A Bosnian imam, Selvedin Beganovic, was attacked in Trnovi by a masked man who burst into the classroom where imam held lectures, stabbing him in chests.
This was not a random attack, as Beganovic has been the victim of seven assaults blamed on Salafis in the past year, with three just last month. Salafis were reportedly attacking him because he told people who come to the mosque that the war in Syria is not theirs; their war is to fight unemployment and poverty.
“That is not our war,” he told the AP in his small northwestern town. “Our jihad in Bosnia is the fight against unemployment and for the care for our parents who have small pensions. The care for the socially jeopardized,” he said. “When did Muhammad ever behead anyone?” he said. “When did he take a knife and slaughter an innocent journalist?”
Of Islam’s 99 names for God, including “the Mighty” and “the Avenger,” the ones Beganovic likes most are “the Exceedingly Merciful” and “the Exceedingly Gracious.” “That is what we teach our children here,” he said. Husein Kavazovic agreed with Beganovic and said: “Our job is to keep repeating, to keep warning that this is evil and cannot be justified. [Salafis] are dangerous people. Their place is in a mental institution.”
Dozens of Bosnians recruited by Salafi centers in Bosnia have reportedly joined the war in Syria, and some of them have returned to the country. The man who attacked Beganovic had fought in Syria, according to Dragan Lukac, the director of the federal police. “Every person who comes back from that front line is a danger,” he said, “These people are able to perform attacks on citizens, on property, on state institutions.”
As Salafi groups are backed by powerful governments, the Bosnian government cannot prevent their activities, but passed a bill that makes it illegal to participate in or recruit others for war abroad.
(Source: dailysabah/ photo krupljani)
