DHAB- THE DESERT LIZARD

Article written by Muhammad al Sulami
Hunting lizards is a popular hobby for many young Saudi hunters who enjoy looking for the “exceptionally delicious” reptile in desert areas that they then slaughter and eat.

Hunters use many methods to catch the reptiles. They either use rifles to shoot them or chase them until catching them with their hands. Some pour water down their holes or use pipes to push car exhaust fumes inside to force them out.

Although lizard meat is considered a specialty in the Kingdom, doctors warn against eating too much as the meat is high in cholesterol and rich in protein. The nutritious value of the meat depends on the time of the year. If the lizard is caught after its winter hibernation, its meat will be full of fat, which becomes low in spring and at the beginning of summer.

“Hunting lizards is a hobby that we have inherited from our ancestors,” said Adil Al-Otaibi, a young Saudi lizard hunter. He explained that the best time to hunt lizards is during the summer, especially toward the end of August after numbers have soared following the mating season which begins in May and ends at the end of August.

Al-Otaibi is saddened by the hunting methods of some hunters, which he said is threatening the reptiles into extinction. “With the rising demand for lizard meat, some hunters hunt huge numbers,” he said, adding that many people think lizard meat is beneficial to their sex life.

Massad Al-Mitairi recalls several funny incidents when hunting lizards. He said once he and a group of friends caught a number of lizards and that one of the friends threw the lizards into hot water to cook before slaughtering them.

“The lizards immediately jumped out of the pot and ran off. My friend became scared and also started running. He’s never come with us since,” he said.

To preserve the lizards and save them from extinction, the National Commission for Wildlife Conservation and Development (NCWCD) has issued strict rules and stipulated fixed times of the year when they can be hunted. Anyone who violates these rules will be handed prison sentences, fines or both.

They are many types of lizards including the Egyptian Spiny-Tailed lizard, the Dabb lizard, the Yemeni Spiny-Tailed lizard, the Bent’s Mastigure lizard and others.

So many of you may wonder if Muslims are allowed to eat Dhab. Well, the Prophet (saw) may have personally disliked dhab himself but he did allow his companions to partake in it as reported by an authentic hadith narrated by Abdullah ibn Abbas (RA):" I and Khalid b. Walid went to the apartment of Maimuna along with Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him), and there was presented to him a roasted lizard. Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) stretched his hand towards It, whereupon some of the women who had been in the house of Maimuna said: Inform Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) what he intends to eat. Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) lifted his hand. I said: Messenger of Allah, Is it forbidden? He said: No. It is not found in the land of my people, and I feel that I have no liking for it. Khalid said: I then chewed and ate it, while, Allah’s Messenger (may peace be upon him) was looking (at me).

I have put some pictures below of what the lizard looks like and some “tasty” ways in which it is usually prepared.

Has anyone ever tasted it??

I should add here that I haven’t tried it personally, and I don’t think I ever will.

Source:

http://www2.arabnews.com/node/352384

Pictures courtesy of Saud Al Yahya

SPEED AND ALCOHOL KILLS!!!!!

The above two pictures were taken at the scene of a gruesome accident that occurred on the Main Durban- Johannesburg N3 highway in South Africa on Sunday November 4th at around 17h00. Driving pass the accident scene with my family, we witnessed a Black Corsa van split in half with the occupant of the vehicle, a young white man, dead. The occupants of the other vehicle, a Ford Fortuna 4x4 was a family of five. A mother, father and three kids. The kids and the mother came out without much injury. However, the driver of the vehicle despite talking, was bleeding profusely from his head and arms. His legs were stuck and it was possible that he had sustained a serious leg injury. He needed to be removed from the vehicle with the 'Jaws of Life". Dad usually doesn't stop at an accident scene. However, the families belongings were strewn across the road and dad felt that he needed to pick up their belongings and hand it over safely to the relatives. Now in South Africa what usually happens at the scene of an accident is theft. You would find people living in the surrounding areas along the road side would come to the accident scene and instead of helping the victims they would choose to steal their belongings? In a separate incident that occurred about a month ago in South Africa, a truck that was carrying meat products was involved in an accident in the Mpumalanga region. The African people from the town nearby came to the accident scene and virtually stole the entire truck load of meat.
The cause of the accident we witnessed was unknown to the police. However, they strongly point the unfortunate incident to alcohol. The man driving the Corsa van was possibly under the influence of alcohol as his breath and body were reeking of alcohol. There was also many small bottles of coke in his car.He was probably drinking the coke to shoot up his caffeine and concentration levels.
The shocking bit about the whole accident scene was that our national government ambulance service was not well equipped in dealing with this kind of trauma. The ambulance failed to have many life saving drips and drugs. The doctor on duty was forced to borrow and utilize medical equipment from the NETCARE ambulance that had arrived on the scene.
If you could ever find a group of dumb policemen the dumbest of them all were present at the scene of the accident. They did not know how to use the 'Jaws of Life" which resembles a giant pliers. With members of the public pitching in to help, finally they managed to use the device and free the driver who was trapped underneath the vehicle. With the nearest hospital 86km away in Bethlehem, it makes you wonder why doesn't the national emergency services have an airlifting service in transporting a patient quickly and efficiently especially in life threatening situations.With millions of rands squandered and stolen each day through corruption in seems to me that South Africa is slowly but surely regressing into a fully fledged third world country. It is simply a matter of time.Whilst President Jacob Zuma enjoys his life with his many wives and 20 or so kids many of whom are illegitimate, his nation and his citizens are suffering.My heart bleeds for South Africa. It is undoubtedly one of the most beautiful countries in the world. It has the best weather, the scenery is remarkable and the people are warm and kind. Africa should have been the superpower of the world. But then again because of greed which African president has ever succeeded in raising his nation to new heights??? Sadly folks the answer is NONE!!

No Loopholes on Coral

The backlash from the change in the ownership of the former Coral Hotel - the first "dry hotel" of its kind in Cape Town - to the latest "halaal friendly" hotel in the Hilton chain, has spread throughout the Bokaap community, leaving many fuming.Thumbs up to the muslim community of the Bo Kaap region for standing up to the management of CII (Channel Islam International) who instead of selling the hotel decided to lease out the hotel to the Hilton group thereby turning the hotel from completely halaal to " halaal friendly" as the hotel will now be serving alcohol at certain designated areas at the hotel.In response to the whole fiasco that made headlines in the Sunday times, Mufti A.K.Hoosain of Channel Islam was emphatically clear about the presence of alcohol on the premises. "If the ownership has changed and it is now the Hilton, it is no more halaal. We should not be looking for loopholes and shortcuts. We must be clear - once alcohol is served and all that, we can no more say it is halaal. Nabi (SAW) said whoever believes in Allah and the last day, you cannot frequent a place where alcohol is being served."

Asked about the change from halaal to "halaal friendly", the alim said: "They are using skullduggery and loopholes when they say (the place is) halaal friendly. We, as Muslims, in the Cape and South Africa, masha Allah, we have so many (fully) halaal outlets. So why should we frequent such places? We must not be deceived by these type of terminology. It is not permissible for us to frequent such places. The best is that a person stays away totally."
Asked it if was acceptable to lease out your property to a place that sells something that is not Islamically permissible like alcohol, once again, the alim was clear. "We Muslims should not just look at the money. We should also look at the harm it will cause the public. Imagine alcohol - the Quran Kareem says it is impure, it is the handywork of the Shaitan, so abstain from it."
He continued: "How can we Muslims now be renting out our premises and say 'no, these are non-Muslims that are selling it, so therefore, it is fine'? But we are receiving the money. So we are becoming a menace to society because we are allowing this on our premises." He added that it was not even permissible for Muslims to allow the advertisement of things like alcohol on premises they owned "Always remember the rule Islam gives us - that we should not be party - either directly or indirectly - to others who are commiting a sin."He further added that if a muslim business owner leased out a property to a second party who in turn leased it out to a third or forth party and on that property alcohol is sold, all revenue derived from that property by the primary muslim owner is haraam.

In a hadith related by the prophet (saw) it is mentioned that when the day of judgement comes near the muslim ummah will be divided into 73 different sects and it will be the religious scholars themselves who will be leading the people astray into the fire of jahannam.The ruling in Islam with regards to alcohol is a clear cut straight forward one and recently many religious clerics have tried to go around the issue of alcohol trying to brand it as permissable when in reality it is completely prohibited in Islam.There has also been numerous incidences recently of muslim families hosting diplomatic functions and parties whilst allowing a cash bar to be present at these functions. What kind of an example are these people setting for others? How can a person stoop so low by selling his faith and religion to simply please the whims and fancies of his non muslim atheistic counterparts to simply acquire wealth, fame and status? The South African muslim community is quick to condemn the muslim communities in other parts of the world. We are quick to condemn and brand Saudis as salafis.We look down at the Malaysian and Indonesian way of Islam as well and yet the wrong that is occurring within our own muslim communities is quite atrocious..

Source:

http://www.vocfm.co.za/index.php?option=com_k2&view=item&id=405:2011-09-30-08-55-06&Itemid=134 

Saudi Arabia's Khuroof Najdi ( Najd Sheep)

When one thinks of Saudi Arabia and what it is known for the usual things that come to mind are probably oil and gold. Saudi also has its exquisite Arabian horses as well camels. And among other things, Saudi is known for the Khuroof Najdi. Khuroof meaning sheep and Najdi, indicating the sheep originated from the Naj’d region. The Khuroof Najdi is unique in its appearance where unlike other sheep from Australia, South Africa or the United States for example, they are a very tall breed, averaging 76-86 centimeters (30-34 inches) in height at the withers.They have long, Roman nosed faces with drooping ears. Ewes are polled and rams may be either polled or have scurs. They are generally black with white faces and white on the legs and tail.

(http://www.acacialand.com/food.html - picture)

 The Khuroof Najdi sheep were a predominant part of the Bedouin lifestyle.In fact, the bedus would make their traditional tents (sedu) from the Khuroof Najdi wool often referring to these tents as the “hair house.” However, over the years and in modern times, they are popular throughout the Kingdom and GCC for breeding due to their elegant style and appearance. The Khuroof Najdi continue to also be used for milk and meat but their popularity has skyrocketed with the introduction of “The Khuroof Najdi beauty pageants"

A Khuroof Najdi beauty pageant was held just outside of Riyadh in October 2008. More than 4000 men showed up for this event. "The pageant was organized to encourage Saudis to breed their sheep for quality. And it also offered an opportunity for breeders to do business and a rare outlet for entertainment in a country where the few recreational activities that exist are conducted under the strict glare of the religious police."

(http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Najdi_(sheep) - picture)

According to the event’s organizer, Faisal Al-Saadoun, “Just like humans, sheep should n’t have fat in unwanted places,” “They should also be tall.”

The female sheep (ewes) will sell for between 20,000 to 30,000 Saudi riyals (equivalent to US$5,300 – 8,000). A Ram or male sheep is more expensive because it can produce up to 100 sheep per year to ones flock whereas the ewe will usually give birth to two per year. As a result, a male Khuroof Najdi may be sold for hundreds of thousands of riyals.

Source:

http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,445807,00.html

http://bayourenaissanceman.blogspot.com/2008/11/beauty-contest-with-difference.html

http://www2b.abc.net.au/science/k2/stn/newposts/3866/topic3865791.shtm