As I sit at the computer tonight to write this, President George W. Bush is busy traveling around the world adding ally after ally to his unjust war against Islam. On the other hand, we, the Muslim Ummah, can’t seem to organize even enough to support each other, let alone organize to fight the enemy. It is a sharp contrast indeed.

From the time I reverted to Islam I have had to come to grips with the sorry state of the Muslim nation. Had I known this in advance, it may have made a difference. I am sure many considering Islam are turned off by the behaviour of Muslims who are supposed to be the most pious of peoples.

The Muslim Ummah needs as many voices as possible, working together in a coordinated effort to lift up the reality of the situation and to strengthen our ranks. These days, this is dangerous business, with attacks from authorities, Jewish vigilante groups and others, who all target sites that simply tell the other side of the story. On top of that, there are the death threats, damage to our privacy, our businesses etc., which is “business as usual” when it comes to publishing information in the West that is contrary to the Bush regime and that is pro-Truth. This we expect and

It is He who keeps us strong in our commitment.

Jihad Unspun has had a clear mandate from the beginning, to keep Muslims and non-Muslims primarily in the West informed of the events of this current conflict and to counter the false success of the American-led Coalition that the daily facts tell us is in perception only! The first casualty of war is truth and peace will never be achieved by ignoring the “great divide” and pretending it doesn’t exist.

JUS has become a major voice for the other side of the war on “terrorism”. As most of our readers know, I started JUS as a Christian after 911 because I came to know that the Muslims were being wrongfully treated and I had the skills, the resources and the conviction to do it. Shortly thereafter, I reverted to Islam and I am required on a daily basis to make sacrifices for this Ummah. One year later, I still sleep in shifts to make sure the news gets out every day and yet it is not even close to being enough that I can do for my Allah.

JUS today is no longer just my effort but rather the effort of a group of individuals who span the globe and who have come together under a common goal. JUS staff members are located in North America, Europe, Asia, Africa and Australia. We are journalists, writers, graphic artists, IT professionals, translators, and scholars who are for the most part Muslims, with a few exceptions.

Our marketing strategy is unique. We are trying to reach Muslims and non-Muslims primarily in the West in a professional and serious way. We publish both mainstream and uncensored news on the basis that given both sides, viewers will then begin to see that what they are learning from mainstream news is not all there is to the story. Our own material is clearly marked and we do not use the word “terrorist” as, until now, there has been no internationally accepted definition of a “terrorist” however we are not at liberty to edit third party articles. This word is commonly used even in Muslim material and therefore we look for the overall value of a given piece, not in criticism of every word its author has chosen to use.

JUS is a labor of love for Allah, with over 25 active volunteers working in various positions along with a small paid staff. We intend to build it into a large scale publishing house with global reach through our streaming channel, stores and the original productions we have begun to create, if Allah wills.

In recent weeks, JUS has once again come under attack by Azzam Publications and their affiliate Maktabah Al Ansaar - our very brothers in Islam. Although some may consider it flattering that they have acknowledged us as such a formidable competitor, they are fully aware that the information they are disseminating is false and we believe this damages the Ummah. More important is the fact that it shocks us to see to what degree they have ignored the saying of Allah, Exalted and Elevated, in Surah Al-Hujuraat:

To date, we have chosen to ignore their efforts to discredit us as Allah, Exalted and Elevated, tells us about the characteristics of the true Muslims in Surah Al-Furqaan (The Criterion)

Furthermore this does nothing other than help the enemy however we now feel it is our duty to disclose the truth of the matter in an attempt and with the hope of laying the matter to rest and unifying the overall effort for the good of the Ummah we all serve.

Contrary to Azzam’s latest statement, we have experienced a difficult relationship with both Azzam and Maktabah Al Ansaar from the beginning. We came to them in the spirit of cooperation as the new kid on the block and were met instantly with resentment. Our first encounter was indeed an adverse one and over a news item that we published which they confused as an attack on them. We were horrified, as that is not what the item intended or said (we use American English!). To show our good intentions, we published a full retraction – something that is never done in publishing as this tends too weaken the confidence of readers, but nevertheless we put their needs above ours to make sure they were exonerated and we also ran free ads for them as an added gesture. We did not receive even a thank you on this one and this was just the beginning.