Olympics, and being here in the international area is a nice distraction," she says. "I know I can go to the Globe to chill out but, actually, I like it all."

Everything, that is, except the weather. When I ask what she thinks of our threatening grey skies, Imanda replies without hesitation: "Tres mal!"—www.shafaqna.com/english

SHAFAQNA (Shia News Association)— The world’s more than 1.5 billion Muslims have begun observing the holy month of Ramadan, when they fast every day from dawn to sunset and offer special prayers and gifts to the poor.

But what about Muslim athletes at the Olympic Games, which are set to open in London this coming week?  Should they participate in the fast?  And if they do, will it affect their chances of winning a medal?  Kim Lawton reports.

KIM LAWTON, correspondent: Muslims observing the month-long Ramadan fast are not allowed to eat or drink anything at all—even water—from sunrise to sunset. All Muslims who are able to do so are supposed to fast. But the Quran does allow for some exceptions.

MOHAMED ELSANOUSI, Islamic Society of North America: There are verses in the Quran that talk about people who are sick, or people who are traveling. So, within that period of travel or people who are sick, they are actually exempted from fasting.

LAWTON: Many Muslim Olympians believe they come under the travelers’ exemption. Judo champion Maher Abu Rmeileh is the first Palestinian to qualify for the Olympics. He says, “We asked religious scholars and they said that if we’re out on a mission like this, out on a national mission, there is no problem with not fasting, on the condition that when you return, you fast the days you lost, because fasting, like prayer, is obligatory.”

Religious scholars have said there are several ways Muslims can make up for not fasting during Ramadan.

ELSANOUSI: You know, if you are able to fast on different days, you are able to do that. If you are not, you can also pay a kind of charity instead of fasting.

LAWTON: Mohammed Sbihi on the British Rowing Team says he’s decided not to fast this year.

MOHAMMED SBIHI, British Rowing Team: The decision was made very early on that I shouldn’t fast. It was a personal decision that I made between myself and my family and then I informed the coaches of this.

LAWTON: Instead, Sbihi says he’ll be making extra donations to needy families. Still, many other athletes say they will observe the Ramadan fast, and they’re not concerned about how it may affect their performance. In 2008, Saudi Paralympic triple jumper Ossemah Masoud Alshinqiti fasted and he won the gold medal. He says, “You can play while you are fasting without any problems.” And some Muslim Olympians are hopeful they may even get a special Ramadan blessing for doing so.

I’m Kim Lawton reporting.

ABERNETHY: An estimated 3,000 Muslims will be competing in the Olympics, but no American-Muslims this time.—www.shafaqna.com/english

SHAFAQNA (Shia News Association) — In the midst of a scorching summer, Utah Muslim athletes are preparing themselves for one of the hottest-ever fasting months of Ramadan, in a trial to balance their faith and sports life.

"It will be good for me. It will help me with my endurance and develop my faith," Halah Khan, a 14-year-old athlete, told The Salt Lake Tribune.

“I might take a break depending on how my body holds up, then regain my strength and do it again,” she added.

Ramadan Countdown: Ready? (Folder)

Ramadan is the holiest month in Islamic calendar.

In Ramadan, adult Muslims abstain from food, drink, smoking and sex between dawn and sunset.

The sick and those traveling are exempt from fasting especially if it poses health risks.

Fasting is meant to teach Muslims patience, self-control and spirituality, and time during the holy month is dedicated for getting closer to Allah though prayers, reading the Noble Qur’an and good deeds.

According to astronomical calculations announced by the Fiqh Council of North America (FCNA), the holy fasting month of Ramadan will start on Friday, July 20.

This year’s Ramadan coincides with London Olympic Games, creating a challenge for more than 3000 Muslim athletes expected to take part in the international competitions.

Many of them, including Mo Sbihi, the first practicing Muslim to row for England, plan to delay their fast until the Games end.

Others have appealed to a verse in the Quran, which says that those traveling should delay their fasts.

"If you are a traveler and are far away from home, you can break your fast," says Imam Ali Daltir, of the Salt Lake Valley’s Al-Huda Islamic Center.

"Islam gives you permission to make it up another day."

Balancing

Balancing soccer and faith, Halah’s sister, Aliya Khan, who also plays for Hillcrest High, sees the spiritual benefits.

"It’s really hard mentally and physically to work out while I’m fasting. I find myself counting down the minutes until I can drink," 16-year-old Aliya said.

"But you have to integrate the two. It’s about balancing."

For her, Ramadan could be a new turnover in her life.

"It’s not just a religious experience," Aliya said.

“It helps you take a second look at your life."

Despite the challenges of fasting, Ramadan brings good spirits to the Khan family.

"It seems like such a hard thing, but we love this time of year," said Rafia Khan, the girls’ mother and a convert to Islam.

"It brings our family a lot closer. We spend more time thinking about the gifts we have and being grateful."

Taking a couple of years for her body to acclimate, Rafia Khan awaits the fasting month.

She is convinced that "Allah doesn’t give us anything we can’t handle." — www.shafaqna.com/english/