UAE- Effective caign against radicalism: paper
Date
1/12/2016 1:05:18 AM
(MENAFN- Emirates News Agency (WAM))
ABU DHABI 12th January 2016 (WAM) -- A UAE newspaper has said that terrorists often use online platforms to lure innocent victims to their ranks as well as propagating utter falsehoods and radicalism.
"The best way to counter this is to use online communication and social media tools to put things in the right perspective and to amplify those many moderate voices that too often get drowned out by the noise of the extremists" said The Gulf Today in an editorial on Tuesday.
"The Sawab Centre a joint initiative by the UAE and the United States to fight Daesh's extremist ideology online is doing a commendable job on this front. The word Sawab in Arabic signifies "doing the right thing" or being on the "right path."
"As part of its latest effort the centre has now launched a new campaign via its Twitter and Instagram platforms under the hashtag #DeludedFollowers. The aim is to expose the tactics used by Daesh to recruit foreign fighters from across the globe.
"The centre has emphasised that despite all the measures taken so far it is still extremely important to remain vigilant and deal with this issue firmly due to the security threats posed by Daesh and like-minded terrorist organisations particularly following recent terrorist attacks in Saudi Arabia Kuwait Egypt Paris Beirut Tunisia and California as well as the daily terrorist atrocities committed against the people of Iraq Libya and Syria.
"The efforts of the centre are effective especially because it cooperates with all organisations known internationally for fighting terrorist ideologies. It focuses on delivering fact-based accurate and credible information without distortion or exaggeration.
"The centre has also made an interesting observation that the messages used by Daesh to attract youth into the terrorist organisation follow common themes. These messages portray what is currently happening in Iraq and Syria as a war of civilisations between Islam and the West. Such twisting of facts is what the centre counteracts effectively.
Grand Imam Dr. Ahmed El-Tayeb Sheikh of Al Azhar recently echoed the views of all peace-loving people when he said "The violence that we see today is but an act coming from radical organisations that have no relation whatsoever to our religion or our Prophet (PBUH)."
Established just a little over six months ago the Sawab Centre has already built credible and highly interactive social media platforms that showcase moderate and enlightened voices.
"The fact that the number of online hits has surpassed 420 million to date is a clear indication that the centre's campaigns have already made a tremendous impact on online viewers" concluded the Sharjah-based daily.
WAM/Esraa/Moran