Terrorists on Friday 13th November, 2015 launched seven coordinated attacks on Paris killing at least 129 people. The attacks occurred at the Stade de France, the Petit Cambodge restaurant, the Le Carillon bar, the Rue de la Fontaine au Roi, the Casa Nostra pizzeria, the la Belle Equipe and the Bataclan Concert.
The Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC) strongly condemns these attacks. They are despicable, vicious and barbaric. They take humanity back to the Stone Age, grant unfettered licence to lawlessness and fuel universal chaos.
It is becoming more glaring that the main preoccupation of the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS) is the shedding of innocent blood and the precipitation of religious war, particularly between Christians of the West and Muslims of the Middle East.
We dissociate ourselves from the violent propensity of ISIS and its blood-thirsty associates in Al-Qaedah and Boko Haram whose stock-in-trade is the misinterpretation of the peaceful message of Islam. We reject the hate messages of messengers of death who ask Muslims to kill Westerners. We affirm clearly and unequivocally that Islam neither teaches racism nor does it endorse terrorism.
MURIC calls on Muslim youths all over the world to save Islamdom from an implosion induced by extremism. This they can do by distancing themselves from radical and violent groups.
Nonetheless, we charge the West to look beyond the attacks. The authors of these horrendous attacks have merely manifested homicidal tendencies propelled by perceived provocations, presumably from anti-Muslim legislations in France and the genocides in Bosnia, Myammar, Central African Republic, etc in which thousands of Muslims were killed in cold blood while the West stood akimbo and the United Nations did nothing.
We invite the world to ponder over the anatomy of terrorism and the cause-effect theory. There can be no smoke without fire. The fire which causes violence and terrorism is injustice. Unfortunately, while everyone is talking about the need for peace, nobody is talking about justice.
We posit that peace is neither an orphan nor is it a lone ranger. We believe in two dogmas: one, peace is born from the wombs of justice. Two: peace must walk parri pasu with equity. Peace walks hand in hand down the isle with justice. Justice is the soul of peace. Nobody can deny one and still enjoy the other. The world must therefore make a choice. To be, or not to be? That is the question.
In conclusion, we stand side by side with France today in its fight against terrorism. We condole all those who were bereaved in the Paris terrorist attacks and pray that Almighty Allah will give them the strength to bear the losses.
We charge the misled agents of destruction in ISIS, Al-Qaedah and Boko Haram to go back to the true and peaceful message of Islam. We appeal to countries of the West to return to the drawing board for the purpose of charting a new course based on justice, mutual respect and the recognition of Allah-given fundamental human rights in their dealings with Muslims all over the world.
Professor Ishaq Akintola,
Director,
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC)
Muslim Rights Concern (MURIC),
234-803-346-4974
234-818-211-9714
E-mail: muslimrightsconcern@yahoo.co.uk
Website: www.muric.net
Yahoo Group: groups.yahoo.com/group/muslimrights
Twitter: twitter.com/muslimrights