Share the Blessings!

The human tragedy unfolding in Chechnya is terrifying. Helping Hand/ICNA Relief, answering the call of suffering Chechens, has committed its resources to bring relief to the area. Few refugees have shelter, food, clothing or access to medical/sanitary care. There are many people, including children, with emergency medical problems. They do not have facilities, equipment, medicines or doctors to treat most of them.

Winter is fast approaching. Many are sick. Our priority is to provide life saving medicines such as antibiotics, antiseptics, vaccines, pain relievers, vitamins, anti diarrhea, etc. We also aim to deliever baby food, infant formulas and first aid kits. Just like Kosova, our goal is to send medical doctor's teams on rotational basis. Also, food supplies are dwindling rapidly. Arrangements are being made to send food and non-food items.

We are requesting all individual donors, Islamic centers, mosques and other relief organizations to support ICNA Relief in these urgent and important tasks of providing relief to displaed Chechens.

Humanitarian Crisis

In less than 6 weeks, nearly 1/4 of Chechnya's entire population has fled. To put this catastrophe into perspective: Chechnya only has about 800,000 people remaining from the 94-96 war (out of a pre-war population of 1.2 million). More than 100,000 were killed; the rest never returned. With another 200,000 already gone and more trying to leave, the depopulation of Chechnya makes for a human tradegy that is far worse than the Russian name of its capital, Grozny: "terrible."

Thousands of refugees are standed at the borders. The cold weather is making the situation a humanitarian disaster of high proportions. Can you imagine your parents, siblings, wife and children living under open skies in the freezing rain and sleet?

Crossing the borders, when they are open is a challenge. Besides the long lines, one has to bribe Russian soldiers in order to pass through. While this practice of bribing Russian soldiers to pass borders has been going on for a long time, most of those standing in line do not have the money needed. Before this latest war, unemployment was nearly 89%. few make more than $25 USD per month; hardly enough to feed a family.

The refugees are suffering in sub-human conditions as winter approaches. they cannot go elsewhere. Let us help them before it is too late.

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Chechnya: The Untold Story

Chechens, one of the few peoples indigenous to the Caucasus mountains, are ethnically very different from the Slavic Russians. Even liguistically the Chechen language is in class of languages called ibro-caucasians, making English, German, and French a lot closer to Russian than Chechen. More importantly all Chechens are Muslims who have through-out their history fought back the Russian occupation. Basically there is no logical reasons for Russia to claim Chechnya part of the Russian federation.

The barbaric ethnic cleansing that is going on today in Chechnya is the latest episode of a war that has lasted for over 300 hundred years. Chechens have never in their history joined any type of union or signed any piece of paper entitling Russia the right to rule their land. Going as far back as the 16th century, Russia has repeatedly practice ethnic cleansing against the against the Chechens and the rest of the north Caucasian Muslim nations. In the first Chechen war of 1994-1996 12% of the Chechen population perished, that is about 120 thousand lives almost all civilians. And that is no accident. It is typical of the way Russia wages war. In 1944, the entire Chechen nation was exiled from its land along wiht the majoirty of the Muslim nations of the north caucasus. During this forced migration 60% of people perished from cold, hunger, and diesases. The idea was to dissolve the Chechen identity altogether. Simply put, for as long as there is a Chechen living in the north Caucasus, Russia will not be free to rule the region. During this close to 400 years of war, the the Russian have never fought a clean war. They have repeatedly targeted teh Chechen civilians, only because they have never won face to face combat against the Chechen freedom fighters, by Allah's grace that will never happen. On the other hand, the Chechens have always been very humane to their captives. In the last war scores of POWs caught by the chechens embraced Islam. Many more young conscripts were returned to their mothers. However, no mercy was ever shown to the mercenaries or military pilots that killed civilians. At the end of the 20 month old war the Russian army pulled out of Chechnya dragging its tail betweent its legs.

The last war has left Chechnya and its people crippled. What little industry was there is totally destroyed. Utilities services are non existent. Hospitals lack everything from medication to equipment. Water is contaminated. A great percentage of the survivors are handicapped. Infant mortality rate is probably one of the highest in the world. In other words, Chechnya and its population are in no state to wage war against a super power.

The Russian FSB has been busy waging a progaganda war against the Chechen people. The kidnappings were started in order to make sure the outside world would stay far away from Chechnya. Members of humanitarian organizations that dared enter Chechnya were brutally dismembered by orders of the Russian FSB.

Russian government blew up apartments in Moscow killing about 300 Russian civilians, then turned around and blamed it on the Chechens. All this was done to justify invading Chechnya. The way the apartment bombing were carried out required a high expertise in the matter of bringing down buildings. This is a rare expertise which the Chechens never had. Had the Chechens had that expertise, they would have demonstrated it against the Russian army by now.

The Kremlin needed this war as a tool to make sure a president sympathetic to the current regime would win the next elections. Putin seems to fit that bill. More than likely he has promised that Yeltsin and his gang would not be prosected for stealing billions of dollars. Many, including some in the Russian media itself, have theorized that the Russian goverment is behind the apartment bombings.

This is the enemy the Chechen people are facing. An enemy that does not even have mercy on its own civilians let alone the Chechen civilians.

By Mohammad Jafar.

Page 3

A Reminder from Al-Qur'an and Sunnah

Our beloved Prophet (peace be upon him) said: "A Muslim is a brother of another Muslim, so he should not oppress him, nor should he hand him over to an oppressor. Whoever fulfilled the needs of his brother, Allah will fulfill his needs; whoever brough his brother out of a discomfort, Allah will bring him out of discomforts on the day of resurrection, and whoever screened a Muslim, Allah will screen him on the Day of Resurrection." (Sahih Bukhari)

"Whatever you spend in the way of Allah, it is for your own good, when you spend not for anybody's pleasure except that of Allah. Thus whatever you psend for any good work you will get full benefit of it and you will not be wronged to the slightest extent." (Al-Qur'an 2:272)

"And in their wealth have due share of those who ask for help and those who are deprived." (Al Qur'an 51:19)

"Those who spend their protery by night and by day, secretly and openly, they shall have their reward from their Lord and they shall have no fear, nor shall they grieve." (Al- Qur'an 2:274)

Brothers and Sisters, both Al-Qur'an and Al-Sunnah have urged us to spend in teh cause of Allah (SWT). Chechnya is bleeding. Your support is urgently needed. We have diverted our resources towards the people of this war torn region. Please donate today and strengthen out relief efforts in Chechnya.

HOW CAN YOU HELP?

Our brothers and Sisters in chechnya wonder why no one is forcing the Russians to stop the bombing campaigns. All they see is destruction and mass murder. They do not see "rebels" hiding out or careful efforts by the Russians to aviod civilian targets. They watch as village after village is decimated indiscriminately. Most do not understand how this can be happening to them again. Only this time, worse. We urge you to respond to their cries.

Step #1- PRAY

Remember them in your dua's. Supplicate for their well-being. Ask Allah (SWT) to grant them strength. May He ease their difficulties and bring them out of this trial successfully. We also pray that the oppressor is punished.

Step #2- DONATE

We urge you to donate generously. Your donations will help us provide necessary relief to the afected families. Please donate online at ICNA or send your donations to our offices.

Step #3- PROTEST

We request you to contact your local media and government representatives to express your concern over the current situation.

• Condemn attacks on civilians
  
• Demand Russia's withdrawal
  
• Suspend economic aid to Russia