Saudi scholars warn Riyadh bombings could be exploited to change education system

JEDDAH, Saudi Arabia (IslamOnline.net & News Agencies) – While flatly condemning the Riyadh bombings as violation of Islamic Shariaa, Saudi scholars voiced their misgivings they could serve as a pretext to wage war on educational curricula, with Moroccan human rights activists warning of more human rights abuses after Casablanca bombings.

“All kingdom graduates studied Saudi curricula and did not use them to serve evil intentions. The entire situation should be only handled by Shariaa scholars and specialists,” the Saudi scholars said in a statement a copy of which was obtained Tuesday, May 20, by the London-based Al-Quds Press news agency.

In reference to Riyadh bombings, they said this heinous and unlawful attacks should be condemned in an abundantly clear way, noting that they had nothing to with Islam and only did harm to the interests of Muslims.

“It is sheer calumny to link such bombings to Jihad by some media, blindly following the western media in mixing between terrorism and Jihad and leveling charges randomly to tarnish the reputation of Muslims,” read the statement, signed by 47 prominent scholars, sheikhs and professors.

They further warned that “the enemies of Islam abroad are lurking about and trying to drag Muslims into war to give them free reign in the region, and reality is a case in point.” 

Wisdom

The scholars, however, called on Saudi Muslims, particularly senior officials, to keep the latest incident into perspective.

Experts fear Casablanca attacks could trigger a wave of human rights abuses

They warned against “shifting the battle” inside the kingdom, which is “a bulwark for of Islam and the beacon of its call.

“(Saudi) officials should crack down hard on the extremist writers, who fish in troubled waters to settle their old scores, which, in turn, badly affects the unity of the Saudi society,” they cautioned.

Citing a myriad of noble Qur’anic verses, the scholars sounded the alarms over linking religiosity to the Riyadh bombings.

“If it had not been for religion, people would have gone astray. Those who try to link religiosity to the latest incident or to the kingdom’s Islamic institutions, whether administrative, scientific or educational, want to stretch out the conflict.”

They said that Riyadh bombings should be turned from “misfortune to fortune,” by “worshiping Allah Almighty sincerely, making His Shariaa prevail, spreading justice between all people, providing an ample room for quite dialogue, enhancing political participation and protecting the rights of people, away from security fears and reservations.”

Corrupt U.S.

The Saudi scholars stressed that feelings of hatred towards the U.S. are not “exclusive to Saudis alone or other Arab or Islamic countries, but are gaining ground worldwide due to corrupt U.S. policies.”

They said the Islamic world harbors greater hatred for the U.S. , given the fact that the U.S. “targets its religion, culture, land and resources.

“The Americans crossed their limits by paying no heed to Muslim peoples, ignoring their will…It is wise to say that the U.S. administration officials – or some of its hawks – are pleased with the instability of an Islamic country to take it as an excuse to meddle in its internal affairs and protest its interests,” they said.

On May 12, dozens of people died, including Americans, in car bombings blamed on Al-Qaeda network that razed three expatriate compounds in the Saudi capital Riyadh .  

Human Rights Abuses

Meanwhile, Moroccan human rights leaders, for their part, warned Tuesday that Casablanca attacks could be exploited to restrict democratic freedoms in the kingdom.

"You must denounce these criminal acts, but you have to remain vigilant," said Khadija Rouissi of the Front for Justice and Truth (FJV), warning that the proposed anti-terrorism legislation may be a "step backwards" in Morocco 's efforts to shake off a reputation for repressive policies.

The government bill, which proposes a broader definition of terrorism, stiffens penalties and eases conditions for courts and police in cases classified as terrorist, has drawn stiff opposition from rights groups, reported Agence France-Presse (AFP).

Among other measures, the anti-terrorism bill would allow phone tapping and nighttime raids, and lengthen the permissible period of detention without charge.

Responding to rights groups' protests over an initial text, the government announced amendments aimed at guaranteeing civil liberties, notably regarding searches, custody and the right to legal representation.

Like Rouissi, Mustafa Kassou of the Moroccan Association of Human Rights said the issue goes beyond security or human rights, encompassing the social problems that help spawn “Islamic militancy.”

“The Friday, suicide bombings that claimed 41 lives should not be taken as an occasion for a regression in human rights," he said. "These people are kamikazes. I don't think the death penalty will dissuade them."

Human rights -- as well as social, economic and cultural rights -- should be "respected concretely, in real terms," he added.

Rights activists argue that excessive security measures are a futile and dangerous response to a vulnerable but volatile section of society mired in poverty, with unemployment standing at 20 percent.

Abdallah Eloualladi, president of the Moroccan Organization of Human Rights (OMDH), said: "You can't be spared from ‘terrorism’ in a world that has become a little village."

He said the OMDH supports the new anti-terrorism legislation, but only as amended, and that human rights groups would be "very vigilant regarding its application."