The email linked to a debate regarding an amendment to Clause 15 of the Coroners and Justice Bill, which covers the issue of post-mortem examinations. Muslims (and as it turns out, Jews as well) require the body to be buried as soon as possible after death occurs. In addition, generally speaking, many people have a special sensitivity towards surgical autopsy, as they don’t wish the body of the deceased to be ‘harmed’ in any way.

The debate revealed that Manchester’s coroners jurisdiction has been offering MRI-based autopsies for some time, developed in response to the needs of its sizeable Muslim and Jewish communities. Apparently, not only is the procedure non-invasive, but it is also much quicker than the traditional, dissection-based method, as it does not rely on the analysis of biopsies, which can delay the results of a post-mortem for days, or even weeks.

Continue Reading at MuslimMatters.org…

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What is it?
When was it written?
Where can I find a copy?
And most importantly – who is it enforced by?

Because according to several commentators, Israel has repeatedly broken “international law” and is guilty of committing war crimes – and not just with its recent acts of depravity in Gaza – but since its inception.

Humanitarian laws, U.N. resolutions, the Geneva Convention, etc, etc… blah blah blah.

So. What.

Have they ever been held accountable for it? What is the point of establishing a system of law, that is never enforced? Is it some kind of political in-joke?

“Oh, look… there goes Israel, breaking ‘international law’ again. The rascals!”

Let’s face it. No-one can seriously expect the US or UK governments to enforce this fabled “international law”, as many of their members would be the first ones to be prosecuted. In fact, most nations with any influence and power are guilty of something.

I really hate to write blog posts that are essentially pointing out the obvious, and complaints with no merit; a modern version of armchair politics. But I find such blatant hypocrisy and idiocracy so darned frustrating, it has to be vented somewhere.

The PSC has issued a press release giving further details of Israel’s recent, alledged war crimes. I don’t know why I used the word “alledged”. It’s not like they are going to court. Not in this life, anyway, subhanallah.

I couldn’t read it all. It just became a string of meaningless words and statistics after a while.

—

I watched Disc 1 of Occupation 101 last night. What touched me most was the following scene of a little Palestinian girl complaining about the destruction of her personal possessions:

Click here to view the embedded video.

I have actually seen that clip before, online, but it touched me even more this time round.

All I could think was: “What a little madam!”

She reminds me of so many cute girls that I have known over the years. The kind you just have to engage with, because they are oh-so-clever, with their big words, and telling you what’s-what! And when they fall, or break their favourite toy, and the tears inevitably begin to fall, you are compelled to hug their pain away, and say: “Shh, baby. Don’t cry. I’ll buy you a new dolly”. Even if you’re skint broke, and have never met them before in your life: the tears must stop.

That’s all I wanted to do for that little girl.

—

I’m sorry to rub it in. To repeat what has already been written. Even this same apology has been written over and over.

I’m also sorry for not giving equal attention to all the other ongoing disasters in this world. Indeed, I am most likely being played by the fickle media machine.

But, in my defence: what laments a sick person the most? The crippling, chronic arthiritis in their joints, or a freshly sliced stab wound to the guts?

However, we, the owners of hearts that still beat, are left to grieve, to feel the pain that resides deep in our cores; a wound that opens every time we realize the absence of the ones whom we loved.

This afternoon, the women gathered on the floor of my living room, as they usually do at the house of the bereaved. Though several close family members have passed away in the last few years, including my mother’s second brother, and the only grandparent that I have ever known, this was the first time that people came to our home to mourn. The former occasion, the whole family was already gathered at the house of my cousin, for her daughter’s wedding. The latter instance, they went to my uncle’s house, as that is where my grandmother lived.

As foreign words flew about my head, intermingled with the light jingling of glass tasbeeh, I stared blankly into the side of the nearest sofa. I began to ponder over the whole mourning process, wondering how I would eventually deal with such loss when the time came. Even the idea of certain deaths made my heart sink.

Though I write of grief, I have yet to experience it to a great degree. I don’t really know how to deal with death. I know the good news of the Hereafter, and the verses of the Qur’an that may provide consolation. However, the words don’t leave my lips easily. I don’t know why exactly. Maybe I fear that I’ll make things worse, rather than better.

There is a great deal of sadness in the air right now, especially due to the massacre in Palestine that continues as I write. In the early hours of the morning, I watched live news footage of Israeli bombs exploding in the streets of Gaza, as the athaan for Fajr sounded.  As the muadhin proclaimed: “Come to prayer! Come to success!”, the explosions cried out: “Come to suffering! Come to death!”. What word is more fitting for such a sight, other than “surreal”?

We are reminded so often: life is short, life is short. Usually, that is used as a warning to wake us up into leading good lives. But right now, many must find this statement to be a hope-filled promise that their suffering in this world will soon come to an end.

The living are beginning to envy the dead, thus bringing to mind the prophesy:

The Hour will not come till… one will pass by a man’s grave and say “Would that I were in his place!”

I would appreciate it if you would include him in your prayers.

May Allah forgive him his sins, accept his good deeds, elevate his status, and spare him any punishment in the grave, and the hereafter. May Allah also grant my family patience in their time of grief; especially my mother, who looked to him as a father figure.

Ameen thumma ameen.

—
Photo Credit

Taken outside the Egyptian embassy in London, at the end of a demonstration calling for the opening of the Gazan border.

Photos taken at a public demonstration against the bombing of Gaza, held outside the Israeli embassy in London.

—

STROKE: Remember the first three Letters… S.T.R.

STROKE IDENTIFICATION:

During a BBQ, a friend stumbled and took a little fall – she assured everyone that she was fine (they offered to call paramedics). She said she had just tripped over a brick because of her new shoes.

They cleaned her up and fetched her a new plate of food. While she appeared a bit shaken up, Ingrid went about enjoying herself the rest of the evening.

Ingrid’s husband called later telling everyone that his wife had been taken to the hospital – at 6:00 pm, Ingrid passed away. She had suffered a stroke at the BBQ. Had they known how to identify the signs of a stroke, perhaps Ingrid would be with us today.

Some don’t die… they end up in a helpless, hopeless condition instead.

The sooner the condition is treated, the higher the chance of a complete recovery; however, the window of opportunity is very small – a matter of hours – which means one needs to identify the problem immediately.

RECOGNIZING A STROKE

Now doctors say a bystander can recognize a stroke by asking three simple questions:

1. S – Ask the individual to SMILE.
2. T – Ask the person to TALK and SPEAK A SIMPLE SENTENCE (Coherently), e.g., “It is sunny out today?”
3. R – Ask him or her to RAISE BOTH ARMS.

If he or she has trouble with ANY ONE of these tasks, call the emergency services immediately, and describe the symptoms to the dispatcher.

New Sign of a Stroke: Stick out Your Tongue

Ask the person to ‘stick’ out their tongue: if the tongue is ‘crooked’, that is, if it goes to one side or the other, that is also an indication of a stroke.

—

SimSim also developed her own similar system named S.T.A.R.:

1. S – SPEAK a simple sentence
2. T – Stick out the TONGUE
3. A – AMBULATE – does the person have difficulty walking?
4. R – RAISE both arms

—

Please memorize, and feel free to copy and paste the above, in order to forward the life-saving information on to your contacts.

To think that anyone in power could sit back and allow anything close to that to happen again… words fail me.

Maybe this time, it’s not about ethnic genocide.
Maybe it’s just about diamonds and coal.

But right now, dark-skinned women are having to make a choice:
Stay in squalid camps and let their babies starve.
Or return to rebel-controlled lands and face gang rape.
Some have already faced both.

Subhanallah… how?

How do they sleep?
How do they sip their morning coffee?
Kiss their wives on the cheek, and pat their children goodbye.
Sit in leather-clad offices.
And do absolutely nothing to stop this madness.

I… just don’t know what to say.

Sign the Avaaz Petition: STAND WITH THE PEOPLE OF CONGO

Make dua. Now. Please.

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