Marwa’s brutal death awakened thousands of angry Arabs and Muslims around the world. Marwa Sherbini was a 32 year-old Egyptian pharmacist, wife of a PhD student in the renowned Max Planck Institute, pregnant and mother of a 3 year-old. She was viciously stabbed to death in a courtroom in Dresden (Germany) by a German of Russian descent whose crime was obviously driven by racism and the denial of her Hijab.

The Arab and Muslim anger is justified due to many reasons. First, the weak security measures inside the courtroom as Marwa was stabbed 18 times before her aggressor was stopped. Second, her husband was shot instead of the attacker when he was trying to save his wife. Third, the lack of western media coverage of Marwa’s story which was explained by the double standards used by western media in dealing with such cases, i.e. if it was the other way around and the victim was a Jewish woman then a polemical case would have been opened denouncing anti-Semitism.

Manifestations in the Arab world called for a boycott of all relations with Germany unless the assassin receives the capital punishment. On the other hand, Marwa’s family and lawyer demanded the murderer to be lifetime imprisoned as death sentence doesn’t exist in Germany.

I want to shed the light on the hypocrisy of Arabs and Muslims who follow double standards in valuing human life and rights. We hear them shouting for equality and tolerance for Muslims in western countries when these values and principles are ignored in both the Arab and Muslim worlds.

Before we go on and blame an entire nation for the act of one individual, we should ask ourselves: Why condemn a country like Germany that continually works to ensure the equality and security of all its citizens and practically fights all kinds of racism and extremism, a country that granted the wife of a foreigner the right to pursue a German national in court for racist insults, a right that doesn’t exist in our countries! 

We, as Arabs and Muslims who are ardently calling for human dignity, freedom, democracy and equality should start by introducing and enforcing these values in our own communities before we head to the outside world. Manifestations should be organized for the hundreds of women in our countries who are murdered every year by the name of “honor”.

In conclusion, it would be absolutely naïve to say that the daily life of Arabs and Muslims in Europe is optimal, as racism and Islamophobia have risen tremendously after the attacks of September 11^th. Europe is also pessimistic towards the overflow of immigrants and its impacts in increasing unemployment, slowing down the economic growth and wiping away the European national identity.

All the previously mentioned concerns are justified, and Arabs and Muslims should confront it with wisdom and constructive dialogue with the West, instead of opening new doors for another Muslim-European conflict.