“Cancer In Islam”, Or Is American Policy A Cancer In The Islamic World?

“Cancer In Islam”, Or Is American Policy A Cancer In The Islamic World?

Mujeeb Khan

West Bank Palestinian workers waiting at an Israeli checkpoint near Hebron

Syrian Refugees

     Donald Trump’s designate to be national security adviser, retired Lt. General Michael Flynn called “Islam is a vicious cancer” and “this cancer is inside the body of 1.7 billion people on this planet and it has to be excised." Flynn said this in a speech this past August, but facts are otherwise, Islam is not a cancer, American Policy is becoming a cancer in the Islamic World. It was American Policy to use the religion in the Cold War, and Islam had been used against the communist army in Afghanistan. One billion people on this planet were inspired for Jihad by the name of Islam. American administration had supported Islamic jihad in Afghanistan with these encouraging words: “God is with you and your cause is just.” Thirty thousand young Muslims from the Islamic World were trained for jihad. Not by Saddam Hussain, not by Mummer Qaddafi, but by the CIA. These CIA-trained thirty-thousand jihadi are the “cancer inside the body of 1.7 billion people on this planet”. Communist Armies were in Poland, in Hungry, in East Germany Czech republic and some other countries in Eastern Europe, why were fanatic Christians not used as jihadis against the Soviet army? They had kept western Europe away from religious extremism and promoted liberal democracy in western Europe against Communism. From the Afghan War and after the fall of the Soviet Empire, America benefited the most, but the Islamic countries were the biggest loser in the Afghan jihad. Their religion became a “vicious cancer.”

   What about the American policy in the Israel-Palestine dispute? In America, this general impression had been created that Palestinian are Muslim and chairman Yasser Arafat was an international terrorist. Perhaps, Henry Kissinger had never told the administration and the congress that many millions of Palestinians were Christians. They were members of the PLO and under Yasser Arafat's leadership they were united with Muslims against Israel. America had never talked about Christians Palestinian that how they were living under Israeli occupation but Christian and Muslim Palestinians were living in refugee’s camps together, sharing each other's pain and suffering. Muslim and Christian Palestinians were fighting against Israeli occupation shoulder to shoulder and dying together. Even Hamas and Hezbollah are getting help by Arab Christians. In Lebanon, Hezbollah is a partner in the government with Christians. There is no religious prejudice in the government. They all are working together and Islam is not a "cancer" for Lebanon’s Christians.

   In Iraq, Muslims and Christians were living side by side for centuries. Their culture and language are the same; Arab Christians were as loyal to Iraq as Muslims. In Saddam Hussain’s government, they all had the same rights. Christians were in the army, in the government on high posts, and in the foreign service. There was no religious discrimination in Iraq. All religious sects were living in peace in Iraq. Israel is a democratic state (as Israel claims), Christian Palestinians are Israeli citizens but they don’t have the same rights as Jewish citizens.

      To blame 1.7 billion Muslim and their religion as cancer in Islam is very easily spoken but to not acknowledge what the Bush administration did to Iraq is dishonest. Before preemptive attacks on Iraq, they had never thought about the millions and millions of Christians living in Iraq and in other Arab countries. The preemptive attack on Iraq has destroyed not only the political status quo but also the religious status quo between Muslims and Christian has damaged. The preemptive war which has killed Muslims and Christians alike in Iraq, destroyed their families, ruined their children's future, and Muslim’s and Christian’s are dying in Iraq every day. This is not a “vicious cancer" inside the body of 1.7 billion Muslim people” this vicious cancer was injected in the Muslim people by the American policy. This is a dilemma that mistakes one administration in Iraq with the other administration that is trying to correct it by destabilizing Syria. President Obama’s Syria policy has brought more terrorists in the world than terrorists that it has stopped. All kinds of weapons are being distributed in the Middle East like Hershey and Nestle candy bars.

     The Christian communities of Syria, which comprise about 10 percent of the population, are Orthodox Christians living there for centuries. They were the most ancient Christian community in Syria. They had many historical sacred places in Syria. In six years, civil war backed by the Obama administration, a half million Syrians have been killed, and per Aleppo Bishop, two thirds of Syrian Christians have been killed or have left Syria. The unnecessary civil war’s achievements have destroyed the Syrian families, destroyed the children's future, destroyed the country, millions and millions of Syrians have lost loved ones. Thousands and Thousands of Syrians have been displaced. Syria and Iraq are the tragedy of the century. This is the the result of America’s Middle East policy. How would you say that this is a cancer in Islam? Libya is another victim of this American policy. They are Fighting against the Islamic State in Syria and Iraq, while overthrowing a secular government of Libya. Now Libya has become a new opportunity for the Islamic State. The cancer of terror is spreading in the Middle East by this American policy. U.S. President-elect Donald Trump has rightfully said that the “Middle East is a disaster.”

     Eight years ago, when President Obama came into power, the previous administration handed over to him two unfinished wars. After eight years, Afghanistan and Iraq are still unfinished wars. President Obama has added four new wars in these unfinished wars. In fifty-three days President Obama is going to hand over these six wars and the disaster Middle East to a new administration.                  

       

Iraq war casualty

Victims of landmines in Afghanistan