REBEL vs TERRORIST

In the English speaking world, a rebel is admired and a terrorist is denigrated.

In the Muslim world, we are using the WRONG TERM for terrorist. THE CORRECT TERM IS "MUFSIDUN". If all people used the correct term there could be an instantaneous change in attitudes.

I will quote Nathaniel Burney*, because I do not think I could write a better explanation.

"You can mis-use words yourself, giving an advantage to the enemy.

"'Jihadist,' for example, is the wrong word to use when attacking islamist terrorists. In Islam, the word 'jihadist' has strong connotations of goodness and proper behavior. Calling someone a jihadist confers on them real religious legitimacy. The proper word to use would be 'mufsidun,' which means 'evildoer.'

"In 2008, the local sheikhs and tribal leaders in Iraq began using the word 'mufsidun' when describing terrorism, with real results. Their people began opposing and punishing terrorist behavior, and generally began acting like terrorism was wrong and bad. Even with the significant progress under the military's 'surge' strategy, this single conceptual change was considered the biggest change on the ground in 2008." 

* Nathaniel Burney, author of Primer on International Law