Goran Vojković: In ISIL terrorist attacks, Muslims die in greater numbers than Christians

By: Goran Vojković
(Text taken with permission from the editorial board of Index.hr)

It is completely normal and human that a tragedy in your neighbourhood or your own country arouses more interest than a tragedy in some unknown, distant country. Also, no one should be ashamed for paying more attention to a terrorist attack in Paris or Brussels than to one in some not-so-familiar Asian city.

People are emotional creatures, and terrorist attacks on cities that are symbols of this civilisation, such as Paris, or cities where many of us and people we know travel for business, like Brussels, create a different reaction in us than terrorist attacks on cities where human tragedy is somewhat more distant. After all, some scenes, like Paris in spring with the Eiffel Tower in the background, are so ingrained in our consciousness that any disturbance of that idyllic image stirs unease in us at the very news that something bad is happening there.

But, of course, it is also human to force ourselves to look at tragedy beyond our own doorstep, to consider people both near and far as equals, and to sometimes remind ourselves to read something about that tragedy in a distant, unknown city. We should remember to mourn the victims there as well, and to help as much and as best we can, from sending humanitarian aid onwards.

If we truly want to analyse a social situation, a movement, or the causes of a war conflict, we must consider the whole picture. We must rise above headlines that only convey what is close and readable; instead of words and bold newspaper headlines, we should use numbers. And then, with numbers, with a cool head, without prejudice, look at what is really happening. And what is happening, besides war, are terrorist bomb attacks that spare no one – where civilians, children, Muslims, Christians, and Jews all die.

Trust headlines less, and numbers more

When the numbers are laid out – in ISIL terrorist attacks, Muslims die in greater numbers than Christians.

We won't even mention the dead and wounded on the front lines (where Muslims are the majority of fighters against ISIL), but here on the chart we have countries, dates, and numbers of those killed in terrorist attacks. Most bomb attacks are in countries where Muslims are the majority, so in Yemen, which also suffers severe terrorist attacks, Muslims make up 99 percent of the population! A bomb in Yemen at a market or similar place – out of 100 people, it will kill 99 Muslims.

So, this is not about any inter-religious war – but a war of terrorists, ISIL, a criminal state entity of Wahhabi rebels in the territory of Iraq and Syria, against the rest of humanity, regardless of religion. They fight against all who do not respect their version of Islam, so first against the rest of Muslims, because they are physically closest, and then against others.

Trust headlines less and numbers more – the fight against ISIL is not a war of religions, nor a war of states, but a fight against a state and a regime of evil.