Grand Mufti Hits Out at Critics of Islam

JEDDAH, 16 January 2005 — Sheikh Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh, the Kingdom’s grand mufti, said the people who attack Islam accusing it of encouraging terrorism and extremism and denying human rights are telling lies and know very well they are spreading falsehood.

Speaking at a conference organized by the Makkah-based Muslim World League on inter-culture dialogue, Al-Asheikh said critics of Islam are driven by their enmity of the faith. He called upon Muslims to project the true face of Islam without any excesses or compromises.

“The accusations directed against Islam by those who accuse it of terrorism, extremism and disrespect for human rights and freedom come from people who know they are telling lies. They know very well that what they say (against Islam) is false and deep inside they know they are committing injustice and aggression by behaving the way they do. It is the enmity against Islam deep inside them that drives them to attack Islam,” he told the delegates from different countries.

The conference which coincides with the annual pilgrimage to Makkah aims at preparing the ground for a fruitful and sustained dialogue with non-Muslims to remove misunderstandings about Islam among non-Muslims, achieve understanding and coexistence between different cultures, unite world efforts to confront the common challenges facing humanity and ensure respect for cultural diversity and work to bridge differences between cultures and civilizations.

Secretary-General Dr. Abdullah Al-Turki said the MWL is pioneering a project for the establishment of a permanent center for inter-faith dialogue to be based in a European country and act as a bridge between Islam and other cultures.

The grand mufti said Muslims should benefit from the many available media and other information outlets to spread Islam among the intellectuals and educated of the world.

“Many non-Muslims know very little or nothing about Islam and depend on hearsay, which is usually repulsive and distorted information... They think that what they hear and what they are told about Islam is the truth. It is only through constructive dialogue led by people who very well understand Islam and its teachings that the enemies of Islam could be exposed and their lies refuted.”

Makkah Governor Prince Abdul Majeed told the delegates that dialogue is a “pressing human necessity” and a means for arriving at a higher degree of understanding and coexistence among peoples and countries of the world.

“Saudi Arabia firmly believes that working to serve humanity through dialogue would achieve world peace and ensure security for all by reducing the possibility of confrontation and conflict among civilizations. Dialogue would also unite the efforts to address the problems facing humanity, notably terrorism,” he said.

Prince Abdul Majeed stressed the need for internal dialogue among Muslims themselves, saying this would enable the Ummah to come together and collectively work to end dissent and prevent the seeds of extremism from taking roots.

Dr. Al-Turki said constructive and fruitful dialogue would only be possible when people “free themselves from the superiority complex and stop playing the role of guardians over others”, adding that “superiority and arrogance based on material achievements have led the world to two devastating wars and may lead it into more unjust wars launched under the pretext of defending freedom, human rights and globalization”.

I differ on this with the Mufti

Country	Main religious groups involved	Type of conflict
Afghanistan	Extreme, radical Fundamentalist Muslim terrorist groups & non-Muslims	Osama bin Laden heads a terrorist group called Al Quada (The Source) whose headquarters were in Afghanistan. They were protected by, and integrated with, the Taliban dictatorship in the country. Al Quada is generally regarded as having committed many terrorist attacks on U.S. ships, embassies, and buildings. Their goal is to promote a worldwide war between Muslims and non-Muslims. The Northern Alliance of rebel Afghans, Britain and the U.S. attacked the Taliban and Al Quada, establishing a new regime in the country.
Bosnia	Serbian Orthodox Christians, Roman Catholic), Muslims	Fragile peace is holding, due only to the presence of peacekeepers. ₂
Côte d'Ivoire	Muslims, Indigenous, Christian	Following the elections in late 2000, government security forces "began targeting civilians solely and explicitly on the basis of their religion, ethnic group, or national origin. The overwhelming majority of victims come from the largely Muslim north of the country, or are immigrants or the descendants of immigrants..." ₅ A military uprising continued the slaughter in 2002.
Cyprus	Christians & Muslims	The island is partitioned, creating enclaves for ethnic Greeks (Christians) and Turks (Muslims). A UN peace keeping force is maintaining stability.
East Timor	Christians & Muslims	A Roman Catholic country. About 20% of the population died by murder, starvation or disease after they were forcibly annexed by Indonesia (mainly Muslim). After voting for independence, many Christians were exterminated or exiled by the Indonesian army and army-funded militias in a carefully planned program of genocide and religious cleansing. The situation is now stable.
India	Animists, Hindus, Muslims & Sikhs	Various conflicts that heat up periodically. In late 2002-FEB, a Muslim-Hindu conflict broke out, killing an average of 100 people a day over the first five days.
Indonesia, province of Ambon	Christians & Muslims	After centuries of relative peace, conflicts between Christians and Muslims started during 1999-JUL in this province of Indonesia. The situation now appears to be stable.
Indonesia, province of Halmahera	Christians & Muslims	30 people killed. 2,000 Christians driven out; homes and churches destroyed.
Kashmir	Hindus & Muslims	A chronically unstable region of the world, claimed by both Pakistan and India. The availability of nuclear weapons and the eagerness to use them are destabilizing the region further. More details Thirty to sixty thousand people have died since 1989.
Kosovo	Serbian Orthodox Christians & Muslims	Peace enforced by NATO peacekeepers. There is convincing evidence of past mass murder by Yugoslavian government (mainly Serbian Orthodox Christians) against ethnic Albanians (mostly Muslim) Full story
Kurdistan	Christians, Muslims	Assaults on Christians (Protestant, Chaldean Catholic, & Assyrian Orthodox). Bombing campaign underway.
Macedonia	Macedonian Orthodox Christians & Muslims	Muslims (often referred to as ethnic Albanians) engaged in a civil war with the rest of the country who are primarily Macedonian Orthodox Christians. A peace treaty has been signed. Disarmament by NATO is complete.
Middle East	Jews, Muslims, & Christians	The peace process between Israel and Palestine suffered a complete breakdown. This has resulted in the deaths of thousands, in the ratio of three dead for each Jew. Major strife broke out in 2000-SEP and is continuing.
Nigeria	Christians, Animists, & Muslims	Yourubas and Christians in the south of the country are battling Muslims in the north. Country is struggling towards democracy after decades of Muslim military dictatorships. More details
Northern Ireland	Protestants, Catholics	After 3,600 killings and assassinations over 30 years, some progress has been made in the form of a ceasefire and an independent status for the country.
Pakistan	Suni & Shi'ite Muslims	Low level mutual attacks.
Philippines	Christians & Muslims	Low level, centuries old conflict between the mainly Christian central government and Muslims in the south of the country. More details
Russia, Chechnya	Russian Orthodox Christians, Muslims	The Russian army attacked the breakaway region. Muslims had allegedly blown up buildings in Moscow. Many atrocities have been alleged.
Serbia, province of Vojvodina	Serbian Orthodox & Roman Catholics	Serb Ethnic cleansing programs have "encouraged" 50,000 ethnic Hungarians (almost all Roman Catholics) to leave this northernmost province of Yugoslavia. Full story.
South Africa	Animists & "Witches"	Hundreds of persons, suspected and accused of witches practising black magic, are murdered each year.
Sri Lanka	Buddhists & Hindus	Tamils (a mainly Hindu 18% minority) are involved in a war for independence since 1983 with the rest of the country (70% Buddhist). An estimated 65,000 have been killed. The conflict took a sudden change for the better in 2002-SEP, when the Tamils dropped their demand for complete independence.
Sudan	Animists, Christians & Muslims	Complex ethnic, racial, religious conflict which victimizes both Animists and Christians in the South of the country. Slavery and near slavery practiced. There are allegations of crucifixion of Christians. ₃
Tibet	Buddhists & Communists	Country was annexed by Chinese Communists in late 1950's. Brutal suppression of Buddhism continues. *
Uganda	Animists, Christians, & Muslims	Christian rebels of the Lord's Resistance Army are conducting a civil war in the north of Uganda. Their goal is a Christian theocracy whose laws are based on the Ten Commandments. They abduct about 2,000 children a year who are enslaved and/or raped. ₆

* We are defining "religion" rather loosely here to include Communism.

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