Freedom Flotilla attack: A wake up call

I thought my blogging days are long gone as I have so many things to do, so many new responsibilities that requires me to channel all my energy and time to mainly studies, work and family. However, I got a wakeup call that made me realize, blogging and writing, conveying my ideas and opinions, provoking thoughts and spreading the words of Islam, is one of my responsibilities as well. So here I am, here I go.

On Monday, May 31^st 2010, the world was shaken by the inhumane Israel commando attack on the humanitarian aid mission to Gaza called the Freedom Flotilla. The attack was made with the ‘justification’ that the flotilla was seen as a provocation to the Israeli military and territory, and it violates the ‘blockade’ imposed on Gaza. The flotilla consists of several boats carrying food and medicines for more than 100,000 Palestinians in Gaza, most of them living without shelters and necessary medical attention.

Freedom Flotilla under siege

The pre-dawn attack on international waters (NOT Israel waters, AS IF they even exist) involved live-ammunition fires from the Israeli commandos, in response to the ‘attacks’ by the volunteers on board. The volunteers ‘attacked’ the commandos in self defence, with slingshots and thin metal pipes. Somehow, the elite commandos got so scared and threatened they have to open fire to defend themselves from these ‘savage’ attacks, killing 16 people and injuring more than 50 people in the process.

The world responded almost immediately with statements by country heads including Turkey, Greece, Germany, France, Lebanon, United Kingdom and many more. As always, the best that they did was to condemn, expressed regrets over losses of innocent lives, raged and angered by the excessive forces blah blah blah. None of the response did any good, at least not directly, to the people on board of the flotilla and the people of Gaza. Israel keeps on defending their troops (called IDF), saying it was an act of self defence and maritime law enforcement.

Brave Palestinian boy surrounded by Israeli militants

The reactions, and even to some extent the attacks by Israel is not that surprising actually. Can we actually get surprised by inhumane acts committed by Israelis while history had proven time and again that they are indeed the most violent, arrogant and evil people in the world? Are we really expecting other countries nowadays, with the exception of Lebanon and Iran, to react physically to the attacks launched by Israel? Aren’t we got used to and sick with these verbal, diplomatic reactions, emergency UN meetings, resolutions, peace talks and all the false hopes given by our leaders?

The question remains; what can we do as young, common people when the entire world leaders could do is to condemn Israel? The answers, my friends, are obvious.

I’d like to think that the readers of my blog, my posts and status in Facebook, as well as readers of other great blogs and writings on Facebook as future leaders, young thinkers and intellectuals that aspire to do something significant in the world.

Therefore, you should know that all there is for us to do is to be somebody. Be important, competent, respected, acknowledged, famous, even idolized so that we can, not only speak out to the world, but actually take meaningful actions in defending our countries, religion and faith. This may not happen in one year, or even a decade, or maybe not in our lifetime but sooner or later, Islam will rise again. We have to have the ambition to be part of this, the drivers and workers and forces behind the promised rise of Islam to the top of the world.

How do we be important, famous, acknowledged? Well, it starts with doing well in studies, at work, in volunteering and NGO movements, in da’wah and tarbiyyah. How to do well in those? Equip and enrich ourselves. Start reading serious, meaningful and substantial books and articles (not Harry Potter or Twilight saga or Galaxie), start having intellectual dialogues and discussions, start writing and blogging about things that matter, and above all, START THINKING! We have to WAKE UP, THINK and ACT. Time is not on our side, not ours to lose. Let’s be important, and important changes we will bring to the world.

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~ by jfa3903 on June 1, 2010.