San Francisco’s de Young Museum to hold big fashion extravaganza: “The Fashion of Islam”

“There are probably people who don’t even think there is fashion in Islam,” Mr. Hollein said. “But if you look at Saudi Arabia, Dubai and Beirut, the fashion is really vibrant, and it can speak to larger political and social developments, cultural understanding and misunderstandings.”

SAN FRANCISCO — The de Young Museum here has drawn big crowds before with shows on Oscar de la Renta, Jean Paul Gaultier and Yves Saint Laurent. But for its next big fashion extravaganza, the museum is entering new territory — and moving from gowns to hijabs, the head scarves worn by many Muslim women. The museum’s new director, Max Hollein, has scheduled “The Fashion of Islam,” the first major show developed since his arrival, for the fall of 2018.
In Australia, the traveling show “Faith, Fashion, Fusion” recently explored the market for “modest fashion.” Otherwise, few museums have touched the topic.
Mr. Hollein’s idea is to approach the subject from different perspectives, examining how Islamic styles are shaped by seemingly polar opposites: religious beliefs, which seek to avoid any appearance of extravagance and arrogance, or calling attention to oneself, and global fashion trends.

One part of the show will look at interpretations of hijabs by Islamic and European designers, from Iman Aldebe and Hussein Chalayan to Dolce & Gabbana. Another will display Islamic streetwear and sportswear, addressing the burkini ban controversies that have plagued the beaches of France. Another section is expected to be more historical and show examples of traditional Muslim dress….

Read Robert Spencers Rebuke HERE

Hezbollah Trafficking Drugs ‘Virtually Unopposed’ in Latin America

 Shiite Iran’s narco-jihadist proxy Hezbollah is operating a “virtually unopposed drug trafficking operation” in South America with links to the terrorist group Revolutionary Armed Forces of Colombia (FARC), reports the bipartisan House Task Force to Investigate Terrorism Financing.
Hezbollah is also involved in money laundering and provides its expertise in the illicit practice to other drug trafficking groups in Latin America, including Los Zetas in Mexico.

“Multiple financial actions by the [U.S.] Treasury Department in recent years have highlighted the ability of Hezbollah, a terrorist group with reputedly sophisticated financial expertise, to exploit the international financial system and move and store illicit assets,” notes the House Financial Services Committee Task Force to Investigate Terrorism Financing in its report.

“In 2011, Lebanese-Colombian national Ayman Joumaa was indicted in the United States for cocaine trafficking with links to the Mexican Los Zetas group and laundering millions of dollars in drug proceeds across Latin America, West Africa, and Europe—some portion of which he reportedly reserved as profit to Hezbollah,” it adds.

Echoing the report, Joseph Humire, an expert on Iran’s presence in the Western Hemisphere and executive director at the Center for a Secure Free Society (SFS), told Breitbart News in September that various Latin American transnational criminal organizations (TCOs), including Mexican drug cartels, are paying Hezbollah a “tax” to move people, narcotics, weapons, and other contraband in and out of the Americas.
While it remains unclear exactly how much money Hezbollah generates from its illegal activities in Latin America, Lt. Gen. Kenneth Tovo, former deputy commander of U.S. Southern Command (SOUTHCOM), estimated in March 2015 that illegal drug trafficking in the region generates at least “tens of millions” for Hezbollah.
The congressional task force reports:

Based in Lebanon, the Shiite Muslim terror group Hezbollah has been linked with South American drug trafficking organizations operating out of the tri-border [Paraguay, Argentina, Brazil] region. This criminal partnership has generated millions of dollars in revenue for the group to fund their operations in the Middle East. Further, there is a growing concern that terrorist groups could use Latin American criminal organizations to infiltrate the United States.

The report points out that U.S. law enforcement has affiliated Hezbollah’s drug trafficking operations with the U.S.-designated terrorist group the FARC, which is identified as one of the Latin America-based groups that controls the majority of the illicit cocaine cultivation and production across the world.
Citing Michael Braun, a former DEA operations chief, the bipartisan task force reports that Hezbollah is running a “virtually unopposed drug trafficking operation… in South America.”

Read More HERE

German Authorities Release Picture of Suspect--With Half His Face Blurred

 

 There's a suspect in the recent terrorist attack at a Christmas market in Berlin. Authorities have released his picture--but there's a bit of an usual twist. Do you see it?

 

Yup. Half his face is blurred out. Do they want to find this guy or not?

The blurred face comes from an interesting quirk of Germany's privacy laws that prohibit the release of a suspect's full name and clear picture. But come on, really? Who are these laws supposed to protect--innocent people, or suspected terrorists?

Gunman OPENS FIRE & tries to STORM US embassy in Ankara after Russian diplomat is murdered

AN ARMED gunman has been arrested after attempting to enter the US embassy in Ankara with a weapon just hours after a Russian ambassador was assassinated.

 The embassy was placed on lockdown following the horrific killing of Russian ambassador, Andrei Karlov, was shot dead in the city.

The man fired at least one shot in the air, reports have claimed, but was apprehended by authorities shortly after.
 Staff have now been given permission to leave the compound following the "security incident"

The US State Department for Travel earlier advised all US citizens in the area to steer clear from the embassy while the "ongoing security incident" was fully dealt with.
The embassy is approximately 2.5 miles from where Mr Karlov, on an official visit to Turkey as a representative for Russia, was brutally assassinated.

Read More HERE

Muslim Scholar: Group That Sponsored Ellison's Hajj a 'National Security Threat'

The group that paid for U.S. Rep. Keith Ellison's December 2008 hajj to Mecca is a "national security threat," a Muslim scholar wrote in a 2010 email.
Ellison now is vying to become the next Democratic National Committee chief.
The Muslim American Society (MAS), the group that paid $13,500 for Ellison's pilgrimage, had ties with terrorism and had a phony commitment to the American constitutional order, al-Husein Madhany wrote in the email, which was posted on the "Muslim Justice League" listserv. He made these assertions as part of a discussion of how the Muslim community should respond to the Ground Zero mosque controversy.
The listserv included top U.S. Islamist and liberal intellectuals, as well as Obama administration representatives. CNN terrorism analyst Peter Bergen and prominent American Muslim playwright and polemicist Wajahat Ali also were part of the list. "When I said that I believe MAS halaqas (religious gatherings) to be a national security threat, it was only part in jest. My caution comes from what I have personally heard said at MAS halaqas during my time in graduate school and based on what I know about their ideological (but financial) ties to the Muslim Brotherhood and Hamas," Madhany wrote .

Read More HERE

Jimmy Carter Jack-Ass Wants Obama To Recognize The Palestinian State Before He Leaves Office

If there’s one thing that’s not going to be on President Obama’s mind prior to leaving office, it’s recognizing the Palestinian State. Nevertheless, former President Jimmy Carter decided to ask anyway before Obama’s departure date on January 20. Of course, Carter praised Obama for his work toward a peaceful solution in the Middle East (it’s actually a disaster over there, but whatever), but warned that this could be undone with President-elect Donald J. Trump. He made this plea in The New York Times on November 28:

We do not yet know the policy of the next administration toward Israel and Palestine, but we do know the policy of this administration. It has been President Obama’s aim to support a negotiated end to the conflict based on two states, living side by side in peace.


That prospect is now in grave doubt. I am convinced that the United States can still shape the future of the Israeli-Palestinian conflict before a change in presidents, but time is very short. The simple but vital step this administration must take before its term expires on Jan. 20 is to grant American diplomatic recognition to the state of Palestine, as 137 countries have already done, and help it achieve full United Nations membership.

[…]

The primary foreign policy goal of my life has been to help bring peace to Israel and its neighbors. That September in 1978, I was proud to say to a joint session of Congress, “Blessed are the peacemakers, for they shall be called the children of God.” As Mr. Begin and Mr. Sadat sat in the balcony above us, the members of Congress stood and applauded the two heroic peacemakers.


I fear for the spirit of Camp David. We must not squander this chance.

The Camp David Accords was a groundbreaking peace treaty between Egypt and Israel, in which the former recognized the latter’s right to exist—with Israel promising to withdraw from the Sinai Peninsula, which was seized during the 1967 Six-Day War. Carter should know that this is never going to happen. There’s no way Obama is going to alter our Middle East policy in this way as he’s about to make his exit. Moreover, a Trump White House could rescind recognition. The president isn’t even going to issue a blanket pardon to 750,000 illegal immigrants who are in his deferred action program, which is something that he could do concerning those who have committed crimes while in the United States; something that could make things easier for those seeking to apply for legal status. If he’s not going to do this, which would still bring considerable scrutiny, he’s certainly not going to push hard for the recognition of Palestinian statehood.