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Russia’s invasion of Ukraine dominates the news. This audacious attack on a neighbouring country has shocked Europe with its sheer brutality. Of course, Muslims have experience of Russia’s tactics in war, from Grozny in Chechnya to East Aleppo and beyond – the Russian military machine is neither guided by morality nor humanity. In Aleppo alone, some 30,000 civilians were slaughtered, leaving the few that remained to painfully evacuate their city. 

Much has been written about the hypocrisy of these past few weeks, the collective sympathy that was largely absent when middle easterners were concerned. The overt racial and Islamaphobic undertones that casually accompany news reports. But also the coordinated political response of the past three weeks, absent when the Russian bear was on the march in Syria and Chechnya – the sanctions and ICC investigations – we have become tired of being valued as second class humans. Human rights for us is mere mantra, employed to invade our countries. 

But when all is said about the double standards, Muslims are confronted with two big questions, how should we understand the crisis and how should we respond. Sadly on both counts many have opted to either embrace the left’s anti-imperialism narrative or alternatively sound like they sympathise or support Putin’s actions. Pro Russian propaganda outfits like RT and their supporters like Glen Greenwald are presented as trusted sources, despite their white-washing of horrific crimes in the massacres of Syria. Some, without political or sufficient Islamic understanding have even suggested that neutrality is the best course of action. 

Sadly there is an absence of political literacy within some of our Ummah, this is unsurprising as today anyone can set themselves up as social media experts, looking to comment on all issues that they have spent a few minutes digesting. A year ago we were all experts in vaccines and alternative medicine. Today we are experts in European geopolitics. The Muslim tradition of expertise and informed knowledge has been lost and replaced with an ill-informed superficiality. Sadly this democratisation of knowledge has worked to make us intellectually poorer. 

This week we have Professor Joseph Kaminski, from the Department of International Relations at the International University of Sarajevo. Joseph speaks to us about the crisis, how to view the actions of America and the impact upon Muslims in Bosnia, who are once again facing a belligerent Serbian movement, supported by Russia. He also passionately discusses some of the takes that have been circulating the Muslim twitter-sphere.