There's a Muslim tradition that says that, before Jesus descends, the Antichrist will have free reign over the earth, filling it with injustice and evil. But he won't be allowed to enter Mecca or Medina. Perhaps it's this conviction that explains why so many Muslims I am talking to right now simply cannot believe what has just happened.
A suicide bombing in Medina?
It's true that ISIS practices a vicious violence with a cold, cruel political logic, seeking to exploit and aggravate existing social tensions: They call it "the management of savagery." Elsewhere it means "the elimination of the gray zone," forcing people to choose sides. Going to war with pluralism, tolerance, democracy.
But if Muslims believe their sacred cities are off-limits, they're in for a rude awakening.
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