By Brigitte L. Nacos
As I looked at the images of masked gunmen in the Gaza strip and the West Bank,
I was reminded of the hostage-holders during the 1985 TWA Flight 847 hijacking
and the subsequent hostage crisis. Then, the terrorists hid behind masks, when
they held a press conference to justify their hijacking during which a young
U.S. Navy diver was brutally murdered. I thought of the masked terrorists in Iraq who videotaped their unspeakable violence—the decapitation of their Western
hostages. And I thought of Palestinian militants hiding their faces in their
clashes with Israelis. Last week, masked Hamas and Fatah gunmen in Gaza and the West Bank fought and killed each other not in one more brawl but in all-out battles for control
of the two regions. Since all of these men claimed that they acted for just
and good causes, why would they hide their faces behind masks-- because they
fear the wrath of their foes—or because it is easier to kill when human faces
give way to faceless inhumanity?
To be sure, non-state and state actors committed in the past and commit today horrendous violence in many parts of the world. But it is also true that violence at this particular time is especially prevalent in Arab and Muslim countries—and not only in response foreign forces, such as in Afghanistan and Iraq. Like in Gaza and the West Bank, domestic factions fight each other in Iraq and elsewhere.
While not disregarding or excusing the policies of the U.S.and others in these regions—and their impact, I believe that only Arab and Muslim leaders, secular and religious, have the credibility and, hopefully the authority to stop the out-of-control violence in so many places. Unless home-grown voices of reason and morality speak out forcefully against violence and show the will to prevail with a united front against violence and anarchy, conditions are likely to deteriorate further.
The latter would be only in the interest of lawless individuals, groups, and their governmental sponsors.
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