By Jim Garamone
American Forces Press Service

I love their way of educating the sheeple...

WASHINGTON, Nov. 5, 2001 -- A great debate is ongoing about
whether the United States and its coalition allies will
continue the campaign against terrorism during the Muslim
holy month of Ramadan.

U.S. and allied officials won't say what they will do,
figuring the enemy doesn't need to know the campaign plan.
But what is Ramadan and why would people think it's a good
idea to stop a war during it?

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. The
lunar-based calendar figures the start of the month from
the first sighting of the crescent moon. This year,
calculations say Ramadan starts Nov. 16.

Ramadan is a month of fasting for Muslims. One of the five
pillars of the faith, fasting is compulsory for every
Muslim adult. The word "fasting" is a loose English
translation -- the Arabic word, "sawm," literally means "to
refrain," but in Islam means refraining from food, drinks
and sexual activity from dawn to sunset. The month will end
Dec. 16 with the celebration of Eid-ul-Fitr.

The people of the Arabian Peninsula practiced fasting
during Ramadan before the Prophet Mohammed. Jewish and
Christian prophets, most notably Abraham, Moses and Jesus,
practiced fasting. The Koran says, "O ye who believe!
Fasting is prescribed to you as it was prescribed to those
before you, that ye may (learn) self-restraint."

Muslims during Ramadan are encouraged to do good deeds,
refrain from habitual and reprehensible deeds. The Koran
says Allah, the Almighty, ordains special rewards for good
actions and thoughts during this month.

The virtues of fasting and other recommended actions by the
Prophet Mohammed teach Muslims how to appreciate those
virtues and get nearer to Allah, and put an end to vices,
bad habits and character faults.

Mohammed received the Koran from Allah during Ramadan. It
is called the Night of Power (Lailat-ut Qadr) or the Night
of Blessing (Lailat-ul Mubarak). This was the night when
the Koran was revealed to mankind. Prophet Mohammed
recommended Muslims search for this night of power in the
odd nights of the last 10 nights in Ramadan.

Some leaders of Muslim countries have called for a
suspension of the campaign against terrorism during
Ramadan. But Islamic history is rife with instances where
wars and conflicts continued during Ramadan. The Prophet
Mohammed himself participated in some of the campaigns.

The most famous instance was the Battle of Badr, which took
place on the 16th day of Ramadan. The Prophet and 313 of
his companions set out to intercept a caravan from Mecca.
They were met by a well-equipped army of the nobility of
Qurayish. The Qurayish ruled Mecca, and Mohammed considered
them idolaters. Though outnumbered. Mohammed and his
followers fought to a draw.

The final campaign against the Qurayish was also during
Ramadan. Mohammed led a great army from Medina to Mecca to
take and purify the Ka'aba, the holy shrine built by
Abraham and Ishmael. Seeing the power of the army, the
Quyarish surrendered Mecca without a fight. Following the
city's occupation, Mohammed sent detachments to outlying
areas, where Muslims destroyed the idols of al-Lat, Manat
and Suwa.

And what is wrong with that????