I detect a tinge of fear and uncertainty in the Friday khutba this week, although there was still plenty of bloodthirsty ranting and obsessive hatred of Jews in the spiritual centers of the Islamic world.

In the holy mosque at Mecca—that’s Mecca, as in the #1 holiest place in Islam—Saudi Arabia, Shaykh Usamah Khayyat warms up the crowd with a few softballs.

He praises God, the messenger, and his companions, thanking God for revealing Islam to spread justice and mercy on earth. Citing relevant Koranic verses, the imam says “Islam forbids killing innocent people.”

OK, enough with the wimpy stuff. Let’s get to the destroying already.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: “O God, strengthen Islam and Muslims; protect Islam; destroy the enemies of Islam, the tyrants, and the corrupt; close the ranks of Muslims, and give wisdom to their leaders. O God, grant us safety in our homeland, give wisdom to our imams and leaders, and support our leader.” He goes on: “O God, help the mujahidin promote your religion and your word everywhere. O God, give them victory in Palestine. O God, destroy the Zionist Jews and their Zionist supporters.”

This is how the Saudis crack down on jihad incitement. I guess Shaykh Usamah (hmm…sounds familiar) didn’t get the memo from the Clown Prince.

At the Grand Mosque in Sanaa, Yemen, Shaykh Abd-al-Razzaq al-Ruqayhi (ptooey!) gets right into the freezing and the shaking and the hurting and the glavin! … mmmhey!:

“O God, support our mujahidin brothers in Palestine, Iraq, and elsewhere. O God, strengthen them, encourage them, and give them a clear victory over their enemies. O God, destroy the Zionist aggressors and the unjust Americans. O God, shake the ground under them, instill fear into their hearts, and freeze blood in their veins. O God, close the ranks of the Muslims and give success to our president.”

Yeah, “president.” Right. For life.

At martyr King Abdallah mosque in Amman, Jordan, Shaykh Sa’id Hijjawi pleads for Allah to kill and destroy, with help from His faithful mujahidin:

“O God, strengthen Islam and Muslims, support your mujahidin servants everywhere. O God, destroy your enemies, the enemies of Islam, for they are within your power; give this country safety; and support King Abdallah II.”

At the Khalil al-Wazir mosque in Gaza, Shaykh Ibrahim al-Mudayris plays the victim card:

He urges the Palestinian people, “who are suffering more than any other people in the world,” to close their ranks, stressing that the Palestinian people are the only people “still struggling against the last occupation on earth.” The imam then expresses happiness at the current “historic” Cairo meeting of the leaders of the Palestinian factions and describes it “as a first step toward closing the Palestinian and Arab ranks,” urging Egypt “to take more honorable, historic positions.” He appeals to the participants of the meeting “to face up to their responsibility” by putting their differences aside and “renouncing their party and personal interests in favor of Palestinian national interests.” The imam condemns the Israeli practices against the Palestinian people, urging Muslim pilgrims “to remember Al-Aqsa Mosque, which is as holy as the holy mosque in Medina.”

Concluding, the imam prays to God: “O God, clean our country from the filth of the Jews. O God, support the people of Palestine. O God, lift the siege on the people of Palestine. O God, lift the siege on the leadership of the people of Palestine.”

Can you count the lies in those two paragraphs?

At the Al Aqsa Mosque in Jerusalem, Shaykh Ikrimah Sabri shows Saddam some love:

Assailing the “aggressive plans” against Iraq, the imam says: “Threats to Iraq are escalating these days. What is prepared for Iraq will also affect other Islamic countries. Anything contrary to this reality is false and deception. All this takes place under the pretext of fighting terrorism. The West is misusing terrorism by trying to link it to our great Islamic religion. It is necessary to clarify the meaning of terrorism.” Denouncing the killing of thousands of innocent people in Afghanistan as terrorism, he says that “current preparations to attack Iraq amount to terrorism.” Addressing Arabs and Muslims, the imam says: “It is time for Arabs and Muslims — rulers and ruled — to close their ranks and block the planned US-British aggression against Iraq or any country in the Islamic world. Any aggression against any Islamic country is an aggression against the whole Islamic nation. The Islamic nation should wake up before it is too late. Under Islamic law, Muslims are prohibited from supporting any war against Iraq.” The imam urges the United States, Britain, and other world countries to use their huge wealth for the benefit of humanity, calling on Muslims “not to surrender to the big powers.”

Beautiful! Destroy the Americans and their Zionist masters! But first … give us some money?

At Anas Bin-Malik mosque in Damascus, Syria, Shaykh Ziyad-al-Din al-Ayyubi reaches all the way back to the 13th century for this week’s obscure Islamic history reference:

Pilgrimage, he says, is a great Islamic conference, which we need to confront major problems “facing Arabs and Muslims in these days, particularly the tyranny of the Zionist enemy on the holy land of Palestine.” He accuses the enemy [Israel] of planning to attack this nation with the support “of the United States” in order to humiliate Arabs and Muslims. Muslims, he says, need such a conference because “our children are killed in Palestine, our women are killed in Palestine, our homes are destroyed on the land of Palestine, and our trees are uprooted on the land of Palestine.” The imam condemns the United States and Britain for “striking civilians and military positions in northern and southern Iraq and preparing to strike Iraq and the people of Iraq in order to control Iraq’s oil, to attack Arab and Islamic countries, and to humiliate and subjugate this nation.” He appeals to God to enable this nation—rulers and ruled—“to stand in the face of the Hulago of the age to block this barbaric, dirty attack.” He stresses that “Syria works to block war against Iraq, as well as this despicable, corrupt marriage between Zionism and its supporters in the United States.” He says he does not believe that the United States is seeking to establish democracy in Iraq, stressing that the US Administration “is planning to establish an Israeli-led Middle East.” Criticizing the Saudi ambassador in Washington — without naming him — for declaring that he does not believe those who claim they fight for God’s sake, he says “Palestinians offer themselves as martyrs on the land of Palestine for God’s sake,” adding that Muslims will continue to stick to their Koran. He urges Arabs to take action in the face of the upcoming aggression against Iraq before it is too late.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: “O God, give wisdom to our leaders. O God, give success to Arab and Muslim leaders and to President Bashar al-Asad and enable him to defy the Jews and their supporters.”

At the Umm al-Ma’arik (Mother of Battles) mosque in Baghdad, Shaykh Abd-al-Latif Humaym informs his audience that the White House is inhabited by savage rabbis intent on humiliating Allah:

He praises God, the messenger, and his companions and says that “our nation at this historic moment is passing through a difficult test imposed by savages led by the Zionist US Administration, whose black history if full of evils and violations of our sanctities.” Denouncing the inspection of mosques by the weapons inspectors as “provocative,” the imam says that if these enemies enter Baghdad, “then the banner of God is great will be humiliated.” He calls on Muslims to close their ranks to fight for God’s sake and stresses that victory is for the faithful, citing relevant Koranic verses and giving examples from Islamic history. Revealing the current plots against Arabs, the imam says: “Iraq is not the only target. By God, tyrant Zionist America does not target Iraq just because it is Iraq, but because it carries the banner of God is great, there is no God but one God, and Muhammad is God’s messenger. Yesterday, a mosque was violated and other mosques will also be violated. If they find a chance, God forbid, they will crush the Kaaba and Holy Medina. O Iraqi brothers, you are required to close your ranks and defend your goal and joint fate. By God, no banner other than that of Muhammad will be raised—a banner, which Saddam raises.” Promising that the invaders will be crushed, he says: “The Iraqi people will fight side by side with Saddam Husayn. It is a religious war. A rabbi dwells the White House and reads politics through the Torah—a fact that prompts him to violate Muslims’ sanctities.”

Concluding, the imam prays to God: “O God, support Saddam and the Iraqis. O God, support the mujahidin in Iraq and Palestine.” He goes on: “O God, destroy the Zionists and Americans, for they are within your power.”

What? No request for money?

And finally, even in Qatar, where the US has an important base of operations, the freaky sheikhs are shrieking hate:

Describing pilgrimage as jihad, the imam says: “The nation of Muhammad will stick to Islam to the last drop of its blood and will never abandon its religion as a result of any pressure, any force, or any aggression.” The nation, he says, is facing “a critical stage” and regrets the fact that the enemies determine the form of the nation’s life and struggle. He devotes most of his sermon to pilgrimage.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: “O God, help our Muslim mujahidin score victory. O God, help our brothers on the land of Palestine score victory. O God, strengthen them and encourage them. O God, help them.” He goes on: “O God, destroy your enemies, the enemies of Islam. O God disperse them and destroy them.”