should muslim soldjers be treated different

[manxbiker]

It was on the Radio today that the goverment was thinking of stopping muslim soldiers going to Iraq and Afghanistan as they would be fighting other muslims why should they be treated any different to christains or jews or any other religion i dont remember the goverment saying we cant send catholics or Protestants to northern ireland because they will be fighting other catholics or Protestants surely first and foremost they are soldiers and should go where ever their regiment goes after all they joined the army to serve their country I am not blaming the Muslims but if this report is right the goverment is treating them different from the rest of the army. Am I right or Wrong tell me what you think

[good-arras]

I agree. It could set a precedent for military personnel to object to postings for all sorts of reasons of belief and religion.

People know what they're signing up for when they join!

[Ctrak]

I didn't think Muslims could join the army, because they'd be fighting an illegally offensive jihad not declared by a Caliphate?

Any Muslims around here who can sort this?

[dyli795]

we can't argue with what military planers decide to do with the armed forces.

[stokeace]

if its good enough for prince harry to go to war its good enough for muslims.why should they get preferential treatment?

[kwicky]

If the war in Iraq is illegal does that make every soldier there guilty of conspiracy. I thought that the Nurenburg trials removed the fallacy that 'I was only obeying orders'.

[Lonnie]

Okay, i'm going back a bit, I served from 1966-76, we had in our regiment, three black soldiers, who were also Muslm. I wasn't an issue then, and it shouldn't be now. If these people have a problem with possible potential enemies,they shouldn't join.

[brachiopod]

It's funny that the question states "..the government is stopping Muslim soldiers going [to war]" , yet, after just a few replies, it was as if the question stated "Muslim soldiers are refusing to go..."

Still, hear just what you want to hear, and read what you want to read. eh?

[Lonnie]

Good point brachiopod, I plead guilty on that, and apologise to manxbiker for that.

[admarlow]

Once you sign up all soilders of the same rank should be treated the same.

[anotheoldgit]

It's all getting too much. We have seen a muslim policeman who refused to guard the Israli embassy, the muslim police woman who refused to shake her chief's hand, a school teacher who insisted on wearing a veil, and uniforms adapted to fit in with the wearers religion, laws overlooked to fit in with religion, (as in the wearing of crash helmets and the carrying of an offensive weapon) and I expect many more such incidents that we will never get to know about. Might we sometime expect to hear of a muslim firefighter refusing to enter a burning pork butchers shop?

It is too late now but what we should have said from the offset is, if you wish to join a particular service, then one must wear the particular uniform for that service, after all that is what uniform means. And if you wish to ride a motor cycle then you must wear a crash helmet, the choice is yours. How else can you get true integration, if special exceptions are made for certain sections of the community?