If left to their own devices

If one needs to know what would happen if radical, militant Muslims had their way, all he or she needs to do is take one long, hard look at what is happening in the Darfur Province of Sudan. There, a radically Islamic government is running amok.
Darfur is the western-most province of the North African nation, bordering Libya and the Central African Republic. After more than 18 months of civil war and fighting, the region has become the biggest human rights catastrophe in the world and is threatening to become worse.
The Janjaweed, an armed Arab militia comprised mainly of members of the Baggara tribe, formed two years ago in response to attacks on government installations by two rebel groups. Supported by the Sudanese government, the Janjaweed was better trained, better armed and more mobile than the rebels and soon gained the upper hand.
In June, the Janjaweed implemented a policy of ethnic cleansing in the Darfur province, attacking every non-Arab village it entered. The homes were all burned to the ground, the men and children were all slaughtered and the women were raped and beaten.
It is estimated that the Janjaweed has been responsible for the death of 30,000 non-Arabs in the province since the start of hostilities. Approximately 1.4 million refugees have left the region for neighboring countries, leaving the militia free to rape and pillage at will.
More than 2.2 million people in the region are in dire need of food and medical treatment. The United Nations and several other humanitarian agencies have attempted to deal with the needs of Darfur, but the militia continues to hamper those efforts.
In July, the UN Security Council gave the Sudanese government 30 days to disarm the Janjaweed, or face severe consequences. Sudanese government officials, many of whom are Arab, quickly denounced the UN resolution.
“Sudan reaffirms its absolute rejection of threats… Sudan has been watching what the enemy circles have been preparing,” said Sudan Information Minister El-Zahawi Ibrahim Malik. “Sudan has been observing the greedy moves to take over its economic resources and it is preparing to confront these outsiders so that the peace, which the government started with bold steps in Navasha, shall prevail in the country.”
The minister said talk of sanctions and military intervention that has been taking place for months in many Western nations will not push the Sudanese government into compliance. He said that his government was fully capable of disarming the looting and robbing gangs. Therein lies the indictment against the militant Islamic government of Sudan.
The government is willing to do something, says it is doing something about the problem, but in reality has only encouraged the Janjaweed to continue its campaign of racial violence. According to humanitarian groups that are left to witness the horrors of Darfur, many militiamen have been “disarmed” only to reappear immediately in uniforms of the Sudanese army.
Further, members of the militia that have not been disarmed still roam dangerously close to the refugee camps. Those who build up the courage to leave, or who out of necessity try to forage for food, are often taken hostage, beaten, raped or killed by the Janjaweed. What is there to go home to, anyway?
Their huts are burned, their animals have been stolen and their loved ones’ graves have been desecrated. In addition, the refugee camps offer more food, protection and education than “home” ever did for most natives of Darfur. One quote, from an older displaced sheik, gives us a full glimpse of the hopelessness that has become reality in Darfur.
“There is no one in this world that does not feel attached to his land,” he said. “But for security we are willing to give up land and dignity.”
“I suppose, one day, I would like to see the land around my home,” another refugee said. “But I don’t think that time will come soon.”
The lesson to be learned from all of this is simple: given the chance, radical Muslims would do the exact same thing in the United States. We don’t need to fight a more compassionate war against terrorists and those who think like them; we need to wipe them off the face of the earth.