Courtesy International New York Times
Donald J Trump’s suggestion that executing Islamic terrorists using bullets soaked in pigs’ blood would be sign of toughness was met with astonishment from members of the American Muslim community on Saturday.
“Donald Trump’s inflammatory rhetoric has crossed the line from spreading hatred to inciting violence,” said Nihad Awad, executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations. “By directly stating that the only way to stop terrorism is to murder Muslims in graphic and religiously-offensive ways, he places the millions of innocent, law-abiding citizens in the American Muslim community at risk from rogue vigilantes.”
The statement came in response to Mr Trump’s remarks at a campaign rally on Friday night during which he spoke approvingly about how the American military supposedly once used such practices, though it is widely believed to be a myth. The Republican presidential candidate also embraced the practice of waterboarding, which he described as “minimal torture.”
Mr Awad called Mr Trump’s language dangerous.
“He further implies that our nation should adopt a strategy of systematized violence in its engagement with the global Muslim community, a chilling message from a potential leader,” he said. “We pray that no one who hears this message follows his gospel of hate.”
