This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/718

American tourist in South Africa threatened with death by knife wielding Muslim store owner

June 29, 2005

MIM: In another case of terrorism denial a Muslim shopowner who put a knife to an American's throat and threatened to kill, him was given a 'slap on the wrist' due to his being 'a fixture in the community'.

The South African authorities should be taking a lesson from recent events in Lodi (where the long time resident ice cream man was also working for Al Qaeda), and find out if there are other Muslims who share Hoosen's sentiments and which mosque they are attending.

The reality of a potential terrorist attack is being denied and depicted as a case of someone who just 'lost their temper'.

The fact that the attack was politcally motivated and could happen again (with fatal consequences) can be seen in this commentary by a Muslim writer who contends that the American deservered the attack as payback for America's foreign policy. The seething hatred which Hoosen showed towards the American customer, and points to the possiblity that Abdul Hoosen selling poisoned food to non Muslim residents in the future.

"...THE other day a Simonstown café owner was convicted of assault in a Cape Town magistrate's court. What made the case interesting was not just its central issue – a samoosa – but the protagonists who were an American and a Muslim. The American, Russel Dicky, had visited the seaside shop owned by the Muslim and had innocently asked what was inside the Indian pastry he'd just bought.

Instead of talking about the savoury delights folded in the samoosa, the shopkeeper (67 year-old Abdul Hoosen) had told Dicky that Americans were "stupid" and had threatened him with a knife. During his knife-wielding outburst, Hoosen had threatened to kill Dicky and had ranted on about George Bush and Iraq. Even the intervention of his 15 year old son had failed to cool down Hoosen's anti-American ardour. Pleading not guilty in court and claiming he had no recollection of the event, Abdul Hoosen was fined R1, 500 or 30 days in prison. Later he apologised to Dicky and asked for his forgiveness, which was granted.

"...In conclusion then, by concentrating more on arms than constructive aid – such as political aid, economic programmes and principled engagement – the US administration has hardly sown the seeds of democracy. Rather, it has cultivated an uncontrollable thicket of greedy, corrupt world leaders who sorely lack a human rights ethos. Or perhaps as the convicted Abdul Hoosen might argue: the day the US swops her guns and "smart bombs" for real international principles, things like samoosas will cease to be weapons of mass discrimination against innocent American civilians. http://64.233.187.104/search?q=cache:mjvcwgpedp0J:www.vocfm.com/public/Features_Editorial.asp+abdul+hoosen&hl=en

MIM: It should also be noted that in the article below it is written that Hoosen apologised to Dicky and "it was accepted"

This excerpt from a different piece relates that it was the victim who requested an apology from Hoosen.

The incident was also depicted as a 'racist' incident by the town's tourist office and was put on the "List of Hate Crimes" page of this website:

http://globalpolitician.com/articledes.asp?ID=831&cid=8&sid=56

"...Dickey said a group of about 20 people had gathered to watch the exchange - and nobody intervened. He perceived this as a growing lynch-mob, and had been distraught, terrified and scared that Hoosen would carry out his threat to kill him.
- He said he had not provoked Hoosen and believed the South African muslim man was anti-American.

The Weekend Argus reports that after the threat, the American lodged a complaint with Simon's Town tourist office's Sue Sturman - who took him to the police station to lay charges.
- Sturman testified to this effort - adding that "so much effort had been made to make the town hospitable to visitors, that it was unthinkable for such a (racist) incident to happen."
Magistrate Cornelius said in his sentencing summary that "the court needed to ensure that people kept their tempers and did not let their thoughts spill over into violence, especially when it was political."
- Hoosen has claimed in court that he 'did not recollect the incident."
The American asked for, and received, an apology from the cafe owner after the trial. Dickey said 'it was about a principle. I didn't want him to get a prison sentence but I am glad that justice has been done".

MIM: Justice was far from served in this case given the fact that Hoosen's tirade against Dickey, while he held a knife to his throat, indicates that he is a rabid Islamist. Even more troubling is Dickey's account that out of 20 onlookers on one intervened -and he feared "a lynch mob". The inference is that Muslims were gathered at the store, and raises the question as to if the next manifestation of anti Americanism in Simon Town will result in a fatality.

(It should be recalled that the local grocery store in Lodi , a small town outside of San Francisco which was found to be populated by Al Qaeda sleepers, (which included the ice cream man, his cherry picker son, and the local Imam) was the town's Islamist 'hangout' .)

For more on incidents like these see "Denying (Islamist) Terrorism" by Dr.Daniel Pipes:

http://www.danielpipes.org/blog/403

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http://www.iol.co.za/index.php?set_id=1&click_id=15&art_id=vn20050604121015824C867235

The hate-filled samoosa

By Helen Bamford

An American tourist's innocent question about the filling of a samoosa unleashed a tirade of anti-US hate speech and a death threat by a knife-wielding Simon's Town cafe owner.

With the knife held to his throat, the tourist was bombarded by a torrent of abuse about US President George Bush and America's invasion of Iraq.

This was evidence on Friday in the Simon's Town magistrate's court where the cafe owner, Abdul Hoosen, 67, was convicted of assault. The American, Russell Dicky, 36, flew more than half way around the world to see justice done.

Magistrate Willem Cornelius fined Hoosen R1 500 or 30 days in prison and declared him unfit to own a firearm. Dicky flew to Cape Town from San Diego, California, with his mother, Sylvia Hagen, specifically to have his day in court.

The drama unfolded in October when Dicky, who works in radio broadcasting, visited Simon's Town for the day while holidaying in Cape Town. He stopped at a cafe in Main Road near the railway station for a samoosa, which was on the counter next to wrappers with a sign reading R2.

Dicky told the court he had picked up a samoosa and put it in a bag and said to Hoosen: "By the way, what's in the samoosa?"

He said Hoosen had looked at him for a moment and then said: "You Americans ask stupid questions."

"I said pardon me, and he said: 'You Americans are very stupid'."

Dicky said he then asked for his money back, but Hoosen came at him with a long serrated kitchen knife.

"He said: 'Listen to me; listen to me; listen to me. I will kill you. I will kill you. You don't mean anything to me'."

Dicky said the knife had been at his throat. "I was edging out of the store but he was walking towards me. I was horrified and spellbound."

Dicky said Hoosen then started with hate speech.

"He went on about the United States and George Bush and Iraq."

Dicky said a young man, who turned out to be Hoosen's 15-year-old son, appeared and tried to pacify his father.

"I explained that I wanted my money back and an apology and then I would leave."

Dicky told the court Hoosen's son took the knife from his father but the verbal abuse continued.

"He said to me: 'Are you from California? Because all men from California sleep with other men and are all homosexual'."

Dicky said a group of about 20 people had gathered to watch the exchange, but no one did anything.

He said he had been distraught and terrified and was scared that Hoosen would carry out his threat to kill him. He said he hadn't provoked Hoosen and believed he was anti-American.

Dicky told Weekend Argus that after the incident he went to the Simon's Town tourist office where Sue Sturman, who was then the tourist officer, helped him and took him to the police station to lay charges.

Sturman, who was in court to support Dicky on Friday, told Weekend Argus so much effort had been made to make the town hospitable to visitors that it was unthinkable for such an incident to happen.

During sentencing Cornelius said Dicky had been a good witness and it was highly improbable that he would have made up such detailed evidence. He said it boggled the mind that a citizen of another country would simply invent the incident.

Cornelius said he would take into account the fact that the assault had been totally unprovoked but also that Hoosen was not a young man and that he had been a fixture in Simon's Town for many years without any prior convictions.

He added that the court needed to ensure people kept their tempers and didn't let their thoughts spill over into violence, especially when it was political.

Hoosen, who pleaded not guilty and told the court he could not recollect the incident, apologised to Dicky afterwards and asked for his forgiveness, which was given.

Dicky told Weekend Argus he was glad he'd made the trip and felt it had been worth it.

"It was about a principle. I didn't really want him to get a prison sentence but I'm glad that justice has been done and that he was found guilty in a court of law."

This item is available on the Militant Islam Monitor website, at http://www.militantislammonitor.org/article/id/718