Author:
Publication: The Hellenic Front
Newspaper
Date: September 15, 2001
URL: http://www.e-grammes.gr/2001/09/islamists_en.htm
Indeed those who fight Allah and
his Prophet and hang around corrupting the people will be put to death,
crucified, banished or have their arms and feet cut on different sides
as a punishment. This will be their shame in this life and their punishment
will be even more dreadful in the coming life". (Koran, Surah 5, Ayat 33)
The blind Islamic onslaught with
passenger planes on the World Trade Center at New York and the Pentagon
at Washington is the most violent terrorist act in the history of humanity.
As free citizens and ordinary people we condemn without reservations the
unthinkable terrorist act and share heart and soul in the sorrow of the
victims' families. Our humanitarian attitude against any attack on civilian
population cannot be but consistent. There are not less or more innocent
killed civilians and no such equation is justified.
From a geopolitical point of view
we ascertain that the eternal conflict of civilizations, which was first
examined in the post-Cold War era by professor Huntington, has now been
carried into the countries of the West. The racial riots last July by Muslim
residents of England in Bradford and Oldham and the suicide attacks with
passenger planes by Muslim residents of the U.S.A. are the forerunners
of the new era of conflicts mankind is gradually walking in. The clash
of civilizations takes now the form of a violent civil war in the interior
of the Western countries. The massive influx and legalization of illegal
immigrants, including fanatic Islamists, overturned the necessary condition
of internal security: demographic balance and homogeneity. The much-projected
multicultural society model failed to predict the self-evident: some of
the favoured legalized immigrants are vehicles of ideologies which reject
the fundamental values of Western civilization, such as democracy, religious
freedom and equality of rights for both sexes.
Terrorist attacks from Islamic groups,
1983-2000.
Hezbollah and Amal, Lebanon - 25
Other Lebanese groups - 25
Hamas, Palestine - 21
Islamic Jihad, Palestine - 8
Chechen separatists - 7
Qaeda (Osama bin Laden) - 2
Dawa, Kuwait - 2
Jihad, Egypt - 1
Islamic Group, Egypt - 1
Armed Islamic Group (GIA), Algeria
- 1
The suicide attacks in the U.S.A.,
though without precedent in their magnitude, are not the first in our days.
On 23rd October 1983 the Hezbollah group blew up with a suicide attack
the barracks of the U.S. and French forces at Beirut, killing 241 U.S.
marines and 58 French paratroopers. 17 years after its surprise debut,
the suicide attack continues to bear the image of the "absolute" terrorist
weapon. It has also deep roots in the history of Islam: it was the invariable
tactic of the Assassins, a secret society of Muslim fighters in the 11th
century in northern Iran fighting for the domination of Islam. It was the
favourite strategy of the Muslim communities at Malabar Coast in India,
Acheh in Sumatra, Mindanao and Sulu in northern Philippines against the
European colonialism in the 18th century. These people look never on their
death as suicide. For them it is an act of self-sacrifice in the name of
their community and for the glory of Allah. The suicide bomber is almost
always the last link in a long organizational chain. Such an operation
often involves tens of terrorists and accomplices who have no intention
of committing suicide.
Many Islamic terrorist groups resort
to suicide attacks in extraordinary circumstances. In this category fall
the bombing attacks in the U.S.A. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania allegedly
carried out by the Qaeda organization of Osama bin Laden and many attacks
by the Islamic Group (Egypt), Jihad (Egypt), Dawa (Kuwait) and Armed Islamic
Group (Algeria). At the same level are the Islamic groups which adopt suicide
attacks as a temporary tactic. In this category fall the spectacular operations
of Hezbollah (1983-1985), Hamas (1994-1996) and the Chechen rebels (2000-2001).
However there are some cases of Islamic groups which adopt the suicide
attacks as a permanent strategy.
The Muslims in Europe
France - 4.500.000
Germany - 3.800.000
England - 3.000.000
Belgium - 750.000
The Netherlands - 580.000
Italy - 560.000
Spain - 280.000
Austria - 280.000
Sweden - 125.000
Denmark - 85.000
Norway - 48.000
The terrorist attacks in the U.S.A.
may seem distant to some Europeans. But the problem of mass illegal immigration
of Muslims touches Europe as well. The countries of the European Union
had promised that within 2001 they would confront all together the explosive
"cocktail" of Muslim immigration. Unfortunately absolutely nothing was
done. The Italian Catholic bishop Bifi in his circular of October 2000
had made highlighted the alarming issue. The faithful of Muhammad are 22
millions in Europe, a hair-rising figure. It is the religion which has
imposed chador on the women of Iran and Saudi Arabia, the religion of the
massacres in Algeria, the Taliban in Afghanistan and the Saudi terrorist
Osama bin Laden. In Europe Islam arrives closed in the suitcases of the
Muslim immigrants. It has become the second religion and is more noticeable
each year. Its presence is manifested not only with minarets and crescents
and mosques, but with a myriad of places of worship, usually concealed
as apartments, shops, storehouses and garages. Their number grows steadily
for the needs of a community which grows at the same rate: 3.8 children
for each family compared to a European average of 2.1 and a Greek average
of 1.3.
The Islamists draw no distinction
between the countries of the West. Greece is one of them and is geographically
located at the point of contact and potentially clash between the Christian
Europe and the Muslim Middle East. Over 20 places (basements, storehouses,
garages, small shops) in Athens are used by the Muslims as mosques. The
Bangladeshi living in Greece use 5 places: two at Omonia square and from
one at Agiou Meletiou street, Agios Eleftherios, Kato Petralona. The Pakistanis
have 7 mosques: Nea Ionia, Kolonos, Nicaea, Peristeri, Omonia, Piraeas,
Kato Petralona. The Egyptians have 3 places: Kaminia, Tzitzifies, Metaxourgio,
while the other Arabs have mosques at Goudi, Acharnon street, Neos Kosmos
and Sigrou street. The planned grand mosque at Paeania is going to make
official the Islamic presence at the heart of Greece.
We remind that last summer thousands
of illegal immigrants, mostly Muslims, were given green card and legalised
without any substantial inspection of their criminal record. The two-year
presence in Greece was not actually a condition for obtaining a green card,
as the required social security stamps could be literally bought. In case
an Islamic terrorist organization wished to obtain green cards and taking
into account the huge amounts of money such groups command, it is very
likely that they would have no particular problem. Given the unprecedented
suicide attacks in the U.S.A. and in view of the Athens 2004 Olympic Games,
it is worth asking ourselves how safe we are against the Islamic terrorism.
