They claim to be true Muslims, fighting for truth and justice. But the distance between them and the true religion of Islam is measured, not in miles and kilometers, but in light years. This is the truth about the Kharijites of our time, the barbarian pseudo-Islamists who besmirch the image of Islam in the name of Islam. In fact, one exaggerates little by saying that these people are a cancer on the conscience of Islam and Muslims.

The murderous killings of innocent people, Muslims and non-Muslims alike, including Palestinian refugees at the Yarmouk Camp near Damascus is a clear indictment of these evil ignoramuses.

What do they want from these exhausted people? Do they want to consolidate their sham Caliphate by murdering these poor Palestinians, suffering abandonment at the hands of friend and foe alike?

If so, and unfortunately this seems to be the case, then these people, I mean IS thugs, must be true enemies of Islam, knowingly or unknowingly.

I have carefully studied the Quran as well as the Sira (biography of the Prophet), who abhorred the kind of permissive bloodshed characterizing IS behaviors.

Throughout his life, the Prophet's modus operandi was always justice, peace and humanity. But IS has an entirely different modus operandi. It is based on beheading, decapitation and mass murder. It is terror and horror and bloodletting.

Sorry, but this is not the way of Muhammad (may peace be upon him).

To be sure, we are not objecting to dealing harshly with the sectarian murderous thugs of Bashar el-Assad who have murdered tens of thousands of innocent Syrians and committed every conceivable crime under the sun.

But killing innocent people, including patriotic Palestinian fighters defending the Yarmouk camp, including people with genuine Islamic credentials such as the Aknaf Baytul Magdis, is plain murder, pure and simple.

The rampage of murder and terror by IS cutthroats underscores the evil credentials of these uncivilized thugs. In a certain sense, this makes them even worse than Israeli occupation soldiers who have perpetrated even more diabolical crimes against our people, especially in the Gaza Strip.

But, in the final analysis, the Israelis are our enemies and perpetual tormentors, and one would always expect the worse from one's enemies.

IS is erroneously claiming to uphold the message of: There is no God but Allah and Muhammed is His messenger."

But the Muhammadan message, which is the last divine testament to mankind, absolutely prohibits the killing of innocent human beings even for the purpose of creating deterrence.

I am not trying to preach "American Islam" or "liberal Islam" as some ignorant fanatics might be prompted to say.

The Holy Book of God, the ultimate moral charter of all Muslims, states in Suratul Maeda (Table Spread with Food), verse 32 that " Because of that We ordained for the Children of Israel that if anyone killed a person not in retaliation for murder, or (and) for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he killed all mankind, and if anyone saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of all mankind."

In Suratul Kahf (Cave), the Almighty issues a stern warning to evil-doers who might think they are doing the right thing: "Shall We tell you the greatest losers in respect of (their) deeds? (They are) "Those whose efforts have been wasted in this life while they thought that they were acquiring good by their deeds!''

On numerous occasions, the Prophet, too, stressed the sanctity and inviolable status of a human life. The Prophet was quoted as saying that لئن تهدم الكعبة حجراً حجراً أهون على الله من ان يراق دم إمرئ مسلم"

The translation: ''The demolition of the Kaaba a brick by brick is a lesser offense in the sight of God than the spilling of the blood of an innocent Muslim."

In light, one might be prompted to ask: what Holy Book and what Prophet are these murderous ignoramuses following?


Khalid Amayreh is a veteran Palestinian journalist and current affairs commentator living in occupied Palestine 

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