Seven years ago, the Islamic Institute of Toronto’s congregation joined with other Muslims in the GTA to stand with our Jewish brothers and sisters after a horrific attack on a synagogue in Pittsburgh, USA. See the media coverage here and here. 

Today, we again stand in solidarity with the Jewish community to condemn the brutal attack on an Australian Jewish community that took the lives of over 15 members of the Jewish faith as they commemorated the first day of Hannukah on a beach in Bondi, Australia. 

The alleged perpetrators were of the Muslim faith, apparently radicalized by ISIS. 

We said then, seven years ago and we say it again – there is no justification within our faith that would allow someone to target innocent people anywhere – whether on a beach, a synagogue , a mosque or even in a nightclub. 

One of the highest objectives of the Sharia in Islam is the preservation of life. Muslims have been given a beautiful analogy – to save a life is like saving the whole of mankind; and to take a life unjustly is like taking the lives of the entire mankind. 

This is why we have been public  about our condemnation of the brutal and horrific genocide in Gaza perpetrated by the Israeli regime against innocent civilians in Palestine. 

This is why we have condemned the Quebec mosque shooting that took the lives of six of our brothers, and the murder of the Afzal family in London in an Islamophobic attack. 

This is why we have decried any form of religious intolerance in India, Kashmir, Sudan and other places. 

And this is why we stand with the Indigenous peoples of Canada and around the world to recognize the horrors inflicted upon them through the residential school system and the systematic erosion of their culture, language and identity. 

The actions of an Australian Muslim , Ahmad Al Ahmad speak more to our values than any sermon can do. He risked his life and was injured when he intervened and disarmed the shooter, thereby saving more lives that could have been taken. 

We salute him as an ambassador of Islam by his bravery and courage, and his decision to act even though he was in danger himself. 

To the families of the victims, we can only say that our hearts go out to all of you. As you grieve your loved ones, please remember that we have a shared presence and a shared destiny and that we have more in common than we think. 

May God almighty grant you safety and the opportunity to live and worship in dignity and without fear.