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ISIS militants threat to kill prominent Canadian Imam 'Syed Soharwardy'
9-09-2014
A Canadian prominent imam started a 48-hour hunger strike on Friday evening to protest the beheading of an American journalist in Iraq this week by ISIS.
Imam Syed Soharwardy, founder of Muslims Against Terrorism and the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada, says he wants to draw attention to the actions of ISIS — a group of militants fighting for an Islamic state in the Middle East whose violent activities show they are not Muslims.
"The atrocity that is being carried out by ISIS is quite horrible. It's quite inhumane. It's terrorism and in Canada they have successfully recruited more than 100 people to go and fight for them in Iraq and Syria," Soharwardy said.
"I want to create awareness about the nature of their work — they are using Islam, they are quoting Qur'an, they look like Muslims, they pray like Muslims but they are not Muslim. They are deviant people, and they are doing exactly everything which goes against Islam."
Soharwardy said he wants to make sure Muslim youth know that ISIS militants are not Muslims because many are being brainwashed by the terror group and other radical leaders.
He said he also wants to reach out to Canadians to show that Muslims condemn the violence being committed by the terror group in northern Iraq and Syria, including the recent beheading of American journalist James Foley.
"This is not jihad, this is terrorism," he said. "My focus is Muslim youth, yes, but at the same time creating awareness to all Canadians that we condemn these people as strongly, maybe more strongly, than any other Canadian because they are creating a negative image of my faith — they are creating a negative image of all Muslim communities — and they are betraying us."
Soharwardy says he wants Muslim youth considering going overseas to fight with ISIS to reach out to him.
He also wants to see a united Muslim stand against ISIS, and is calling for Muslim leaders around the world to isolate and condemn ISIS militants from the Muslim community.
Syed Soharwardy, appealed to Canadian and Western authorities to take on the jihadist movements more aggressively.
"Absolutely I am convinced that this recruitment is going on right here in this country, under our noses, in our universities, in our colleges, in the places of worship, in our community," Soharwardy told CBC public television, according to an AFP report.
Soharwardy said that a Canadian Muslim from Ottawa who is in Mosul, Iraq and fights for the Islamic State made a death threat against the Canadian Imam on Facebook. "He was condemning me for condemning ISIS, and he was saying that 'You are a deviant Imam and your version of Islam is not the right version.,’” Soharwardy said.
The Imam, who is based in Calgary, said that this is not the first threat he has received against his life. "I get death threats from everybody," he said, adding: "just last month I had a death threat posted on a website."
Canadian Intelligence services had said in February that there were at least 150 Canadian Muslims fighting in Iraq and Syria. "Three Calgarian young fellows died in Iraq and Syria fighting for ISIS. One of them was very known to me," Soharwardy said adding: "These people are brainwashing people here in this country."
His hunger strike will end Sunday evening.
Syed Soharwardy, the Founder of the Islamic Supreme Council of Canada or ISCC, appealed to Canadian and Western authorities to take on the jihadist movements more aggressively.
"Absolutely I am convinced that this recruitment is going on right here in this country, under our noses, in our universities, in our colleges, in the places of worship, in our community," Soharwardy told CBC public television, according to an AFPreport.
Soharwardy said that a Canadian Muslim from Ottawa who is in Mosul, Iraq and fights for the Islamic State made a death threat against the Canadian Imam on Facebook. "He was condemning me for condemning ISIS, and he was saying that 'You are a deviant Imam and your version of Islam is not the right version.,’” Soharwardy said.
The Imam, who is based in Calgary, said that this is not the first threat he has received against his life. "I get death threats from everybody," he said, adding: "just last month I had a death threat posted on a website."
Canadian Intelligence services had said in February that there were at least 150 Canadian Muslims fighting in Iraq and Syria. "Three Calgarian young fellows died in Iraq and Syria fighting for ISIS. One of them was very known to me," Soharwardy said adding: "These people are brainwashing people here in this country."
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