Keep on kicking a person and then tell him how to react and how not to. This is exactly what is going on these days when making mockery of Islam and inflicting gratuitous insults to the holiest of all men who ever walked the back of the earth has become the order of the day. It has become more like a modus operandi, where people first instigate the feelings and emotions of people and when they get instigated they call them rowdy, clearly circumventing themselves from the situation. The anti-Islam movie made by Sam Bacile, who got $ 5 million from 100 Jews to make such a film, is a recent example. The movie, which is utter non-sense and made only to cause furore among the Muslims and in Muslim countries, flared tensions which led to the killing of American Ambassador and other diplomats in Libya. Though, as of now, there is no proof as to who is behind the killings, many Muslim organisations have come forward condemning the anti-Islam film and the killings of the diplomats, who actually were not responsible for making the film.
Libyan Muslims protest the violence that claimed the lives of US Ambassador and other diplomats
Muslim Brotherhood in its statement demanded urgent trial for those who made the film. The press statement says, “…Thus hurting the feelings of one and a half billion Muslims cannot be tolerated, and the people’s anger and fury for their Faith is invariably predictable, often unstoppable. We denounce abuse of all Messengers of God, Prophets and Apostles, and condemn this heinous crime. We further call for criminalisation of assaults on the sanctities of all heavenly religions. Otherwise, such acts will continue to cause devout Muslims across the world to suspect and even loathe the West, especially the USA, for allowing their citizens to violate the sanctity of what they hold dear and holy. Hence, we demand that all those involved in such crimes be urgently brought to trial.”
Condemnations also came from the Freedom and Justice Party of Egypt which termed the release of the film as a violation of religious sanctities. The press statement says, “The film is certainly a blatant violation of religious sanctities, international norms and conventions on human rights which emphasise that freedom of expression with respect to religion must be restricted by controls within the law that safeguard public interest, in order to protect lives, morals, rights and freedoms.”
ICNA (Islamic Circle of North America), in a press statement, condemned the attacks on US missions in Egypt and Libya. The press statement reads inter alia:
“ICNA strongly condemns the violent attacks on American embassies in Egypt and Libya. Nothing is worth the cost of a human life, and we firmly believe that there is no honor or faith in committing such violence…We extend our deepest condolences to the families of U.S. Ambassador Christopher Stevens and the other three American personnel at this tragic time. Today we lost a diplomat and friend to the people of Libya; we commend him and U.S. envoys in Libya and elsewhere for their dedication to peace.
CAIR (Council on American-Islamic Relations) also condemned the killings of American diplomats and termed them as “disgraceful.” In a press statement, Nihad Awad, National Executive Director, CAIR, said, “We condemn the disgraceful killings of the American diplomats in Libya in the strongest terms possible. We also condemn the attack on our nation’s diplomatic facilities in Libya and Egypt. The actions of the attackers are totally inexcusable and un-Islamic. We agree with Secretary Clinton, who said that ‘violence like this is no way to honour religion or faith.’ The extremists who carried out these attacks deserve punishment, and the extremists who produced and promoted an intentionally inflammatory film deserve condemnation.”
Joining in the condemnations, Jamaat-e-Islami Hind also condemned the blasphemous film which led to ruckus and killings. The press statement reads:
“Amir Jamaat-e-Islami Hind, Maulana Syed JalaluddinUmari has severely condemned the American film blaspheming the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him). Terming the release of this film as an act of hurting the Muslims of the world, he expressed grave concern over the fact that America fails in making concerted efforts to contain such anti-Islam activities in spite of expressing displeasure over them.
“The Jamaat chief expressed his confidence that conspiracies to tarnish the image of Islam and denigrate the personage of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) have failed earlier also. And even now no country or group, despite investing talents and resources, can harm the truth of Islam and the majesty of the Prophet who is the Mercy to mankind. Therefore, people should keep from destructive activities aimed at spoiling world peace and try to understand the Message of Peace and Salvation Islam gives and the position of Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be to him) as Mercy to all the worlds.
“Declaring the protests, being staged in Muslim countries against the heart-rendering American film, as Muslim masses’ love for and close affinity with their faith and the Messenger of God, the Jamaat leader said the Muslims should prove themselves as Khair-e-Ummat (the best nation) and Ummat-e-Wast (the moderate nation) in every action and every measure they take, and keep from every approach that can bring a bad name to the position and greatness of the community. It would not be right that the crime is committed by one and you punish someone else; it tarnishes the image of Islam.
“The Jamaat Ameer appealed to the Islamic Movements and organisations world over to realise the Dawah responsibilities much more so that the common masses might be acquainted with the teachings of Islam, and the ignorance and misapprehensions of the world about Islam, its way of life and the Holy Messenger be allayed and the incidents like the release of the American film might not be repeated in future.”
Imam Malik Mujahid, Chairperson of the Board of the Council for the Parliament of the World Religions, the world’s largest interfaith organisation, condemned the violence that erupted in Libya and Egypt and called upon the people to take a deeper look into Islamophobia and intolerance. In a press statement, Imam Malik Mujahid said, “The Prophet would be saddened to know that three guest diplomats were killed by those who claim to be his followers in Libya. The Prophet honoured diplomats to such a level that he created a tent church in his own small mosque so that a visiting Christian delegation from Yemen could hold services.” This was all instigated by a movie produced by a self-described Israeli Jewish filmmaker, who has admitted that his intention was to provoke and said, “Islam is a cancer, period.” It portrays Prophet Muhammad as a fraud, among other insults.
Imam Mujahid noted that this has become an unfortunately predictable pattern in recent years. A vicious cycle of hate is perpetuated by Islamophobes who produce material insulting Islam and Muslims, followed by violence on the part of extremists. “This pattern has its roots in the colonial period, when some missionaries funded by the occupying armies would engage in this psychological warfare with their population,” he said.