Immigration

He wants to ensure those coming to the UK are genuinely here for family reasons, that they can speak English and they do not have to "scrape by, or worse, to subsist on benefit".

Mr Cameron said a sample of more than 500 family migration cases found over 70% of UK-based sponsors earned less than £20,000 a year after tax.

Explaining why couples should have to do more to prove they are genuine, he gave the example of a Pakistani national who applied for a spouse visa on the basis of his marriage to someone settled in the UK.

The man obtained indefinite leave to remain and then immediately divorced his UK-based spouse, returned to Pakistan and re-married and then applied for entry clearance for his new spouse.

Forced marriages

Dave has launched a crackdown on abuses of the immigration system including plans to tackle sham marriages.

The Prime Minister wants relatives joining their families in the UK to be able to speak English and have enough cash to live on.

He said the Government was keen to prevent immigrants becoming a burden on taxpayers and could make some applicants pay financial bonds.

He also wants it to take longer for new migrants to become eligible for a visa for their spouse.

Before the speech, the Prime Minsiter told Sky News he was confident he could get immigration "under control".

"We can deal with this issue if we deal with student visa abuse, if we deal wiht the work visa abuse, if we make sure the family reunion rules make sense and are not a way of people coming here to live off benefits," he said.

http://news.sky.com/home/politics/article/16085910

Please spare a few minutes for an innocent man who has served seven long years of his life in high security prison, despite of having no charge or conviction of any kind against him, awaiting extradition and a subsequent trial in a country he has never set foot in. The extradition request is based on the same evidence gathered during 2003 raid, which the British courts of justice found insufficient to charge Babar Ahmad with any crime.

Babar's family and friends have initiated a petition campaign on the government's website demanding that Babar must be tried in this country, where crime is supposed to have been committed. The petition MUST get at least 100,000 signatures before 10/11/2011 for the parliament to consider this issue.

Sign the petition at http://letsgetjustice.com
And send on the link.
For more info visit http://www.freebabarahmad.com/index.php

Salaam

I have Hajj on my mind at the moment.

Why do we leave it so late? Why is everything else in the world more important to do hajj?

Why do people claim that they cant afford it, but can afford a house, new car, getting married, getting through uni etc

Why is getting married, going Uni, getting a job, having babies, getting children through Uni, getting them married all priotised before hajj?

Is Hajj any more or less of a Fard act then reading Salaah?

During Hajj, why are the largest group of elderly people the Pakistani's and the youngest the Indonesians?

Lastly, when do you see yourself doing Hajj?

p.s. Admin get some Haj articles up on the main site.

Wasalaam

The US says it has broken up a major terror plot in which agents linked to Iran sought to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington.

Read more @ BBC News

Just ran across this story: Pirates 'bring shame on Somalia'.

I think they have it wrong - it is the world's shame that brought pirates to Somalia.

The Somali pirates at one point were honest do good hard working fishermen when major ship companies decided that it was ok to dump toxic waste off the shores of Somalia - and since Somalis had no functioning government (a situation which was also facilitated by the world at large), there was no one to stop the illegal dumping of waste.

Now, once the fishermen's catch died or shriveled to smaller levels, the fishermen moved onto bigger and better - those same ships that were the scourge that ruined their fishing industry.

Sometimes it is important to know the background to events.

Saalam 😃

Basically, I just want to know how you read all 5 prayers consecutively. I don't like leaving any gaps- which I'm going to be honest about; and say I have been doing that and yet feel so guilty about doing so! (May Allah swt forgive me :/)

I'll just come straight; nobody's perfect.. including me obviously. I'm the worst one actually when it comes to perfection! The only thing I would like is your responses and opinions as to what helps you/motivates you, to read your daily prayers. I would love to get back on track.. so if any one has any suggestions as to how I can be more strict with my Saalah, I would be eternally grateful! 😃

Jazhakhallah Khair 😃 x

For Muslims, true success lies in submitting themselves wholly to the wish and will of The Mightiest, living their lives as a means to appease Allah Almighty, following all the obligations of their religion. The religion for a true Muslim remains insignificant without observing five aspects, referred commonly as “Five Pillars of Islam”.They include

* Testimony of faith

* Prayers (Salath)

* Fasting during the month of Ramadan (Sawm)

* The Pilgrimage to Makkah (Hajj)

* Giving charity (Zakat)

For more details please visit the site below:

http://www.quranreading.com/blog/islam-religion/hajj-a-religious-obliga…

Something that should have been posted about last week when it was announced.

Until now, former senior Israeli government officials have shied away from making public visits to the UK, and even last weeks visit by Tzipi Livni needed special consideration to be safely allowed into the UK without fear of arrest:

The Israeli opposition leader Tzipi Livni has avoided the possibility of prosecution in a British court for war crimes after the Foreign Office declared that she enjoys temporary diplomatic immunity.

Words of Wisdom: Be with Allah
By Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi

To all people involved in the Syrian and Arab revolutions; to political leaders struggling for their peoples and to all Muslims under oppression:
This is the right time to come back to Allah, the time to repent and return to Him and the time to beseech Him; as this is the key to our relief and the means for us to be given the authority of our ancestors and be true heirs to them. "Who else will answer the call of the distress, lift hardships and appoint you as inheritors of the earth?"*
Everyone should know that adversities are results of our sins and that repentance is the way to remove them. We need to also remember that all things are under the power of Allah. We have to take action as He commanded us yet with reliance on Him and after returning to Him and believing that He is the only one who could benefit or harm us, not this man or that. This was clearly stated by the Greatest Prophet, our master PBUH when he said, "You should Know that if all people tried to extend to you a favour, they would not be able to extend but what Allah predestined for you; and similarly, if all people tried to cause you any harm, they would not be able unless Allah predetermined it against you.
So be with Allah through reliance, with His Decree through contentment with it; with His command by executing it and with His creation by having mercy on them. Do not let means and actions stop your belief that Allah is the Creator of the causes and the effects; nor allow people's harm to you make you obsessed with them.
Allah suffices for you, if you stand at His door as a servant, as He clearly promised, "Is Allah not enough for His Servant?" Read the rest of the verse to find the answer to your current dilemma "and they intimidate you with others who are far less powerful than Him." So, do not fear other than Allah as long as you are a true servant of Allah: If you are with Allah, Allah will be with you; if you run to Allah, you will be safe from everything else; if you seek support with His Signs you will superior
In as much as calamities reveal man's true mettle and virtue; they demonstrate the essence of his belief, contentment, and reliance. This is one of the most important purposes of adversities as Allah Almighty said, "We will try you to reveal who amongst you truly struggles and is patient; and to disclose your states – to others." Then Allah says, "the unbelievers who prevent people from the path to Allah, disobey the Messenger, after guidance was made clear to them, will not cause any harm to Allah; Allah will foil all their misdeeds."

www.facebook.com/shaykhabulhuda

Our Political Vision
By Shaykh Muhammad al-Yaqoubi:

We should remember that the worst tyrants of the Arab World in our modern history did not rule in the name of Islam but in the name of secularism and democracy. Their first victims were not the secularists but Muslims who were suppressed and Islamic movements which were banned. Why then are "Islamists" feared and prevented from reaching power. It was not "Islamists" who supported these oppressive regimes; rather the secularists, while the "democratic" world is helping these regimes stop the Islamic tide and applauding them: France supported Ben Ali in Tunisia; the USA supported Mubarak in Egypt; and the EU supported Assad's regime. It is high time we proved that Islam is more tolerant towards its opponents than the fake democracies of the West which protect the secular and eliminate the religious under the claims of fighting extremism. All we are doing is replacing one alleged extremism by another already proven extremist. It is time for Islam to present its vision and solutions to the political, social and economic crises in the Islamic World. For anyone who is trying to predict the future of the Middle East, I say, wait to see the Islamic choice being embraced by our people as the only guarantee to a better future. To all of that we see the start coming from Syria.

www.facebook.com/shaykhabulhuda