We never learn any lesson from the history; it’s being now repeated in Iraq. Whatever Taliban did to the weak segments of the society such as women and children, and religious/sectarian minorities in the Afghanistan of 1990s, same is being repeated in far worse form in parts of Iraq under the control of ISIS. An order issued by the justice ministry under the so-called Khilafat office in Mosul has asked the Christians, who have been living in the area for centuries, to either embrace Islam, or pay Jaziya (protection tax), or be ready to fight; otherwise, leave the town by Saturday.
A number of families are now fleeing with their belongings, leaving their properties at the ISIS’ disposal whose fighters are busy marking these as spoils of war.
There is nothing new in these orders; all the religious ideology based states and terrorist organisations always go for such tactics. They don’t believe in pluralistic societies and co-inhibiting with other religious groups. What’s going on in Gaza today is another example of such mentality. We need to get united against all such states and groups which are using religions to establish their credibility and once in power, they prove to be the worst kind of dictators. They feel no shame in forcing their devilish ideologies on women, children and religious/sectarian minorities.
But the world has to come clean. Regardless of the religions such states and groups are representing, they need to be opposed and fought upon to bring back peace on the only planet for human beings.
MASOOD KHAN
Jubail, Saudi Arabia