British Muslim children as young as 11 are being given classes to prevent them being radicalised (Daesh). This comes after community leaders feared they were being targeted by extremist online propaganda.
Imams and Islamic teachers warned a war of ideologies is currently being fought in their own mosques, communities, and on social media following the rise of terror groups in Syria and Iraq.
The Al-Hira mosque, home to one of the largest madrassas in Luton, is in its first year of giving anti-Daesh classes for pupils aged 11 to 16.
Started eight months ago, the classes are described by the mosques leaders as part of a new grassroots strategy which they say has become more effective than the government’s own anti-extremism programme.
Most of the young people from aged nine are on social media and they know what Daesh are – its very easy for them to go down the wrong path, Dawood Masood, senior manager of Al-Hira, tells.
At the mosque, we engage so many young people face-to-face daily that I think its important to provide [another] narrative to them and to make sure we keep them safe.
He starts off by asking pupils what they know about the so-called Islamic State. Pupils respond with condemnation: the groups fighters are murderers, kill innocent people and are wrong.
He asks a follow-up question: What would you do if someone asks you online Will you do jihad...?
Again, pupils reply in similar tones: You cant trust them, Theyre dangerous, They dont follow the teachings of Islam.
Attracted by guns and cars
I first found out about Daesh about a year ago, says 16-year-old Zeeshan Shazad, who has been attending Al-Hira since a young age. Ive seen quite a lot of their promotional videos [on social media].
I think [Daesh videos] are quite persuasive to young people, with all the guns and the cars, and the way they portray the adventure side of it – it attracts young people living in small little towns.
Most of [my friends] agree with me about how bad [Daesh] is. But some people think some of the things they’re doing is alright, and agree with them. The class here is really informative and tells us what our beliefs are, compared to [Daeshs] beliefs, and it shows where they are wrong.
Hurera Mahmood, 14, another Al-Hira pupil from Luton, has also been exposed to violent IS videos. He says the shocking content goes against Islam.
A [Daesh] video I watched recently said that we can’t enforce the law without guns and swords. They’re very violent people. It’s not a true reflection of Islam, they’re just using it to cover their actions. They contradict a lot of what Islam says.
Imam Ehsan agreed the government’s programme had lost its way. He said the authorities should in the future spend more resources supporting trusted classes like those being carried out at madrassas like his own.
These kind of classes, if they get support from the government that could be more influential [than Prevent]. Here in the mosques, the children and the parents have trust. The children also have confidence in their teachers so they can discuss easily.
Masood, who is also the founder of anti-extremism charity Quba Trust, added: I feel the British government can do much more if they came to the grassroots and worked with the local community. Muslims are countering radicalisation, they are countering extremist views, and they are speaking against terrorists.
source : hawzahnews
