Middle-east Arab News Opinion | Asharq Al-awsat

Bin Akef! | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Mohammed Mahdi Akef, the supreme guide of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood (MB) tried to swallow his words in which he praised the leader of the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden, whom he considered to be a faithful mujahid (resistance fighter). However, instead of fixing the situation, he ended up making matters worse.

Mr. Mahdi Akef tried to water down his statements in which he had praised Bin Laden and thus justified it by saying, “what Bin Laden is doing against the occupier in Iraq and other Muslim countries that are under occupation is jihad, but what he is committing against people and civilians in Muslim and other states is wrong.”

The question is: Are the acts that Al-Qaeda is committing in Iraq; the killing, treachery and entrapment of people, including the physically ill, women and children; the beheadings and targeting of markets, schools and houses of worship, not to mention the demolition of installations and the crippling of the political process in Iraq – be considered jihad? Can the crimes that Al-Qaeda commits in Afghanistan be considered jihad?

The statements made by the head of the MB and his attempt to redress the praising of Osama Bin Laden can only be described as sophistry and an effort in vain that would not fool any sane person. Statements such as these that aim to laud and glorify a terrorist like Osama Bin Laden issued by a figure such as the MB’s supreme guide in Egypt make him deserving of the title ‘Bin Akef’.

The praise extolled by the Muslim Brotherhood’s guide for Bin Laden can only be described as a crime. Is it conceivable for anyone to defend the leader of Al-Qaeda after the crimes he and his terrorist organization have committed and are still committing in Iraq, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Morocco, Tunisia, Jordan, Algeria, Yemen, Europe, America, and other states around the world?

Akef’s recent statements about Bin Laden come from the head of an organization that presents itself under the banner of “Islam is the solution”, while its members present themselves as tolerant and as believers in the political process. But the truth is that the MB group is a problem and not a solution, and they pose a grave danger.

It was the MB that tried to form paramilitary militias in Egypt, like Hezbollah and Hamas then said that was nothing but “child’s play”. Bin Akef was the one to say “to hell with Egypt”, and it was his group that tried to draft a constitutional reform for Egypt that sought to fragment its social contract.

Moreover, it was Bin Akef’s organization that issued a statement in support of the Damascus regime at the most recent Arab summit and supported Hezbollah following its coup on Beirut. The MB also has strong ties with the Iranian regime that seek to take over the Arab world.

Today, it is not strange for the leader of the MB to praise the head of Al-Qaeda and this is why Mr. Mahdi Akef warrants the name Bin Akef, following the example of the man that Akef praises for his alleged faithful dedication!