Peace talks have been ongoing for several years under the auspices of the Malaysian government between Thai officials and Mara Patani, an umbrella body representing several insurgent groups. Their goals range from greater autonomy to independence, with little indication they are related to jihadist movements in other Southeast Asian countries, such as Indonesia and the Philippines. They are a shadowy mix of veteran separatists and often loosely led groups of violent young militants. The various southern insurgent groups have not issued a consensus demand. Sarayuth Kotchawong said he received a report shortly before midnight that a suspect had entered a convenience store at a gas station in Yala’s Yaha district, placed a black bag inside and warned employees to leave if they “do not want die.” The workers left before the bag exploded 10 minutes later. “It is clear that the insurgents remain committed to using violence on people, damaging confidence in the economy, creating uncertainty and undermining the government system,” he said. Pramote said the attackers Tuesday night “dressed up as women, using motorcycles and in many cases using petrol bombs, throwing them into the target sites. In other violence since then, two Thai army ordnance experts on duty were killed by a bomb later that month. The attacks are the most high-profile ones since early April, when the Thai government and BRN - Barisan Revolusi Nasional Melayu Patani, believed to be the biggest of several insurgent groups- agreed to halt violence during the Muslim holy period of Ramadan. Heavy-handed crackdowns have fueled the discontent. Muslim residents have long charged they are treated like second-class citizens in Thailand, and separatist movements have been periodically active for decades. Attacks have also taken place in neighboring Songkhla province. More than 7,300 people have been killed since the insurgency began in 2004 in the three provinces, the only ones with Muslim majorities in Buddhist-dominated Thailand. There have been no claims of responsibility. This is why the lifelong journey of faith and reason is as much a spiritual effort as it is an intellectual one.A wave of arson and bombing attacks overnight hit Thailand’s southernmost provinces, which for almost two decades have been the scene of an active Muslim separatist insurgency, officials said Wednesday.Īt least 17 attacks occurred Tuesday night in Pattani, Narathiwat and Yala provinces, mostly at convenience stores and gas stations, military spokesperson Pramote Promin said. All of this, of course, presupposes that we are sincere in our inquiry and that we want the truth to manifest rather than simply our egos to be satisfied. In fact, it can very well be argued that faith is not complete without these things. The prophetic biography is full of such instances.Īll of this is to argue that in Islam doubt, questions, and human reasoning are not at all antithetical to faith. The Prophet Muhammad, too, would invite his companions to ask questions – sometimes very difficult and personal questions – and would answer them calmly and intelligently. Likewise, the prescriptions and proscriptions that are found in the Qur’an are usually given a clear rationale and not just expected to be followed without consideration. The Qur’an also shows in Prophet Abraham, as a model of faith, someone who is at every step using his reason to preach to his people, pointing to the signs in the heavens (2:258 and 6:74 – 79) and showing the weakness of the manmade idols (21:51 – 67). When it comes to convincing people of faith, the Qur’an is filled with passages that employ signs within the human being and in the universe to contemplate the existence, oneness, and genius of God (2:163 – 164). And, we have the story of Prophet Moses who is honored for speaking directly to God, yet asks God to show himself (7:143). ![]() ![]() ![]() There is also the story of Prophet Abraham – who is praised as a sincere devotee of God and given the title of “intimate friend of God” – who, nonetheless, asks God how it is that he will resurrect and bring back to life that which is dead (2:260). The Qur’an also tells of the angels who dared to question God’s decision to put human beings on earth upon realizing that they would, by virtue of their capacity to disobey God, spread mischief and bloodshed (2:130). Similarly, the Qur’an in multiple places commends those who contemplate and use their intelligence (3:190). Furthermore, one of the most oft-repeated lines of the Qur’an says that this message is for those who deeply think and ponder (2:163). In fact, the Qur’an is full of criticism for those who simply believe or do things based on what they learned from their ancestors without independently thinking or contemplating its truth (2:170 and 5:104).
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