Omar Khadr, a sixteen year old Guantanamo Bay detainee weeps uncontrollably, clutching at his face and hair as he calls out for his mother to save him from his torment. “Ya Ummi, Ya Ummi (Oh Mother, Oh Mother),” he wails repeatedly, hauntingly with each breath he takes.
The surveillance tapes, released by Khadr’s defence, show him left alone in an interrogation room for a “break” after he tried complaining to CSIS (Canadian Security Intelligence Service) officers about his poor health due to insufficient medical attention. Ignoring his complaints and trying to get him to make false confessions, the officers get frustrated with the sixteen year old’s tears and tell him to get himself together by the time they come back from their break.
“You don’t care about me. Nobody cares about me,” he sobs to them.
The tapes show how the officers manipulated Khadr into thinking that they were helping him because they were also Canadian and how they taunted him with the prospect of home (Canada), (good) food, and familial reunion.
Khadr, a Canadian, was taken into US custody at the age of fifteen, tortured and refused medical attention because he wouldn’t attest to being a member of Al Qaeda, even though he was shot three times in the chest and had shrapnel embedded in his eyes and right shoulder. As a result, Khadr’s left eye is now permanently blind, the vision in his right eye is deteriorating, he develops severe pain in his right shoulder when the temperature drops, and he suffers from extreme nightmares.
He has been incarcerated at Guantanamo Bay since 2002, suffering extremely harsh interrogations and torture (methods), and is now 25 years old.
‘Allah is Sufficient for me, none has the right to be worshipped except Him, upon Him I rely and He is Lord of the exalted throne.’Hasbiyal-lahu la ilaha illa huwa, AAalayhi tawakkalt, wahuwa rabbul-AAarshil-AAatheem
20120423-014-Turkish tea by Roger T Wong on Flickr.
So, after I thought about this, I thought it would be a good video to make, except I don’t want to do that so I hope that possibly someone will be INSPIRED.
Anyway.
I don’t know if this happens to guys. But if you are a girl, well let’s say a woman, like me, then maybe you’ve been in a similar situation.
It’s not really a big deal but today I was at the bus stop and the bus was not going to come for another 15 minutes, roughly. And I really really felt like a nice pot of cannellini beans (white nutty beans) with tomato salsa and basmati rice. I would either go to the supermarket near the bus stop, or wait for the bus and go to the one near my house. Why was I hesitant to just go to the one near the bus stop instead of waiting for the bus doing nothing? Because I felt uncomfortable. Awkward. Graceless. This is because this bus stop has a whole load of people waiting for their other buses. And usually these people are bored, looking around, and so someone walking by them would be super interesting. And you know, having people stare at you is not the most fun thing in the world. So that’s right I felt uncomfortable.
But then I thought (something along the lines of), LEENA! You are a strong and independent woman. You have EVERY right to go to that supermarket right there. EVERY right to not waste your time sitting here waiting for the bus. And when you think about it, people are usually consumed in their own thoughts. When they look at you walking by, are they always thinking OMG WHERE IS SHE GOING? I don’t think so.
Anyway.
So I went.
I came back in seven minutes.
Easy as that.
So next time you feel like something is stopping you from fulfilling something, DEAL WITH IT. Don’t just feel sorry for yourself and embarrassed and everything. Because you probably won’t get far in life, Allah knows best.
Sorry for the super long explanation, I didn’t know how else to get my point across.
Similar situation that may make you feel ungraceful:
- Standing in line, or waiting for the bus or train feeling like if you don’t do anything but stand then you need to pull out your phone, check your facebook or look like you’re doing something important so that people think you have a life. Who cares dude. You don’t need to constantly look busy in front of other people. Don’t give yourself stress. People don’t even care that much most of the time.
You know what I think it means to be confident and graceful? To stand tall, be proud of your religion, REALLY not care what other people think.
Aww its Pingu ! Too cuteeee
thanks alhanouf92 for tagging me :D i know we are meant to tag 11 people but i am just so lazy and i have all this work i need to do. but feel free to do the tag if you’re reading this!
1-what do you think are the most important manners ?
Not interrupting people. Not staring at people. Saying salams back!
2-are you a morning or a night person ?
Morning, definitely alhamdulilah.
3-do you believe in love for first sight :p ?
LOL. No, not really.
4-do you like shopping ?
Sometimes, but if I don’t find what I am looking for it can get depressing.
5-what’s your favorite series ?
mmm i am not too picky with series. Shows like CSI and Law & Order I guess you could watch without keeping up with the entire thing.
6-where do you want to be in ten years ? or where do you see yourself in the future ?
Inshaallah married with kids. Oh and of course graduating, maybe a side job at a school? Possibly with my own business, but haven’t really done anything with that.
7-do you have a diary?
Apart from my university diary, nope.
8-a language that you would really really want to learn ?
Arabic is my second language but would like to learn it properly.
9-do you believe that life only gives one chance? , or it gives you alot ?! as long as you have hope and see the other choices ?
Mmm…well I guess I believe that so long as you are still alive, anything is possible, by the will of Allah. I don’t think that if all doors seem to be closed that you give up on whatever it may be, because Allah is capable of all things.
10-do you believe in fate ?
Yes of course.That is qadr, right? One of the six pillars of Iman.
11-an experience that relly affected you ?(neither in good or bad way)
Moving from Australia to UAE in grade 9. Now that I am older and looking back on it, that first year was probably the most depressing time in my life. But alhamdulilah it taught me that I guess no matter how bad your situation is, or how difficult you’re finding things, with hardship comes ease. Alhamdulilah now everything seems to be good in my life and I can’t believe that it was the state that it was back then.
LOL I feel sad when I have to recall grade 9.
Culture shock, school…all that stuff :S
There will come a day when we would give up everything we ever loved in this life, everything that preoccupied our hearts and minds, every mirage we ran after, just to have that conversation with Allah. But on that Day, there will be some from whom Allah (swt) will turn away… and forget, as they had once forgotten Him. ❞
On the road (by Joffrey Guidon)
