Muslims, their religion should not take blame for terrorists' crimes

While terror attacks in three different parts of the world on Friday highlight the grave danger the world is facing now, some Western media's bias against Muslims is equally dangerous because such prejudice can only ferment hatred and polarization.

On Friday, the world was shocked as terrorists following a call for violence by the Islamic State (IS) militant group staged three bloody terrorist attacks in different parts of the world, killing and injuring dozens of innocent people.

At the same time, the tendency of defaming Islam is widely visible in Western media.

What the terrorists have done was repulsive. It is undeniable. And coordinated or not, three attacks in three continents on one day obviously underscored the daunting challenges posed by terrorism.

But this does not grant the legitimacy to label followers of a particular religion as terrorists or accusing it as an ideology that preaches violence and intolerance.

Muslims and their religion as a whole should not be blamed for the actions of a few fanatical individuals or a small group who claim to uphold "Islamic doctrines." It is the criminals, not the religion, should be blamed for the terrorism crimes.

In Europol's report on terrorism in the European Union (EU) in 2014, the EU's law-enforcement agency noted that the largest proportion of terrorist attacks in the EU in 2013 were related to separatist groups, instead of religion-related terrorism.

And one of the worst terror attacks ever in Europe was in 2011perpetrated by Anders Breivik, an anti-Muslim, anti-immigrant white supremacist, slaughtering 77 people in Norway.

Not only the idea of labeling a particular religion as doctrine of terrorists is prejudiced and without any grounds, it will also further alienate the relations between different civilizations. Unwarranted accusations of Muslims from Western world will exacerbate the cultural divide.

In the so-called "war against terrorism," Western countries have shown chauvinism and hegemonic sentiment when dealing with sensitive issues with Islamic world. A lack of cooperative spirit and respect has pushed the United States and its European allies further away from the Middle East countries.

For Muslims who live in the shadow of air raids from Western warplanes, it is hard to believe that bombing from the United States is for justice.

To eradicate terrorism for good, the only way is to maintain peace and stability in war-torn regions, as terrorism always thrives in instabilities and poverty.

In fact, the success of the IS is largely contributed to the unstable situation in Syria and Iraq. And throwing misgivings and prejudices is nothing but detrimental to restoring peace and stability in the Middle East. Enditem