The US and its allies have reiterated that their retaliation is not against Islam but rather against a group of terrorists, who are in a country that is Muslim or predominantly Muslim.

The local thinking and opinion is that an attack against a Muslim is an attack against all Muslims. This would seem to be the interpretation given by some followers of Islam, as to how Muslims should react to attacks now being carried out by the Allied Forces against selected targets in Afghanistan.

These are some questions for Muslims and non-Muslims to ponder;

1) From reports it would seem that a sizeable number of Muslims perished in the Sept 11 incidents. How would Islamic clerics look at the attacks that killed innocent people, amongst them, Muslims?

2) Where is the justice then for those Muslims who were killed at the WTC on Sept 11?

3) Islam forbids suicide, and it is a sin for a Muslim to commit suicide. Now assuming for one moment that the Americans have accurately identified the perpetrators of the horrendous attacks on Sept 11, if those perpetrators were not Muslims when they boarded their respective flights, than the question of Muslims being involved does not arise. However, we are told by the American media that the perpetrators were Muslims.

If those perpetrators knew that theirs was a suicidal mission, the question here would be did they die as Muslims? What about those who died in the plane that was forced to crash?

When we analyse these questions I hope that my Muslim and non-Muslim brothers may look at the whole issue differently.