Democratic Islam Conference warns against hate speech in Syria

Reactions continue to the demonstration held in the city of Hasakah last Friday, which featured slogans and acts offensive to Kurdish symbols and inciting hatred. The demonstration came as the region and Syria as a whole face difficult living conditions amid rising food and fuel prices, while protests have taken place in several Syrian cities demanding improved living and service conditions.

The demonstration raised questions about its timing and demands, coinciding with growing popular calls for cultural and linguistic rights, particularly in Kurdish-majority areas. Activities opposing Syrian Ministry of Education Decision No. 964/2068, which limits Kurdish-language instruction to three classes per week, have continued amid calls to expand education in the mother tongue and constitutionally recognize the Kurdish language.

Several civil society institutions issued statements rejecting slogans inciting hostility toward Kurds and the burning of Kurdish symbols during the demonstration. They called for an investigation into the events and accountability for anyone found responsible for inciting hatred, while stressing everyone’s right to express their views without hate speech or insults targeting the identities and symbols of different communities. The statements also called on Kurds, Arabs, Syriacs, Assyrians and other communities to uphold dialogue and coexistence.

Instability in Syria benefits those trading in Syrians’ blood

In this context, Mullah Mohammed Rashid al-Ghrazani, Co-Chair of the Democratic Islam Conference, told ANHA agency that the Kurdish people’s demands are centered on living in safety and peace. He stressed that instability in Syria serves those trading in Syrians’ blood and seeking to perpetuate discord.

He said Syrians had hoped, following the fall of the former regime and the end of a 14-year war marked by killings, genocide and displacement, to establish a new state. However, he noted that a mentality of killing, hate speech and rejection of others remains present.

He said those trading in Syrians’ blood continue to operate both on social media and on the ground, considering the Hasakah demonstration on Friday and the slogans accompanying it an example of this. Such slogans, he said, do not lay the foundations for peace in a new Syria but instead contribute to sectarianism and hatred.

Demonstration organizers seek to fuel conflict

Al-Ghrazani said the aim of the demonstration was to fuel conflict and undermine civil peace in Hasakah, turning demonstrations into a space for killings and chaos.

In this regard, he noted that the Syrian Democratic Forces have become part of the Syrian army as part of the integration process, while SDF General Commander Mazloum Abdi now serves as an adviser to the Syrian presidency. He stressed that there is no separate force outside the Syrian army in the region.

At the same time, he stressed that the Kurdish people are demanding their legitimate rights in Syria, explaining that these demands include guaranteeing linguistic rights, participation in drafting the constitution and taking part in governing the country as Syrian citizens.

He added that these demands constitute a legitimate right of the Kurdish people, stressing that they will continue to be pursued, whether by citizens or institutions, until Syria becomes a country for all its citizens without discrimination based on ethnicity or sect.

Historical disagreements between Kurds and Arabs

Al-Ghrazani also addressed relations between Kurds and Arabs in the region, referring to the state of peace and coexistence that prevailed in the past. He noted that Arabs used to come to the region from Raqqa and Deir ez-Zor without any problems arising between the two communities.

He said recent attempts to foment discord were being driven by external actors, citing the Quranic verse: “O you who have believed, let not a people ridicule another people; perhaps they may be better than them, nor let women ridicule other women; perhaps they may be better than them.”

He said the slogans chanted during the demonstration included threats against the Kurdish people and denigration of their cultural and national symbols. He called for studying history and learning about the role of Kurdish scholars in various fields.

Syrian identity brings Syrians together

On Kurdish demands, Al-Ghrazani called for removing divisions among the components of Syrian society, saying that the name “Syrian Arab Republic” does not reflect the country’s diversity. He instead favored the name “Syrian Republic,” arguing that Syrian identity unites citizens on the basis of national identity rather than ethnicity or a single identity.

He noted that Syria is home to Arabs, Kurds, Syriacs, Assyrians and other communities, stressing that it should be a state for everyone.

He warned that discord harms the state first and called on the authorities to stop inflammatory slogans, saying their continuation could lead to further security problems inside the country and serve other parties.

Al-Ghrazani called on Kurds and Arabs to recognize the risks posed by slogans that threaten civil peace, stressing that continued disputes would not help establish the state.

He cited the hadith, “A Muslim is the brother of a Muslim; he does not wrong him or humiliate him,” saying the principle applies to different sects and communities. He also cited Quranic verses concerning the common origin of humanity and the absence of superiority among people except through piety, as well as the verse stating that the diversity of peoples and tribes exists so that they may know one another.

He explained that knowing one another means helping each other, building the country and strengthening cooperation, noting that the Quranic message in these verses is addressed to all people and does not single out any particular community or ethnicity.

Denying the Kurdish language is injustice

Al-Ghrazani addressed demands concerning the Kurdish language, stressing that demanding rights does not mean calling for separation, but rather seeking to guarantee legitimate rights under the Syrian constitution and in all areas of life, including language and culture.

On the transitional government’s Education Ministry decision on teaching Kurdish, he said preventing Kurdish students from studying in their own language and refusing to recognize it constituted serious injustice. He rejected the imposition of another language on Kurdish students.

He questioned whether a student who had studied in Kurdish for years during the revolution could simply switch to studying in Arabic, stressing that the Kurdish language is a legitimate right of citizens and that preventing education in Kurdish constitutes serious injustice and an assault on the language.

He cited the Quranic verse: “And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth and the diversity of your languages and your colors,” stressing that the diversity of languages, including Kurdish, is one of God’s signs.

He also cited another Quranic verse concerning those who reject God’s signs and kill the prophets and those who command justice, pointing out that denying God’s signs constitutes grave injustice.

The revolution was aimed at reform

Speaking about the Syrian revolution, Al-Ghrazani said it was launched to bring about reform and end the former regime, adding that the fall of the regime has not, so far, brought an end to all the ideas associated with it.

Al-Ghrazani pointed to former Baathists who are trying in various ways to return to power and continue the Baathist approach under other labels, including religious garb. He cited a line of poetry that he attributed to one of the Baath Party’s poets: “I believe in the Baath as a god with no partner, and in Arabism as a religion with no equal,” noting that those Baathists are now attempting to return to power through new slogans.

He also criticized extremists who use religious rhetoric and slogans to serve their own interests, saying they exploit Islam to fuel discord among the components of Syrian society.

Call for inclusive religious discourse

At the end of his remarks, Al-Ghrazani called on Syrians to return to reason and live together as brothers, abandoning incitement, killing, looting and disputes, and returning to peace in order to build Syria on the basis of love and happiness.

He also called on religious leaders, scholars, tribal leaders and community figures to promote love and brotherhood and adopt an inclusive Islamic discourse that embraces different ethnic and religious communities, contributing to coexistence and building a country that accommodates all its components.

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ANHA