Two former Afghan Mujahedeen and a six-year detainee at Guantanamo Bay have stepped to the fore of this city’s military campaign, training new recruits for the front and to protect the city from infiltrators loyal to Col. Moammar Gadhafi.
The presence of Islamists like these amid the opposition has raised concerns, among some fellow rebels as well as their Western allies, that the goal of some Libyan fighters in battling Col. Gadhafi is to propagate Islamist extremism.
Abdel Hakim al-Hasady, an influential Islamic preacher and high-school teacher who spent five years at a training camp in eastern Afghanistan, oversees the recruitment, training and deployment of about 300 rebel fighters from Darna.
Mr. Hasady’s field commander on the front lines is Salah al-Barrani, a former fighter from the Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, or LIFG, which was formed in the 1990s by Libyan mujahedeen returning home after helping to drive the Soviets from Afghanistan and dedicated to ousting Mr. Gadhafi from power.
I pointed out the tell-tale mark that Abdel Hakim al-Hasady was an Islamist the other day on another thread.
His photo shows he has made a showy display of his form of worship.
In the photo you can see two bruises on his forehead.
Muslims can pray as few times as once a week, or they can pray 5 times every day.
Prayers include bowing down on the prayer rug numerous times.
The most enthusiastic Muslim males bang their foreheads on the rug so as to raise a prayer-raisin.
Some parents of daughters look upon this as a sign for a suitable mate for their girls.
A sex symbol for arrangers of marriages.
Obviously not worshiping the same god as the one taught about in the Bible.
(Matthew 23: 1-8)