What's Wrong With This Headline?

Moderate Muslims Split on Suicide Bombings

Britain's largest Sunni Muslim group met in Birmingham on Sunday and issued a binding religious edict, or fatwa, condemning the suicide attacks that killed dozens on three London subway trains and a double-decker bus as the work of a "perverted ideology." The group's governing council said the Quran forbade suicide attacks and called such terrorism a sin that could send the perpetrators to hell.

But...

Underlining the sensitivity of the issue, Musawi's contention that attacks are justified against "occupiers" came only after a spokesman for the leaders read a carefully worded statement condemning the London attacks. Even so, none of the other scholars and imams at the event expressed disagreement with his stance.

And...

[T]he recent reaction by Muslim leaders in Britain about suicide bombings could confuse some Muslims, given the cloudy definition of what constitutes "occupying forces."

Debates rage over whether the suicide bombings that target Westerners in Afghanistan, Russians because of Chechnya and Israelis in response to the occupation of the Gaza Strip and West Bank are permitted by the Quran. [SNIP]

Imam Ibrahim Mogra said he believed the widespread public opposition to the war in Iraq had played a part in the London attacks, which he criticized as murderous and unjustified.

Now, do you feel reassured? Me, neither.

(Thanks to Lucianne.com)

Comments

[dave]

You know what they say-- you can't be "sort of" pregnant.

If these guys go one millimeter toward justifying the attacks, they've gone all the way there. They are either justified or not. To say "I understand their motivation" is to say "I might have done the same if I had been in their shoes", and it disqualifies the speaker from even continuing his speech.

[MorningSun]

The News is misleading us on the Moderate Muslim thing. What we should be looking for is Liberal Muslims. Because under every definition I've found the Ayotollah Komenie is a Moderate Muslim. As are his Henchmen.

The MSM don't want to " offend Muslims " but they also don't want to tell us the truth.

[sharona]

Besides all the good points made by the other respondants, I am struck by the fact that the editors actually used the headline "Are Moderate Muslims Split On Terrorism". Some say the London bombers were moderate, but they were literally "split" many times over when they set off their bombs.

[Noble Eagle]

Somehow I can't picture a headline from the MSM reading:

"Moderate Pro-Lifers Spilt on Abortion Clinic Bombings"

Apparently they have two sets of standards. Then again, I could be wrong. Maybe the reporting is too "nuanced" for me.

[Brian H]

Yeah, moderate is as moderate does. Islamic moderates are more than split, they're caught in a cleft stick. That whole community is going to find that double-talking is going to wash less and less as time goes on, IMO.