BAGHDAD ( Jihadists Flaunt Their Power with Leader’s Appearance in Mosul )

BAGHDAD – The jihadist Islamic State flaunted its power Saturday by airing a video of its leader, Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi, even as the Iraqi army attempted to recover lost ground in the Sunni provinces near Baghdad.

Up to now only a few photos have been released of al-Baghdadi, the self-proclaimed caliph, so that pictures of his public appearance Friday at prayers in the Great Mosque of the Iraqi city of Mosul acquired an undeniable significance.

Mosul, Iraq’s second-largest city, has been under Islamic State control since last June 10, a serious setback for Iraqi authorities who in just a few days saw the jihadists at the gates of Baghdad.

During his sermon, al-Baghdadi urged his followers to obey him if he obeys God, and to persist with the jihad (holy war) because it is “the path of pride.”

“If you have faith in God and do your work well you will govern the earth as God promised true believers,” said the heavily bearded Islamic State leader in his robe and black turban.

The Islamic State is working to establish a local administrative system in coordination with all the other rebel Sunni groups, a local activist told Efe.

With regard to sectarian tension, he said the jihadists destroyed several Shi’ite mosques they suspected of being used for meetings of extremist militias of that Islamic group.

In fact, most of the Shi’ite inhabitants have fled or have been expelled from Mosul, though some have preferred to remain in the city, as has the Christian minority.

While Sunni insurgents and the Islamic State strengthen their bastion in Nineveh, whose capital is Mosul, Iraqi troops launched new operations Saturday to win back territory in provinces with a Sunni majority – Anbar, Saladin and Diyala.

Security officials told Efe that Iraqi forces in Anbar are backed by the Sunni pro-governmental militia called Salvation Councils.

The Iraqi conflict took on a new dimension last Sunday with the Islamic State’s proclamation of a caliphate from the Syrian province of Aleppo to the Iraqi governorate of Diyala.

On July 1, al-Baghdadi said it was “obligatory” for all Muslims to emigrate to the caliphate because this “belongs to all Muslims,” not just to the two countries of what was formerly called the Islamic State in Iraq and Syria (ISIS).

VERACRUZ, Mexico ( Police Kill 3 Gunmen in Shootout in Eastern Mexico )

VERACRUZ, Mexico – Police killed three suspected gunmen in a shootout in the Mexican Gulf state of Veracruz, state officials said.

The shootout occurred on Saturday in Orizaba, a city about 270 kilometers (167 miles) east of Mexico City.

The officers, who were participating in an anti-crime operation, spotted several people in an SUV that had been reported stolen.

Officers stopped the vehicle at an intersection, setting off the shootout.

The three gunmen were pronounced dead at the scene and officers seized three rifles, two handguns and ammunition in the vehicle.

Army troops and Veracruz Attorney General’s Office investigators responded to the shootout.

Thousands of migrants headed for the United States pass through Veracruz each year, and drug traffickers use smuggling routes in the state to move narcotics into Mexico’s northern neighbor.

The federal government expanded its presence in neighboring Tamaulipas state in May to fight the Los Zetas and Gulf drug cartels, which have unleashed a wave of violence in the region.

Veracruz’s government has stepped up patrols along the border to prevent the cartels from moving into its territory.

The state government has been working with the army and marines to hunt down the members of criminal organizations, especially those involved in kidnappings, this year.

Veracruz, Mexico’s third most populous state, has been plagued by a turf war between rival drug cartels that has sent the murder rate skyrocketing in the past few years.

The Gulf, Los Zetas and Jalisco Nueva Generacion cartels, as well as breakaway members of the once-powerful Familia Michoacana organization, are fueling the violence in the state.

The port city of Veracruz will be the site of the 24th Ibero-American Summit of heads of state and government and will host the 22nd Central American and Caribbean Games later this year.

Mexico ( Authorities Arrest 12 Kidnappers in Mexico )

MEXICO CITY – Authorities arrested 12 suspected kidnappers and rescued two captives in separate operations in Mexico, officials said.

Federal Police officers arrested three suspected kidnappers, including a minor, in central Mexico and rescued a 14-year-old who had been abducted last month, the National Security Commission said.

The operation was conducted in the city of Huixquilucan, thanks to a tip from the public.

Huixquilucan is in Mexico state, which surrounds the Federal District and forms part of the Mexico City metropolitan area.

Luis Eduardo Gaviño Chavez, 32, who handled negotiations and collected ransom payments, Ignacio Leyva Maldonado, 40, and an unidentified minor were arrested, officials said.

State authorities, meanwhile, arrested nine suspected kidnappers, including seven Nigerians, and rescued a teenage girl abducted on June 20 in Mexico state.

Relatives of the 16-year-old victim, who was kidnapped outside her family’s house in the city of Nextlalpan, contacted authorities, the Mexico state Attorney General’s Office said.

The victim was taken to a house in the city of Zumpango and the kidnappers contacted her family to demand a ransom payment, the AG’s office said.

Police arrested two suspects, one of whom is a minor, when they tried to collect the ransom and were led to the house where the victim was being held, the AG’s office said.

Officers arrested the other seven suspects, all Nigerians, the AG’s office said.

The Nigerians went to Mexico “some time ago (to work) for a computer repair company that no longer exists,” the AG’s office said in a statement.

Under the bridge

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San Diego ( Protest over immigration -see video )

Three-year-old fasts for a full day- most start at 10 yrs old (Ramadan)

A three-year-old girl fasted for a full day here on Wednesday, with her parents saying they are proud of her. Maryam's mother Iffar Aabroo and father Rashid Hassan have been encouraging her to do so. Most Muslim children only start fasting at the age of 10.
Her mother said she only started fasting when she was six years old, and thanked Almighty Allah for blessing her with a daughter who has been able to do so at such an early age.
"Maryam is just three years and seven months old and made no demands on us as she observed the first roza (fast) of her life,” her mother said, wiping away a tear. “Alhamdulillah, all praise to Allah,” she said. Maryam said she was initially only imitating her parents, "but after my mother told me the significance of Ramadan, I decided to fast." Maryam also joins her mother in daily prayers and Taraweeh at night. Her parents say their daughter is an example and inspiration to children of her age.