Obama aide: Don’t classify ISIL as Islamic group
A senior Obama administration official says the so-called Islamic State in Iraq and Levant (ISIL) is not a religious ideology but a dangerous terrorist group that has to be dealt with militarily.
In an interview with Fox News on Sunday, Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Secretary Jeh Johnson said he would not classify the terrorist organization as an Islamic ideology.
He said that “ISIL is a terrorist organization that represents a serious potential threat to our homeland which [has] to be addressed militarily and through a whole of government approach.”
Johnson said that “in places like Minneapolis, Boston, L.A., Chicago, Columbus, Ohio, the thing I hear from leaders in the Muslim community in this country is, ‘ISIL is attempting to hijack my religion. Our religion is about peace and brotherhood and ISIL is attempting to hijack that from us.’”
He added, “Most victims of ISIL are, in fact, Muslims.”
“So it seems to me that to refer to ISIL as occupying any part of the Islamic theology is playing on a battlefield that they would like us to be on. I think that to call them some form of Islam gives the group more dignity than it deserves," he stated.
The ISIL terrorists, who were initially trained by the CIA in Jordan in 2012 to destabilize the Syrian government, now control large parts Iraq and Syria.
The terrorists are engaged in crimes against humanity in the areas under their control. They have terrorized and killed people of all communities, including Shias, Sunnis, Kurds, and Christians.
Since late September, the US and some of its Arab allies have been carrying out airstrikes against ISIL inside Syria without any authorization from Damascus or a UN mandate.
US warplanes have been conducting airstrikes against ISIL in Iraq since early August. Some Western states have also participated in some of the strikes in Iraq.
The US-led coalition has done little to stop the ISIL's advances in Syria and Iraq.
Some analysts have criticized the US-led aerial military campaigns in Iraq and Syria, saying the strikes are meant to destroy the Arab countries’ infrastructures.
GJH/GJH
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