Dubai: The Geneva Centre has condemned the recent Taliban attack on an army-run school in Peshawar, Pakistan, as well as the hostage-taking incident at the Lindt Cafe in Sydney and the ‘Al Reem Ghost’ attack, which took place in Al Reem Mall in Abu Dhabi two weeks ago.

In a statement issued yesterday, The Geneva Centre affirmed its support for the fight against extremism. “On 16th December, militants from the Pakistani Taliban attacked an army-run school in Peshawar, Pakistan, killing 141 people, 132 children amongst them. This brutal attack is not an isolated case, and represents the peak of a long series of terrorist attacks whose ferocity cannot be neglected. It occurred one day after the strike taken place in Sydney Lindt Cafe, Australia, and less than two weeks after ‘Al Reem Ghost’ attack, which took place in Al Reem Mall in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates

“The Geneva Centre strongly condemns these barbarian acts, and wishes to reiterate its full support to the fight against political and religious extremism, which clearly represent an attempt to trample on fundamental freedoms and other political and civil as well as social, economic, and cultural rights.”

The statement also mentioned a study conducted by the BBC in collaboration with King’s College in London, stating that “the number of terrorist attacks’ victims during November 2014 reached more than five thousand persons in different regions of the world. The killings took place in 40 countries, mainly in Iraq, Syria, Nigeria, and Afghanistan. The study also demonstrates that terrorism has no religion nor homeland, and defies all religions and societies, whether it is perpetrated for a religious, political, commercial, or any other purpose. For this reason, the Geneva Centre stresses the need to discern Islam from terrorism, and to consequently reject any form of Islamophobia throughout East and West.”

In this context, Dr Hanif Hassan Al Qasim, chairman of the Board of Management of the Geneva Centre called upon the international community to exert concerted efforts at both a regional and international level in order to fight individual, organised as well as state terrorism, and to promote intercultural and interreligious dialogue between societies.