Washington: The real face of Islam is peaceful, based on dignity of all human beings and not butchers who killed American journalist Steven Sotloff a day earlier, US Secretary of State John Kerry said on Wednesday. "The face of Islam is not the butchers who killed Steven Sotloff. That's ISIL. The face of Islam is not the nihilists who know only how to destroy, not to build. "It's not masked cowards whose actions are an ugly insult to the peaceful religion that they violate every single day with their barbarity and whose fundamental principles they insult with their actions," Kerry said.
On Tuesday, a disturbing video showed the beheading of Sotloff by dreaded terror group Islamic State (IS), also known as ISIL and ISIS. Sotloff is the second American journalist to be executed by by IS in two weeks.
At an event held at the State Department to announce appointment of Special Representative to Muslim Communities Shaarik Zafar, Kerry said the real face of Islam is a peaceful religion, "where Muslim communities are leading the fight against poverty."
"It's one where Muslim communities are providing basic healthcare and emergency assistance on the front lines of some of our most devastating humanitarian crises." Kerry said that the real face of Islam is where Muslims advocate for human rights and freedoms including the most basic freedom to practice one's faith openly and freely.
Kerry said that faiths are inextricably linked to the environment. "For many of us, respect for God's creation also translates into a duty to protect and sustain his first creation, Earth, the planet. Before God created man, he created heavens and earth," he said.
Kerry said that confronting climate change is one of the greatest challenges that the world faces and Muslim-majority countries are among the most vulnerable. "Our response to this challenge ought to be rooted in a sense of stewardship of Earth, and for me and for many of us here today, that responsibility comes from God," he added.
He said for so many who worked so long to bring Steven and other Americans home safety, this obviously was not how the story was meant to end. "It's a punch to the gut," he said. "The United States government, I want you to know, has used every single military, diplomatic and intelligence tool that we have. We always will," he said.
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