The Toronto Star:
by Ahmad Sahi
Group responsible for kidnappings in Nigeria does not represent Islam
Boko Haram’s rampage of indiscriminate violence and tyranny has been going on for over three years now in Nigeria, but the organization has never grabbed international headlines quite like this before. They’ve bombed churches, killed innocents and done just about everything else in their mad pursuit to establish “Sharia Law,” but the recent kidnapping and potential sale and enslavement of around 200 to 300 schoolgirls has really reverberated across the world.
Naturally, as a common observer, I am saddened. It’s heart-rending to think of those families whose innocent daughters are caught in this sick web of fanaticism, let alone the girls themselves.
But as a devout Ahmadi Muslim, I’m more than sad. I’m shocked. I’m upset. I’m frustrated.
It’s frustrating because here you have this massive group of about 1.8 billion Muslims on earth today, and a handful of twisted extremists have hijacked the whole faith, steering the public discourse on Islam. Every inhumane and ghastly crime they perpetrate leaves a mark on the face of Islam, spread across the international stage in global headlines for all to see. “Boko Haram — Islamic Militants.” That’s how they’re described and viewed. The “militant” part is true. The “Islamic” part? Not so much.