Pamela Geller (blogger at Atlas Shrugged and co-founder of Stop Islamization of America), is emerging as one of the most remarkable women of our time. In the video below (a good way in), Geller explains how offensive it is for Muslims to build a 15-story mosque near Ground Zero. Her debating antagonist, Niwad Awad, is the founder of CAIR [Council on American-Islamic Relations]. One of the reasons I am posting this is for people to know Niwad Awad's pedigree. He is not the moderate Muslim he pretends to be. Geller writes: (her emphases)
I was on FOX news tonight. Kimberly Guilfoyle was subbing (thank gawd) for Geraldo the clown. They had me on to discuss the 911 mega mosque at Ground Zero, and who was my adversary? Niwad Awad, Hamas supporter and founder of the unindicted co-conspirator, Hamas-linked, Muslim Brotherhood front CAIR.
Awad was quoted as saying at Barry University “I am a supporter of the Hamas movement.”How can you tell Niwad Awad is lying? His lips are moving. And that the mosque is all about "freedom on religion." Yes, CAIR's position of freedom of religion was best illustrated in their vile response to the freedom buses and persecution of Rifqa Bary.
Worse yet, he has the audacity to say that 911 had nothing to do with Islam.
Geller continues:
Awad wrote in the Muslim World Monitor that the 1994 trial which resulted in the conviction of four Islamic terrorists who had perpetrated the previous year's World Trade Center bombing was “a travesty of justice.” Notwithstanding the confessions of the terrorists, Awad said: "There is ample evidence indicating that both the Mossad [Israel’s intelligence agency] and the Egyptian Intelligence played a role in the explosion."
In a 1994 interview with newsman Mike Wallace, Awad was asked if he supported the “military undertakings of Hamas,” to which he replied:
“The United Nations Charter grants people who are under occupation [the right] to defend themselves against illegal occupation.” That same year, Awad declared at a Barry University meeting, "I am a supporter of the Hamas movement.”
In June 2001 Awad participated in a protest outside the State Department and the White House, condemning U.S. support for Israel’s allegedly repressive government. In conjunction with this demonstration, several organizations -- including CAIR, IAP, American Muslims for Jerusalem, the Muslim Public Affairs Council, the American Muslim Council, and the Muslim American Society -- released a statement that read: “Before there can be any lasting peace in the region, America must finally come to terms with the real sources of violence, namely: 1) The brutal Israeli occupation of Palestinian land, 2) The continued expansion of settlements, 3) The denial of the right of return for Palestinian refugees, [and] 4) The billions of American taxpayer dollars that help finance Israel's occupation. Any other course of action is a recipe for unending strife and instability.”
In September 2003, Awad and CAIR Chairman Omar Ahmad were invited to testify at hearings held by the Senate Judiciary Subcommittee on Terrorism, Technology, and Homeland Security; both men declined to testify.
In an August 2006 interview on C-SPAN's Washington Journal, Awad suggested that suicide bombings are understandable attempts to address political injustices and do not have any inherent connection to radical Islam. Referring to the writing of political scientist Robert Pape on the topic, Awad stated: “[Pape] found out that [suicide terrorism] has more to do with occupations and fighting injustice than religion.” (more here)