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China reduces US Dollar holdings

China retained its spot as the biggest foreign holder of U.S. Treasury debt in January although it trimmed its holdings for a third straight month. The string of declines is likely to underscore worries that the U.S. government could face much higher interest rates to finance soaring budget deficits.

The Treasury Department said Monday that China's holdings dipped by $5.8 billion to $889 billion in January compared to December. Japan, the second largest foreign holder of U.S. government debt, also trimmed its holdings but by a much smaller $300 million to $765.4 billion.

Net foreign purchases of long-term securities, a category that includes government and corporate debt, totaled $19.1 billion in January, as net purchases of private corporate bonds fell by $24.8 billion, the biggest drop on record.

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Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque dies.

Sheikh Mohammed Sayed Tantawi, Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, was born on October 28, 1928. He died on March 10, 2010, aged 81.  Sheikh Tantawi died from a suspected heart attack as he was boarding an aircraft in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, where he had been attending a prize-giving ceremony. He was buried in the Muslim holy city of Medina.

Sheikh Mohammed Sayed Tantawi was one of the most influential, but also controversial, religious figures in the Islamic world. As Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque in Cairo, he was head of Sunni Islam’s highest seat of learning. His rulings carried great weight — particularly in Egypt, where most Muslims are Sunnis — and he was a revered figure among many of the world’s estimated 1.4 billion Muslims.

But Sheikh Tantawi was appointed by President Mubarak and considered by some critics to be too close to the government. Certainly his moderation on issues such as women’s rights and his willingness to accept that there were “good Jews” infuriated radical Islamists. His forthright opposition to Islamic suicide bombers earned him the hatred of al-Qaeda and other fundamentalist groups.

Sheikh Tantawi received a doctorate in Koranic studies from al-Alzar university before becoming a religious teacher in Libya and Saudi Arabia as well as his native Egypt. In 1986 he was named Grand Mufti of Egypt and ten years later was appointed both Grand Imam of al-Azhar Mosque and Grand Sheikh of al-Alzar University, which runs religious colleges and schools and other educational institutions across Egypt and receives much of its funding from the state.

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This is the story of Afro-American Muslims who served on the side of the British the Anglo American war of 1815 who were resettled in Trinidad.

Masjids and Halal Meat in Jamaica

Halal meat and foods can be found  at Central Masjid in Kingston and in the  Islamiyah Basic School Canteen.   There are 12 Masjids on the island under the umbrella organization the Islamic Council of Jamaica.  The Headoffice Address is at 24 Camp Road, Kingston 4, Kingston, Jamaica.  Telephone contact 1-876-928-1771 or 1-876-930-7756 or email islamjam@yahoo.com for further information on additional places you can find halal meat and masjid location outside of Kingston.  Information courtesy Sheikh Musa Tijani, Director of Dawah and Education.

Hosay in St Vincent

Hosay/Muharram, the Shia Muslim commemoration of the death of Hosein at Karbala  in 680 A.D., was last observed in the St. Joseph area in the 1930s. Informants can still recount the striking of brass cymbals, the beating of drums, the placing of ingredients into the taziya [imitation mausoleums] and the drowning of the taziya itself into a river (Personal interview with Dr. Earl Kirby, born 1922, St. Vincent and with Ms. Mary Ann Gopaul, op. cit.). 

Extracted from "Race retention and culture loss: South Asians/East Indians in St. Vincent By Kumar Mahabir.  This paper is based on an interview done in 1982 with a 93-year old Indian, Mr. James Woods of St. Vincent.  The interview was done with Mr. James Woods, born 1889, at his home in Richard Park, St. Vincent , on March 15, 1982 when Woods was 93 years old."
 

The Islands of the Bahamas is one of those places where the population of Muslims is less than 1%.  This size represents a huge challenge to those Muslims who are mostly converts to Islam and are striving to live by the tenets of Islam every single day.  There is one masjid (Muslim place of worship) which is still in the process of being built to completion and an effort is made to have the adhan (call to prayer) called for each salat (prayer) daily.  The website is intended as a means to communicate the Bahamian Muslim Community's activities to its national audience and to reach out to all internationally.  The website provides a history with an appendices of photos of some interesting historical documents dating to slavery times.  It keeps all informed about community activities, photos of the masjid, provides answers to frequently asked questions and where one can find halal meat.  You can visit the Bahamian Muslim Community in the virtual world by clicking the website or if your travels take you to the Bahamas why not visit the masjid.  There is a contact form on the website if you wish to obtain further information directly from the community.


The Trinidad Newsday online edition reported that Cedros, a fishing village in south-western Trinidad, held hosay festival celebrations.  Hosay is  well known  in St. James, a suburb of Port of Spain, Trinidad's capital city.  While the Guyana Chronicle laments that it is a "A Muslim custom on the verge of extinction here".

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