BBC News reports on a tense calm amidst a government crackdown in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of China, following clashes between ethnic Uyghur Muslims and Han Chinese. The government of China is responding by closing mosques for prayers, patroling city streets, making arrests, and shutting down communications channels. This follows several days of unrest in which over 150 people were killed in the city of Urumqi (BBC timeline of unrest).

Native to the Altay Mountains, the Uyghurs are a vibrant community of Muslims, with a rich culture dating back thousands of years. Embracing Islam in the 10th century, the Uyghur empire dominated Central Asia for several hundred years. More recently, the Uyghur culture has faced a decline due to national and communist forces in Russia and China.

Like Buddhists in neighboring Tibet, the Uyghur Muslims in China face religious restrictions, imprisonments, and executions. They complain that their cultural and religious traditions are being annihilated by oppressive government policies and practices. Recently, China is accused of encouraging internal migration into the Xinjiang province, to increase the non-Uyghur population and power in the region.

An Islam Forum reader, righteousaiman, brings up an interesting discussion in the Forum. Should Muslims be vegetarians? He argues:

I feel that the meat industry is against the teachings of Islam and the conscience. No, Islam does not prohibit eating meat, but the Last Prophet "has placed the killing of animals without a justifiable reason as one of the major sins".

Do you agree? Can Muslims live a vegetarian lifestyle? Should Muslims live a vegetarian lifestyle, based on Islamic teachings about the rights and mercy we are to show towards animals and all living creatures? Join the discussion and share your views!

Like many aspects of singer Michael Jackson's life, his religious faith remains a mystery. Rumors are that he had embraced Islam this past November, with others declaring that these reports are invalid. Jackson's family has not yet announced funeral and burial arrangements, but there is speculation that Jackson might be buried in accordance with Islamic tradition.

There are some clues that perhaps Michael Jackson had indeed embraced Islam:

• His older brother, Jermaine, has been a Muslim for the past 20 years and has spoken publicly about his faith. He reportedly talked to his brother about Islam and was hoping that he might convert. When announcing his brother's death, Jermaine commented, "May Allah be with you, Michael, always."
• In 2005-06, Jackson spent nearly a year living in the Muslim country of Bahrain.
• In November 2008, several news agencies reported that Michael Jackson had embraced Islam in a brief ceremony in Los Angeles. Both the Telegraph and NY Post tabloids ran stories about the conversion.

However, there are also signs that perhaps these assumptions are misleading. Several Muslims who were reported to be present or involved in Jackson's conversion process have recently made statements indicating that they did not attend any conversion ceremony, and indeed had never even met the singer.

The Canadian Muslim singer Dawud Wharnsby Ali posted on his blog the following clarification: "Though our professional circles did cross-over slightly with various common professional acquaintances - I never had the honour or pleasure of meeting Michael Jackson personally, nor did we ever correspond on matters of our professions, personal lives or faiths."

Singer Yusuf Islam (aka Cat Stevens) also posted a statement: "Contrary to persistent press rumours, I was not at any kind of conversion ceremony for Michael Jackson."

In the end, only God knows the intentions of people's hearts, and He Alone is the One to judge.

Jackson's family has taken his body to a private funeral home, are awaiting an independent autopsy, and arrangements for his burial are confidential at this time. Michael Jackson's recently-released will, dated in 2002, does not mention any burial wishes. If the family believes that Jackson was indeed a Muslim, then he would presumably be buried in an Islamic burial ceremony (janazah). Such plans are not known or announced at this time.

Photo: Michael Jackson at a 1983 awards ceremony in London (Dave Hogan/Getty Images)

The rising spread of the H1N1 virus is beginning to affect travel plans for those intending to visit Saudi Arabia for pilgrimage this year. The off-season pilgrimage (umrah) season gets into full swing around Ramadan, which this year will begin in mid-August. The Grand Mufti of Egypt has advised potential pilgrims to delay umrah travel to help prevent further spread of the H1N1 virus.

This year, the annual Hajj will fall in November -- right at the beginning of flu season.

So far, Saudi authorities have resisted any travel bans. They cite the country's preparation and expertise in disease control, and insist that they are well-prepared to control the spread of the virus. Aside from the H1N1 virus, there is always potential for disease outbreaks when such large numbers of people gather, and there have been no disease threats among pilgrims in recent years.

Today, pilgrim traffic in Mecca is the same as usual, with groups arriving from Malaysia, Turkey, Iran, and many other countries. A few wear face masks during the pilgrimage rites, but otherwise it seems to be life as usual in Mecca.

Will you rearrange or delay your umrah or Hajj travel plans due to H1N1? Share your comments.