Bin Laden network and Christian persecution?

One of the world's leading authorities on religious persecution sees a connection between the Osama Bin Laden terror network and persecution directed against Christians in a host of countries.

'He's tied in with a lot of persecution,' said Dr. Paul Marshall, British-born author of Their Blood Cries Out, and a senior fellow at the Centre for Religious Freedom in Washington, D.C. 'In many settings it's radicals within his network who are carrying out persecution. This is going on in the Philippines, Indonesia, and to some extent Malaysia, Bangladesh, Pakistan, and, of course, Afghanistan.'

Marshall said Bin Laden is allied with other terrorist groups in Algeria and Nigeria who have been killing Christians. 'Bin Laden's had a lot of co-operation with Sudan - a major country in the world killing Christians', Marshall said. 'The death toll in Sudan since 1998 is two million; that is more than every war in the Middle East in this past century. Most of these victims are Christians.'

Symbolic figurehead

Marshall views Bin Laden as the figurehead of a far-reaching organisation, which seems to lack hierarchical structure. 'If Osama Bin Laden drops dead tomorrow, the situation has hardly changed', he said. 'Zawahiri would take over - and he's probably worse.' Marshall is referring to Egyptian doctor Ayman al-Zawahiri, Bin Laden's top lieutenant.

'Whether Bin Laden is the principal brains and organiser behind the operation, there is considerable doubt', Marshall said. 'When I say Bin Laden, I'm referring to a network of these organisations. It's not as if an order comes down from Kabul or Kandahar to Indonesia to go out and attack these people. They are allied; they have common goals - it's not top-down.'

Marshall believes Bin Laden is a convenient symbol in a media-driven age. 'He's a visible figure. He's tall; he's six foot four. We might hate him, but he happens to be handsome and charismatic. In our news media, particularly TV, we like to symbolise it with a person', he said.

Persecution also continues in Muslim countries without ties to Bin Laden. 'You get persecution in the Islamic world apart from Bin Laden', Marshall said. 'Most notably the Saudis - who are his enemy No. 1', he says. 'They have arrested 15 Christians in the last two months. In the last week, they have tortured at least three of them.'

Hit list

'America is not on the first list of things he hates', Marshall said. While Bin Laden's family roots are in Saudi Arabia, he loathes the Saudi government's cosy relationship with Western powers. 'He believes they have allowed infidels into the holy land and they must be destroyed', Marshall said. 'He first wants to get Western troops out of Saudi Arabia.'

Next on Bin Laden's hate list are moderate Arab governments. 'He wants to overcome those Muslim regimes such as Egypt, Jordan, and Malaysia.'

'Third, he wants to attack those who, in his view, oppress Muslims', Marshall said. This list includes Israel, Russia (because of Chechnya), India (because of Kashmir), and several other countries, including America, according to Marshall.
'That's his priority list of grievances, but it's not his military list of priorities', Marshall said. 'He can't do anything about the first two groups unless he does something about the US, because (in his mind) they're the ones who stop him.'

'So in terms of his strategy, America is one of the groups that needs to be addressed first', Marshall said. In a 'primitive analogy', Marshall likens the US to a bodyguard who must be removed first, before Bin Laden can take on his real foes.

Greater problem

Marshall notes that the official name of 'Al-Qaida' is 'World Islamic Front for Holy War Against Jews and Crusaders', a name taken in 1999 when Bin Laden merged with Egypt's Islamic Jihad.

'For him, Jews are allies of the Christian West', Marshall said. In some respects, Christians are a greater problem than Jews in Bin Laden's eyes because he perceives Christians as larger and more powerful. 'For him, America is Christian, Britain is Christian, Europe is Christian.'

'Sometimes he said the Jews control the Christians - particularly in America', Marshall said. 'He believes the Jews control the media and the American government. He really lumps Jews and Christians together.'

With the horrendous events of September 11, Americans were forged into a deadly marriage between terrorism and persecution. 'America does not have the largest death toll from Islamic radicalism', Marshall said. 'We're beginning to share the experience and fate of many other countries around the world.'

'In Kaduna, Nigeria, over 5,000 people have been killed since the imposition of Islamic law', Marshall said. 'In Pakistan in 1997 the city of Shantinagar was levelled, a city of 20,000 people', he said. 'The death toll in Ambon, Indonesia is 5,000 to 6,000.'

These numbers pale next to Sudan, according to Marshall, with two million killed. 'Two million, that's a hard number', Marshall said. 'That's not pulled out of the air.' Marshall has personally examined five volumes documenting the African carnage. The victims have been primarily Christians, along with some animists.

'This is a great evil and we can fight it and reduce it', Marshall said. 'But we can no more end all persecution than we can end all terrorism', he said.

The Bush administration has not been aggressive in its approach to Christian persecution issues with offending regimes. 'The US government is still very reluctant to raise this as a human rights issue, even with the new administration', Marshall said. 'The State Department doesn't push it, and a lot of foreign policymakers resist it - it makes their lives tougher', he said. Colin Powell has not warmed to the subject either, according to Marshall.

'The attacks of September 11 are a wake-up call for everyone', Marshall said. 'But it should also be a wake-up call for Christians. Be informed and pray. No Christian congregation should meet without praying for the persecuted church.'

Bin Laden network and Christian persecution?

Symbolic figurehead

Hit list

Greater problem

Mark Ellis, Religion Today

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