Zero tolerance for acts of terror

We need courage to combat this cowardice. On Monday night, a young man blew himself up in a stadium filled mostly with young people in Manchester. What did they do to him to meet this fate? Nothing. Police said 22 died in the blast and dozens were injured. The killer’s identity has not been revealed yet, but we can say with certainty that he wasn’t just a lone terrorist, but a loser. For Daesh, which claimed responsibility for the attack, maximum damage was caused with minimum effort and resources. The young man’s hate consumed others and him. How the bomb-strapped individual managed to sneak past security personnel and metal detectors to get into the Manchester Arena, investigations will reveal. Once Ariana Grande belted out her final song for the night, he got into the act. The rest was mayhem, and chaos. Death snuffed out bright sparks. Their families will pine for them not knowing why they deserved to die this way. The answers will be lost, never to be found in the dregs of some distant conflict they have nothing to do with.

We’re talking of remnants of Daesh that have emerged from countries laid to waste by war — Syria and Iraq. Some power or powers funded and trained them. They taught them blind hate, played with their minds and unleashed the demons in them. This demonic ideology has since spread after the group lost ground in the Middle East. There is some inexplicable attraction to a crazy stream of thought that is making these young people killers. Are they being hypnotised, bullied? We can’t say. Intelligence agencies have many theories. It’s a religious conflict with sectarian strains, others say. These killers take refuge as protesters at first. They are soon elevated to freedom fighters. When nothing works, they become extremists, and later resort to violence, lured by money. In short, they are mercenaries, assassins on the loose. One such struck in Manchester — a coward. The time to reform them is over. Countries and civil society should shun blame and look for these killers in our midst. Track, ferret them out, and bust them. Show no sympathy for their religious or regional affiliation, but show courage and conviction to wipe out this cowardice.