Whatever may have caused it; whatever may have provided the inspiration; whatever may have given the impetus to the present killing spree in the lands of Islam, one thing is certain: the onus of responsibility lies on Muslim leadership especially the religious leadership.

The religion whose stress on the sanctity, dignity and inviolability of human life, its propagation and its institutions is so great that it calls saving of one human life an act equal to saving the whole of humanity. “.. whoever slays a soul, unless it be for man slaughter or for mischief in the land, it is as though he slew all men; and whoever keeps it alive, it is as though he kept alive all men... “ 5:32

                                   Islam is against terrorising others for any reason.

What have we made of Islam which does not recognise any distinction between the owner and his slave, between the master and the servant, between the white and the black, between the rich and the poor as regard human right, self –respect, sanctity of family life and its propagation? Rather maintains no distinction among human beings on the basis of cast, clour orcreed.

The world of Islam is tearing itself apart and that too in the name of Islam. There are groups of people who would commit certain acts of omission and commission that would earn shame for Islam. These renegades of Islam, mostly in pay to their masters in the West, would do things that were never sanctioned by God as well as the Prophet of Islam (PBUH). Such groups would always justify their brazen criminal acts with twisted logic to earn disgrace, indignity and shame for Islam.

Because of these swindlers of Islam, Jehad, which would have been a prideful distinction of Islam to promote and sustain human society on sound, productive and creative footings, have been relegated to an acute disgrace as a concept of extreme dissonance and conflict.

                                            This is a horrible depiction of Jihad
However, this has not happened overnight. It has taken more than half a century for this nation to come to the edge of this abyss of unfathomable disgrace, dereliction and delinquency to earn the wrath of God almighty who in the Qur’an has said ‘He it is Who sent His Apostle with the guidance and the true religion that He may make it prevail over all the religions; and Allah is enough for a witness’ 48:28 The Qur’an

If things are allowed to drift further down the line then it will take some more centuries to fulfil this prophesy. Let us delineate what is happening around the world in the name of Islam and how the Islamic world has been reacting to that since long. The longest struggle for Independence, sovereignty and self-rule is being fought at three places in the world: Philippines, Palestine and Kashmir; all 
are in the Third World concerning Muslims predominantly and having almost equal distance between themselves involving Jews, Christians and Hindus as their main adversaries.

Religion is being extensively used as a tool to nurture enthusiasm in the new recruits to keep up the momentum of resistance. Then there are other corollaries to these movements in such countries as Thailand, Yemen, Lebanon, Chechnya, Indonesia, Lebanon and now Afghanistan and Iraq. Excepting Bosnia, having the advantage of being in the heartland of Europe, no issue involving Muslims in the last 50 years have ever been solved, nay never have any serious attempt been made to solve these problems.

Rather some more issues, such as Afghanistan and Iraq and Lebanon were added to the already long list of hot areas. Yet another attempt is being made to drag in Iran to subjugate the Islamic world completely. Multi-pronged strategy is being applied.

Through bribe, docile dictatorships, internal divisions on social, ethnic and religious lines Muslims are kept in the whirlwind of self-destruction and backwardness. While in the last hundred years the West has progressed in all areas of Science and Technology that heralded and age of prosperity and stability thanks the economic boom, the Muslim world has lagged far behind and is engaged in the battle of survival and is being pushed backward denying access to even Science and Technology.

All movements mentioned above are bona fide and genuine on the principle of self-determination that is being denied unjustly. All these movements were nationalist and peaceful only in the beginning. Later, out of desperation, the young cadre took up the arms.

                                                               Face of terror
Religion was used, in these cases Islam, for obvious reasons. It provided moral  ascendancy and ideological inspiration to continue with the protracted struggles. Who can be blamed for the violence that has crept into these struggles: dictates of religious ideology or desperation of resistance leaders due to the intransigence of subjugating, despotic and unjust authorities as well as their machinations?

Whatever may be the reason for the violence, though, on part of resistance movements; their acts of omissions and commissions as are not sanctioned by Islam cannot be condoned. Islam does not give Abu Sayyaf guerrillas in Philippines right to capture innocent civilians and demand ransom; Islam does not give any Muslim right to blow himself up to kill innocent men women and children although they may be Jews of Israel or Muslims of Iraq and Afghanistan and Kashmir. Islam does not recognise the kind of armed resistance wherein no distinction is made between combatant and non-combatant people especially old men, women and children.

                                         Islam calls for unity of faith and Ummah

This is high time Muslim scholars came out in the open vocally in defence of Islam: no amount of injustice done to some people gives them the right to violate the dictates of Islam. In the Qur’an God says, ‘And do not dispute with the followers of the Book except by what is best, except those of them who act unjustly...’29:46 ‘Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and goodly exhortation, and have disputation with them in the best manner; surely your Lord best knows those who go astray from His path, and He knows best those who follow the right way.’ 16:125