New approach toward global evil

Vladimir Simonov, Political Analyst, RIA Novosti, Moscow

The involvement of the radical Islamic group Jamaah Islamiyah in the JW Marriott hotel blast in Jakarta is no longer a matter of supposition, but proof. The radical Islamic group has clearly chosen the world's most populous Muslim country as the focus of its campaign to kill innocent people.

This kind of decision could hardly have been made at a local level. Although anti-terrorist experts do not believe that Jamaah Islamiyah is a branch of al-Qaeda, the two organizations do co- operate closely. Bin Laden generously finances his "younger brothers" in Jakarta and Bali.

International terrorism is expanding its scope, all the while claiming more lives in the Muslim world. Against this backdrop, America's wars in Afghanistan and Iraq look like minor, local campaigns, incommensurate with the global and multi-faceted terrorist threat.

Moreover, the U.S.'s invasion of Afghanistan, like the occupation of Iraq, has only served to whip up the hostility of the Muslim population and this is now being exploited by Islamic radicals.

The ruling elites of some Islamic states should carry their fair share of the blame for the new victims of terrorism. Under pressure from radical lobbies, the governments of these countries are acting slowly to block financial flows to terrorists groups and at times engage in secret contacts with their bosses. In their turn, local secret services have adopted a passive position, and are in no hurry to plant their agents in terrorist cells, a practice pursued by the U.S. today.

Consequently, the tumor of terrorism keeps spreading in the Muslim world itself and, more often that not, in those states that covertly sponsor it.

This has led to the emergence of an idea that is gaining more and more popularity in many influential capitals. Should the Islamic world do more to fight its heretics who preach terrorist methods? Would it not be worth establishing an anti-terrorist coalition based on the true principles of Islam, rejecting violence and even more so the murder of innocent people?

Hints of this idea came in an unexpected proposal from Russian President Vladimir Putin during his visit to Malaysia. Putin announced that Russia, where there are even more Muslims than in the latter country, should join the Organization of the Islamic Conference. "I am suggesting that Russia should be presented in the Organization of the Islamic Conference at the first stage, at least as an observer," he said.

This is not the first time that the Russian leader has publicly raised the problem of Islam's key role. However, on this occasion the phrasing was extremely interesting. It seems that Putin's comments were set in the context of a search for new forces to act in the global anti-terrorist coalition formed following the events of Sept. 11, 2001.

The Russian leader is evidently prepared to make great efforts to halt the spread of Islamic extremism, including from Chechnya. At the same time, when speaking about this threat, Putin always makes a distinct difference between genuine Islam as a peaceful, humane religion and the pseudo-religious slogans used as a cover by fanatics.

Interestingly, Malaysia, which takes over the OIC rotating chair in October, supported the Russian president's initiative without any hesitation. This continues the OIC leadership's traditionally considerate attitude with regard to Moscow's actions that affect the interests of 20 million Russian Muslims.

In particular, this January, the OIC secretary general made it clear that Chechnya was the Russian Federation's internal affair. One could argue that Russia's accession to the OIC could help the international community understand that the tragedies of the Moscow theater hostage-taking and the recent Mozdok bombing, on the one hand, are the same as the dreadful events in Jakarta and Bali, on the other.

Putin's proposal was praised by Russia's Spiritual Board of Muslims, which saw it as "a timely response to the threat of terrorism." It seems that the Islamic world is becoming increasingly inclined to believe that it is time to take back the green banner of Islam from the bloodied hands of apostates.