Mosque crackdown: Gulf states to install computers, monitor sermons by Internet
ABU DHABI — The Gulf states are stepping up programs to monitor mosques and stem the spread of the Al Qaida
network.
In the United Arab Emirates, authorities plan to install computers and
Internet in mosques. Officials said the first stage of the project would
focus on the emirate of Abu Dhabi.
Officials said virtually every one of the six Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) states has taken
measures to monitor mosque activity and sermons. They said the goal was to
prevent the mosque from being used as a place for insurgency recruitment.
The Internet project would link all mosques in Abu Dhabi to the UAE
Islamic Affairs Ministry. The ministry would communicate with preachers and
relay sermons for Friday prayers.
"The mosque is where Al Qaida usually meets its recruitee and where it
sets the agenda for terrorism," a GCC official said.
Officials said authorities in all six GCC states have warned mosque
preachers to adhere to guidelines set by the Islamic Affairs Ministry. They
said preachers were also ordered to report suspicious activity in houses of
worship.
In June 2007, UAE Islamic Affairs Ministry director-general Mohammed
Mattar Al Kaabi gathered new mosque preachers and warned them not to issue
religious rulings without permission. Al Kaabi said Muslims could acquire
Islamic
rulings through the ministry.
Officials said GCC states would also record Friday sermons to ensure
that they don't support Al Qaida doctrine. They said preachers would be
directed and trained to communicate with authorities.
