Should Sheikh Gumi Be Blamed for Banditry Because He Engages Bandit Leaders?

I do not understand why Sheikh Ahmad Gumi is singled out and labelled a terrorist simply because he has spoken with bandit leaders. As a Muslim cleric and former military officer, he may believe dialogue is one non-kinetic way to reduce violence. If knowing bandit leaders or their locations automatically makes someone complicit, then the same accusation would have to apply to security chiefs and state officials who also have intelligence about them. Knowing who criminals are is different from supporting their crimes. The situation resembles a school where everyone knows the troublesome students, but people stay silent because they fear retaliation. Bandit leaders have built networks and can attack communities suspected of giving information to security agencies. The bigger failure was allowing these groups to become armed and deeply organised in the first place.

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