Everyone Must be in Unity Against Terror

The world has been living side by side with terror for hundreds of
years. Even though actions may differ from country to country, all
terrorist organizations aim at defenseless civilians and send their
messages by way of these people.

In the terrorist attack in Oklahoma in the USA 167 people were
savagely slaughtered, 19 of them children. A fanatical Jew who opened
a hail of fire on Muslims praying in a mosque in Palestine caused the
deaths of 29 people. Thousands of people have lost their lives in
attacks against Muslims in India over the years. Terrorist attacks
both great and small have for years been perpetrated in France, Spain,
the Philippines, Japan and Ireland.

One could go on. However, the entire world came face to face with
terror in 2001. In the wake of the attacks against two major cities in
the USA which led to the deaths and injuries of thousands of people,
the concept of "terrorism" began to be debated once again. That was
because that attack had been carried out at an unexpected time,
against a country regarded as the world's only superpower, and in a
totally unforeseen manner. The attack created an air of fear and panic
all over the world, especially in America.

Following the attacks, the USA embarked on a major fight against
terror. Many countries have lined up alongside America in this
struggle, and lent their support to it. The series of bombings in
Istanbul, just when it was thought that the forces of terror had been
brought under control, again reminded people of terrorism's dark face:
first synagogues, then the British Consulate, then the HSBC General
Directorate building ...

The Saturday prayer, which had been performed for centuries, was
interrupted by the bombs exploded on November 15th. Twenty-four people
were killed in the explosions at the Neva Shalom synagogue at Beyoglu
Kuledibi and the Beth Israel synagogue at Sisli, and 300 were injured.
Dozens of more people lost their lives in the explosions at the
British Consulate and the HSBC building, and hundreds were injured.
Images similar to those which followed the September 11 attacks began
appearing on our television screens. Ruined buildings, people fleeing
in panic, burned out busses, corpses lying in the streets ...

The point we wish to emphasize in this article is the Islamic
perspective on terror attacks and the killing of the innocent. All
forms of terrorist attack are roundly condemned in Islam. According to
the Qur'an, it is a great sin to kill an innocent person, and anyone
who does so will suffer great torment in the Hereafter:

.... If someone kills another person-unless it is in retaliation for
someone else or for causing corruption in the earth-it is as if he had
murdered all mankind. And if anyone gives life to another person, it
is as if he had given life to all mankind. Our Messengers came to them
with Clear Signs, but even after that, many of them committed outrages
in the earth. (Qur'an, 5:32)

This verse equals the killing of one innocent to slaughtering all of
humanity! Another verse expresses the importance that the faithful
attach to life:

Those who do not appeal to any other deity besides God [alone]; nor
kill any soul whom God has forbidden [them to] except with the right
to do so; nor fornicate. Anyone who does so will incur a penalty.
(Qur'an, 25:68)

In yet another verse, God issues the following commandment:

Say: "Come, and I will recite to you what your Lord has forbidden for
you": that you do not associate anything with Him; that you are good
to your parents; that you do not kill your children because of poverty-
We will provide for you and them; that you do not approach indecency-
outward or inward; that you do not kill any person God has made
inviolate-except with the right to do so. That is what He instructs
you to do, so that hopefully, you will use your intellect. (Qur'an,
6:151)

Any Muslim who believes in God with a sincere heart, who scrupulously
abides by His verses and fears suffering in the Hereafter, will avoid
harming even one other person. He knows that the Lord of Infinite
Justice will suitably reward him for all his deeds. In one of the
hadiths, our Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) listed
the kinds of people who are not pleasing to God:

"Those who act cruelly and unjustly in the sacred lands, those who
yearn for the ways of the ignorant, and those who wrongly shed human
blood." (Sahih Bukhari Hadith)

Another element we wish to concentrate on is the attack on devout
Turkish Jews worshipping in their synagogues. Churches, synagogues and
mosques are houses for the worship of God. It is a terrible crime in
the sight of God to slaughter innocent people as they worship in their
churches, synagogues or mosques. These are houses where the name of
God is remembered, praised and recited. In the Qur'an, God reveals
that:

.... God guides to His Light whoever He wills and God makes ****phors
for mankind and God has knowledge of all things. In houses which God
has permitted to be built and in which His name is remembered, there
are men who proclaim His glory morning and evening. (Qur'an,
24:35-36)

The people who go to those places are devout, prayerful people. All
houses where the name of God is remembered are sacred in the eyes of
Islam. Visitors to these houses may be Jews, Christians or Muslims.
The important thing is that each one is a devout believer in God. A
Muslim must respect and protect the holy places where the People of
the Book worship God, and protect them. For Muslims, these places are
precious because in these places, people, whether Jews or Christians,
remember God. In the Qur'an, the places of worship of the People of
the Book, ie. monasteries, churches and synagogues, are mentioned as
places of worship protected by God.

....If God had not driven some people back by means of others,
monasteries, churches, synagogues and mosques, where God's name is
mentioned much, would have been pulled down and destroyed. God will
certainly help those who help Him-God is All-Strong, Almighty.
(Qur'an, 22:40)

As a manifestation of his loyalty to God's commands, the Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was most careful not to destroy the holy
places of the People of the Book. Such destruction means, in the first
place, opposing God's commands. This aside, it means preventing people
who have faith in God worshipping Him. Indeed, the Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh) promised the Christians, who were the other party to a peace
agreement he made, that their churches would not be destroyed and that
they would never be harmed. The tax (Jizya) agreements he made with
Christians also guaranteed the safety of churches.

The first agreement made after the death of the Prophet (pbuh) that
guaranteed the protection of the temples was a tax agreement Khalid
bin al-Waleed signed with the leader of the city of Anat. Ibn Ishaq
stated that those agreements made by Khalid bin al-Waleed were also
approved by Abu Bakr and the three caliphs following him. (Levent
Ozturk, Asr-i Saadetten Hacli Seferlerine Kadar Islam Toplumunda
H ristiyanlar (Christians in the Islamic Society From the Blessed
Period to the Crusades), Iz Yayincilik, Istanbul, 1998, p. 111) This
aside, Abu Bakr offered the same guarantees that had been offered to
the people of Najran by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

The Islamic societies that abided by Islamic morality after the death
of the Prophet (pbuh) also paid special attention to this issue.
Muslim leaders who adhered to the Qur'an and the Sunnah (the sayings
and doings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)) respected the places of
worship of non-Muslims in conquered countries and showed great
tolerance to the clergy.

Terror Will Disappear When People Come to Live by the Moral Values of
Islam

In the Qur'an (32:9), God reveals that He has breathed His own Spirit
into man, His creation, and that man is His representative on Earth
(Qur'an, 6:165). One of the most important differences between man and
the animals is that man was created with both earthly desires and with
a conscience. Every person possesses desires that incite him to evil,
along with a conscience that inspires him to avoid it. Alongside such
pleasing attributes inspired by that conscience-love, sacrifice,
compassion, humility, affection, honesty, loyalty and kindness-he also
possesses destructive and undesirable tendencies, stemming from his
earthly desires. Thanks to his conscience, however, the believer can
distinguish between right and wrong and opt for what is morally right.
Strong belief in and fear of God, faith in the Hereafter, powerful
fear of the endless torments of Hell and a yearning for Paradise all
keep the temptations of his earthly desires at bay. Therefore, he
always behaves well towards people, is forgiving, responds to
wickedness with good, assists those in need, and shows compassion,
love, affection and tolerance.

Terrorists, on the other hand, listen to their earthly desire for
violence instead of their consciences, and can easily turn to all
forms of wickedness. They become loveless, aggressive people who
easily hurt others without the slightest pang of conscience. Having no
fear of God, they do not know the morality of religion, nor do they
practice it. Nothing can stop them from committing crimes.

In restraining its citizens, society's prevailing rules can go only so
far. Thanks to its law enforcement units, the state may be able to
partially protect streets and public spaces, and -thanks to a powerful
system of justice- may be able to take necessary means to ensure
public order and ensure that the crime rate drops. But since it's
impossible to keep watch on every individual, 24 hours a day, it's
essential that peoples' consciences enter the equation at some stage.
Someone who doesn't heed the voice of his conscience can easily turn
to crime when on his own, or surrounded by people of like mind. That
being the case, a model of society emerges which is composed of
individuals who lie when necessary, have no hesitation about making
unjust profits, and feel no unease about oppressing the weak. It is
clear that physical precautions and measures will bear no fruit in a
society which has no fear of God and which has lost its spiritual
values. Religious moral values, on the other hand, command a person to
refrain from evil, even if he is all alone, even if nobody will punish
him for his evil deeds. It is evident that a person who knows that he
will be called to account in the presence of God for his every deed,
his every decision and his every word, and that he will be suitably
rewarded for these in the eternal life of the Hereafter, will
scrupulously avoid committing evil.

Terrorist organizations can't possibly have any place in a society
whose people avoid evil of their own free will. Where religion's
morality prevails, problems that give rise to organizations supporting
the use of violence will disappear naturally. If the whole society
possesses superior virtues like honesty, sacrifice, love and justice,
there can be no place for such things as poverty, unequal distribution
of income, injustice, the oppression of the weak, or limitations on
freedoms. On the contrary, a social order will emerge that meets the
wants of the needy; where the wealthy protect the poor and the strong,
the weak; where everyone can enjoy the very best health care,
education, and transport systems. There, tolerance and understanding
will dominate the relationships between different ethnic groups,
religions and cultures.

For these reasons, proper morality is the key to solving so many
social problems. The source of that key, in turn, is the Qur'an, which
God has revealed as a guide for mankind.

It must not be forgotten that unless necessary measures are taken,
unless deep-rooted solutions are brought in, the 21st century will
continue to be a time of terror and violence, just as the 20th was
before it. The homes of innocent people will be bombed, and women and
children will be slaughtered. The ideological fight against terrorism,
therefore, must begin started with great urgency, to include very
great numbers of people. This fight will be fought on the level of
ideas-between people who believe in God, who are loving, forgiving,
compassionate and in full possession of their conscience; and those
who draw their strength from ignorance and violence. In one verse, our
Lord reveals, "Why were there not people with a vestige of good sense
among the generations of those who came before you, who forbade
corruption in the earth..." (Qur'an, 11:116). Believers should possess
the virtue that God describes in that verse. While terrorists hope to
achieve their aims by violence, believers know that true success can
be achieved only by clinging tightly to the religion of God, and
acting accordingly. Jews, Christians, and Muslims will join together
in that struggle, in a spirit of respect for all beliefs and ideas
and, by the will of God, enjoy definitive success. This is God's
promise to all His believing servants, which will definitely come
true.

At this point, a great responsibility falls on all true believers, no
matter what their religion. Jews must not ignore Old Testament
statements calling mankind to peace and tolerance, and they must call
on all other Jews to oppose terrorism. So should Christians call on
all other Christians, taking as their guide the morality most pleasing
to God. One should not forget that terrorism stems from wrong ideas
and the basic struggle against terrorism should be on the level of
ideas. Believers must explain that these ideas are wrong and that no
idea can prevail by means of violence, oppression and cruelty; and
despotism can never bring about beauty.

Terrorist ideology is built on sand. Its foundations can easily be
swept away by mobilizing a proper education campaign. Sincere
believers in all parts of the world can help end the ignorance that
breeds terrorism by searching for solutions, writing books and
articles, promoting educational activities and disseminating their own
cultural heritage. The prevalence of tolerance, peace and security on
the Earth, as commanded by God, will make terrorism disappear into the
pages of history forever. Adopting a defeatist, pessimistic attitude
in the face of terror is unacceptable. Our hope is that this suffering
will not be repeated, and that all measures will be adopted to that
end.

May God have mercy on those who died in those hateful attacks, and may
He heal the injured. Our sincere condolences to all mankind.
__________________

THIS IS OFFF TOPIC THIS NG IS FOR PHOTOGRAPHY ONLY


..
wrote in message
ups.com...

The world has been living side by side with terror for hundreds of
years. Even though actions may differ from country to country, all
terrorist organizations aim at defenseless civilians and send their
messages by way of these people.

In the terrorist attack in Oklahoma in the USA 167 people were
savagely slaughtered, 19 of them children. A fanatical Jew who opened
a hail of fire on Muslims praying in a mosque in Palestine caused the
deaths of 29 people. Thousands of people have lost their lives in
attacks against Muslims in India over the years. Terrorist attacks
both great and small have for years been perpetrated in France, Spain,
the Philippines, Japan and Ireland.

One could go on. However, the entire world came face to face with
terror in 2001. In the wake of the attacks against two major cities in
the USA which led to the deaths and injuries of thousands of people,
the concept of "terrorism" began to be debated once again. That was
because that attack had been carried out at an unexpected time,
against a country regarded as the world's only superpower, and in a
totally unforeseen manner. The attack created an air of fear and panic
all over the world, especially in America.

Following the attacks, the USA embarked on a major fight against
terror. Many countries have lined up alongside America in this
struggle, and lent their support to it. The series of bombings in
Istanbul, just when it was thought that the forces of terror had been
brought under control, again reminded people of terrorism's dark face:
first synagogues, then the British Consulate, then the HSBC General
Directorate building ...

The Saturday prayer, which had been performed for centuries, was
interrupted by the bombs exploded on November 15th. Twenty-four people
were killed in the explosions at the Neva Shalom synagogue at Beyoglu
Kuledibi and the Beth Israel synagogue at Sisli, and 300 were injured.
Dozens of more people lost their lives in the explosions at the
British Consulate and the HSBC building, and hundreds were injured.
Images similar to those which followed the September 11 attacks began
appearing on our television screens. Ruined buildings, people fleeing
in panic, burned out busses, corpses lying in the streets ...

The point we wish to emphasize in this article is the Islamic
perspective on terror attacks and the killing of the innocent. All
forms of terrorist attack are roundly condemned in Islam. According to
the Qur'an, it is a great sin to kill an innocent person, and anyone
who does so will suffer great torment in the Hereafter:

... If someone kills another person-unless it is in retaliation for
someone else or for causing corruption in the earth-it is as if he had
murdered all mankind. And if anyone gives life to another person, it
is as if he had given life to all mankind. Our Messengers came to them
with Clear Signs, but even after that, many of them committed outrages
in the earth. (Qur'an, 5:32)

This verse equals the killing of one innocent to slaughtering all of
humanity! Another verse expresses the importance that the faithful
attach to life:

Those who do not appeal to any other deity besides God [alone]; nor
kill any soul whom God has forbidden [them to] except with the right
to do so; nor fornicate. Anyone who does so will incur a penalty.
(Qur'an, 25:68)

In yet another verse, God issues the following commandment:

Say: "Come, and I will recite to you what your Lord has forbidden for
you": that you do not associate anything with Him; that you are good
to your parents; that you do not kill your children because of poverty-
We will provide for you and them; that you do not approach indecency-
outward or inward; that you do not kill any person God has made
inviolate-except with the right to do so. That is what He instructs
you to do, so that hopefully, you will use your intellect. (Qur'an,
6:151)

Any Muslim who believes in God with a sincere heart, who scrupulously
abides by His verses and fears suffering in the Hereafter, will avoid
harming even one other person. He knows that the Lord of Infinite
Justice will suitably reward him for all his deeds. In one of the
hadiths, our Prophet (may God bless him and grant him peace) listed
the kinds of people who are not pleasing to God:

"Those who act cruelly and unjustly in the sacred lands, those who
yearn for the ways of the ignorant, and those who wrongly shed human
blood." (Sahih Bukhari Hadith)

Another element we wish to concentrate on is the attack on devout
Turkish Jews worshipping in their synagogues. Churches, synagogues and
mosques are houses for the worship of God. It is a terrible crime in
the sight of God to slaughter innocent people as they worship in their
churches, synagogues or mosques. These are houses where the name of
God is remembered, praised and recited. In the Qur'an, God reveals
that:

... God guides to His Light whoever He wills and God makes ****phors
for mankind and God has knowledge of all things. In houses which God
has permitted to be built and in which His name is remembered, there
are men who proclaim His glory morning and evening. (Qur'an,
24:35-36)

The people who go to those places are devout, prayerful people. All
houses where the name of God is remembered are sacred in the eyes of
Islam. Visitors to these houses may be Jews, Christians or Muslims.
The important thing is that each one is a devout believer in God. A
Muslim must respect and protect the holy places where the People of
the Book worship God, and protect them. For Muslims, these places are
precious because in these places, people, whether Jews or Christians,
remember God. In the Qur'an, the places of worship of the People of
the Book, ie. monasteries, churches and synagogues, are mentioned as
places of worship protected by God.

...If God had not driven some people back by means of others,
monasteries, churches, synagogues and mosques, where God's name is
mentioned much, would have been pulled down and destroyed. God will
certainly help those who help Him-God is All-Strong, Almighty.
(Qur'an, 22:40)

As a manifestation of his loyalty to God's commands, the Prophet
Muhammad (peace be upon him) was most careful not to destroy the holy
places of the People of the Book. Such destruction means, in the first
place, opposing God's commands. This aside, it means preventing people
who have faith in God worshipping Him. Indeed, the Prophet Muhammad
(pbuh) promised the Christians, who were the other party to a peace
agreement he made, that their churches would not be destroyed and that
they would never be harmed. The tax (Jizya) agreements he made with
Christians also guaranteed the safety of churches.

The first agreement made after the death of the Prophet (pbuh) that
guaranteed the protection of the temples was a tax agreement Khalid
bin al-Waleed signed with the leader of the city of Anat. Ibn Ishaq
stated that those agreements made by Khalid bin al-Waleed were also
approved by Abu Bakr and the three caliphs following him. (Levent
Ozturk, Asr-i Saadetten Hacli Seferlerine Kadar Islam Toplumunda
H ristiyanlar (Christians in the Islamic Society From the Blessed
Period to the Crusades), Iz Yayincilik, Istanbul, 1998, p. 111) This
aside, Abu Bakr offered the same guarantees that had been offered to
the people of Najran by the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh).

The Islamic societies that abided by Islamic morality after the death
of the Prophet (pbuh) also paid special attention to this issue.
Muslim leaders who adhered to the Qur'an and the Sunnah (the sayings
and doings of the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh)) respected the places of
worship of non-Muslims in conquered countries and showed great
tolerance to the clergy.

Terror Will Disappear When People Come to Live by the Moral Values of
Islam

In the Qur'an (32:9), God reveals that He has breathed His own Spirit
into man, His creation, and that man is His representative on Earth
(Qur'an, 6:165). One of the most important differences between man and
the animals is that man was created with both earthly desires and with
a conscience. Every person possesses desires that incite him to evil,
along with a conscience that inspires him to avoid it. Alongside such
pleasing attributes inspired by that conscience-love, sacrifice,
compassion, humility, affection, honesty, loyalty and kindness-he also
possesses destructive and undesirable tendencies, stemming from his
earthly desires. Thanks to his conscience, however, the believer can
distinguish between right and wrong and opt for what is morally right.
Strong belief in and fear of God, faith in the Hereafter, powerful
fear of the endless torments of Hell and a yearning for Paradise all
keep the temptations of his earthly desires at bay. Therefore, he
always behaves well towards people, is forgiving, responds to
wickedness with good, assists those in need, and shows compassion,
love, affection and tolerance.

Terrorists, on the other hand, listen to their earthly desire for
violence instead of their consciences, and can easily turn to all
forms of wickedness. They become loveless, aggressive people who
easily hurt others without the slightest pang of conscience. Having no
fear of God, they do not know the morality of religion, nor do they
practice it. Nothing can stop them from committing crimes.

In restraining its citizens, society's prevailing rules can go only so
far. Thanks to its law enforcement units, the state may be able to
partially protect streets and public spaces, and -thanks to a powerful
system of justice- may be able to take necessary means to ensure
public order and ensure that the crime rate drops. But since it's
impossible to keep watch on every individual, 24 hours a day, it's
essential that peoples' consciences enter the equation at some stage.
Someone who doesn't heed the voice of his conscience can easily turn
to crime when on his own, or surrounded by people of like mind. That
being the case, a model of society emerges which is composed of
individuals who lie when necessary, have no hesitation about making
unjust profits, and feel no unease about oppressing the weak. It is
clear that physical precautions and measures will bear no fruit in a
society which has no fear of God and which has lost its spiritual
values. Religious moral values, on the other hand, command a person to
refrain from evil, even if he is all alone, even if nobody will punish
him for his evil deeds. It is evident that a person who knows that he
will be called to account in the presence of God for his every deed,
his every decision and his every word, and that he will be suitably
rewarded for these in the eternal life of the Hereafter, will
scrupulously avoid committing evil.

Terrorist organizations can't possibly have any place in a society
whose people avoid evil of their own free will. Where religion's
morality prevails, problems that give rise to organizations supporting
the use of violence will disappear naturally. If the whole society
possesses superior virtues like honesty, sacrifice, love and justice,
there can be no place for such things as poverty, unequal distribution
of income, injustice, the oppression of the weak, or limitations on
freedoms. On the contrary, a social order will emerge that meets the
wants of the needy; where the wealthy protect the poor and the strong,
the weak; where everyone can enjoy the very best health care,
education, and transport systems. There, tolerance and understanding
will dominate the relationships between different ethnic groups,
religions and cultures.

For these reasons, proper morality is the key to solving so many
social problems. The source of that key, in turn, is the Qur'an, which
God has revealed as a guide for mankind.

It must not be forgotten that unless necessary measures are taken,
unless deep-rooted solutions are brought in, the 21st century will
continue to be a time of terror and violence, just as the 20th was
before it. The homes of innocent people will be bombed, and women and
children will be slaughtered. The ideological fight against terrorism,
therefore, must begin started with great urgency, to include very
great numbers of people. This fight will be fought on the level of
ideas-between people who believe in God, who are loving, forgiving,
compassionate and in full possession of their conscience; and those
who draw their strength from ignorance and violence. In one verse, our
Lord reveals, "Why were there not people with a vestige of good sense
among the generations of those who came before you, who forbade
corruption in the earth..." (Qur'an, 11:116). Believers should possess
the virtue that God describes in that verse. While terrorists hope to
achieve their aims by violence, believers know that true success can
be achieved only by clinging tightly to the religion of God, and
acting accordingly. Jews, Christians, and Muslims will join together
in that struggle, in a spirit of respect for all beliefs and ideas
and, by the will of God, enjoy definitive success. This is God's
promise to all His believing servants, which will definitely come
true.

At this point, a great responsibility falls on all true believers, no
matter what their religion. Jews must not ignore Old Testament
statements calling mankind to peace and tolerance, and they must call
on all other Jews to oppose terrorism. So should Christians call on
all other Christians, taking as their guide the morality most pleasing
to God. One should not forget that terrorism stems from wrong ideas
and the basic struggle against terrorism should be on the level of
ideas. Believers must explain that these ideas are wrong and that no
idea can prevail by means of violence, oppression and cruelty; and
despotism can never bring about beauty.

Terrorist ideology is built on sand. Its foundations can easily be
swept away by mobilizing a proper education campaign. Sincere
believers in all parts of the world can help end the ignorance that
breeds terrorism by searching for solutions, writing books and
articles, promoting educational activities and disseminating their own
cultural heritage. The prevalence of tolerance, peace and security on
the Earth, as commanded by God, will make terrorism disappear into the
pages of history forever. Adopting a defeatist, pessimistic attitude
in the face of terror is unacceptable. Our hope is that this suffering
will not be repeated, and that all measures will be adopted to that
end.

May God have mercy on those who died in those hateful attacks, and may
He heal the injured. Our sincere condolences to all mankind.
__________________