There can be no equivocation over the slaughter of hostages in Iraq. It must be roundly condemned, writes Mustafa El-Feki* The practice of taking hostages and detaining civilians has increased to the point where every Muslim should be concerned over Islam's image and the future of its relationship with other religions. Legitimate resistance against a foreign army of occupation has been confused with the execution of hostages and detainees most -- if not all -- of whom have no connection with wider political events. They came to Iraq either as workers for foreign and Arab companies or independently to make a living. Many are from poor countries and desperately pursuing a livelihood. This was the case with the twelve Nepalese workers whose activities, I imagine, went no further than the provision of basic services, cleaning offices or other modest tasks. Then, suddenly, we find them shot dead, victims of some idiot skilled in the fine art of making enemies, and the poor of Nepal rush out first to burn mosques -- the symbol of an Islam that seems to them to be the murderer of innocents and the slaughterer of the weak -- then turn on the Egyptian embassy in the capital Katmandu, showering it with stones and gunfire simply because it is the embassy that looks after Iraqi interests in that poor mountain state. In one fell stroke we successfully won the enmity of an entire people towards Islam and Arabism. Similarly the slaughter of other hostages, killed like sheep by their kidnappers, treated with a savagery that provokes feelings of repulsion and horror from ordinary folk everywhere, represent another stage in the ongoing distortion of the depiction of Islam and Muslims. We do not oppose resistance against occupying forces or condone their invasion of Iraqi soil, and we believe that there is an abundance of patriotic, legal and moral justifications for this resistance: there can be no violation of a people's sovereignty. What should keep us all -- Muslims and Arabs alike -- awake at night are practices that seem like an infiltration of our ranks or a conspiracy against our future, in which category the bloody massacre of innocent children from a school in North Ossetia, which terrified families around the world and depicted Muslims as killers who commit barbaric acts and represent a threat to basic human values, must be included. Alongside other such incidents -- random bombings in the island of Bali, through to Spain and others -- we appear to be confronted with a campaign calculated to link terrorism with Muslims despite the fact that we, as Muslims, have genuine issues and legitimate rights. However, the thick smoke from these crimes obscures the truth and damages the reputation of a religion that at its heart calls for tolerance, moderation and respect for "the other". I am reminded of the words penned 90 years ago by the well-known Egyptian writer Mustafa Lutfi Al-Manfalouti in Glances, commenting on the Armenian tragedy and the massacres committed by Muslim Turks against that defenceless Christian state. "If you, Muslims, believe that Allah created no one else but yourselves, then you have misrepresented His intention and by your actions denied His wisdom and His governance of His affairs and works, and reduced Him to a petty jester who builds to destroy, who sows a field just to burn it, who weaves clothes to tear them and who makes a contract to break it... If every man were allowed to kill whoever diverged from his beliefs and creed there would be no-one left." He continues: "I offer you a slight apology if you didn't kill the children whose religion and creed Allah does not question before they have reached the age of reason, or the defenceless women who have had their own say in matters. But if you have treated the innocent as sinners, then you are criminals, not mujahideen ; murderers, not warriors." This Egyptian author, writing at the beginning of the last century, continues as if he were living amongst us today: "O Muslims, kill whoever you want and whoever your bestial savagery demands, but do not utter Allah's name over these human sacrifices, for Allah -- may he be praised and glorified -- is too exalted to command the killing of innocents or to be content with the pleas of the weak, for he is the wisest of judges and the most merciful." The author goes on to differentiate between resistance against wrongdoers and war against invaders and tyrants, on the one hand, and between crimes committed against innocent civilians on the other. "I apologise if those whose blood you are shedding have ever done you wrong... from what rock have you carved your hearts that they do not tremble at the wailings of the bereaved and are unmoved by the cries of the weak." Here I would like to make a few observations that are connected to the recent events that have so worried Muslims and made them feel that the kidnapping of hostages and the slaughter of innocents is an attempt to disfigure the image of Islam and Muslims. Recent events point to the resistance's deviation from its natural course, and its movement towards the commission of an easy kind of crime with terrible consequences. Strangely enough these crimes seem to have no consistency of intention. Sometimes the goal is an announcement on the part of a company working in Iraq to cease its activities, or the adoption of a position by one of the states that has a military presence in the country. However, some of these unknown groups have started to demand payment. This is blackmail pure and simple, and beyond the legitimacy of any popular resistance against foreign powers. In truth there is nothing to distinguish between these barbaric acts and those carried out by the brutish occupying powers in both Palestine and Iraq. We are daily subjected to exhaustive accounts of the resistance's legitimacy, but we can never accept the confusion of this brave resistance with these dubious operations. We still don't know exactly who it is that is responsible for operations that cause such harm to Muslims and have such negative repercussions on their relations with the outside world. Some believe it to be Ossama Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda, or Abu Musab Al-Zarqawi and his group. The fact is, though, that we do not know with any certainty which of these groups is responsible for these crimes. Such acts are completely out of step with the desire of all of us for stability in the region and the safety of its peoples. At a time in which the West is debating issues of comprehensive reform and human rights, these crimes are like a black stain. And herein lies the danger: that those who support Arab causes, sympathise with Islamic peoples and support programmes for reform in the region will be unable to condone this unlawful activity, and stop giving moral and political support for our just causes as a result of the effects of these crimes. This will, in turn, impact on the extent of international support for the Palestinian issue and Iraq. The Islamic religious establishment has not performed the role demanded of it, and despite the fact that this misrepresents Islam it has remained ineffectual and provincial in its attitudes. The well-known Islamist apologist, Sheikh Youssef Al-Qaradawi was right when he denied issuing a statement that had called for killing civilians in Iraq. The Islamic religious establishment in the Arab and Islamic worlds is ineffectual, dominated not by religious scholars but by government employees who have failed to adopt religious or nationalist positions condemning these crimes and distancing Muslims from them. Their condemnation goes no further than brief statements and repetitious reports whereas what is really needed is a meeting of both Sunni and Shia imams to sever the link between Islam and these barbarous crimes once and for all. It is time to call for an emergency summit of the Organisation of the Islamic Conference so Muslim leaders can discuss these crimes and the foolish, negative behaviour opposed by Islam and all ordinary Muslims, foremost among which is the snatching of hostages, the slaughter of the innocent and the murder of poor workers and defenceless children. The conference can then proclaim that we stand with legitimate resistance against the forces of foreign occupation, but are against the deliberate killing of civilians. If the Islamic Conference cannot meet in such conditions, then when can it? The silence of Muslims is, first and foremost, a crime against themselves. There must be total condemnation and rejection of such practices; resistance against occupation is one thing, toying with the lives of innocents quite another. If it continues this silence will have repercussions. The peoples of the world will not forget it, creating a critical lack of trust between Muslims and others and planting the seeds of fear. If we don't wake up to what is taking place around us mutual hatred will persist and the waves of random violence will roll in. If we condemn Israel's state terrorism, and the occupation forces' oppression in Iraq, we must cling equally to legitimate resistance, to its courageous opposition and patient struggle. * The writer is chairman of the Foreign Affairs Committee of the People's Assembly.
