Statement from the Bund fuer soziale Verteidigung on the attacks on New York City and Washington DC

We are shocked at the level of terror of today's attacks in the USA. There are no words to describe the horror, or at least to understand what tragedies have happened in the buildings and the planes. We only know for sure that innocent people have been sacrificed to a barbarian calculation. And we only have helpless gestures as this one to express our grief and sympathy that we feel.

But we speak up also because we feel concern:

Concern that the United States will not wait until the perpetrators are identified and are made accountable in conformity with the rule of law. We fear that instead the US government will take revenge by attacking one or several countries whose governments it suspects of collaboration with the terrorists. Such acts of revenge would just cost more lives of a unknown number of innocent people.

We are also concerned that such revenge might lead to new violent acts, be it from the side of terrorists, be it from the side of countries attacked in revenge strikes. The danger that such actions, guided by emotions, could lead through a spiral of violence and counterviolence to outright war should not be under-estimated.

We are horrified that at this moment all observers assume that the terroristic attacks will stop all attempts to find a peaceful settlement in the Middle East, and that the already existing gap between the Western and the Islamic countries will deepen.

We also fear that the Islamic community and religion will be blamed for the deeds of a few criminals without conscience who call themselves muslims, and that the dialogue between the religious communities will be thrown back a long way. But terrorists have neither religion nor national identity. They just abuse both for their goals, and one cannot do them a greater favour than accepting that abuse at face value.

Therefore we appeal to all responsible politicians not to answer terror with terror, not to move the spiral of violence onward. The right answer to terror is not revenge but calm action. The perpetrators have to be brought to justice. But no more innocent people must die.

Our fellow citizens we ask to display the same calm and care. Do not get mislead by strong words. Remember that truth is often the first victim in a crisis. Check carefull if the information that the media will present you in the next days is the truth.

Barbara Müller and Christine Schweitzer