OPINION:
Be careful what you wish for because you just may get it. In response to “Being Christian is a death sentence,” (Comment & Analysis, Dec. 22) referring to persecuted Christians in the Middle East, once again we find the consequences of our often incompetent and shortsighted foreign policy.
It is ironic that under Saddam Hussein, Christians were discriminated against but were relatively free to practice their religion. Only after we went in to bring “democracy” to the Iraqis did the destruction of churches and persecution and killing of Christians begin in earnest.
For decades, Washington rolled out the red carpet for former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak, whose outstretched hand received the second-largest foreign aid from American taxpayers. Not once did any of our presidents bring up the persecution of Coptic Christians.
On Feb. 23, less than two weeks after Mr. Mubarak’s ouster, a priest was found dead with several stab wounds, and witnesses say masked men shouting “Allahu akbar” (God is great) were seen leaving his apartment. The incident triggered protests in the southern city of Assiut, where Christians scuffled with Muslims. Coptic Christians were second-class citizens under the Mubarak regime, but their churches were protected and there were half-hearted attempts to rein in radical Islamists. But since the “Arab Spring,” authorities have turned a blind eye as Muslims have run wild, burning churches, murdering Christians and rampaging through Christian communities. Once a majority in Egypt, Coptic Christians now make up about 10 percent of the country’s 85 million people. They are the largest Christian community in the Middle East, with a history dating back 19 centuries.
Similarly, the Kosovo Serbs were once the majority in their region, with a history that dates back more than 1,000 years. We couldn’t wait to get rid of Slobodan Milosevic, so we supported the Kosovo Liberation Army (KLA) jihadists, and what did we get? A bunch of narcoterrorists who are responsible for 80 percent of Europe’s drug trafficking and a “prime minister” in the breakaway province who has been implicated in harvesting the bodies of young Serbian soldiers. But not to worry - our State Department has reassured that prime minister that despite these accusations, our relations with Kosovo remain strong.
It’s funny about dictators. We want them out of office but never know what we are going to get in return. One of the best examples happened when Jimmy Carter pulled the rug out from under the Shah of Iran, who was trying to bring his people into the 20th century. What did we get in return? The Ayatollah Khomeini.
STELLA L. JATRAS
Camp Hill, Pa.
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