American Muslim organization applauds FBI for actions in Portland, OR

Whack-A-Mole approach needs greater offensive counterterrorism strategy against Islamist radicalization

PHOENIX (November 30, 2010) – Dr. M. Zuhdi Jasser, a devout Muslim and the president and founder of the American Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) issued the following statement regarding the FBI’s actions with regard to Mohamed Osman Mohamud’s attack in Portland, OR.

“The thwarted attack of Mohamed Osman Mohamud continues to highlight the ever-increasing threat that the ideological slippery slope of political Islam (Islamism) poses to America. The comments that Mohamud made to investigators and that have been released to the media demonstrate a belief in Islamist supremacy that is in conflict with American values and our very way of life. Despite the courageous work of our FBI agents and Homeland Security the threat of homegrown terror from radicalized Muslims continues to exponentially increase.

We are only playing defense against this growing threat with no signs of an offensive strategy. More and more, our homeland security strategy is turning out to be nothing more than a whack-a-mole program. This cycle will only be broken by the development of a national strategy that will counter the true root cause of Islamist terror-the ideology and continuum of political Islam that lies within the Muslim consciousness. This again calls for an American Muslim led strategy for reform against political Islam.

The FBI’s tactic of using undercover agents to contact and target Mohamud is more than justified and more than likely saved the lives of thousands of individuals. Mohamud clearly demonstrated a desire and a will to attack Americans. As we have seen with Nidal Hasan, Faisal Shahzad and Umar Farouk Abdul Mutallab, it is only a matter of time before he would have reached terror leaders such as Imam Anwar Al-Awlaki and secured the means to wreak his destruction. The FBI has a duty to protect our citizens from such attacks and at AIFD we applaud their efforts to disrupt Islamist terrorism.

As we move forward into 2011, Americans and particularly American Muslims need to wake up to their responsibility to frontally address the ideological threat that we are facing today. Mohamud’s radicalization is not uncommon because the separatist ideology of political Islam is ubiquitous in Muslim communities. Condemnation of violence or terrorism is not enough. We can no longer allow the sound bite to be ‘it is one deranged individual’. This is a Muslim systemic problem that needs a Muslim systemic reform.

American Muslims must teach our youth that the ideals of America and the principles embodied in our Constitution provide the best environment for Muslims to practice their faith. We must teach our youth that the idea of the Islamic State and governmental shariah (Islamic law) has no place in modernity and no place in America. Any other approach is mired in denial and avoidance of this core ideological problem.”

About the American Islamic Forum for Democracy

The American Islamic Forum for Democracy (AIFD) is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) charitable organization. AIFD’s mission advocates for the preservation of the founding principles of the United States Constitution, liberty and freedom, through the separation of mosque and state. For more information on AIFD, please visit our website at http://www.aifdemocracy.org/.

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