Religion, Nationalism, and Terror

Religious party leader: Same-sex families undermine Judaism - Haaretz, December 10, 2007

Judaism does not recognize same-sex parents and therefore, the High Court decision to recognize their adoptions undermines the foundations of a Jewish state, National Religious Party Chairman Zevulun Orlev said on Sunday.

“There is no choice but to fix the legislation to determine that a family comprises a man and a woman,” Orlev said.

The panel reopened Sunday the debate on a lesbian woman’s right to adopt her partner’s son, in response to the state’s petition against a previous court ruling in 2000.

Nicole and Ruthie Brenner-Kadish formalized the adoption in California, and then petitioned the High Court, asking it to instruct the state to recognize the adoption.

As opposed to Orlev, Meretz MK Zahava Gal-On said that “the decision is one more step toward the annulment of the institutionalized discrimination of same-sex couples. It’s about time the state recognize these couple as they do adoptions completed by couples that are not of the same sex.”

In its 2000 ruling, a three-justice panel sided with the Brenner-Kadish couple, and ordered the Population Registry to list both of them as the child’s mothers. An Interior Ministry official refused, however, saying that “biologically speaking the existence of two parents of the same gender is impossible.”

Wissam al-Okaili / AFP/Getty Images
Muqtada Sadr’s portrait looms at a rally in Baghdad’s Sadr City.

Ned Parker, Sadr militia moves to clean house - Los Angeles Times, December 7, 2007

Since halting attacks on U.S. and Iraqi forces, the Shiite cleric’s Mahdi Army has been weeding out alleged rogue elements.

BAGHDAD — Militia commander Abu Maha had studied his quarry carefully, watching as the man acquired fancy suits, gold watches and the street name “Master.” Now, heavily armed and dressed in an Adidas track suit, Abu Maha told his followers it was time to act against one of their comrades.

A dozen of them gripped their assault rifles and headed out. The Master, accused of sliding into immoral behavior after stoutly defending Shiite Muslims in Iraqs sectarian violence, was about to learn that justice in the Mahdi Army could be very rough.

Fighters such as Abu Maha have taken on a new role in recent months in the militia of Shiite cleric Muqtada Sadr. Instead of battling Sunni insurgents and U.S. troops, they are now weeding out what they consider to be black sheep within their ranks.

Sadr, whose Mahdi Army has as many as 60,000 members, has been trying to make his movement a viable political factor, and more appealing to his hundreds of thousands of followers. In late August, he declared a six-month freeze in hostilities to rein in lawless elements after deadly clashes with a rival Shiite militia.

If Sadr succeeds, it could lead to a much more stable Iraq — at least in the short term. U.S. commanders say they are optimistic so far. But it is not yet clear whether Sadr can control even the men such as Abu Maha on whom he is depending to establish order.