FOCA Condemns Hostage Massacre

Washington, DC—The Friends of Charities Association (FOCA), a trade association of leading faith-based charities, condemns the act by Chechen and foreign terrorists aimed at Russian schoolchildren and their families. FOCA reiterates its position that Islam condemns terrorism in all its faces and forms. Such a vile attack on innocent civilians and children is beyond the bounds of any recognized struggle and subject to the ultimate penalty for the deviants who commit it.

“No cause, political or otherwise, can justify this action,” stated FOCA spokesman Wendell Belew. The members of FOCA believe that such actions only serve to compound human suffering and must be condemned. “Conducting such terrorist acts in the course of human conflict is a rejection of the norms of civilized society,” added Belew.

“The deliberate targeting of children in front of their mothers is a particularly heinous act and in direct violation of Islamic rules of engagement in times of conflict,” stated Asim Ghafoor, a FOCA attorney. In addition to the Prophet Muhammad’s clear and unambiguous prohibition regarding slaying noncombatants in war, according to Islamic tradition, the Prophet once while on an expedition witnessed some of his companions take a baby bird from its nest. The bird’s mother began to fly above and the Prophet sensed its anguished cries from above for her chick. He stated that the cry of a mother for her children is sacred and ordered that the baby bird be released. “Such recorded sayings are not just inspirational but also carry legal authority, applicable to dealings among people as well,” added Ghafoor.

FOCA expresses its utmost condolences to the families of those who have been innocently killed in this tragic attack. “As charities, our members focus their efforts on treating humanitarian crises that arise in nature and human conflict,” Belew stated.

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