Jordanian king calls for world’s Muslims to defend the faith against ‘Islamic’ extremism

One of the world’s strongest voices of moderate Islam, King Abdullah II of Jordan, wrote a powerful essay recently in the Washington Post denouncing the extremist, warped forces that use intimidation and violence to dominate the religion and terrorize the world.

A descendant of the prophet Muhammad, Abdullah says that most Americans “hear the hatred spewed by groups mistakenly called Islamic fundamentalists. In fact, there is nothing fundamentally Islamic about these extremists. They are religious totalitarians, in a long line of extremists of various faiths who seek power by intimidation, violence and thuggery.”

“So when today’s terrorists target innocents, they provide direct evidence of their real agenda: power politics, not religion. In fact, long before so-called Islamic terrorists began attacking the West, they were targeting fellow Muslims. The goal was to silence opposition and obliterate the Islam of peace and dialogue.”

King Abdullah made a courageous call: “Today Muslims must speak out boldly in defense of a dynamic, moderate Islam – an Islam that upholds the sanctity of human life, reaches out to the oppressed, respects men and women alike, and insists on the fellowship of all humankind. This is the true Islam of the Prophet, and the Islam that the terrorists seek to destroy.”

The US must develop a sensible strategy to strengthen moderate Muslims help them face down the totalitarian attack against them, and encourage others to overcome their fears and speak out against extremism – around the world and here at home.