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February 21, 2008

UK: Muslim School Copied The Hate-Filled Books It Destroyed

The King Fahad Academy is based in Bromyard Avenue, Acton, West London, a stone's throw from the Westway (A40). It is funded by the Saudi Arabian regime, annually receiving 4 million. It caters for its pupils within five schools on the premises. There is a kindergarten, lower schools for boys and for girls, and two upper schools for the genders, educating students up to 18.

This school was founded in September 1985 mainly to provide education for the children of Saudi diplomats and the offspring of Muslims and Arabs in London. This school has attracted negative attention due to textbooks which show contempt for Christianity and other faiths, and particularly vitriolic passages against Jews.

In May 2004 the Telegraph reported that several parents had removed their children from the King Fahad Academy due its "fundamentalist" education and claims that it gave girl children an inferior education.

When the school had started, it had taught the British and Saudi curricula side by side, but in 1999 the Saudi government had ordered the school to concentrate on the Saudi curriculum at the expense of the British. Girls in 2004 were given little physical exercise and learned no technology other than "home technology".

One parent, daughter of former Saudi oil minister Sheikh Ahmed Zaki Yamani, withdrew her two daughters from the school. Dr Mai Yamani, a research fellow at the Royal Institute of International Affairs, said: "The books they taught the girls from kept going on about idolatry and sin and how to avoid it. It was about the fires of hell, torture in the grave and how to make sure that your ways are not those of the infidel."

"The school is trying to make sure that the Saudis who go there abide by the system of state control in Saudi Arabia. The method is 'loyalty to the system and hostility to the outsider'."

Dr Yamani said: "They consider that the mind of a girl is less capable of absorbing education."

A father of two teenage girls at the school said in 2004: "It used to be a wonderful school that taught the two traditions side by side. Now only one lesson in six is taken in English. The children would not have the standard to even read the paper by the time they reach A-level. It has arrived at a situation where the school seems to be saying: 'This is the only correct version of Islam'. It's such a fundamentalist approach."

The Telegraph quoted Ofsted inspector Dr Nasim Butt, who had formerly taught at the academy. He said: "A Saudi education is not going to create individuals who make that kind of contribution in a free society."

In the spring of 2006, US research by Freedom House showed that many Saudi "educational texts" were deeply hostile to outsiders. These books taught that "Jews and the Christians are enemies of the believer'' and that the "clash between the two realms is perpetual". Students were told not to greet, befriend, imitate or respect unbelievers. Spreading Islam through jihad was said to be a "religious duty". The research was published (pdf document) as Saudi Arabia's Curriculum of Intolerance.

In June 2006, the Telegraph once again turned its attention to the King Fahad Academy in the light of Freedom House's report, but senior staff at the school refused to comment on the content of books used.

The material used to teach the Saudi curriculum at King Fahad Academy became a source of intense debate when a teacher who had been fired from the academy brought his case to an employment tribunal. Colin Cook had taught at the school for 18 years. He maintained that at Watford Employment Tribunal that he had been unfairly sacked for misconduct in December 2006 after he highlighted how cheating in examinations was covered up.

In legal documents presented to the tribunal, Mr Cook maintained that: "The schoolbooks presently in use describe Jews as 'monkeys' (or apes) and Christians as 'pigs'." He said that school students were asked to "mention some repugnant characteristics of Jews". Year One pupils were required to "give examples of worthless religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, idol worship and others."

Mr Cook also noted that he heard some students saying they wished to "kill Americans" referring to Osama bin Laden as a "hero" and praising 9/11.

The issues raised by Mr Cook led to a BBC Newsnight interview in February 2007, featuring the principal of the academy, Dr Sumaya Alyusuf. She refused to destroy the books.

Certain books from the Saudi curriculum were presented to her. She stated: "Yes, I do recognise these books, of course. We have these books in our school. These books have good chapters that can be used by the teachers. It depends on the objectives the teacher wants to achieve."

Dr Alyusuf claimed that the racist sections of the books had been "misinterpreted". Interviewer Jeremy Paxman asked: "Will you now remove this nonsense from the Saudi Ministry of Education from your school?"

She responded: "Just to reiterate what I said earlier, there are chapters from these books that are used and that will serve our objectives. But we don't teach hatred towards Judaism or Christianity - on the contrary."

MP Louise Ellman condemned Ofsted inspectors for not picking up the content of the books in the previous inspection, which had taken place in March 2006. Ms Ellman said: "This whole situation is unacceptable. It is incitement. It is part of a deliberate Saudi initiative to install Wahabbism extremism among Muslims and in the rest of society. If Ofsted has not drawn attention to this, that is a failing of Ofsted."

She added: "It is unacceptable and we should look to see if this is happening in other schools as well. This is about teaching children. I think the school should take immediate action and so should the regulatory authorities."

The school responded to the negative publicity it was receiving by announcing on February 7, 2007, that sensitive passages in school text books would be removed. Dr Sumaya Alyusuf said: "I would like to make it clear that the controversial pages within the books are not taught within the academy. However, in view of the public interest I have decided to remove those chapters from the books. The school is currently moving towards an international curriculum and new books are being developed for that curriculum."

Dr Alyusuf claimed that her pupils had suffered discrimination due to the publicity, with one local store erecting a sign claiming pupils from King Fahad Academy were not welcome. She insisted that even though they did not feature in the curriculum, the offending pages had been "torn out" of the books, and said: "The press interest in these unused chapters has shocked us."

The school was claiming to be teaching the Swiss-accredited international baccalaureate.

The Newsnight interview spurred questions in parliament on February 8, 2008. Jim Knight, Secretary of State for Education was asked about the King Fahad Academy and the allegations of racism and religious extremism. The minister responded: "All independent schools must comply with standards set out in the Education (Independent School Standards) (England) Regulations 2003 as amended. The Department is making inquiries in relation to allegations of racism and extremism at King Fahad Academy to establish whether the school complies with the statutory requirements."

Jim Knight announced on the same day that he had ordered an inquiry into the King Fahad Academy. He said: "I have therefore asked the department to make enquiries in relation to the recent allegations surrounding King Fahad Academy, and to confirm whether the school complies with its statutory requirements on promoting tolerance and harmony."

On February 15, Ofsted school inspectors arrived at the school. They published their findings in a report dated February 26, 2007. Bizarrely, when one does a search on Ofsted for a copy of this report, would-be parents are instead directed to the earlier and criticized report based upon an inspection made from March 13 - 16, 2006.

The 2006 Ofsted report, which praised the school for offering "a balanced education and opportunities to develop their intellect and skills" can be downloaded as a pdf document. To find the more critical report based on the February 2007 inspection, one has to look on a Saudi Arabian government website.

The 2007 report states: "This was an unannounced visit conducted by one of Her Majesty's Inspectors and two additional inspectors; one of whom was a Muslim inspector. The visit was at the request of the Department for Education and Skills (DfES), following a complaint. The complaint related to allegedly unsuitable teaching materials and approaches which might contravene the independent school regulations. The complaint referred to textbooks which might be considered to contain racist comments or exercises and which were the subject of publicity in a recent Newsnight television broadcast. The DfES requested that inspectors focus on standard 1 (the quality of education provided in the school) and standard 2 (the provision for pupils' spiritual, moral, social and cultural development). Within this overall brief, inspectors were asked specifically to judge whether the school assists pupils to acquire an appreciation of and respect for their own and other cultures in a way which promotes tolerance and harmony between different cultural traditions (regulation 2(e))."

"...One inspector looked at the arrangements for the disposal of unwanted books.""

The 2007 report maintained that "The textbooks referred to in the television programme have all been removed and are no longer available as a teaching resource. Inspectors are satisfied with the school's responses and explanations as to their previous very limited availability and usage. The school and the inspectors agree that these materials are inappropriate for the international curriculum that the school is developing."

On October 29, 2007 a report by Policy Exchange was published. This report, available as a downloadable pdf document, was entitled: "The Hijacking Of British Islam: How extremist literature is subverting mosques in the UK". Researchers had collected materials from mosques and Islamic institutions across Britain between 2006 and 2007.

On pages 9, 10 and 51 to 58 of this document, Saudi books at the King Fahad Academy were discussed.

One book, entitled "Al-Hadith wa'l thaquafa al Islamiyya" (Prophetic Tradition and Islamic Culture), aimed at 12-year olds, states: "The Jews are a people who were moulded with treachery and backstabbing throughout the centuries, and they do not keep their word nor honour their promise."

This book states: "You will not find any confusion in which the Jews did not play a role... Their attempt at trying to immerse nations in vice and the spread of fornication. The Jews controlled this kind of trade and promoted it. They manage the bars in Europe and the United States and in Israel itself."

The same book maintains that the notorious Protocols of the Elders of Zion - widely recognized to be a 19th century Russian forgery - are in fact authentic.

Another Saudi-produced book found at the academy entitled "Al-Hadith" (Prophetic Traditions) maintains that "The Jews and the Christians are the enemies of the Muslim, and they will never be pleased with the Muslims..."

Other books found at the academy included "Al-Tawhid" (Monotheism), which advises against socializing with non-Muslims: "sever all connections with the unbelievers, so he does not love them, support them, or live amongst them. One of the great requirements for hating the unbelievers and showing enmity towards them is to stay away from their ceremonies and celebrations."

"Sharh Kitab al-Tawhid" (Commentary on the Book of Monotheism) is another school book found in the school. The "Book of Monotheism" is Kitab al-Tawhid, the only surviving text by Muhammad Ibn Abd al-Wahhab (1703-1792), the founder of Saudi Wahhabism.

The "Commentary" states: "The basis of Islam is the divine unity. This requires bearing witness that 'There is no god but God'; it therefore is incumbent on the people of Islam that their aim in jihad is to guide mankind to Islam, and to enter into it. It is, therefore, preferable to call them to Islam before fighting them, even if the summons had already reached them before that. But if it had not already reached them, it is necessary to summon them before fighting them."

The issue of these books at the King Fahad Academy have once again resurfaced in the news. The Watford Employment Tribunal concerning 58-year old Mr Colin Cook, initiated more than a year ago, is once again in progress.

Mr Cook, who had converted to Islam, claimed on Tuesday, February 19, that though the school had been persuaded to shred 2,000 individual books, photocopies of these had been made.

Mr Cook also claimed that when school principal Dr Sumaya Alyusuf had appeared on BBC Newsnight with Jeremy Paxman, she had been lying. He told the tribunal: "Dr Alyusuf simply lied about her knowledge of the contents of the books and tried to pretend that the books were not taught in the school. She failed to repudiate the racist views expressed in the books. The truth is she cannot go against the Saudi ministry of education. She is their puppet."

He also savaged the 2006 Ofsted report, saying that it was "very inadequate. This is partly due to what the Academy did not tell the inspectors and partly due to, at best, incompetence by Ofsted."

He described to the tribunal a school trip to a soccer museum in December 2005. When pupils visited the Arsenal Football Club museum, some students from the academy started shouting "Saudi, Saudi, Saudi". They fought with pupils who were not Saudi. Mr Cook said: "Apparently we were the first school ever to be thrown out of the museum, which was humiliating. None of the Saudi pupils was challenged over their behaviour by (King Fahad) management."

The King Fahad Academy has educated the children of now-jailed Islamist preacher Abu Hamza al-Masri, and also the children of Abu Qatada, who has been described as "Al Qaeda's ambassador in Europe".

The hearing, in which Mr Cook is demanding £135,000 ($265,065) compensation and damages for losing his £35,000 ($68,720) per annum job as an English teacher, is continuing.

Posted by Giraldus Cambrensis at February 21, 2008 6:00 PM

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