Originally published in Chicago Tribune Today, unfortunately, the words Islam and terrorism seem synonymous. This, however, cannot be the case because the Holy Quran clearly states, “Whosoever kills a person, it is as if he has killed all of mankind” (5:32). Terrorism has no religion, race or color. It is simply a treacherous evil. With the Boston Marathon bombings, there has...
Originally published in Santa Barbara News-Press As a Muslim, I am saddened and condemn the terrorism in the Boston Marathon bombing. The worldwide head of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community, His Holiness and Khalifa of Islam Mirza Masroor Ahmad, condemned the bombings in a recent sermon. Moreover, His Holiness was saddened that Muslims were the first to be targeted as the culprits of this...
Originally published in The Oshkosh Northwestern Since we are all in the business of labeling things these days, let me begin with a couplet from Shakespeare’s play “Romeo and Juliet,” where Juliet, the protagonist, responds to her love Romeo, “What’s in a name? That which we call a rose by any other name would smell as sweet.” Her angle was that names...
Originally published in Hartford Courant Over the past 60 years, Americans have had a long-standing tension with North Korea, which seemed to have culminated in the past couple weeks with the recent threats of nuclear war. Recent reports have detailed that North Korea is suffering from food shortages. If America truly wants to heal its relationship with this enemy, then we should stand on...
Originally published in The Christian Science Monitor We have seen the pictures of the Tsarnaev brothers. We know their names, and we are learning facts about their lives – one a boxer, and the other a student. But we still don’t really know their identity. And neither did the brothers, as they allegedly planted those bombs at the finish line of the Boston Marathon last week. Or at least, that’s...
Originally published in Philly Enquirer The Boston bombings gave me a double whammy. As an American, I am deeply saddened by the deaths of three people and the dozens wounded. My heart goes out to the victims’ families. As a Muslim, though, I am disturbed by headlines saying Islam might have played a secondary role. Violence and evil has no religion. Boston bombings are as evil as the...
Originally Published in the Cleveland Plain Dealer It is unfortunate that when I first heard about the Boston Marathon bombings, instead of thinking “Oh, God, please have mercy on the victims and their families,” I thought, “Oh, God, please do not let the perpetrators be Muslim.” When I heard the perpetrators were from Chechnya, I made another mistake; I sighed with relief...
Originally Published in the New York Daily News The Boston bombings gave me a double whammy. As an American, I am deeply saddened by the four senseless deaths and the scores of wounded. My heart goes out to the families of these victims. As a Muslim, I am disturbed by the headlines stating that Islam might had a “secondary” role in these attacks. Violence and evil have no religion. Islam has...
Originally Published in The Huffington Post It took 9,000 officers, five days, and roughly $1 billion in lost revenue for Boston, but suspect one is dead and suspect two is in custody. So let me start with the standard roll call: As an American Muslim, I condemn all violence in the name of religion. Terrorism has no religion and Islam is no exception. If the Tsarnaev brothers are guilty of the...
Originally Published in the Huffington Post It took 9,000 officers, five days, and roughly $1 billion in lost revenue for Boston, but suspect one is dead and suspect two is in custody. So let me start with the standard roll call: As an American Muslim, I condemn all violence in the name of religion. Terrorism has no religion and Islam is no exception. If the Tsarnaev brothers are guilty of the...