US Drops Leaflets Insulting Quran In Afghanistan, Apologizes Afterwards
26 August 2017A U.S. official has
apologized Wednesday for leaflets dropped in Afghanistan that were deemed
offensive to Islam.
Shah Wali Shahid, the deputy governor of Parwan province, says the leaflets
dropped Monday night, which encouraged Afghans to cooperate with security
forces, included an image of a dog carrying the Taliban flag, which contains a
passage from the Quran in Arabic.
The dog is considered unclean in Islam and associating an image of the animal
with one of the religion's most sacred texts prompted indignation.
Maj. Gen. James Linder apologized, saying the leaflets mistakenly contained an
image that was offensive to "both Muslims and the religion of Islam."
"I sincerely apologise. We have the deepest respect for Islam and our Muslim
partners worldwide," Linder said, adding that an investigation would be held
"to determine the cause of this incident and to hold the responsible party
accountable".
Parwan Governor Mohammad Hasem condemned the leaflet as "unforgivable" and
said an investigation would be held.
"Those who have committed this unforgivable mistake in the publicity,
propaganda or media section of the coalition forces will be tried and
punished," he said.
The incident highlights one of the challenges facing international forces in
Afghanistan, most of which are from non-Muslim cultures, despite the efforts
Western forces have generally taken to avoid stoking anti-foreigner sentiment
by creating offense on religious grounds.
In 2012, U.S. commanders were forced to apologies after copies of the Quran
and other religious texts were mistakenly burned at Bagram Air Base near
Kabul. The incident sparked large demonstrations in Kabul and other provinces
in which several people were killed.
On another occasion, a film of U.S. Marines urinating on the bodies of dead
Taliban fighters caused widespread offense, prompting an investigation and
criminal charges.
So-called information operations conducted by government and coalition forces
have long been used to try to persuade local people to turn against the
Taliban and other insurgent groups.
Throughout the 16-year Afghan war, U.S. forces have struggled to convince
ordinary Afghans to help them defeat the Taliban. Afghanistan is a deeply
conservative country, and alleged blasphemy has sparked riots.
©
EsinIslam.Com
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