In a letter to the Cape Times, the Claremont mosque condemns Isis atrocities taking place in Iraq and Syria.
The Claremont Main Road Mosque joins Muslims all over the world in unequivocal condemnation of the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (Isis) and its atrocities against innocent civilians, religious minorities, religious scholars and sacred sites.
The acts of these extremists, acting in the name of Islam, is both morally and religiously repugnant and should be condemned by all peace- and justice- loving people.
While Isis is currently targeting Christians, Yazidis, and other religious minorities, Muslims have been the major victims of their brutality; thousands have been killed, including a Muslim university professor who publicly condemned their persecution of Christians. We cannot remain silent when such atrocities are perpetrated in the name of Islam.
The sanctity of human life is a supreme value in Islam and nothing is worth the cost of a human life.
Such heinous acts of murder and violence are dishonourable and betray any expression of faith in Islam.
We believe that the current abominations of Isis should compel responsible religious leaders the world over, but more especially Muslim leaders, to call for greater and far deeper interfaith dialogue and introspection as part of our shared humanity.
We also need to utilise this opportunity to address the precarious position and treatment of Christian minorities within Muslim-majority contexts that often violates all reasonable Islamic norms and values and cannot be condoned and can never be justified.
In Iraq and Syria in particular, political events have dehumanised large sectors of those societies. Geopolitical conditions have created an environment of silence, complacency and complicity that violates all civilised and religious norms, especially the principal Islamic norm of preserving human dignity.
We call on the UN to take measures to bring an immediate stop to the killings in Iraq and Syria and bring to justice all those guilty of human rights violations and war crimes.
We believe that any action should be the prerogative of the UN. It is the unilateral action of the US and other imperial powers that have been responsible for the instability which has resulted in the emergence of extremist groups such as Isis.
This has been demonstrated in Iraq, Syria, Libya and elsewhere.
International interventions have to be done within the context of creating democratic environments in these countries and allow the voice of the people to prevail.
Only a vibrant civil society will see stable democracies emerging. Imposition of external, undemocratic solutions will only allow such instability and violence to prevail.
The Claremont Main Road Mosque will dedicate its Friday congregational service on September 5 to denounce the atrocities of Isis and to pray for the innocent victims in Iraq, Syria and elsewhere who have been brutally murdered and maimed.
Immediately after the congregational service we will gather in Main Road, Claremont, for a silent vigil. We call on all peace- and justice-loving people in the City of Cape Town to join us in protesting the actions of Isis.
Dr Rashied Omar
Imam: Claremont Main Road Masjid
Yusuf Abrahams
Chairperson: For and on behalf of the CMRM Board of Governors
Cape Times
** The views expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of Independent Newspapers.