Libya Enters a New Age

The lethal attack, that came at the hands of armed guerrilla saboteurs, on the American ambassador and three others at the consulate — amongst them an American Muslim —will throw far-reaching shadows on the world’s perspective and interaction with all of Libya. Yesterday, the world saw the normal Libyan as if he were a terrorist; today, as if he were a reckless zealot. The world saw that Libya is in the throes of “tumult which affects not only those who do wrong” (Surat al-Infaal 25). It is an attack on an ally, which God and His Prophet have forbidden. The attack — and what followed in the way of arson, property damage, plundering, theft and murder — was committed with total impunity.

What society are we in? And who exactly is a victim of these actions? It is he and his country who have no connection to this ill-reputed movie [The Innocence of Muslims]; he whose country renounces and repudiates this footage that was never shown in a movie theater or festival, but was merely a cut-rate montage made by an Egyptian Copt who lives in America and put it on YouTube two months ago. Two days ago, the number of viewers didn’t exceed 2,966 in the course this video’s existence; by September 11, however, the naïfs had fallen into the trap of the group “Support the Prophet” — peace and blessings be upon him — on Facebook and YouTube. The attacks on the American embassy in Cairo involved nothing more than lowering the American flag, but the ignorant Mafia of Benghazi burned down the embassy of a country not guilty — on any level — of partaking in the incident. It is, indeed, a cheap victory, its repercussions disastrous for all, especially for the American election at the beginning of November 2012. This may not be the end of the consulate but, henceforth, interaction with Libya and Libyans will be met with disapproval, resistance and a lack of trust, making long-term shared achievement impossible. There are many countries that would like Libya to be the land of al-Qaida so that Libya does not turn into a democratic country with a new economy.

The American ambassador was the intermediary for his country since February 2011, helping the revolutionaries, conveying their demands and championing them both privately and in public. It was he who confirmed to his country and to the U.N. that al-Qaida and its symbols had no presence in Libya. He was firm in his love for Benghazi and for meeting with its people, incredibly modest and sympathetic to Libyans, the revolution and Libya. The last thing he wrote on his personal page was, “I consider myself lucky to participate in this amazing period of change and hope in Libya.”

Once, the Prophet of God Muhammad Ibn Abdullah — upon him prayers and peace — surrounded a stronghold and ordered his soldiers not to attack it. From sheer exuberance, two soldiers attacked the stronghold and were killed. A crowd gathered and the Prophet — peace and blessings be upon him — said, “Those two are in Hell; for one does not show himself to be strong through aggression, but by containing himself in anger.”

Revulsion, complaints and blows all found their way to Muhammad — peace and blessings be upon him, the master of Creation — from great and small alike in the city of Ta’if. When the King of the Mountains came to him, the angel Jibril said to Muhammad, “This is the King of the Mountains who has come to ask your permission to take possession of the two mountains surrounding Mecca.” These were the people who had insulted Muhammad and struck him, those insatiable people who had imposed hardship upon him and thrown waste and rubbish on his noble head. He refused to acknowledge all this, however, so that perhaps even one of them might come to be God’s servant.

We find the hard-liners of today to be party to violence and extremism. It is they who act outside the bounds of legitimate authority, they who rebel against the presidency of the country and the Interior Ministry — due to those institutions’ weakness and lack of strategy — they who innately commit different acts of terrorism and intimidation. They have shaken the people’s faith in the state and confirmed to the wider world the militants’ control over Libyan affairs by committing acts of terrorism. And now look! In response, here come the Marines on their way to Benghazi, because it is a new Afghanistan, so that America can protect its interests in Libya.

I am reminded of the words of the famous thinker al-Ghazali: “Those zealots who, through their awful deeds and words, cause God to be angry with his creation, carry half the responsibility for the spread of unbelief throughout the world.”

I offer my condolences and consolation to the family of the ambassador and the employees of the embassy, to the American people and government and to the families of the other victims. This deed does not articulate the position of the Libyan people or the people of Benghazi. We ask God to grant us a true Muslim man who loves God and his apostle; who will rule this country with strength against the unjust and the scofflaws; who will be merciful to those who act in accordance with the law. We should remind ourselves that Libya has not yet achieved its freedom.