Letters to the Editor

Terror in London

As people of conscience, American Muslims unequivocally condemn Thursday’s barbaric attacks against innocent civilians in London (“Terror in the heart of London,” Page 1, Friday). These crimes can never be justified or excused. We offer our sincere condolences to the loved ones of those who were killed or injured in these attacks and call for the swift apprehension and punishment of the perpetrators.

No legitimate cause can ever be furthered by such criminal behavior. Any Muslim who commits such acts in the name of Islam is in fact defiling its essence.

In 2004, the Council on American-Islamic Relations, the nation’s largest Muslim civil rights advocacyorganization, launched an online petition drive called “Not in the Name of Islam,” designed to disassociate Islam from the violent acts of a few Muslims. The petition states in part: “We refuse to allow our faith to be held hostage by the criminal actions of a tiny minority acting outside the teachings of both the Quran and the Prophet Muhammad.”

SHAMA FAROOQ

Director of Civil Rights

Council on American-Islamic Relations Maryland & Virginia

Bethesda

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As the American people wiped the sleep from their eyes and began their days on Thursday, we were confronted with images of horror that are all too familiar to us.

Once again, the worst of humanity reared its evil head and innocent mothers, fathers, husbands, wives, brothers, sisters — everyday people — were cut down in absolute barbarism. In this chapter of the war on terror, it was not New Yorkers, Pentagon workers or air travelers, but our British cousins commuting to work who became the victims in our fight to rid the world of global terrorism.

Following the September 11 attacks on our country, the British government and the British people stood by the American people and together we embarked on a great struggle against the global terrorist networks. We have for centuries enjoyed a cooperative alliance with the British, and, once again, that alliance has been refreshed with blood.

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