Once again, the filthy scourge of suicide murder has reared its despicable head, this time in Istanbul, Turkey. Innocent people are once again the target of brainwashed homicidal lunatics, one of whom was captured on film dispatching himself to Hell, the destination our Prophet (peace upon him) has promised anyone who commits suicide.

This hellacious wave of demonic violence has become a pathetic norm in the Muslim world. As I mentioned recently, I will never tire of condemning it. We should, however, also condemn the so-called Ulama who first issued the fatwas allowing this heinous practice, which when it first appeared among the Muslim people, was universally condemned by the scholars.

Suicide is haram and its perpetrator is promised Hell. Murder is haram and its perpetrator is promised Hell. What else can we do, the angry critic of these words will ask? Others will add, they bomb and kill our innocent people. For starters we can pray, learn our religion and follow the prophetic discouragement about becoming angry, La Taghdab! Anger and rage are the product of an ideology. Restraint, forbearance, pardoning, educating and service are the products of a religion. Islam is a religion, not an ideology.

None of those people murdered in Istanbul has ever killed a Muslim. In all likelihood, most of the victims were themselves Muslims. Will the polemicists who attribute these crimes to Islam tweet that these murderers hate Islam? If they were to do so, they would be uttering a sad, ironic truth.