And there are other lies from Hussam Ayloush of CAIR’s Greater Los Angeles office, one of the more arrogant and obnoxious CAIR spokesmen — and among that unsavory bunch, that is quite a distinction. “Islam: Dispelling the myths,” from the Great Falls Tribune, June 27:
Part of Islamic teachings is mutual respect and acceptance, according to Hussam Ayloush, a speaker at the Islam in America symposium in Bozeman in February and a Muslim-American from Anaheim, Calif. […]
Ayloush explained that al-Qaida is so unwanted in Muslim countries the terrorist organization must hide. “Eight out of 10 victims (of al-Qaida) are Muslim,” he said. “Every political leader has spoken out against (them).”
Yes, that’s why they’re on the ropes everywhere, particularly in Pakistan. Note also that Islamic law forbids a Muslim to kill another Muslim intentionally (cf. Qur’an 4:92), and so when al-Qaeda does kill fellow Muslims, that’s when they arouse ire within the Muslim community. No such ire is seen when they kill non-Muslims.
Terrorists are perceived unfavorably by the majority of Muslims, MSU graduate Raima Amin said.
“It’s a common misconception that Muslims condone terrorism, but in reality the majority of Muslims are peace-loving citizens who hate such acts, especially when they are wrongfully associated with Islam,” she said.
A recent Gallup poll, which surveyed 50,000 Muslims in 35 countries, showed that only 7 percent supported the Sept. 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon.
“What was more surprising to many, was that among this 7 percent ‘extremist’ population, the majority cited their hatred of the U.S. on disagreement with political ideologies, U.S. foreign policies towards Israel, etc.,” Amin said. “They did not cite Quranic verses or Islamic teachings in their support of such terrorist acts. This further proves that Islam can in no way rightfully be associated with violence, terrorism or other harmful actions.”
Maybe those surveyed in the poll didn’t cite Qur’anic verses, but it is unclear whether the poll was even set up in such a way that would have allowed them to do so rather than like most polls, which only allow a choice between a few predetermined options. In any case, Amin is being plainly deceptive here, since so many Islamic jihadists can and do cite the Qur’an to justify their actions. See, to take just a few of many, many available examples, here and here — oh, and here.
And so it goes. Amid some shopworn detours and moral equivalence, there is this:
“Jihad” is a term used to describe “inner struggle” and striving for the sake of God, according to Ayloush. It is “not holy war,” Ayloush stresses….
Misunderstanders of Islam at al-Azhar University in Cairo, the most prestigious institution in Sunni Islam: a manual of Islamic law that was certified in 1991 by the clerics at Al-Azhar as a reliable guide to Sunni orthodoxy, says that “Jihad means to war against non-Muslims” (‘Umdat al-Salik, o9.0).
Kia said Muslim students at UM hail from Morocco, Turkey, Iran, Iraq, Jordan, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Malaysia and parts of Central Asia.
Less than 20 percent of the 1.6 billion Muslims (according to a Pew study in 2009) in the world are Arab, Ayloush said. “It’s a religion,” he said. “Not an ethnicity.”
Not that that ever stops Islamic spokesmen in the West from playing the race card whenever they deem it useful.