Paris Terrorist Attacks: Muslims, Iranian And Arab Leaders Condemn ISIS Violence In France

Muslims throughout the world strongly condemned Saturday the terrorist attacks in Paris, which left at least 129 people dead and hundreds wounded in a half-dozen coordinated shootings and explosions throughout the city. Iranian officials were quick to condemn the Islamic State group, which took responsibility for the attacks, and urged for the international community to stand together against the extremist group.

Iranian President Hassan Rouhani sent a message to French President Francois Hollande Saturday, informing him Iran was offering its thoughts and prayers to the French people. Iran and its allies, Hezbollah and the Assad regime in Syria, have been fighting ISIS. Rouhani also announced he has postponed a planned trip to Italy and France. Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif, who worked with U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry to reach the Iran nuclear deal, was quoted by Iranian state-run news agency IRNA saying he condemned “terrorist operations at any forms” and that Iran, as a victim of terrorism, has always rejected terrorist activity.

Indonesian President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo said in a press conference Saturday that Indonesia "condemns the violence that took place in Paris.” He called for international cooperation against terrorism, the Jakarta Post reported, saying any acts of terrorism could not be tolerated. Indonesia is the largest Muslim country in the world.

The Arab states -- Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Egypt -- all roundly criticized the attacks late Friday, reported Alternet, citing an Al-Arabiya report. King Salman of Saudi Arabia sent a message of condolence to Hollande, saying, “We learned about the pain and the sadness of the terrorist attacks in Paris. … We express our condemnation for this repugnant terrorist act and offer our condolences to your excellency, the French people and the families of the victims.”

The Council on American-Islamic Relations, the largest Muslim civil rights and advocacy organization in the United States, released a statement Friday night saying: “These savage and despicable attacks on civilians, whether they occur in Paris, Beirut or any other city, are outrageous and without justification. We condemn these horrific crimes in the strongest terms possible. Our thoughts and prayers are with the loved ones of those killed and injured and with all of France. The perpetrators of these heinous attacks must be apprehended and brought to justice.”

In one viral YouTube video, a Moroccan Muslim named Wafi Abdouss criticized the violence in Paris, saying "these so-called jihadists [sic] only represent themselves."

Estimates of the numbers of the Islamic State group, which also took responsibility for Thursday’s bombing in Beirut that killed at least 41 people, vary greatly. One CIA estimate suggested there were tens of thousands of militants in the extremist group, while others have estimated membership runs as high as 200,000. At the high end of the spectrum, that number represents less then 0.013 percent of the world’s approximately 1.6 billion Muslims.