AUSTIN (christiansunite.com) - In a face to face meeting in Islamabad, Congressman Michael McCaul (R-TX) urged Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf to help free two American citizens from an Islamic religious institution in the Middle East - the type which have been directly linked to the spawn of anti-American terrorism in the region that is the front line of the global war on terror. In their July 4 meeting President Musharraf assured Rep. McCaul that the teenagers would be released. The US Ambassador to Pakistanalso gave assurances that they would be released, as early as this week.
"This demonstrates why we need to focus our resources on the epicenter of the war on terror in the Afghanistan/Pakistan region," said Rep. McCaul. "The madrassas come to America and recruit children to indoctrinate them into Islamic extremism."
"These American boys should be released immediately. Pakistan has a policy to exclude foreigners from these madrassas including Americans. However, the policy has failed so far."
Within hours of Congressman McCaul's meeting with President Musharraf, Pakistan's new civilian government announced it would continue Musharraf's madrassas' reform policy which includes expulsion of foreign students, registration with the federal government, control of their funding and standardization of their curricula.
Noor Elahi Khan, 17, and Mahboob Elahi Khan, 16, of Atlanta,GA, are being held at the Jamia Binoria Institute in Karachi, recognized by both the U.S. and Pakistani governments as one of the most radical madrassas in Pakistan. Exit visas issued by the Pakistani government are holding up their departure. The boys enrolled in Binoria in August 2004, and have expressed the desire to leave Pakistan since their arrival. Despite attempts to free these children, and Pakistan's policy that madrassas must expel any foreign students, including Americans, Mufti Muhammad Naeem, the head and founder of the Binoria madrassa, continues to hold these Americans in a show of political strength against the government.
According to Naeem, the Khans are among 80 Americans enrolled in his madrassa. It is believed that there are 600 American boys being educated in 22 madrassas inPakistan. The sole curriculum is to memorize the Koran. Well into their high school years the Khans have been denied a formal education.
TIES TO TERROR Madrassas have come under intense international scrutiny for their anti-Western sentiment and links to terrorism since 9/11, and since the London subway bombings three years ago today, July 7, 2005. Three of the four suicide bombers who carried out the London plot were British nationals of Pakistani descent. Two attended madrassas inPakistan. The Binoria madrassa is known to recruit Americans most aggressively. It prominently displays a banner supporting the Taliban. And it is documented that Osama bin Laden spoke to students at Binoria before the 9/11 attacks.
While these religious schools purport to serve a purpose and educate Islamic children, great concern has grown over the increasing number of "political" madrassas. They mass-produce extremists with a political agenda, including a narrow view of society and no tolerance of Western culture. They radicalize Muslims and are seminaries for jihad.
"Most disturbing is that Americans and other westerners who are trained in these madrassas to hate America, have unfettered access to the United States. They leave the madrassas with intent to come back home to spread their message of hatred toward our country. Worst case they intend to kill us," Congressman McCaul said.
"The 9/11 terrorists had to work to infiltrate the United States to plan their attack. These madrassas are creating a new breed of terrorist that can come back to our country, work in our businesses, live next door, and teach our children with no questions asked. They are potential time bombs planted in our communities waiting to explode."
BACKGROUND Documentary filmmaker Imran Raza, who is of Pakistani descent, discovered the Khans in the Binoria madrassa in 2005. He embarked on his documentary "Karachi Kids", www.karachikids.com, immediately after the London subway bombings. Raza has spearheaded the effort to remove the Khans from Binoria and bring them back to America.
Congressman McCaul just returned from an official visit to the Middle East with U.S. Representatives Gene Green and Henry Cuellar. They also visited wounded U.S.military personnel at LandstuhlMedical Center in Ramstein, Germany. And they toured the front line of the war on terror with U.S. troops in Afghanistan charged with rooting out Taliban and al Qaeda terrorist cells which have sought safe haven in that region.
Congressman McCaul is a member of the House Homeland Security and Foreign Affairs committees. Before he was elected to Congress, McCaul served as chief of Counter-Terrorism and National Security in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Texas, and led the Joint Terrorism Task Force charged with detecting, deterring and preventing terrorist activity.
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