OPINION:
I am a Muslim-American belonging to the Ahmadiyya Muslim community and I unequivocally condemn the barbaric beheading of a French teacher by a Muslim teen who was enraged that his victim showcased to students inflammatory caricatures of the prophet Muhammad.
The very founder of Islam, who in the name of free speech was defamed in these cartoons, decried the use of violence against those who openly mocked him. Instead, he prayed for his detractors. Many of them, recognizing their errors in judgment, became his ardent followers.
The murder in Paris is a tragedy of great proportions, both because of its chilling nature and the twisted interpretation of Islam behind it. I wish the perpetrator had known that the true Islam taught by the prophet instructs not violence against hatred, but patience and prayer.
SOHAIL HUSAIN
Mountain View, Calif.
Please read our comment policy before commenting.