Emirati diplomat Omar Saif Ghobash has been making waves with his new book Letters To A Young Muslim.
This week, Ghobash – who serves as the UAE's ambassador to Russia – even made an appearance on the popular American comedy show, The Daily Show, hosted by South African comedian Trevor Noah, promoting the book.
Written in the form of letters to his sons, Ghobash articulates why Muslims must reject extremism and violence. He stresses the importance of engaging with the world in a constructive and open matter.
"There is no reason to react to the world around you with hatred. You have to understand that someone has made the choice for you when they say you have to hate," the ambassador writes in the book.
"The choice is yours and the only way you can make the world a better place is by doing the opposite of hating. It is by loving."
Ghobash has felt the sting and pain of political violence firsthand, giving him a personal reason to oppose extremism. When he was just six years old, his father – who was the UAE's minister for foreign affairs – was murdered in a political assassination.
Initially, Ghobash felt a desire to seek revenge on his father's killer, he told NPR. But, as Ghobash matured and understood the world around him better, he realized that the assassin was a "victim himself of circumstances."
"I don't feel that he was to blame in a direct sense," Ghobash said.
As Ghobash has seen the competing influences surrounding his children on a a daily basis – messages of violence and messages from moderates – he was inspired to write to his sons, as well as to a generation of Muslim youth who are finding their place in a conflict-torn region and world.
