|
Algeria to launch state-owned religious channel
 Algeria is planning to launch this month a religious channel to counter unauthorized fatwas from satellite channels and the internet. The success of al-Quran al-Karim (the Holy Quran) radio station encouraged the authorities to launch a T.V. channel under the same name and with the same purpose: unifying Algerians under one religious banner, a source at the Ministry of Religious Affairs told AlArabiya.net. The source, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said the aim of launching the channel is countering unauthentic fatwas and particularly violent ones that played an important role in destabilizing the country during the security crisis the bordered civil war in the 1990s. In 1996, Algerians were dying under the name of Jihad when the armed Islamic groups GIA (Groupes Islamiques Armés) adopted a fatwa by Jordanian militant Abu Qatada and which sanctioned the killing of civilians and women and children. Posted by: Fred 2009-03-09 |
| http://www.rantburg.com/poparticle.php?ID=264513 |