Trump Says ISIS Should Face Torture for Persecuting Christians

While President Donald Trump says waterboarding “works” and torture is sometimes appropriate for Islamic State soldiers who kill Christians, his words have drawn criticism from Christians.

"When they're chopping off the heads of our people and other people. When they're chopping off the heads of people because they happen to be a Christian in the Middle East, when ISIS is doing things that nobody has ever heard of since medieval times, would I feel strongly about waterboarding? As far as I'm concerned, we have to fight fire with fire,” Trump said.

"I will rely on [CIA director Mike] Pompeo and [defense secretary James] Mattis and my group (if they want to reintroduce waterboarding), and if they don't want to do it, that's fine. If they do want to do it, then I will work toward that end."

But Peter Dixon, a spokesman for Action by Christians Against Torture told Christian Today that waterboarding is considered a form of torture and isn’t allowed in the U.S.

"Being realistic it is unlikely to happen because of the likely opposition from within the Senate and the Congress,” he said. “It is reported that Republican Senator John McCain said yesterday that even if President Donald Trump were to sign an executive order allowing torture, US law is clear on the practice. It also appears that President Trump's Cabinet members, including his defense secretary James Mattis and the CIA Chief Mike Pompeo disagree with the President on this matter.”

Brian Zahnd, pastor of World Life Church, said Trump is “pretending to be a Christian.”

"Once you try to reconcile 'love your enemy' with 'torture works,’ you know you've forsaken Christ and are only pretending to be Christian,” he tweeted.

Photo courtesy: Thinkstockphotos.com

Publication date: January 26, 2017