I was really taken aback the day Osama Bin Laden died—not by the news itself, but by the masks that fell off the faces of some of my friends.
They are pretty girls who cannot be categorized as conservative or rigid. In fact, most of them are not even veiled. They love eating black cod fish in Zuma (contemporary Japanese cuisine) and mozzarella cheese in La Petite Maison. They come from an intellectual upper class. But I was shocked by their mourning of a “loss of the nation.”
I have never been interested in changing their religious views nor will I attempt to ever do so due to my deeply-rooted conviction that these are personal beliefs and that everyone should be comfortable with his or her ideas. I have never had a problem with that. I was, however, astounded by the contradiction. One of those girls, a shoe-aholic who gets her shoes from Paris, is now grieving for Bin Laden. “My religious zeal is eating me up as I see the Americans celebrating the death of a man who gave his life for his religion,” she said.
I argued with her, but I wish I hadn’t. I was hoping that at the end of the discussion I would be reassured that she did not really approve of what Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda were doing. However, with every minute I retreated a thousand steps. I finally came to realize that she fully supported what Bin Laden did.
In fact she had an answer to every question.
“Did you approve of murdering civilians?” I asked her.
“No,” she replied. “No one could approve that, but he had no other choice at the time and jihad was ordered by God.”
I went on, still hoping that I might find a way out for her.
“Do you think he will be going to heaven?” I asked.
“Only God knows,” she said. “No one can tell who is going where except God, but he sacrificed his life for God and I hope he is rewarded in accordance to his deeds.”
A lipstick… A lace hairband… A Chanel purse…
Behind all these lies a soul thirsty for innocent people’s blood, whose shedding she justifies by necessity and Islamic zeal.
Several masks have fallen. I am very grateful to Bin Laden. Hadn’t it been for him, I would have never had such clarity of vision.
Finally, I want to quote a portion from Bin Laden’s alleged will: “Youth of the nation, if you strive for death, life will be given to you.”
By Jude Alkelabi
