terrorists

In a clear reaction to the tragic incident of Sep 11th, unequivocal and unified condemnations were issued by Muslim scholars from all over the world, making it clear that Islam goes against violence and it doesn't sanction terrorism. They express Islam's stand on all forms of violence, be it against Muslims or non-Muslims. Thus, it's crystal clear that hijacking planes, terrorizing innocent people and shedding blood constitute a form of injustice that can not be tolerated by Islam, for it's a divine religion that calls for peace.

Among the eminent Muslim scholars that rushed to condemn this attack are Sheikhs Yusuf Al-Qaradawi and Faysal Mawlawi. The following is a reflection on how they explicitly expressed the Islamic view on the incident.

Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, a grand Muslim scholar and prominent Da`iyah (caller to Islam), says:

"Truly, our hearts bleed for the attacks that targeted the World Trade Center (WTC) as well as other institutions in the United States despite our strong opposition to the American-biased policy towards Israel on the military, political and economic fronts.

Islam, the religion of tolerance, holds the human soul in high esteem, and considers an attack against innocent human beings a grave sin. This is backed by the Qur�anic verse which reads: �Whosoever kills a human being for other than manslaughter or corruption in the earth, it shall be as if be had killed all mankind, and whosoever saves the life of one, it shall be as if he had: saved the life of all mankind.� (Al-Ma�dah:32)

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is reported to have said, �A believer remains within the scope of his religion as long as he doesn�t kill another person illegally.�

Haphazard killing where the rough is taken with the smooth and where innocents are killed along with the wrongdoers is totally forbidden in Islam. No one, as far as Islam is concerned, is held responsible for the actions of others. Upon seeing a woman killed in the battlefield, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, renounced the act and said: �That woman shouldn�t have been killed anyway!�

Even at times of war Muslims are not allowed to kill anybody save the one who is indulged in face-to-face confrontation with them. They are not allowed to kill women, elderly, children, or even a monk in his religious seclusion.

That is why killing hundreds of helpless civilians who have nothing to do with the decision-making process and are striving hard to earn their daily bread, such as the victims of the explosions (in the U.S.) is a heinous crime in Islam. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is reported to have stated that a woman was qualified to enter Hell because of the cat she locked up and starved to death.

If this is the ruling applied in protecting animals, no doubt, aggression against human beings, deserves greater protection, for human beings are honored by Allah Almighty and are His vicegerents on earth?

We Arab Muslims are the most affected by the grave consequences of hostile attack on man and life. We share the suffering experienced by innocent Palestinians at the hands of the tyrannical Israeli entity who raze the Palestinian homes to the ground, set fire to their land, kill them in cold, and leave innocent orphans wailing behind.

With this in mind, the daily life in Palestine has become a permanent memorial gathering. When Palestinians face such unjust aggression, they tend to stem bloodletting and destruction and not claim the lives of innocent civilians.

I categorically go against any committed Muslim embarking on such attacks. Islam never allows a Muslim to kill the innocent and the helpless.

If such attacks were carried out by a Muslim - as some biased groups claim - then we, in the name of our religion, renounce the act and incriminate the perpetrator. We do confirm that the aggressor deserves the deterrent punishment irrespective of his religion, race or gender.

What we warn against - even if it becomes a reality - is to hold a whole nation accountable for a crime carried out by a small group of people, or to characterize a certain religion as one that supports violence and terrorism.

When the well-known Oklahoma incident was carried out by a Christian American who was driven by personal interests, neither Christianity, America or even the Christian world were accused of the attack because a Christian masterminded it."

On his part, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy chairman of the European Council for Fatwa and Research, states:

"Before delving deep into the issue, I will first of all tackle the main points connecting to it:

1-Call to Allah is the mission of all Prophets:

Given the fact that Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, is the seal Prophet, therefore, his message is eternal and meant for the whole mankind. After the demise of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, the responsibility of conveying this message rests on the shoulders of all Muslims; Allah says: "And there may spring from you a nation who invite to goodness, and enjoin right conduct and forbid indecency. Such are they who are successful."(Aal-`Imraan: 104)

However, in calling people to Allah, every Muslim should demonstrate wisdom and gentleness in dealing with people; they should try to get close to people, to know what they need and how they should help them. All in all, they should abide by the noble principles laid down by the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, in this arena.

2-Da`wah: A Cornerstone of Muslims-non-Muslims Relation:

It�s worth mentioning that Da�wah is the cornerstone of Muslims relationships with non-Muslims and this should be borne in mind. Thus, all principles and rules governing that aspect should be given due respect, which means that nowadays rules of warfare deserve to be clearly understood, to know when and how to conduct it, and what the scopes of fighting are.

What I�m trying to say is that, the controversial issue among Muslims nowadays is �the basis of dealing with non-Muslims. Is it in the framework of Da`wah or fighting?� It becomes exigent to explain clearly what governs the relation between Muslims and non-Muslims.

We are now living in an open world, where respect for human rights, especially religious rights, has gained ground in most of the countries. Besides, Muslim minorities are in the multitudes in Europe, America, Australia, Asia and Africa, and most of them are citizens of these countries. Thereby, the possibility of fighting non-Muslims out of defense is still pending if persecution is practiced against Muslims; the incidents of Bosnia, Kosovo, Chechnya, Afghanistan and Palestine are current examples.

As for the issue in the U.S., its policy vis-�-vis the Middle East conflict and the blind support it gave the Zionist state, by backing it in all its atrocities against Palestinians, earned the Americans more enemies from among the Arab and Muslim nations. But despite their strong condemnation of this double-standard policy, as well as many economic strategies displayed against American and Israeli goods, none of those countries have ever voiced the opinion of expanding the scope of the Palestinian Intifada to be shifted to the U.S. This won�t produce any good and it will jeopardize the Muslims� interests as well.

In the light of the above, we conclude that the 9/11 tragic event against America is totally against the principles of Islam, thus, it can never earn the honor of being called �martyr operation� even if it happens that Muslims are the perpetrators, for the following reasons:

1-The current situation of all Muslims nowadays makes it compulsory for them to take Da�wah, and not fighting, as the basis of dealing with non-Muslims. Adopting a hostile policy against non-Muslims will not let them see the light of Islam. In fact, Muslims in Europe and America are working hard in elucidating Islam to non-Muslims in a very good way. But the late attack on America will unfortunately disturb this process, for it�s an attack against the ordinary people and not against the government.

2-Then comes the issue of hijacking civilian planes on board of which are women, the elderly, children, Muslims and non-Muslims. This act is completely forbidden in Islam. It is a form of terrorism. It is rejected in Islam unless staged against combatants during warfare. Allah says: "And if anyone of the idolaters seeketh thy protection (O Muhammad) , then protect him so that he may hear the word of Allah; and afterward convey him to his place of safety. That is because they are a folk who know not." (At-Tawbah: 6)

If this is the ruling governing the combatant non-Muslims, what about the non-combatant ones? They enjoy more protection, no doubt.

In addition to that, the point of using the WTC in New York as the target of their criminal act is in itself heinous. It was the workplace of thousands of employees who can never be termed combatants, including women, elderly, Muslims and non-Muslims. This act greatly runs counter to the Islamic principles of warfare, and makes it one of the most grave criminal acts that deserves severe punishment."

So, dear questioner, it has become as clear as daylight that Islam has no hand in the incident of Sep. 11. Thereby taking it as a cause of launching war against Islam and Muslims is itself an act injustice, and we all know that injustice can never be redressed by another injustice. As long as Muslim scholars all over the world have made it clear that using the concept of Jihad to justify harming innocent people is contrary to the letter and spirit of Islam, the right approach is shift eyes of justice to another direction. Wisdom must be applied here as not to lose friends and sympathisers.

Allah Almighty knows best.