Pope and America Must See: Not All Terror is Muslim

THE Pope must not build his ideology on the teachings of the al-Qaeda network. He must not build his stand on words uttered by Osama bin Laden and Ayman Al-Zawhari. When they talk of Crusaders they don’t reflect the convictions of most Muslims. The Pope, who is well versed in all beliefs and religions, is fully aware that many Christians have chosen the path of extremism and don’t represent Christianity. No one should link the acts of extremists with their “love of religion.”

[Editor’s Note: During a speech in Germany on faith and reason, Pope Benedict XVI quoted a 14th century Byzantine emperor, and said in part, “Show me just what Muhammad brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached ].

The Pope of Rome believes Islam is represented by bin Laden, Zawahri, Abu Qutada and Abu Akrama [accused of staging major operations against U.S. troops in western Iraq]. But the entire world, particularly Arabs and Muslims, want to put an end to their evil crimes and their leadership of narrow-minded mentally-challenged people who believe terrorism is a form of Jihad.

Terrorism is not only confined to Islam. Terrorists can be found among Christians, Jews and all other beliefs and religions. When we talk about the insane ideology of terrorism, we call upon the Christian world, represented by the United States of America, to join hands with us in our effort to the identify root causes of terrorism and the terrorists themselves.

Containing terrorism in the Middle East, which is a very high priority, can only be done by paying special attention to the peace process and by eradicating the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This can only be done by understanding the reality of a Palestine homeland being raped, and by empathizing with the pain of people forced to live outside their homeland.

U.S. Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice is now visiting the region to address this issue, and the region’s people obviously hope that just and equal consideration will be given to both sides. Nothing less is required if Rice wants to alter the Middle East’s unfair balance of power, which is the very source of war and conflict in a region which has been largely shut out of the international system.

America, which leads the Christian world’s war against terrorism, must see that the enemy is not exclusively Islamic. We want America to once and for all see the enormity of the terrorism practiced by the Jewish state – the occupier of Palestinian lands – against the Palestinian people and neighboring countries. America knows that bringing peace to the region is a worthy duty. But the realization of this peace is blocked by America’s lopsided favoritism for the state of Israel.

This is no longer acceptable in this part of the world. The Middle East peace process shouldn’t be tied to the terms and conditions of the Israelis. America must not succumb to Israeli demands just because one bomb explodes in Tel Aviv or a pipe bomb blew up part of a settlement.

America’s habit of giving in to all of Israel’s demands is killing the peace process, and gives aid and comfort to the terrorists. This American behavior gives Hamas and Hezbullah excuses to raise their religious swords and use them as political tools. The Pope, the Vatican and the Christian world must see the other face of the coin – the face of Abu Mazen [Palestinian President] and Fuad Al-Siniora [Lebanese President], rather than the faces of Ismael Haniyeh [leader of Hamas] and Hassan Nasrallah [leader of Hezbullah]. They must differentiate between Islam and people who merely trade in the name of Islam. Rather than looking at things through the eyes of Israel alone, America must look through the eyes of justice.