Bilal Abdul Kareem Journalist
My heart goes out to the families of those killed in the attacks in France just like my heart goes out to the families of innocent people killed by French involvement in Iraq, Afghanistan, Mali, and other Muslim countries that most people don’t hear about because it doesn’t make exciting news in the west. I’m certainly not going to condemn what happened in France on Friday night without condemning the French killers of innocent Muslims outside of their borders in the name of “French National Security” as well. In spite of ISIS ravings and shameful attacks, Islam is not about targeting innocent people like we saw in France the other day, likewise Islam is not about allowing it’s own innocent people to be killed without trying to safeguard them as well.
The French public needs to understand that there are evil people out there that, when they feel wronged, will not play by the proper rules of warfare and will target the guilty and innocent amongst you alike. Trying to dismiss or turn a blind eye to what your government is doing will not make the problems go away as you can see. There is no justification for what ISIS did on Friday, but trying to pretend your government is innocent in creating the current atmosphere of hatred that is now plaguing your country won’t spare you from future attacks.
ISIS and their supporters need to understand that just as the Jews learned nothing from the oppression they lived and died under in the WW2 era, you have learned nothing from the oppression of the Muslims in this era. The Jewish people went from oppressed to oppressor. You only continue to prove that if you come to power, there will only be more oppression, except this time the oppressor won’t be a French leader with a clean face and a sharp suit, but it will be a bearded man in middle eastern attire. The Jewish people should have been the first ones to feel sympathy for the oppressed Palestinians as they themselves were oppressed. Unfortunately, they decided that it is better to oppress rather than be just when you have the military and political upper hand. Killing 150 innocent people in “spectacular fashion” will only give you the same failed status America got in their “shock and awe” campaign in Iraq.
People around the world need to stop thinking that they can embrace brutality when it “serves their interests” but condemn it when the aggression is leveled against them. Trying to have it both ways only sets up the next round of killing on both sides.
If the various governments at large insist on condemning ISIS without looking at the evil and twisted acts that went into creating ISIS in the first place, then I say that you shouldn’t complain if the next attack is leveled against you. Likewise you shouldn’t even attempt to try and take the moral high ground because you will have already exposed yourselves.
I say to the various groups fighting Bashar Assad in Syria today that it is possible that it may not be long before you come to power. How will you rule? Will you also kill the innocent in the name of “security” as well? Will there be due process for suspects? Will torture be justified somehow under your rule? Now is the time to decide what kind of leaders you want to be. Tomorrow will be too late.
The stark difference between ISIS and the French government is that the whole world hears about murderous ISIS attacks on civilians, while it doesn’t even merit a mention on the evening news when French involvement in atrocities are committed against Muslims. Both the French people and Muslims in oppressed lands are living, thinking, and feeling people. It’s time we all started acting like it.
