'In the name of Allah'?

Nowhere in the Book has Allah demanded the blood of innocent children. In quest of truth, I have gone through many holy books; including the Bible of Christians and the holy book of Jews, that Islam accepts as the revealed Books of Allah. I found many things -- stories and dictates of Allah, the source of the entire universe, common and binding on humanity, not on Muslims alone -- but not blood of children for Allah. There is however a story of a child common in all the three Revealed Books. Here is the story.

When Allah demanded the sacrifice of the dearest possession of Abraham (Hazrat Ibrahim RA) he interpreted it to be his son Ishmael. As Ishmael wasn't born through his wife Sara, Jews interpret this to mean Isaac as the dearest and the demand of Allah to be for a son later born through Abraham's wife Sara. It does not matter whether it was Ishmael or Isaac.

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After some hesitation, when Abraham was about to sacrifice his dearest possession, Allah did not stand it, instead he sent a sheep or camel for sacrifice. We Muslims still celebrate that occasion befittingly on 10th of Jilhaj all over the world on the culmination Hajj.

As the Koranic story goes when Bibi Hajra the mother was running around for water to save her son Ishmael, Allah could not bear it anymore, thus creating the flowing spring of Zam-Zam in the scorching desert, which we Muslims still revere as the holiest water near Kaba -- the

House of Allah. If one still does not have faith in Allah's love of children, he has either a doubtful faith or no faith at all.

Whatever may be the cause, a true believer can't kill children -- be that in Beslan or anywhere in the world. Those who kill children in the name of Allah are, in fact, enemies of Allah, for they deny Him the grand pur-

pose of versatile creation. If Allah could not stand the slaughter of Ishmael or thirst of the child in the desert how is He asking blood of such innocent children in Beslan today?

Muslims have been greatly shamed and harmed one more time by the senseless slaughter of hundreds of children at Beslan. It is the duty of all who are interested in the humane face of Islam to distance themselves from such a heinous crime. The onus is on the religious leaders and the political and welfare organisations to prove that Islam is

not a slaughterhouse of people, much less innocent children. I have no doubt about the humane face of Islam. But how do I convince the grieving mothers in Beslan and all those who have witnessed the gruesome murder on TV?

Arguments will be made that many Muslim children have been killed in Palestine, Iraq, and Afghanistan. But one crime does not justify another in revenge. Islam has not made the son responsible for his father's crime even if he is a beneficiary. How can anyone justify taking children as hostages and then bru-

tally slaughtering them? No way, one can justify murder of children and innocents, no matter wherever they are.

Ask yourself one question; if an aggrieved Beslan father got hold of

your child to do the unthinkable, just because his dearest child perished in that slaughterhouse, what would be your reaction? Surely that man and you would not like to share this Earth anymore. It is time to salvage Islam from the madness of the misguided few. Islam has not sanctioned innocent killing as means of protecting or spreading

faith or redressing grievances. It is the simple provision of self defense which has been misused and abused in all ages for personal gain or gratification.

9/11 has hurt Muslims more than anybody else. Afghanistan and Iraq have plummeted as sovereign states. Palestine is further down. Theory of preemptive strike is increasingly gaining ground at the cost of Muslims and their shanty states. The Russian Bear is already ominously growling for revenge. And when she goes for revenge, there will hardly be any outcry in the backdrop of Beslan massacre, as there was virtually none for Afghanistan following 9/11. I think Beslan should work as a final wake-up call for Muslims -- salvage and resurgence is still possible.

OIC, the so called voice of the Ummah, must immediately and unequivocally condemn the slaughter of children in Beslan and all terrorist activities; and should

go for a summit meeting to declare its distance from such nefarious activities. It should also play a proactive role of moderation in Palestine, Chechnya, and other places of discord. The failure of OIC to respond in the crisis is making it redundant and increasingly pushing hapless Muslims to desperation.

Time is running out for the religious forces and parties in the Islamic countries to declare their position unambiguously. Either they are with the terrorists or against them. As terrorism is hurting Muslims most, silence can no longer continue. On the contrary, silence will go down as tacit approval of innocent killings. It is time to choose sides before the option is finally closed. Let me conclude in the spirit of Koran -- "Allah will not help those who do not help themselves." History is full of such stories.