The Hindu : Opinion / Letters to the Editor : Face of terror

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Tuesday, Sep 07, 2004

Opinion

Opinion - Letters to the Editor

Face of terror

Sir, — The killing of more than 330 hostages in the school siege in the southern Russian city of Beslan was one of the worst acts of terrorism in recent times. Taking women and children hostage, keeping them in hot rooms without food and water for over two days, and opening fire on fleeing children cannot be supported on any ground. The incident is also a lesson to the countries that have declared war on terror: one cannot destroy the weeds in the centre of the field and allow them to grow in the corners.

Sachin V. Kamble,
New Delhi

Sir, — The dastardly act revealed a hitherto unknown aspect of terror. So far, terrorists have been targeting sensitive installations or symbols of power. But this time, they have trained their guns on hapless children. Countries across the world should come together to counter the deadly tactics of international terrorism.

Ake Ravikrishna,
Hyderabad

Sir, — The gruesome incident is another reminder to the kind of pain terrorists can inflict on civilised society. As societies grow, soft targets seem to increase and terrorists find it easier to strike at will. The only way to deal with them is to crush them ruthlessly.

V.V. Balaji Viswanathan,
Baltimore, U.S.

Sir, — From Kashmir to Manipur, Nepal, Iraq, Afghanistan and Russia — it is a body count all the way. We seem to be hopelessly counting the number of people killed in a vicious cycle of terror.

Nitin Goyal,
Gurgaon, Haryana

Sir, — A terrorist has no religion, caste or community. It is unfortunate that terrorists carry a Muslim name. Islam teaches peace and under no circumstance allows the killing of innocent people. The barbaric acts committed by the terrorists are crimes against God.

Shujaath Ahmed,
Chennai

Sir, — The cowardly and barbaric act is deplorable. All the countries of the world should fight against terrorism that remains a threat to the civilised world.

B. Vijaya Sarathy,
Nellore, A.P.

Sir, — The tragic end to the hostage crisis has brought to the fore the new breed of terrorist, one who is desensitised, cold and inhuman.

Navin Muralidharan,
Chennai

Sir, — The sight of injured children fleeing and terrorists raining bullets on them points to the emergence of a new kind of global terrorism, hitherto unseen and unheard of in terms of barbarity.

Ashish Kumar,
Ranchi

Sir, — The Chechen rebels should realise that such activities not only increase hostility and resentment towards them but also close the door on further talks.

Nishant A. Dalal,
Nagpur

Sir, — One wonders whether the end of communism and the collapse of the Soviet Union were really good for the world. With the balkanisation of the erstwhile Soviet Union, avenues have opened up for religious fanatics to unite under a single banner.

M.E. Avari,
Kodaikanal, T.N.

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