Syrian rebels have taken iconoclasm to new depths, with shrines, statues and even a tree destroyed – but to what end?

Robert Fisk Sunday 22 December 2013 Syrian rebels have taken iconoclasm to new depths, with shrines, statues and even a tree destroyed – but to what end? Compared writing poetry to the sex act? May he be turned to dust! Eccentricity marks the path to heaven or hell. Take the Takfiri rebels trying to overthrow Bashar al-Assad’s regime in Syria. They have chopped off the heads of their enemies, eaten a few human entrails, massacred Christians and Alawites – the Damascus government, of course, has done its share of civilian bloodletting and war crimes – and even gone to war on the Kurds. But of all the activities of the al-Qa’ida/al-Nusra/Islamic State of Iraq and Greater Syria insurgents in Syria, surely the weirdest has been an iconoclasm worthy of both Henry VIII and the Taliban: the destruction of shrines, tombs and the statues of poets and caliphs. Take, for example, Abu Tammam Habib ibn Aws who was born near Damascus AD804. He was assistant to a weaver and the son of Christian parents – an obvious provocation to the Nusra lads 2,213 years later – but travelled to Egypt to study poetry. He went to Armenia and Iran, and produced an anthology of other poets’ work known as the Hamasah, an anthology of bravery, courage in defeat and revenge. A work, you might think, that could appeal to the Salafists anxious to rid Syria of its infidel president. But no. In his native town of Jasim in the countryside of Deraa this year, the Islamists destroyed his statue. They simply blew it up with explosives. Was it because he had Christian parents? Unlikely, surely, since some of the current followers of al-Nusra are Muslim converts. Or was it because Abu Tammam brazenly compared the composition of poetry to the sex act? May he be turned to dust! So let’s move on to Abu al-Ala Ahmad ibn Abd Allah al-Ma’arri, who was born almost 170 years after Abu Tammam near Aleppo, the ancient city currently split between rebel and government fighters. Like Milton, al-Ma’arri was almost blind, but produced a popular collection of poetry called The Tinder Spark and later, in Baghdad – where he was adored by writers but lived in almost hermit-like isolation on a vegetarian diet – wrote Unnecessary Necessity, which complained about the rhyming scheme of poetry. More dodgy, however, al-Ma’arri also described a Dante-like visit to heathen poets in paradise. And a later work was described as a parody of the Koran. He believed, so we are told, in “social justice” – whatever that was in the 9th century – but thought a world without children would spare future generations the pain of life. Well, you can understand why the al-Nusra boys scratched their heads when they saw al-Ma’arri’s turbaned statue. For the poor chap is also credited with telling his readers: “Do not suppose the statements of the prophets to be true… The sacred books are only such a set of idle tales as any age could have…” So off with his head! The al-Nusra guys decapitated the statue in al-Ma’arri’s home town of Maarat al-Numan. Then we come to Harun ar-Rashid himself, the fifth Abbasid caliph of One Thousand and One Nights fame, who ruled Islam’s greatest empire, putting down revolts – Assad-style – in Syria, Egypt and Yemen, even bringing Tunisia under his rule. He became an immensely wealthy man whose wife insisted that only gold and silver would hold food on the family table. The palace was packed with singing girls, concubines and servant girls. But… word had it that he maintained a homosexual relationship with Jafar, one of his principal administrators, who was later executed. Luxury, concubines, vice. No chance, then, for Harun’s statue in the city of Rakaa – the only town in Syria currently under total Islamist control. His image, in the city’s Ar-Rashid Park, no less, was destroyed. Need one go on? The shrine of the Prophet’s companion Hujr ibn Adi has been destroyed in Rif Damascus (the countryside around the capital) and a shrine to a Sufi sheikh in Busaira has been blown up. The Islamists have even announced the cutting down of a 150-year-old tree in the town of Atmeh – next to another shrine which the Salafists had taken over. “Thank God Almighty, the tree… has been removed, after people were worshipping it instead of God,” an Islamist informed a French news agency. But what’s new? Didn’t the Taliban destroy the Buddhas of Bamiyan, just as the Saudis have reduced every old building in Mecca to rubble and the Islamists hundreds of shrines in Pakistan? Not to mention the destruction in Timbuktu. Think Henry VIII. Think Oliver Cromwell – who would surely have understood the cruelty of the Syrian war. And beware graven images. Pity about the tree. More from Robert Fisk this week here: http://www.independent.co.uk/voices/comment/do-you-get-phonecalls-from-nowhere-9021026.html =================== Fighting jihad in Syria, the British 'grime' rapper from £1m home in Maida Vale, west London, who is the son of a suspected Al Qaeda mastermind Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary, 23, flew out several months ago He had been mixing with thugs linked to hate preacher Anjem Choudary Friends said he had grown increasingly radical and violent He called on Allah to 'grant us martyrdom', and praised Bin Laden By Chris Greenwood PUBLISHED: 23:26 GMT, 31 December 2013 | UPDATED: 10:24 GMT, 1 January 2014 622 shares 74 View comments Posing with an assault rifle after joining rebels fighting the Syrian regime, this is the British son of a suspected Al Qaeda mastermind. Abdel-Majed Abdel Bary, 23, is the latest in a growing stream of young men to join militant groups in the war-torn Middle Eastern country. He walked out of his family's £1million home several months ago telling them he was 'leaving everything for the sake of Allah'. Scroll down for video Abdel-Majed abdel Bary, 23, also known as rapper Lyricist Jinn, who has gone to Syria to fight as a jihadist Abdel-Majed abdel Bary, 23, also known as rapper Lyricist Jinn, who has gone to Syria to fight as a jihadist Friends said Bary – an aspiring rapper on the 'grime' music scene – grew increasingly radical and violent after mixing with thugs linked to hate preacher Anjem Choudary. He has posted a series of photographs online, including shots of him masked and posing with guns under the title 'soldier of Allah'. In other messages he called on Allah to 'grant us martyrdom', and praised Osama Bin Laden. Bary, whose music has featured on Radio 1, is one of six children of Adel Abdul Bary, 53. More... Julian Assange's father leads Wikileaks delegation visit to Syria to meet Assad as they vow to open Damascus office Anger of UKIP supporters after leader Nigel Farage says Britain SHOULD accept refugees from Syria Bary Snr was extradited from Britain to the US 14 months ago after an eight-year legal battle that made him a cause celebre of the Left as lawyers took his publicly funded case to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg. Investigators believe Bary Snr was one of Bin Laden's closest lieutenants in the infancy of Al Qaeda and ran a London cell of the terror network. He faces life in prison if convicted of involvement in the bombings of US embassies in East Africa in 1998. His son's appearance among the ranks of UK jihadists in Syria, where several Britons fighting for the militants have already been killed, will add to concerns about their potential threat to the West. In the video Bary raps about taking part in a war on terror over images of Obama and Cameron In the video Bary raps about taking part in a war on terror over images of Obama and Cameron In the video Bary raps about taking part in a war on terror over images of Barack Obama and David Cameron Bary lived with his mother Ragaa for more than a decade in a home in Maida Vale, West London, owned by Westminster Council. If it were sold on the open market it would be worth £1million. She travelled to Britain from Egypt in 1990 after her husband was granted refugee status. Friends said Bary's conversion to radical Islam happened as he grew increasingly frustrated with the British authorities over the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. And it came despite his fledgling success on the underground grime music scene, where he rapped under the names Lyricist Jinn and L Jinny. Grime rapper fighting jihad in Syria raps about War on Terror Bary appeared in dozens of videos, including one in which he posed outside the Bank of England and declared his allegiance to the global hacking group Anonymous. On July 1, he announced that he was turning his back on music as 'I have left everything for the sake of Allah'. It is understood that soon afterwards he travelled to Syria, where one of his oldest friends had already joined the fighting. He changed his Twitter name to Soldier of Allah and posed for pictures wearing a mask and military fatigues while carrying an AK-47 and other large assault rifles. Bary lived with his mother Ragaa for more than a decade in a home in Maida Vale, West London, owned by Westminster Council Bary lived with his mother Ragaa for more than a decade in a home in Maida Vale, West London, owned by Westminster Council Last month he said, 'Oh Allah, grant us martyrdom' and praised Bin Laden, calling him a 'lion'.Referring to conditions in Syria, he said it is the 'real jungle out here'. A Metropolitan Police spokesman refused to confirm whether the force's counter terrorism unit is aware of Bary's trip to Syria or his violent internet boasts. 'We are investigating a number of individuals who are believed to have travelled to Syria to engage in the conflict but are unable to comment on any specific case for operational reasons,' he said. 'Travelling abroad for the purpose of engaging in terrorist related activity is an offence and we will seek to prosecute, where possible, anyone engaged in this type of activity. The police work with partners to identify these individuals of concern in order to manage the risk they may pose. 'We are also keen to prevent young and vulnerable individuals becoming engaged in this type of activity and would urge anyone who is concerned about relatives or friends that they believe to be susceptible to, or involved in this sort of activity to get in touch with us.' Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2531994/Fighting-jihad-Syria-British-grime-rapper-1m-home-Maida-Vale-west-London-son-suspected-Al-Qaeda-mastermind.html#ixzz2pCRGmxc5 Follow us: @MailOnline on Twitter | DailyMail on Facebook =====================