Haj is the largest religious congregation in the world. Muslims from different countries assemble in Makkah to perform Haj. They go to Mina, Arafat and Muzdalifah to complete the religious rituals. Men, women and children of different cultural backgrounds, ethnicities and colors gather in millions seeking the blessings of God. They shun hostilities and acrimonies, and exercise tolerance as they perform the Haj rituals. They, in fact, demonstrate the true picture of Islam.

However, many groups that somehow link themselves to Islam are killing innocent people in many countries. Taleban in Pakistan and Boko Haram are only two of them. These people have hurt the image of Islam —the religion of peace. They have presented a distorted image of this great religion. It is really unfortunate that such groups are aided by some people and no real action is taken against them. As Muslims perform Haj and show the world that they are all equal irrespective of their colors, ethnicities and cultural backgrounds, it would be proper if all Muslim governments join hands and take strict action against groups that are killing people in the name of jihad. The biggest jihad is fighting the evil within oneself, but we seem to have forgotten that.

The standing at Arafat by over two million Muslims on Monday demonstrated to the world that Muslims are equal and tolerant people. They may come from different backgrounds but are one. Let’s also show to the world that Muslims will not tolerate those who kill others in the name of religion among their ranks. Muslim states should fight deviant ideologies and educate their people that terrorism is alien to Islam. — Shahid Ahmed, Jeddah