A number of correspondents have drawn attention to the active role that the Salafists are playing in the Arab Spring. The article entitled How Can We Remain Silent While Christians Are Being Persecuted?, by Fraser Nelson, which appeared in The Daily Telegraph (December 23), is illuminating.

He pointed out that Christianity started in the Middle East, was exported to other parts of the world, including the western hemisphere, and coexisted happily with Muslims. The rise of cultural dividing lines between the two is a relatively modern phenomenon. Then he goes on thus:

“These dividing lines are now being made into battle lines by hardline Salafists, who are merging as victors of the Arab Spring. They belong to the same mutant strain of Sunni Islam which inspired al-Qaeda.

“ Their agenda is sectarian warfare and they loathe Shia Islam as much as they do Christians and Jews.

“Their enemy lies not over a border but in a church, synagogue, or Shia mosque.

“The Salafists may be detested by the Muslim mainstream. But as they are finding out, you do not need to be popular to seize power in a post-dictatorship Arab world – you just need to be the best organised.”