Unanimous condemnation of the murder of the sacristan of Algeciras, Diego Valencia, at the hands of a young Moroccan who attacked him with a machete in the Church of La Palma and an appeal for calm. Not even 24 hours have passed since Yasine Kanjaa, already arrested, sowed chaos in several churches in the city when society wanted to gather in the Plaza Alta, the same place where he dealt a fatal blow to the sacristan, to show their revulsion, both for what he did and for how he did it, using the name of Allah to commit his misdeed.
The event, convened by the local town hall, was attended by political representatives, friends and acquaintances of the fatality, as well as the area's Muslim community, from where this type of act "that is far from our religion" has been strongly condemned and that "tarnish the coexistence" of society, as pointed out by the Islamic Community al Rahmah.
There have been many groups of Muslims, at a local, regional and national level, who have spoken out against this type of act since the attack was made public, and they urge that religion be separated from the killing for the good of all, given that in the city of Cádiz coexistence between cultures is essential.
"We condemn the act committed by this madman, this madman", a person "totally unknown" to us and to society who "seems sent here to commit this murder", Dris Mohamed Amar, spokesman for the Union of Muslims from Campo de Gibraltar and from the Islamic Community of Rahmah. "Algeciras is a small city where we all know each other and I consider that we form a great family" and "the alliance that existed has not been broken," he comments, since he points out that there is some concern about some messages that are circulating calling for arms , although he points out that "we are not afraid because the brotherhood is still alive."
Along the same lines, Jihad Sarasua, president of the Ishbilia Mosque, who, at the expense of what the police investigation of the case determines, hopes that behind this crime, carried out "by a disturbed man who has used the religion to commit their madness”, there is nothing else. On the other hand, he has shown his "trust" in the residents of Algeciras so that "they do not fall into the error of revenge as a first impulse" as a result of the hate messages against the Muslim community that are being circulated, "even in a way organizes to get some kind of revenue” in the last hours, he explains. “We are attentive to these movements after this terrorist act”, he comments.
Other messages of revulsion and condolences have come from the Islamic Commission of Spain, from which a statement was issued condemning "this murderous action, feeling solidarity with our Catholic brothers and with our Catholic religious brothers whom we embrace with affection and solidarity". .
The Andalusian delegate of the Commission, and also secretary of the Union of Islamic Communities in Andalusia, Abdeslam Elhinda, in statements to La Vanguardia, wanted to condemn "this cowardly act" by "a terrorist" who has attacked "places sacred places, places of peace and against our brothers", to whom he has expressed his total solidarity, since he has opted to guarantee coexistence among all. "What happened yesterday has no religion, no races or borders," he comments, the attacker was a "terrorist who has nothing to do with our community," a union that advocates "for peace, meaning of the word Islam."
The Islamic Board of Spain, based in Córdoba, has also joined this message, insisting that "Islam, like other religions, condemns all kinds of crimes"; or the Imam of Almería, Abdallah Mhanna, who condemned the attacks that took place yesterday in Algeciras together with the city's bishop, Antonio Gómez Cantero: "today in a very special way, and at all times, we are united and together we condemn these terrible actions" , pointed out Abdallah.
For his part, the Bishop of Cádiz and Ceuta, Rafael Zornoza, has assured that everyone is "shocked and hurt" by these events, and wanted to thank all the expressions of affection they have been receiving.
"We are a peaceful society" and "a people of coexistence", for which reason "I appeal to no one to generalize towards any group, neither ethnic nor religious". This is how the president of the Junta de Andalucía, Juanma Moreno, expressed himself today, who insisted that what happened yesterday is “a specific event” and that we would have to wait for the investigation to resolve all the doubts that exist around the case.
"We live together with 129 different nationalities in Algeciras. Until now it has always been in peace, in harmony and with respect. It must continue to be so, we must prevent any type of wick that we do not want from igniting," the mayor of the town said during the rally. city, José Ignacio Landaluce, who has deeply regretted the death of the sacristan.
Landaluce has received messages of support from different parts of the province, including that of José María González Kichi, councilor of Cádiz, who made himself available to him yesterday afternoon. “What comes to us from Algeciras is very painful, and I express my most absolute and firm condemnation of the murder that has occurred. Intolerance must never take root in our society, ”he said. Also Juan Espadas, general secretary of the PSOE-A; Inmaculada Nieto, leader of Por Andalucía, and Teresa Rodríguez, spokesperson for Adelante Andalucía, joined the messages of condolence to the victim's relatives and condemned the attack, as well as called for harmony and coexistence in the city , a line that collided head-on with the attitude of Vox in the community, who warned on their social networks that "Islamism is already in Andalusia."
“I want to make an earnest request to you: do not associate it with religion because it has absolutely nothing to do with it. Damn those who stain the Faith”, could be read in the profile that Fátima H. Hossain, spokesperson for the Ceuta political party Movement for Dignity and Citizenship, has on social networks. And it is that the gestures of solidarity with the people of Algeciras and the condemnation for the crime have also occurred in Ceuta, where a minute of silence has been observed as a sign of pain.
"After an act of this type, opinions are polarized and it is normal for panic to spread, but you have to wait for the investigation to conclude to find out exactly what has happened," says José Luis, a teacher in Algeciras, who also refers to the Hoaxes that are running on the networks about this crime fostering hate speech towards the Muslim community, something that ensures that a part of the political class will make a profit. In his opinion, the attack seems, a priori, to be the work of a boy "with a mental health problem" rather than someone who obeys an organized group.
"Until now, coexistence was very good in general," he defends from experience as a teacher in a center where 70% of the students are Muslim, although he believes that more could be done from the council to promote integration, as well as to reduce the crime rates of marginal groups in which, unfortunately, as indicated, immigrants are more vulnerable groups.
