WARNING: Graphic Images
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Category Archives: Terrorism
Children of the Damned
View of Mosul in 2019, following war with ISIS, Author Levi Clancy (CC0 1.0 Universal Public Domain Dedication)
In 27 prison camps and detention centers across Syria, some 50,000 of the most dangerous ISIS members and their families are being held indefinitely. CNN was recently accorded rare access, and found these locations a spawning ground for ISIS [1].
Five years after the caliphate was defeated, the ISIS ideology lives on here.
Though ISIS is known for rape and brutality toward women, the women who defected to ISIS came from over 60 countries. They complain of the conditions in these camps, but radiate hostility toward the outside world and continue to profess loyalty to ISIS.
Unauthorized training sessions are conducted to prepare child soldiers for conflict. Young boys are married off to produce the next generation of ISIS fighters. Some 60 births occur each month.
In an effort to counter this, the Syrian Democratic Forces (SDF) remove adolescent boys from their families, so that they are not further radicalized by their mothers.
Conditions in the SDF rehabilitation centers are somewhat better. But the number of beds there is limited.
Condemned from Birth
These are children of the damned — condemned from birth to lives constrained by their parents’ choices.
Unlike the children in a 60’s science fiction film by the same name, they are not harbingers of peace [2]. Not only are they confined to detention camps by no fault of their own. They are fed hate with their mother’s milk, and raised on a diet of lies.
Statements of moral superiority and contempt for others form the basis of the ISIS ideology [3]. Religious reasoning is used to justify criminal actions. Violent behavior is normalized. Personal grievances are blamed on others.
And so blood begets blood (Ezek.35: 6; Matt. 26: 52).
Sisterhood and Sexual Violence by Hamas
Graffiti by Grafitiyul and Guy Morad critical of women’s organizations which ignored testimony by Israeli women regarding rape and sexual violence during Hamas terrorist attacks 10/7/23, Author Nizzan Cohen (Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International).
WARNING: Graphic Images
The BBC in December 2023 confirmed that it had seen and heard credible evidence of the rape and mutilation of women by Hamas during the October 7 attack on Israel [1].
The overwhelming evidence of savagery included cuts, bruises, broken pelvises, and vaginal tears. Victims ranged in age from children and teens to retirees. The majority did not survive.
“[Many victims’ bodies were] found mutilated and bound, with sexual organs brutally attacked, and in some cases, weapons were inserted into them [2A]”.
The Association of Rape Crisis Centers in Israel has now gathered evidence that there were identical patterns of sexual violence at multiple locations [2B]. Some rapes were committed in front of family and friends, to increase the pain and humiliation of victims and their loved ones. Gang rape followed by murder was not uncommon. Continue reading
Filed under Abuse of Power, Justice, Law, Politics, Rape, Terrorism, Violence Against Women
Becoming Ourselves
It has been said that we become more ourselves, as we grow older. Superficial beauty fades, and a softer (or, in some cases, starker) beauty takes its place. This incorporates our scars, evidence of the life we have lived, with and without our consent.
We long, in youth, to be part of a larger whole – the beloved or a noble cause, perhaps. The paths we take determine greatly – and depend greatly on – whether or not that happens.
The heart calls us to venues and ventures we would never have thought ourselves capable of pursuing, let alone achieving. Sometimes though it seems we are being led. Not by our desires alone, but by some external force.
“…[H]e made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in His quiver” (Isa. 49: 2).
Most of us must deal with tragedy, along the way. Some lives are cut short by it. Grief and loss can arise from many causes in this imperfect world: abuse, racism, poverty, and violence, to name a few.
We are shaped by these experiences, and can be broken by them. Chances are, we will be forced to make difficult choices. Almost everyone is.
For a tree branch to be made into an arrow, it must be stripped of leaves (John 15: 2); fired, so as to become pliable (Isa. 48: 10, Rom. 5: 3 and 8: 28, James 1: 2-4, 1 Pet. 1: 6-7); straightened (Eph. 2: 21 and 4: 15-16, Heb. 10: 24-25); sanded (Heb. 12: 7-11); and oiled (Ps. 104: 15, Gal. 5: 22-23, Eph. 5: 18) [1].
Ultimately, the arrow finds its target. So, too, will our lives, in God’s hands, find their intended target…even if that target is not what we originally supposed.
We can rely on that.
—
[1] All credit for this information about arrow construction, and the biblical citations associated with it goes to Fountaingate Christian Foundation. See, ChurchLink, Bible Study Warehouse, Series: The Call – Lesson 7, “Preparation for Ministry”, http://www.churchlink.com.au/churchlink/bible_studies/call/call7.html. Copyright © 1981, 1996 Paul Bunty and David Collins. All rights reserved.
Originally posted 7/10/16
FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: http://www.alawyersprayers.com
Filed under Child Abuse, Christianity, Poverty, Religion, Terrorism, Violence Against Women
War Wounds
Azerbaijani refugee child (1996), Author Ilgar Jafarov (CC BY-SA 4.0 International)
“I am blind to beauty for I have seen the ugliness of war,
My heart discard, my soul’s an open sore,
My spirit’s broken, and my body is not well,
For I have seen the smoke and fire
And passed through the gates of hell… ”– Kevan Lyons, The Poet of Churchill Square
These are grave times. Terrorism stalks the world, striking without warning or mercy. I can think of no better analogy for abuse.
Abuse is a conflict in which children’s lives are the battlefield; a conflict in which children go unarmed, yet have war wounds inflicted; a conflict in which children will never be victors.
Under wartime conditions of deprivation and abandonment, the simplest word of encouragement is denied a young heart. Under wartime conditions of violence and destruction, the most defenseless among us are battered and broken. Under wartime conditions of rape and pillage, basic sexuality becomes an item of commerce, and a lifelong source of pain.
Little wonder that Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) — first identified in the combat setting centuries ago — is common among abuse victims, as well. Continue reading
Filed under Child Abuse, Child Molestation, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Prostitution, Sexual Abuse, Terrorism
Dirty Little Secret
WARNING: Graphic Images
The Armed Forces have for years now instructed our soldiers to ignore the sexual abuse of boys by Afghan leaders viewed as allies of the United States [1]. Lance Cpl. Gregory Buckley, Jr. told his father, “At night we can hear them screaming, but we’re not allowed to do anything about it.”
In an effort to keep this dirty little secret, the Navy (which oversees the Marine Corps.) has decided to discharge Major Jason Brezler for sharing his concerns with fellow Marines, using an unclassified server [2].
A similar case arose in 2011, when Army Sgt. 1st Class Charles Martland struck an Afghan police official for the rape of a teenage boy. In that instance, Rep. Duncan Hunter (R-CA)intervened, and the Army allowed the Green Beret to stay in the service.
According to former Special Forces Captain Dan Quinn, “But we were putting people into power who would do things that were worse than the Taliban did – that was something village elders voiced to me.”
Quinn was relieved of his command, and pulled from Afghanistan after beating an Afghan commander who kept a boy chained to his bed as a sex slave. Quinn subsequently left the military.
There is yet another layer of complexity to the situation. The Taliban is using child sex slaves to infiltrate Afghan forces, and carry out deadly assaults [3]. Lance Cpl. Buckley (above) and two other Marines were killed by a group of boys living on base with an Afghan police commander. Continue reading
Filed under Abuse of Power, Child Abuse, Physical Abuse, Politics, Sexual Abuse, Slavery, Terrorism
Becoming Ourselves
Photo of artist, Georgia O’Keeffe, by her husband, Alfred Stieglitz (PD). Though O’Keeffe’s vision was compromised by macular degeneration in later years, she continued to work well into her 90s.
It has been said that we become more ourselves, as we grow older. Superficial beauty fades, and a softer (or, in some cases, starker) beauty takes its place. This incorporates our scars, evidence of the life we have lived, with and without our consent.
We long, in youth, to be part of a larger whole – the beloved or a noble cause, perhaps. The paths we take determine greatly – and depend greatly on – whether or not that happens.
The heart calls us to venues and ventures we would never have thought ourselves capable of pursuing, let alone achieving. Sometimes though it seems we are being led. Not by our desires alone, but by some external force.
“…[H]e made me into a polished arrow and concealed me in His quiver” (Isa. 49: 2).
Most of us must deal with tragedy, along the way. Some lives are cut short by it. Grief and loss can arise from many causes in this imperfect world: abuse, racism, poverty, and violence, to name a few.
We are shaped by these experiences, and can be broken by them. Chances are, we will be forced to make difficult choices. Almost everyone is.
For a tree branch to be made into an arrow, it must be stripped of leaves (John 15: 2); fired, so as to become pliable (Isa. 48: 10, Rom. 5: 3 and 8: 28, James 1: 2-4, 1 Pet. 1: 6-7); straightened (Eph. 2: 21 and 4: 15-16, Heb. 10: 24-25); sanded (Heb. 12: 7-11); and oiled (Ps. 104: 15, Gal. 5: 22-23, Eph. 5: 18) [1].
Ultimately, the arrow finds its target. So, too, will our lives, in God’s hands, find their intended target…even if that target is not what we originally supposed.
We can rely on that.
—
[1] All credit for this information about arrow construction, and the biblical citations associated with it goes to Fountaingate Christian Foundation. See, ChurchLink, Bible Study Warehouse, Series: The Call – Lesson 7, “Preparation for Ministry”, http://www.churchlink.com.au/churchlink/bible_studies/call/call7.html. Copyright © 1981, 1996 Paul Bunty and David Collins. All rights reserved.
FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: http://www.alawyersprayers.com
Filed under Child Abuse, Christianity, Poverty, Religion, Terrorism, Violence Against Women
Innocents – Lost Along the Way
“So Pharaoh commanded all his people, saying, ‘Every [Hebrew] son who is born you shall cast into the river…’ ” (Ex. 1: 22).
“Then Herod, when he saw that he was deceived by the wise men, was exceedingly angry; and he sent forth and put to death all the male children who were in Bethlehem and in all its districts, from two years old and under…” (Matt. 2: 16).
Nearly four thousand years ago, a pharaoh ordered all male infants born to an ethnic minority drowned. Seventeen hundred years later, a king ordered all male children aged two and under slaughtered.
Innocents are still being slaughtered. Some die quickly by sword or gunshot, some die slowly by disease and starvation. And some die at the hands of those who should love them.
A powerful ruler attempted to exterminate an ethnic minority. But God brought forth a deliverer, Moses, and the nation Israel was born. A cruel king attempted to defend his throne against a babe born in a manger. But God brought forth Jesus Christ, the Redeemer for all nations and all peoples on the earth.
In the end, good triumphs. There are all too many casualties lost along the way. But good triumphs. That is worth holding onto.
Have a Merry Christmas!
FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: http://www.alawyersprayers.com
Filed under Abuse of Power, Child Abuse, Christianity, Emotional Abuse, Justice, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Politics, Poverty, Religion, Terrorism
Kidnapped by Boko Haram
“No man is an island,
Entire of itself.
Each is a piece of the continent…
Each man’s death diminishes me,
For I am involved in mankind.”– “Meditation XVII” by John Donne (1624)
WARNING: Graphic Images
The extremist group Boko Haram has since 2009 led a brutal insurgency in Nigeria with the twin goals of imposing Sharia law and establishing an Islamic regime. Boko Haram is known to utilize child soldiers; engage in the forced conversion, castration, and beheading of non-Muslim men and boys, as well as the kidnap, rape, and forced marriage of women and girls.
Mary Patrick was one of 276 girls kidnapped by Boko Haram in 2014 [1]. The horrors she faced during four months of captivity included cannibalism, the murder of her older sister, and repeated rape by as many as five men at a time.
Given a Muslim name and forced to recite verses from the Quran, over and over, Mary began to lose her identity. Thankfully, she managed to escape before it was too late.
Why the World Matters
Why should this matter to American women? Why should it matter to abuse victims, in particular?
Many abuse victims are likewise brutalized. This tends to focus our attention inward, on short-term survival. But there is a great deal of pain in the world…not ours alone. The girls kidnapped by Boko Haram are just one example.
Abuse victims understand pain. That others, too, have suffered should not demoralize us. Rather, it should motivate us to reach out to one another.
Isolated by abuse though we have been, we are part of the world. We have a responsibility toward the world. And the exercise of that responsibility may actually prove healing to us.
Connection
During the Middle Ages, the bubonic plague or “Black Death” as it was known killed an estimated 75-200 million men, women, and children.
The dead grew so numerous that mass graves had to be dug. Venice and other cities banned the ringing of church bells during funeral processions. The sound was thought to discourage the living.
During one outbreak, the poet and clergyman, John Donne, wrote that no man is an island. We are all connected. That is how Christians see things or should. We are connected to one another – whether abuse victims, plague victims, or the girls kidnapped by Boko Haram.
Leaving the Past Behind
No one can blame victims for seeking to forget their experience of abuse. We long to blot abuse off the face of the earth, and rightly so.
Unfortunately, much as we may desire to leave the past behind, we are often bombarded with unwelcome reminders of it [2]. The ongoing barrage of triggers can feel like defeat; the flashbacks, like daily fresh wounds in a war that has gone on for years [3]. We simply cannot move beyond the pain.
While recovery is not a matter of will power, confronting our demons may help us cut them down to size [4]. And using our experience to benefit others can give meaning to our suffering.
Outward toward the World
If we can manage to direct our attention outward toward the world, we may find that what we have suffered has actually increased our empathy for the suffering of others. Their suffering is personal for us, not merely political.
In turn, they may have lessons they can share with us.
Amazingly, Mary Patrick says that her captivity strengthened her faith. “Before, I didn’t go to church, I didn’t read [the] Bible, I didn’t pray. But now I go to church everyday…I am thankful for my life.”
—
[1] See, Voice of the Martyrs Newsletter, “Trained to Kill – Learning to Forgive”, August 2015.
[2] Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) is frequently accompanied by intense flashes of memory. These flashbacks are triggered by sounds, smells, people, places, thoughts, and feelings which call to mind the traumatic event. Flashbacks can cause physical and emotional reactions, including a racing heartbeat, muscle tension, and profuse sweating.
[3] Coping strategies for dealing with triggers include deep breathing, mindfulness/grounding techniques, exercise, relaxation and self-care, writing, art, music, and prayer. The support of friends and loved ones can be extremely valuable.
[4] Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA), Post Traumatic Stress Disorder Collection, “Prolonged Exposure vs. Supportive Counseling for Sexual Abuse-Related PTSD in Adolescent Girls: A Randomized Clinical Trial” by Edna Foa PhD, Carmen McLean PhD, Sandra Capaldi PsyD, et al, 12/25/13, http://jama.jamanetwork.com/collection.aspx?categoryid=5862.
FOR MORE OF MY ARTICLES ON POVERTY, POLITICS, AND MATTERS OF CONSCIENCE CHECK OUT MY BLOG A LAWYER’S PRAYERS AT: http://www.alawyersprayers.com
Filed under Child Abuse, Christianity, Emotional Abuse, Physical Abuse, Politics, Religion, Slavery, Terrorism, Violence Against Women
War Wounds
“I am blind to beauty for I have seen the ugliness of war,
My heart discard, my soul’s an open sore,
My spirit’s broken, and my body is not well,
For I have seen the smoke and fire
And passed through the gates of hell… ”– Kevan Lyons, The Poet of Churchill Square
These are grave times. Terrorism stalks the world, striking without warning or mercy. I can think of no better analogy for abuse.
Abuse is a conflict in which children’s lives are the battlefield; a conflict in which children go unarmed, yet have war wounds inflicted; a conflict in which children will never be victors.
Under wartime conditions of deprivation and abandonment, the simplest word of encouragement is denied a young heart. Under wartime conditions of violence and destruction, the most defenseless among us are battered and broken. Under wartime conditions of rape and pillage, basic sexuality becomes an item of commerce, and a lifelong source of pain.
Little wonder that Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) — first identified in the combat setting centuries ago — is common among abuse victims, as well. Continue reading
Filed under Child Abuse, Emotional Abuse, Neglect, Physical Abuse, Prostitution, Sexual Abuse, Terrorism
ANNA WALDHERR A Voice Reclaimed, Surviving Child Abuse 