Islam Has No

Terrorism

Ahmad Eldridge Cleaver

Contents

Acknowledgment..............................2
Foreword...................3
I. What Bloodshed Islam Forbids6
Suicide Is Forbidden In Islam
A Case Study: A Suicide Bomber's Last Moments
To Kill a Woman or a Child Is Forbidden In Islam
Hijacking Airplanes and Kidnapping Are Crimes to Be
Punished
Destruction of Property Is Forbidden In Islam
Rebellion Against a Muslim Ruler Is Forbidden
II. Corrupt Un-Islamic Ideology of Extremist Groups 24
Misled Muslims Influenced By Marxist Revolutionary
Strategy
Why Extremist Groups Attract Followers
III. Jihad.......33
IV. Terrorism in the Name of the War on Terror...............39
Conclusion44
Footnotes .45
Glossary of Islamic Terms......46

Foreword
There is a misconception about Islam that has sadly
become very common and widespread. It has nearly reached
the level of being the "word of the day" in this post 9 11
world that we live in. This common misconception is that the
religion of Islam encourages or even worse, is based on
violence and warfare. This baseless misunderstanding of the
teachings of Islam has become very deliberate and
intentional. The term terrorism is today thrown upon anyone
the authorities in the West do not agree with especially a
Muslim. And here I propose an important question; has an
effective definition of terrorism been given to the world? One
western scholar has stated; "Terrorism involves the use of
violence by an organization other than a national government
to intimidate or frighten a target audience."1 In a way, this
definition gives legitimacy to the use of violence to
intimidate or frighten a target audience if it is done by a
government of a country. Therefore, if a state tries to
frighten, a targeted audience, by brutalizing them, then
perhaps we should then add a term to the phrase. Thus, we
can accurately describe some violence reported today as
"State Terrorism."
This widely held misconception about Islam has even
given birth to new flag words like "Islamic Terrorism." A
word never known before contemporary politics yielded it

like a sword. However, the revelation of the Quran occurred

1,400 years ago. This so called Islamic terrorism is new in
comparison. In all honesty, the production of these words;
overflowing with Anti-Islamic propaganda, meaning and
color is motivated by political agendas. These agendas
belong to the countries whose armies are on battlefields
fighting Muslim nations and people.
These agendas belong to my own country, America
the country I am from, my father, grandfather, grandmother
were all from. So why you may ask, is my pen tackling this
subject? Because indeed, the message and the teachings of
Islam are truthful, clear and as bright as the full moon's light.
So any confusion about what Islam is built upon, can easily
and readily be elaborated upon. As the book of divine
revelation of Islam, the Quran is all intact, word for word.
The same exact Quran that was revealed scripture 1,400
years ago sent via the Archangel Gabriel, to the Prophet
Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon him)
who recited it to all who would hear it is the same exact
Quran that Muslims read today. Islam's teachings regarding
warfare are to be found within the scripture and religious
sources. The fact that the media and some governments have
begun to associate terrorism with Islam only demonstrates
their ignorance; a nearly complete ignorance of the authentic
teachings of Islam.

The religious sources of the way of life of Islam are

two. First is the final divine revelation, the final scripture, the
Quran, and secondly, the Sunnah of the Prophet Muhammad
(may God's peace and blessings be upon him). The Sunnah
means the way of the Final Messenger (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him). The manner and way that he, in his
daily life implemented demonstrated and was a living
example of the message of the Quran. This Sunnah has been
documented by strictly recording each person in the chain of
narrators to insure its preservation. The narrators all come
from the companions/disciples of the Prophet (may God's
peace and blessings be upon him). The Sunnah is the second
source of the religion of Islam. Hadith (sayings) are the
documents that record the Sunnah; the words, deeds and
teachings of the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him). These are the two sources of Islam,
the Quran and the Sunnah.
So within these two sources of Islam is
found what is praiseworthy, obligatory, permissible, and what
is highly disapproved of as well as what is forbidden, all are
defined in perfect clarity. So here my guest, I will lay it out
before you, point by point by point; what are Islam's
teachings about warfare. Know that within these two sources
of Islam, the Quran and the Sunnah, there is to be found
wisdom and a teaching on every subject that the human being
will ever need to be complete.

Now, the subject of terrorism, the word itself,

terrorism has deeply confused the public opinion of the
masses. A large portion of the society are just grazing and
feeding aimlessly upon the western media and news reports.
Many Non-Muslim people in the East and in the West have
been misled and misinformed about both Islam and about
terrorism. Within the pages of the Quran and the Sunnah are
very clear teachings that show without any doubt, Islam
forbids terrorism and Islam has no terrorism.

I. What Bloodshed Islam Forbids

To Kill One Innocent Soul is a Major Sin

God Almighty has said in the Quran,

"Because of that We ordained for the

Children of Israel that if anyone killed a
person not in retaliation of murder, or
(and) to spread mischief in the land - it
would be as if he killed all mankind, and if
anyone saved a life, it would be as if he
saved the life of all mankind. And indeed,
there came to them Our Messengers with
clear proofs, evidences, and signs, even
then after that many of them continued to
exceed the limits in the land !." 2 Chapter
Al-Ma'idah (The Table Spread with Food)
5:32"
The meaning of this verse of the Quran relates to the
weight of the deed of taking a person's life on the scales of
the Day of Judgment. The weighing of a person's actions on
the Day of Resurrection in Islam is prophesied and revealed
in great detail. Islam teaches that in the eyes of God, to kill
one soul, one human being unjustly is a sin as heavy as if the
killer had killed all of humanity. Islamically, the authority to
take life is only to be used by legitimate authorities
upholding the law. The Muslim authority is responsible to
decide when there is due cause for capital punishment for

clearly proven crimes that Islamic law punishes with death.

There are strict conditions set to verify the guilt of the killer
and to protect people's legal rights.
This verse comes immediately after the story of Cain
and Able. God shows us in the lives of the Prophets (may
God's peace and blessings be upon them all) and their own
families that murder is one of the Major Sins. God hates the
sin of taking life without cause. Indeed, everyone has the
right to live is one of the most basic principals in Islam. This
right is carefully protected in the Islamic law, called the
Shariah. The punishment for intentional and pre-meditated
murder is capital punishment; a life for a life, an eye for an
eye. The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) gave only three reasons and three sins
for which capital punishment could be applied in the Islamic
law/Shariah. In an authentically documented saying/hadith of
the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him) said:
"The blood of a Muslim that bears witness
that none has the right to be worshipped
in truth) except God and that I am the
Messenger of God is not permissible to
spill, except in three cases:
1) recompense for killing someone else
2) stoning the adulterer

10

3) the one who leaves his religion,

abandoning the jamaa'ah (unified
Muslim community)."3
So the portrait that is popularly painted nowadays
that Islam is a religion of violence and killing is a portrait far
from the truth. To kill one soul unjustly is as the same in
Islam as if all of the people on earth were killed. To say that
extremist groups who promote and do terrorist actions are
basing their violence on the teachings of Islam is false. These
extremists groups follow a mixed up mish mash of
philosophies. The word Islamic terrorist is an oxymoron.
Because in fact, Islam and terrorism are exact opposites. The
terrorists whether Hindus like the Tamil Tigers, Jewish like
Kach, Christians like the Klu Klux Klan or with Muslim
members like Al-Qaeda commit murder upon the common
people indiscriminately.
Regardless of the fact that it is often unknown
whether the people are guilty of a war crime or just innocent
bystanders, they are attacked. A terrorist attack intends to
terrorize and strike utter fear in the society of the targeted
group. Until they begin to say, "Where's the next bomb? Who
will get killed next time?"

As far as Islam, the message is clear. Not even one

person is to be killed unjustly. To take a life with no just

11

cause is one of the great sins. It weighs as heavy on the scales

of Judgment as the severity for actually killing all of
mankind.

Suicide is Forbidden in Islam

12

God Almighty said in the Quran:

"O you who believe! Eat not up your

property among yourselves unjustly
except it be a trade amongst you, by
mutual consent. And do not kill
yourselves. Surely, God is Most Merciful
to you." 4 Chapter An-Nisa (The Women)
4:29
Here are words of a verse in the Quran, the
revelation, the divinely revealed scripture that every
believing Muslim will call the Book of God. The words are
clear as daylight, making committing suicide forbidden. To
kill your soul, that God created is a sinful deed that is
prohibited for every Muslim and for every person for all
time. The soul that God said "Be" and then it was. It is a trust
given from God and to intentionally bring death to that soul
is to break that trust. No one has the right to kill a soul. God
created it and bestowed upon it the gift of life.
If for any reason there was a need for more clarity
than the above Quranic verse on the subject of suicide, then
the words of the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) are enlightening. This authentically
documented saying of the Prophet is found in one of the most

13

highly revered and respected books of his Hadith (sayings)

called Sahih Muslim (Authentic narrations of the Prophet's
sayings documented by a scholar called Imam Muslim) His
words completely clarify, define and leave no room for doubt
regarding what is Islam's position about committing suicide.
"It is narrated on the authority of Abu
Huraira (a companion of the Prophet) that
the Messenger of God (may God's peace
and blessings be upon him) said: "He who
killed himself with a steel (weapon) would
be the eternal denizen of the Fire of Hell
and he would have that weapon in his
hand and would be thrusting that in his
stomach for ever and ever, he who drank
poison and killed himself would sip that in
the Fire of Hell where he is doomed for
ever and ever; and he who killed himself
by falling from (the top of) a mountain
would constantly fall in the Fire of Hell
and would live there for ever and ever."5
Now, could it have ever been made any clearer? To
commit suicide is a forbidden act in the religion and the way
of life of Islam. It is in fact a Major sin and the perpetrator is
promised the grievous torment of punishment in the hell fire.
Now many people would ask, "What about all the incidents
of suicide bombers?" They have killed themselves with the
intention of killing others around them as well. Suicide
bombers are criminally misled by their leaders.

14

The leaders of extremist groups ignore and minimize

the teachings of Islam regarding suicide and taking civilian
life. At the same time, they repeatedly emphasize the
oppression, defeat and damaged honor that face some of the
Muslim societies and nations. The oppression and injustice
suffered by the Muslim societies as a whole in countries
where extremist groups are operating is real and to a
frightening degree. What the Muslim people have faced in
Palestine, India, Pakistan, Chechnya, Kashmir, the
Philippines, Afghanistan and Iraq can all be depicted and
documented.
The error of the leadership of groups using extreme
violence is deciding to use suicide bombing as a strategy. It is
a specific weapon used by an out gunned, out numbered
resistance group facing a huge military force armed to the
teeth some even with weapons of mass destruction. So it is
the underdog resistance armies versus modern armies with
long histories of being ruthless.
Extremist groups are adversaries to the armies of the
State of Israel, India, Russia, the Philippines, the US Army,
Marines and Air force and the Multinational forces in
Afghanistan and Iraq. The strategy of these violent groups
have assessed that suicide bombers are a way to even the
stakes of battle, regardless of if it is forbidden in the religion
of Islam or not. Sadly they have mistakenly come to the

15

conclusion that one suicide bomber can wipe out five to ten
to twenty to thirty to even more of the civilian and military
population of their targeted enemies. The suicide bomber as
he views those around him has no idea who will die from his
attack and his death. There may even be some soldiers there.
However, most often theses un-Islamic attacks are
uncontrollable as to whom they will kill. There is no way to
know who will be terrified, who injured, maimed or
murdered.
The only thing that is 100% sure is the misled
bomber will certainly kill himself, will commit suicide. How
often have we heard reports where dozens of people have
been injured but only the bomber himself was actually killed?
This strategy in a since is a numeric one. A suicide bomber is
attempting to inflict greater losses upon the population that
the opposing militarily stronger force belongs to. Thus they
are bombing for numbers and not to keep their feet firm upon
the religion of Islam. Nor to keep their resistance movement
following the Quran and adhering to the Sunnah of the
Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him).
Islam, the way of Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him), is far far away from promoting an
attack where a Muslim warrior does not even know whom he
would be attacking; whether men, women, children, the

16

elderly, infants, the sick, civilians or opposing infantrymen.

Such extremist groups try to justify this strategy by saying
they have no other weapon against huge armies. Yet, they are
able to get hold of explosives and weapons. They are turning
away from the wisdom and teachings of Islam and trying to
replace them with guerrilla warfare tactics first created by the
Hindu Tamil Tigers who worship idols. The Tamil Tigers
have a longer history of suicide bombing than any extremist
Muslim group on the face of God's green Earth. No, Muslim
extremist groups did not create or begin suicide bombing.
The armies in the Islamic history were living and
fighting in a way that was so much closer to the pure
teachings of Islam than how the extremist groups fighting in
some Muslim societies are today. Amongst them in their
midst were the scholars of Islam who also took up the sword
when defense of Muslim society was needed. Such as the
prolific author and scholar Ibn Tammiyah, known as Sheikh
of Islam (a term meaning the most revered scholar for his
knowledge and piety in his day and time). He fought with the
Muslim army defending Damascus against Genghis Khan
and the Tartars. There were no such indiscriminate terrorist
attacks such as a suicide attack bomber when amongst the
leadership is found a scholar and teacher internationally
renowned like Ibn Tammiyah was and still is today. His
works are precise and profound explanations of the meaning
of the Quran and the Sunnah. The books he wrote are still

17

carefully studied today in universities, mosques and even by

the most knowledgeable of contemporary scholars.
Unfortunately, today there is a life threatening lack of
proper Islamic knowledge and scholarship amongst extremist
groups. Although, these organizations see suicide bombings
as a tactic that will help to bring them victory, the reality is
the exact opposite. They have promoted and taught some of
the Muslims to be deviant and astray; and those who were
seeking to resist the oppressors and aggressors against their
societies. Then they were led to battle in a way illegal and
forbidden in Islam.
Therefore, we see more and more bloodshed and no
victory at all from suicide bombings. Rather, just people
dying who do not know why they are being killed, and
people killing and not even knowing who they are killing.
This state of bloodshed and utter confusion was prophesied
about 1,400 years ago by the Prophet Muhammad (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him). It is like we can
hear his words today explaining what we see occurring and
unfolding right before our eyes in our contemporary world.
"Abu Huraira (a companion of the
Prophet) reported God's Messenger (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him)
as saying: "By Him in Whose Hand is my
life, a time would come when the
murderer would not know why he has

18

committed the murder, and the victim

would not know why he has been killed."6
Suicide bombing has unfortunately become part of
the strategy used by a minority of extremist groups in
Muslim countries. This coincides with the widespread
ignorance of the Shariah/Islamic law and the meanings of
many of the teachings of Islam. Islam is a complete way of
life, holistic including principals of worship, morality, ideals
for family life, social principals, Islamic banking and
economic principals, just rule and governance guidelines
including the boundaries of legal and illegal acts of war. To
commit suicide and much worse to use it as a tactic of assault
against unarmed civilians, by standers and innocent
passersby or passengers is completely forbidden and illegal
in the Shariah (Islamic law system).
Many of the Muslims sincerely want success and
victory in this life and in the next. There is only one way for
them, for me, for us and that is to live by the guidance, light
and truth revealed in the Quran. To understand this guidance
fully, we must turn to the Sunnah and how the Quran's
message was implemented by Prophet Muhammad (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him). To get the purest
idea of how the Quran is to be implemented in Muslim daily
life, one must learn how Islam was understood by the
companions of Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him); his disciples. Here we will find a
way to victory and to success in war and in peace.

19

A Case Study: Last Moments of A Suicide Bomber.

Let us go on a journey with a young lad. He is a

twenty year-old Palestinian from Jenin, named Saffah. And
all of his life he has seen the Israeli tanks and M-16 assault

20

rifle totting soldiers patrolling the streets of Jenin. As they

please they will kick down the doors of the home of a
Palestinian family and force everyone onto the floor and tie
their hands behind their backs. Then the soldiers would start
ransacking the home in a reckless search for weapons and
explosives. They never entered a home in Jenin except with
their finger on the trigger.
Now Saffah, though young has come up hard. He has
always been harassed, searched, forced to abide by curfews.
He has given condolences at countless funerals of neighbors,
friends and relatives. To Saffah he only sees Israeli soldiers
as a violent, aggressive, oppressive force in Palestinian lives,
homes and ghettos.
During the Palestinian Intifada with the nearly daily
protests, stone throwing and exchanges of gunfire he lived in
a constant danger zone. If he had been an active member of
the Palestinian resistance to Israeli occupation or if he was
not; the danger in his life is nearly just the same. No one can
count the number of Palestinians who were not part of any
resistance movement but were shot dead by Israeli soldiers.
Or the number of innocent bystanders who have died from
wounds suffered by rockets shot from helicopter gunships
targeting specific cars, apartments, offices or homes.
This is all part of Saffah's background and it pours
through his mind and his memory as he boards a crowded bus
in the city center of Tel Aviv. His life and the funerals of all
his friends and family members just began to shuffle through

21

his mind, like a never ending flash movie. He tries and tries
to think about something else and to focus on what he is
doing. But he can't. Face after face after face just kept
running through his mind some of them are people who had
been killed years ago. The faces always end with his little
brother Luqman.
Luqman was shot by Israeli soldiers as he was
walking home from his friend's house late one night. Saffah
remembered the last time he saw Luqman like it was
yesterday. How they laughed together while watching an
Egyptian actor in a sitcom. He was arguing with his wife
about buying her a new dress for a wedding.
Saffah also remembered six months back when shots
were fired at the funeral procession in Jenin that carried
Luqman's shrouded lifeless body to be buried. There were so
many people there family, friends, neighbors and resistance
fighters. All were enraged at the pointless death of yet
another young Palestinian at the hands of trigger happy
Israelis soldiers. They treated Palestinians as if their lives
were meaningless, worthless and to be discarded for any
small reason at any time. Saffah made a promise as he buried
his brother and saw the dirt shoveled unto Luqman's body. He
would avenge the murder of his younger brother.
When he expressed this to the men in the resistance
movement in Jenin he was encouraged. They told him, "If
you are serious and dedicated you will become a martyr."
As Saffah found a seat and sat down on the crowded
bus. He could hear some Jewish kids playing and arguing

22

over candy. He was sitting silently feeling enraged at the

senseless violence he saw in Palestine day after day. The
burials of innocent
people who were just at the scene when fighting started.
Saffah felt no hope for politics, or for the "Road Map to
Independence", or for even a Palestinian State. He knew it
was truly their right. But the tears of his mother and his
family over the fate of Luqman, was what he really did know
and understand. Saffah recalls how he could hear his mother
sometimes crying late at night, "Luqman left for no cause, for
no crime, for no reason!"
As Saffah glanced around him he saw a bus full of
mostly Jewish passengers and some Arabs going to work. He
even noticed a few people glaring at him with what seemed
to be open distrust and suspicion. He was right in the middle
of the capitol of Israel and he could feel in his heart what his
uncle Amar often said, "Jews only know that we are to them
worthless." They had stolen his grandfather's farmland and
then stolen the life of his little brother Luqman. So as he eyed
the passengers on the bus, Saffah said to himself, "As they
did to Luqman, I will do to many more of them."
Then Saffah reached his hand into his jacket pocket.
He slowly wrapped his fingers around a trigger for an
explosive device. The explosives were dynamite tightly
wrapped around his chest. It was cold and uncomfortably
wrapped tightly with tape that pinched against his skin. As he
sat on the bus he remembered his life, his family and all the

23

pain and treachery thrown upon them for as long as he can

remember in all of his twenty years of life.
An Israeli woman sitting across the isle from him
started to stare at him. She seemed to be getting more and
more irritated and suspicious. She stood up quickly and
shouted in Hebrew, "Boy! What are you doing in your
jacket?! Some men quickly moved towards Saffah and tried
to grab hold of him. Saffah was prepared and he had been
trained as to what to do and what to expect. He never took his
hand off the trigger. He looked the woman in the eye and
said, "For Palestine! For Our Land!" His hand in a tight fist,
and Saffah pulled the trigger..
Now what will become of the soul of Saffah? Truly,
this is a question any Muslim must be very careful in trying
to answer. In the end, this is a question of the knowledge of
the unseen. Indeed, none can perceive and know all of the
things of the unseen. For instance, like what happens to the
soul after death except Almighty God.
We do have in Islam the guidance and wisdom of
some aspects of the knowledge of the unseen by way of the
book of Divine revelation, the Quran. In addition to the
Quran, layers of the knowledge of the unseen can be unveiled
from the authentically documented words of the Prophet
Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon him).
As I have showed a few pages earlier, an eternal punishment
is how the Messenger of God (may God's peace and blessings

24

be upon him) described the fate for the person who has
committed suicide. I will share another Hadith (saying) of the
Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) once again to strike home my point.
"We witnessed the battle of Khaibar.
God's Apostle said about one of those
who were with him and who claimed to be
a Muslim. "This man is from the dwellers
of the Hell-Fire." When the battle started,
that fellow fought so violently and bravely
that he received plenty of wounds. Some
of the people were about to doubt the
Prophet's statement, but the man, feeling
the pain of his wounds, put his hand into
his quiver and took out of it, some arrows
with which he slaughtered himself (i.e.
committed suicide). Then some men
amongst the Muslims came hurriedly and
said, "O God's Apostle! God has made
your statement true so-and-so has
committed suicide. "The Prophet said, "O
so-and-so! Get up and make an
announcement that none but a believer
will enter Paradise and that God may
support the religion with an unchaste, evil
wicked man.."7
Now on the Day of Judgment, then the deeds of
every Muslim soul will be weighed out on the scales. There it
will be God Almighty alone who will weigh and judge the

25

deeds, the faith of the soul and balance them against the sins
of the soul. Here the Major sin of committing suicide as well
as the intended premeditated murder of civilians, noncombatants will all be put on the scales of the Day of
Weighing the Deeds, the Day of Accounts. For the one sin
itself of suicide a specific punishment was explained in great
detail by the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him). Now for someone to commit suicide
with the intention of indiscriminately killing those around
him is even much worse. As the suicide bomber does not
even known who it is who will be killed. However, it is
impossible to say specifically with total certainty what will
be the eternal fate of Saffah as an individual. This can not be
known by any human being. It is only within the knowledge
of God Almighty or what has been revealed to the Prophets
of God (may God's peace and blessings be upon them all).
There are deeds, sins in general that can be described in
regards to the punishment God promises for them in the
Quran or via the words of the Prophet Muhammad (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him).
God has revealed in the verses of the Quran His Most
Beautiful Names and the Prophet Muhammad (may God's
peace and blessings be upon him) also attributed to God
theses same names. The Prophet taught all of God's Most
Beautiful Names as was revealed to him and they are ninety
nine names for the Creator, called the Ninety Nine Most
Beautiful Names. These names all have derived from them
specific qualities or characteristics that belong to God alone

26

in a perfect way. And only God Almighty knows for sure and
can tell without a doubt what will be the eternal fate of
Saffah. Look at thirteen of the names of God, to help to put
light upon why none but God knows the eternal fate of any
soul. For God alone has divinity. He has no partners and truly
God alone is:
The All-Knowing Judge

Al-Fattah

The All-Knowing

Al-Alim

The All-Hearing

As-Sami

The All-Seer

Al-Basir

The All Aware

Al-Khabir

The All-Sufficient in taking accounts

Al-Hasib

The All Watcher over you

Al-Raqib

The Witness

Al-Shahid

The Truth

Al-Haqq

The Most Near

Al-Batin

The All-Recognizer of good deeds

A-Shakir

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The All-Knower

Al-Allam

He who surrounds all things

Al-Muhit

To kill people using such a strategy as a suicide

bombing is criminal and criminally indiscriminate. To trigger
that bomb strapped to the bomber's body or a car is in the
way of Islam, a dire threat to the very faith of the bomber.
God forbids and God's Messenger (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) has promised a torment for a person
who commits suicide. For a Muslim, the sin of suicide has
even another aspect that extremists groups ignore. Because
the Muslim who commits suicide has done another Major sin
that God has forbidden in the Quran. He intended specifically
to kill at the very least one Believer, himself. God has
revealed this other side of the illegality of murder which is
intimately associated with the horrible nature of suicide. God
said in the Quran:
And whoever kills a believer intentionally,
his recompense is Hell to abide therein,
and the Wrath and the Curse of God are
upon him, and a great punishment is
prepared for him. 8 Chapter An-Nisa (The
Women) 4:93
This documented saying of the Prophet Muhammad
(may God's peace and blessings be upon him) is where he
prophesied of the future where violence will bring a time of

28

relentless murder and bloodshed; as we can see in the postUS invasion of Iraq for example.
"Narrated by Abdullah and Abu Musa that,
the Prophet said (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him), "Near the
establishment of the Hour there will be
days during which Religious ignorance
will spread, knowledge will be taken away
(vanish) and there will be much Al-Harj,
and Al-Harj means killing."9
One of the most learned and a world renowned
scholar in Islam's history was Nasir Deen Al-Albaanee who
died in 1999. (May God have mercy upon his soul.) He was a
library of the wisdom of the Prophet Muhammad's
documented sayings. (May God's peace and blessings be
upon him.) Al-Albani compiled and announced a specific
legal ruling that explains that suicide bombings are illegal in
Islam and clearly against the Shariah/Islamic law. In this
legal ruling called a fatwa in the Arabic language, he stated:
"Now we come to suicide attacks this is what we
know from the Japanese and their likes when a man would
attack an American warship with his plane and he would
blow up along with his plane but he would have struck the
army that was in the American warship.
We say: Suicide attacks now, in the present time, all
of them are not legislated (in the Shariah), and all of them are

29

unlawful, and they may be from those types (of suicide) on

account of which its perpetrator will remain in the Fire
forever. As for suicide attacks being a (form of) nearness by
which a person comes closer to God, then today a person
fights in the path of his land, in the path of his nation. These
suicide attacks are absolutely not Islamic.
For example, individuals climb up mountains, and go to an
army of the Jews killing a number of them and then being
killed themselves. What is the benefit in these matters? These
individual undertakings have no desirable end result that is
for the benefit of the Islamic call, absolutely.
For this reason we say to the Muslim youth, guard
your lives with the condition that you study your Islamic
religion, and that you come to know it with a correct
acquaintance, and that you act upon it within the limits of
your knowledge, and the best guidance of Muhammad (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him).10
To Kill A Woman Or A Child Is Forbidden In Islam

It has been Narrated by Abdullah (a

companion of the Prophet Muhammad
(may God's peace and blessings be upon
him):
"During some of the Ghazawat (wars) of
the Prophet a woman was found killed.

30

Allah's Apostle disapproved the killing of

women and children."11
Again, no confusion and no doubt about it; if
Muslim in warfare takes the life of a woman or a child he has
then sinned against one of the teachings, rules and
regulations of the Muslim faith. Let us look at the question
carefully; is it even a question that a sound mind and heart
would ask? By the natural, instinctive, God given nature of
the human being, w all know it is wrong and a horrible act.
Islam forbids the killing of women and children just as
Christianity and Judaism must or should. Why do we find
this similarity, among others between these three religions?
Open the Quran and you will find the answer and the reason.
Understand and take note that in the whole entire text of the
Quran, never ever is Islam described as a new religion or as a
new faith. Throughout the pages of the Quran, Islam is seen
as and described as throughout the pages of the Quran as the
True Religion of All the Prophets. From Adam to Noah to
Abraham to Ishmael to Jacob to David to Solomon to Jesus
and then to the final and last Prophet Muhammad the son of
Abdullah born in Mecca (may God's peace and blessings be
upon them all).
A Muslim view of these three religions is quite
distinct and different from the view held by most Christians
or Jews. Islam is to Muslims, as it is described in the Quran,
the completed, finished, final and perfected form of the One
True Religion of God; which is the same faith and belief
system sent to mankind by all of the Prophets.

31

So, just as Christianity and Judaism forbid the killing

of women and children in war------ so does Islam say it is
wrong. The word Islam is the name of the religion and the
way of life of 1 Billion people. What does the word mean?
Do you even know? Islam means linguistically---total sincere
submission to the will of God Almighty. Islam by definition
is a description of the relationship between the worshipper, a
Muslim and between God.
Thus if you then return to the Prophets Adam, Noah
and Abraham, and then the Prophets of the Children of Israel
that came after them including Jesus, the son of Mary (may
God's peace and blessings be upon them all). Now I will ask
a question in regards to the exact meaning of the word Islam.
Would you agree that Moses (may God's peace and blessings
be upon him) sincerely submitted to the will of God
Almighty? Yes or No? I would have to say yes he certainly
did. Therefore by the definition of the word Islam, Moses
(may God's peace and blessings be upon him) was a Muslim.
As Muslim means the person who sincerely submits to the
will of God. And Jesus (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him) is the Messiah, the Christ in the eyes of Christians
and in the eyes of Muslims. This is in the revelation of the
Quran, however, Muslim faith is to direct all worship, prayer,
praises, supplication, sacrifices, and repentance to God
Almighty alone and no other is ever worshipped. Jesus was
born of Mary, a virgin by the will of God Almighty who said
Be and Jesus was (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him).

32

Would you say Jesus sincerely submitted to the will

of Almighty God? Yes or No? Again I would say yes he
certainly did. Thus, Jesus also was a Muslim by definition.
Abraham (may God's peace and blessings be upon him), a
Prophet of God, before the divine revelation of the Torah and
before the divine revelation of the Gospels. The same
question is put to you. Do you believe Abraham sincerely
submitted to the will of God Almighty? Yes or No? I would
say again yes he did. Then Abraham by definition was a
Muslim. Here we must say that Abraham was a Prophet of
God, before the revelation of the Torah and before the
Gospels. So Abraham was not a Jew or a Christian.
Nonetheless, by his obedience and submission to the Creator
he was by definition a Muslim.
In the Muslim faith from the time of Prophet
Abraham all the way to the time of the Final Prophet
Muhammad the killing of women and children in war has
always been forbidden. Any extremist group whether solely
political and secular in nature or quasi religious and political
in nature, if its members say they are upon the faith of Islam,
then our religion prohibits us from any warfare tactics that
target the death and killing of women or children. Any groups
that promote suicide bombings, hijacking or kidnapping
civilians and terrorist attacks targeting civilian bystanders,
passersby and passengers is doing a criminal act that is
forbidden by the religion of Islam. These tactics are Illegal in
the Islamic Law/Shariah. Acts of war that are Un-Islamic

33

resulting in the wicked and sinful bloodshed of women and

children.
An attack that victimizes women and children goes
against the very grain of the innate God-given nature of the
human being. This nature has a specific name in the Arabic
language and is called "Fitrah". Islam is often described as
the way of the Fitrah. In no way can Islam permit much less
promote what goes against the very nature of all people in all
faiths. (I seek refuge in God Almighty from the deception of
the accursed devil who helps some men to deceive
themselves.)

Hijacking Airplanes / Kidnapping Are Crimes To Be

Punished

God the Most Glorified and Exalted has said in the

Quran:

"...and kill not anyone whom God has

forbidden, except for a just cause. This
He has commanded you that you may

34

understand." 12 Chapter Al-An' am (The

Cattle) 6:151
" ... Help you one another in virtue and
righteousness ; but do not help one
another in sin and transgression. And fear
God. Verily, God is Severe in
punishment . ... O you who believe! Stand
out firmly for God and be just witnesses
and let not the enmity and hatred of
others make you avoid justice. Be just:
that is nearer to piety, and fear God.
Verily, God is Well Acquainted with what
you do. "13 Chapter Al-Ma'idah (The Table
Spread with Food) 5: 2 and 8
The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) helped to put the actions that result in
the taking of life into proper perspective when he said:
"Jabir the son of Abdullah reported that
God's Messenger (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) said: Be on your
guard against committing oppression, for
oppression is a darkness on the Day of
Resurrection, and be on your guard
against petty mindedness for petty
mindedness destroyed those who were
before you, as it incited them to shed
blood and make lawful what was unlawful
for them."14

35

To hijack an airplane and to take hostage civilian

passengers in order to threaten a government with the
outright murder of its citizens is in now way sanctioned in
Islam. In the Quranic verses above notice that God
instructions are not to allow ones feelings for a people to be a
cause to treat them with injustice.
The principles of Islam are from the words of the
Quran and the Sunnah and in these two sources is woven a
most upright legislation that is complete and of the greatest
benefit. It is called the Shariah, the Islamic Law. In the
Shariah hijacking and kidnapping people are not justifiable or
sanctioned. They are heinous crimes of oppression and
tyranny. This is a way of casting mankind backwards into the
age of barbarism and savagery. To erase security and leave
innocent civilian people and travelers to be thrown into
violence and tribulation as a reaction to the violence caused
by a targeted nation's armed forces.
Islam's principals state clearly that such violent
terrorist acts are major crimes and it is the responsibility of
every nation to arm itself to defend against them. The
punishment in the Shariah for such crimes is capital
punishment. Every nation and airport must have a sufficient
number of highly trained military specialists to provide
security against hijackers, kidnappers and hostage takers.
Any such action against the common public is a most
dangerous threat and seen in Islam as a great injustice. Islam
is to bring stability and peace to the individual, the family,

36

the community and the Muslim nations. No Muslim should

try to justify crimes by our religion Islam means sincere
submission to the will of God. This submission and this way
of life is truly what brings peace to a person's heart .

Destruction of Property Is Forbidden In Islam

The safety and the protection of people's lives and

property is a fundamental principle of the faith of Islam. It's
belief system, law system, moral system, teachings regarding
family life, principals of governance, as well as the life in this
world and the life in the afterlife all support peace and
freedom from aggression and danger. The protection of
property can be seen in the Shariah's punishment for a thief.
There are strict conditions that have to be proven
with certainty before the punishment revealed in the Quran
for a thief can be applied. For instance, there must be a

37

witness to the theft or a confession. The thief also can not be

mentally disturbed, in famine conditions or starving, nor can
one be penalized with the Shariah punishment for stealing
from an employer who has refused to pay a worker's wages.
In addition, the stolen property must have been secured
before the theft and not left out in the open or in the public's
eye. The Islamic Shariah's punishment for stealing is a
deterrent against pre-meditated, criminal, professional
thieves, like a cat burglar, a pick pocket or a thief who cracks
safes. For one of these thieves, that steal from people's
homes, safes, offices or from your pocket the Quran's
Divinely revealed law is a threat made to guide a thief to the
right path. Another condition is whatever has been stolen has
to be worth at least approximately $150.00. If these
conditions are proven in an Islamic Shariah court then the
punishment is to remove the thief's hand. This legislation is
rooted directly in the Quran.
God, the Most High said,

"Cut off (from the wrist joint) the (right)

hand of the thief, male or female, as a
recompense for that which they
committed, a punishment by way of
example from God. And God is All-Powerful, All-Wise." 15 Chapter Al-Ma'idah
Chapter (The Table Spread with Food)
5:38

38

Therefore, the sanctity of a person's property is

carefully and strictly protected in Islam. Consequently, to
destroy a car, an office, a building, an apartment complex or
an airplane with a bomb, is illegal in Islam. To steal the
property belonging to other people is a sin and forbidden. It
is punishable with a painful punishment of the removal of the
hand. Then imagine how Islam's teachings would perceive
the intentional utter destruction of property belonging to
other people. A terrorist attack like a bombing is a Major sin,
the Shariah/Islamic law sanctions capital punishment as
sentence upon the one guilty of such an act. By a terrorist
action I am not describing a situation where two opposing
groups of armed soldiers fire upon each other and buildings
are damaged. But rather the tactics of bombing buses, trains,
homes, buildings used by some extremist groups.
This type of un-Islamic strategy, to bomb residential
housing complexes, airplanes, subways is totally prohibited
in Islam from many sides.
UN-ISLAMIC BOMBING STRATEGIES ARE
FORBIDDEN IN ISLAM
1> From the side of the indiscriminate murder of
innocent civilians
2> From the side of the killing of women and
children
3> From the side of the destruction of people's
property

39

There is no way to justify such un-Islamic strategies of

violence no matter how it is approached. In Islam, these
violent acts of terrorism are wrong, criminal and unjust.
Terrorist violence totally contradicts the high ideals of
piety and righteousness in Islam.

Rebellion Against A Muslim Ruler Is Forbidden

The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and

blessings be upon him) said,
"It has been narrated on the authority of
Abu Huraira that the Messenger of God
said: One who defected from obedience
(to the Emir i.e. Muslim ruler of a nation)
and separated from the main body of the
Muslims-if he died in that state-would die
the death of one belonging to the PreIslamic days of Ignorance (i. e. would not
die as a Muslim). One who fights under

40

the banner of a people who are blind (to

the cause for which they are fighting. i. e.
do not know whether their cause is just or
otherwise), who gets flared up with family
pride, calls, (people) to fight for their.
family honor, and supports his kith and
kin (i. e. fights not for the cause of God
but for the sake of this family or tribe) -if
he is killed (in this fight), he dies as one
belonging to the Pre-Islamic days of
Ignorance. Whosoever attacks my Muslim
nation(people) (indiscriminately) killing
the righteous and the wicked of them,
sparing not (even) those staunch in faith
and fulfilling not his promise made with
those who have been given a pledge of
security-he has nothing to do with me and
I have nothing to do with him. "16
The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) taught the first community of
Muslims very specifically regarding if a Muslim is to rebel
against a Muslim ruler or a Muslim government. The Islamic
Shariah law is all-inclusive and within its teachings all
aspects of human life are included.
The violent extremist groups found in Muslim nations are in
fact a very small minority of the world's 1 Billion Muslims.
These groups promote concepts that are originally from the
strategies and tactics of Non-Muslim revolutionary
movements. They attempt to encourage and lead Muslims to
the overthrow their Muslim national leaders. Their expressed

41

purpose and intention is the establishment of an Islamic

State, according to their interpretations. However, their
interpretations are inherently in contradiction to the Sunnah
of Islam, to the Shariah as can be clearly seen by the opening
quote of this chapter. To take up arms against a Muslim ruler
is a Major sin in itself. So using a great sin as a strategy to
establish a new government to implement the "truest form" of
the Shariah is a total contradiction; the epitome of an
oxymoron. It can be compared to a person who wanted to
start a Quran memorization school. So he starts to sell drugs
in order to save money to open the school. However, is there
not here a glaring contradiction? While to open a Quran
school is a praiseworthy act, selling illegal and intoxicating
drugs is a Major sin. In the Islamic Shariah one of its guiding
principals is that the end does not justify the means, at all.
The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him), taught the Muslims of their duty to a
Muslim ruler. And at the same he prophesied of unjust and
harsh Muslim rulers that were to come and govern Muslim
nations in the future. His teachings were very specific and
exact detailing the Muslim's obligations and duty to the
Muslim ruler.
"It his been narrated through a different
chain of transmitters, on the authority of
Hudhaifa b. al-Yaman who said:
"Messenger of God, no doubt, we had an
evil time (i. e. Pre-Islamic days of
ignorance) and God brought us a good

42

time (i. e. Islamic period) through which

we are now living Will there be a bad time
after this good time?" He (the Prophet)
said: "Yes." I said: "Will there be a good
time after this bad time?" He said: "Yes." I
said: "Will there be a bad time after good
time?" He said: "Yes." I said: "How?"
Whereupon he said: "There will be leaders
who will not be led by my guidance and
who will not adopt my ways? There will be
among them men who will have the hearts
of devils in the bodies of human beings." I
said: "What should I do. Oh Messenger of
God, if I happen to live in that time?" He
replied: "You will listen to the Emir and
carry out his orders; even if your back is
flogged and your wealth is snatched, you
should listen and obey."17
While some extremist groups describe and portray
themselves as fighting to establish an Islamic State, the very
fighting that they conduct in Muslim majority nations ruled
by Muslim rulers and governments is in itself Un-Islamic. A
war that is fought in a way that is against the principals in
Islam to establish an Islamic State. It is a glaring
contradiction for violent extremist groups that use terrorist
attacks; for this terror is to spread corruption upon the land.
And Islam forbids what is corrupt. As long as a Muslim ruler
does not prohibit Muslims from establishing the daily
obligatory prayer, 5 times a day then to revolt against him is
forbidden.

43

In the end of 1998 Osamah Bin Laden praised the

terrorist bombings in the cities of Riyadh and Khobar in
Saudi Arabia. Many people were killed and injured in these
attacks, both Muslims and Non-Muslims. Western media
reaction was to falsely accuse and describe the "inaction" of
Saudi authorities and Muslim religious scholars. Meanwhile,
the late Mufti of Saudi Arabia (religious scholar with the
highest authority and position), Abdul Aziz Bin Baz, spoke at
length rejecting bin Laden's un-Islamic leadership, words,
and terrorist attacks. Violent extremist groups use aggression
and wild indiscriminate violence against a Muslim nation, its
rulers, government and are a major threat to security. Let us
take a look at some excerpts from the religious rulings and
statements of Abdul Aziz Bin Baz, who was one of the most
highly respected scholars of Islam. He said, concerning the
terrorist attack in Riyadh:
"And there is no doubt that this act can only be
undertaken by one who does not believe in God or
the last day. You will not find anyone who believes in
God, or the last day, with correct and sound faith,
performing this criminal, vile act due to which great
harm and corruption has occurred. Only vile souls
which are filled with enmity, jealousy, evil,
corruption and absence of faith in God and His
Messenger can perform the likes of these acts. We
ask God for pardon and safety."

44

"And there is no doubt that this is from the greatest

of crimes and from the greatest types of corruption in
the earth. And those who perform the likes of this are
more deserving of being killed and being restrained
on account of what they have committed of great sin.
We ask God that He makes them lose their efforts
and shackles them and their likes and that He saves
us from their evil and the evil of those like them, and
that He utterly destroys their plots, indeed He is
Lofty and Majestic, and Generous and Kind
So my advice to Al- Mas'aree, Al-Faqeeh and Bin
Ladin and all those who traverse their way is to leave
alone this disastrous path, and to fear God and to
beware of His revenge and His anger, and to return to
guidance and to repent to God from whatever has
precede from them. And God the Glorified has
promised His repentant servants that He will accept
their repentance and be good to them."18

45

II. Corrupt Un-Islamic Ideology of Extremist

Groups

46

Misled Muslims Influenced By Marxist Revolutionary

Strategy

God has said in the Noble Quran:

"And hold fast, all of you together, to the

Rope of God (i.e. this Quran), and be not
divided among yourselves, and remember
God's Favor on you, for you were enemies
one to another but He joined your hearts
together, so that, by His Grace, you
became brethren (in Islamic Faith), and
you were on the brink of a pit of Fire, and
He saved you from it. Thus God makes His
signs clear to you, that you may be
guided." 19 Chapter Aali Imran (The Family
of Imran) 3:103

47

The Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and

blessings be upon him) said in an authentically narrated
saying:
"There are three things towards which the
heart of a Muslim never shows hatred or
rancor: Making one's action sincerely for
God; giving obedience to the rulers; and
sticking to the united body of the
Muslims. Since their supplication
encompasses those who are behind them
(i.e. those whom they rule over)."20
Violent extremist groups ignore principals of Islam
revealed in the Quran and implemented and explained in the
daily life of the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him). There are three negative
consequences that result from the violent terrorist actions of
extremist groups.
1) Kill lives that the Shariah says must be protected.
2) Terrorist acts cause corruption by spreading fear
amongst people who would have been in safety
and security.
3) Destruction of property, wealth, and belongings
which were secured and protected.
The leadership of the extremist groups in Muslim
majority nations are strongly influenced by the revolutionary

48

thought and strategies of Marxist ideology. In the eyes of an

extremist, their goals include the poor exploited Muslims
overthrowing the rich ruling families and rulers by force.
They encourage and are willing, by any means necessary to
liberate the Muslim common people from their extremely
wealthy rulers.
The rules and guiding principals of the Islamic
Shariah regarding warfare become less than secondary to
their goals. Thus they minimize, if not totally disregard
basing their acts of warfare upon the Quran and the Sunnah
of the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings
be upon him). They only make very general references to
martyrdom and to jihad while never detailing or requiring
adherence to the conditions in the Shariah for a martyr or for
jihad.
Sayyid Qutb, who was a member of the Muslim
Brotherhood in Egypt, took the position that militancy
against the governments and rulers in Muslim countries that
he evaluated as being Non-Muslim was a sacred duty. The
Muslim Brotherhood afterwards distanced itself from Qutb.
They have used peaceful political change to promote the goal
of a more Islamic government. The ideas of Sayyid Qutb are
one of the major influences upon the philosophy of extremist
groups in Muslim nations.
They keep the spotlight carefully upon what they
describe as the excesses of rulers and government officials.
The personal wealth and expenditures given to ruling
families is highlighted and spoken of again and again. In this

49

way they seek to gain the support of Muslims who are poor
and struggling economically. Then when government policy
decides to make business partnerships or treaties with
America and Western nations, the rulers are harshly described
as shamefully bowing to Christian nations. They are
criticized as acquiescing to agreements where the wealth of
the Muslim nations is just "handed over" to the West. In this
way their philosophy is woven together. Therefore they pass
judgment on the rulers and the governments made up of their
Muslim countrymen.
This is how they open the door to waging war openly
inside a Muslim majority society. They make eloquent
declarations declaring that the government leaders who do
not implement a legal system in strict adherence to the
Shariah laws have made apostasy; that they have become
Disbelievers, Non-Muslims. Thus they begin a revolutionary
movement against the rulers and governments in Muslim
countries after they have publicly denounced them as NonMuslim rulers.
To justify the means that they use to seek to change
the government by force of arms they grossly misinterpret the
teachings of Islam. The Prophet Muhammad (may God's
peace and blessings be upon him) and his companions never
described a sinful action as totally and completely taking a
person outside of Islam except the abandonment of the
obligatory daily prayer made five times a day. The Prophet
Muhammad said (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him):

50

"Between man and polytheism (Disbelief)

is the abandonment of Salat (obligatory
prayer five times a day)" 21
Therefore to call the members of a government or a
ruling family in a Muslim nation apostates or disbelievers
because of disagreements with their politics is illegitimate
based upon the clear words of the Prophet of Islam (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him). And what of the
strategy of extremist groups who use terrorist attacks
indiscriminately in Muslim nations? The Prophet Muhammad
(may God's peace and blessings be upon him) described
making war upon other Muslims as an act of disbelief. The
Prophet Muhammad said during his final pilgrimage to the
Holy Mosque in Mecca (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him):
"Do not revert to disbelief after me by
striking the necks of one another (killing
each other)."22
Another major component of the philosophy of
extremist groups is to present themselves as fighters for the
cause of the oppressed Muslims embattled against NonMuslim aggressors.
The vicious and unjust onslaught against Palestinians
by the Israeli Army, against the Chechnyans by the Russian
Army, in Iraq and Afghanistan by American and Multi-

51

national forces are all waved overhead as reasons to justify

terrorist attacks. The attacks inflicted upon Muslim civilians
are used by extremists to justify terrorist attacks from New
York to across the globe with explosions in a night club in
Bali. However, the real and deadly brutality of the Israeli
Defense Forces, the Russian Army and the American military
are detailed and described by the leadership of the extremist
groups. These vivid descriptions are sadly; often very
accurate and truthful. They become the pillars of the
arguments used to justify and encourage committing terrorist
attacks. The over use of military force that injure and kill
civilians is very consistent and often repeated in these
countries. Therefore, army attacks against civilians are used
to explain to Muslims why extremist groups respond by
indiscriminate attacks.
The legitimacy or the illegitimacy of the strategy of
extremist groups according to the teachings of Islam in the
Quran and the Sunnah is no longer an important issue at hand
to them. When these groups attack, many of the victims are
unarmed civilians, soft targets. If they only attacked the hard
targets, the military forces that attack Muslim civilians then
no one would be justified in calling them terrorists.
In their messages, speeches and videos they describe
the American military presence all over the globe. In this way
they seek to attract Muslims who are not radical but don't
agree with American foreign policy. They seek to attract them
to agree with their statements and then to join their ranks.

52

Here they play upon the feelings of nationalism

amongst Muslims. The extremist groups see themselves as
the only realistic form of resistance. Their discourses are
never ending highlights of the bloodshed of innocents at the
hands of Non-Muslim military forces in Muslim nations and
regions. By connecting this violence to American influence
or allies the extremist groups strike a nerve in many Muslims.
The number of Muslims who do not agree with the American
foreign policy is countless, especially the violent strategy of
the War on Terror and its First Strike tactics. Therefore
radical groups put energy into trying to attract, radicalize and
mold people into followers.
Then they add another carrot on a stick. They state
that all of these terrorist attacks that they plan and promote
and all of the bloodshed that will result are in the end only to
establish the Shariah/ Islamic law. Their claims of
responsibility state that all of the murder, hijacking, suicide
bombing and kidnapping is to establish the just and upright
rule under the law of Islam.
Furthermore, they will criticize aspects of the
contemporary laws, political alliances and interest based
banking systems that are not in adherence to Islamic
teachings. They claim that after they depose their county's
leadership then they will establish a pure Shariah/ Islamic
law.
This is a direct contradiction and opposite of how the
message of the Quran teaches and guides a Muslim to work
towards change for a more pious, upright and Islamic society.

53

Look at the example of what God said in the Quran as

guidance that was revealed to Moses and Aaron. God gave
them instructions telling them how to speak to Pharaoh with
wisdom. Pharaoh was a wicked and unjust ruler. In the Noble
Quran the story of how he killed the male children of the
Jews has been revealed again as it was revealed previously in
the Torah. In the Quran God said to Moses:

"Go, both of you, to Pharaoh, verily, he

has transgressed. And speak to him
mildly, perhaps he may accept
admonition or fear God." 23 Chapter TaHa 20:44
Is there anything here that could be interpreted as
encouragement to do a terrorist assault upon this unjust ruler?
And not only in this verse of the Quran but in many
God reveals how to work to change society for the better. The
Quran gives clear details of how to be an active worker trying
to improve ones own self, ones marriage, ones family, ones
neighborhood, country and even the world. The Quran is an
instruction manual that tells how to be an activist, a Muslim
activist. The characteristics of a Muslim activist who works
to change society are explained with clear examples in the
Quran. The principals of how to work for change as a Muslim
are very far and distant from the actions of a terrorist cell.
This means that a radical extremist group is following a
program that comes from other than the Quran. They
implement their own philosophy and act out their own

54

strategies. Their tactics are influenced by Marxist

revolutionary ideology and militancy as much as they are
influenced by their misinterpretations of the teachings of
Islam.
Their goals are:
To overthrow the government in a Muslim
country which extremists see as an un-Islamic
government.
To resist and put an end to Non-Muslim military
presence, control and attacks; Israeli, American,
Russian or Filipino, etc.
To establish the Shariah/Islamic law according to
their understanding.
These goals are the most important and are overemphasized far above anything else by violent groups. They
resist the Islamic principals from the Quran and the Sunnah
of how a Muslim should work towards helping society
become more Islamic.
God does not encourage suicide attacks, killing
people indiscriminately, kidnapping or hijacking. Nowhere
are these sinful deeds encouraged, not in the Quran nor in the
Sunnah of Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him). Instead the way of a Muslim activist
is described in perfect clarity in the following three verses of
the Quran.
God Almighty said in the Quran:

55

"Invite to the Way of your Lord with

wisdom and fair preaching, and argue
with them in a way that is better. Truly,
your Lord knows best who has gone astray
from His Path, and He is the Best Aware of
those who are guided." 23 Chapter AnNahl (The Bee) 16:125
"And argue not with the People of the
Book (Scripture = Jews and Christians),
unless it be in a way that is better (with
good words and in good manner), except
with such of them as do wrong, and say to
them: "We believe in that which has been
revealed to us and revealed to you; our
God and your God is One, and to Him we
have submitted (as Muslims)." 24 Chapter
Al-'Ankabut (The Spider) 29:46
"And by the Mercy of God, you dealt with
them gently. And had you been severe
and harsh hearted, they would have
broken away from about you; so pass over
their faults, and ask God's Forgiveness for
them; and consult them in the affairs.
Then when you have taken a decision, put
your trust in God, certainly, God loves
those who put their trust in Him." 25
Chapter Aali Imran (The Family of Imran)
3:159

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When in the Quran God said, People of the Book, it

means the people to whom divinely revealed scripture was
sent to before the revelation of the Noble Quran, i.e. the Jews
and the Christians. The Book, in the Quran always refers to
divinely revealed scripture. All of the scriptures, as they were
in their original form, when they were first revealed by God
are called the Book. That means before they were altered,
added to and parts of the texts were lost. In the Quran, the
Book is used to refer to the Torah, the Psalms of David, the
Gospels and finally the Quran; all that God revealed via the
prophets to mankind. The only scripture that has been saved
from this fate of being changed is the final revelation of the
Quran.

57

58

Why Extremist Groups Attract Followers

What is it that some Muslims have found attractive

about the extremist groups that call to and follow incorrect
misinterpretations of the message and teachings of Islam?
What attracts some to the agenda of these extremist groups is
that they are;

Promoting resistance and fighting against the

armed forces that kill and
humiliate many innocent Muslim civilians in
Palestine, Iraq, Afghanistan,
Chechnya, Kashmir or the Philippines.
Promising more equal distribution of a Muslim
nation's resources amongst
the poor.
Criticizing the wastefulness of some Muslim
rulers, ruling families and government
executives.
Promoting resistance to American and Western
military presence, campaigns, influence and
especially the "War on Terror".

59

 Promoting a stricter establishment of the Islamic

law/Shariah (according to their own
interpretations).

These are the points that the astray and dangerous

extremist groups harp on and use to attract Muslims to join
them, They revisit and regurgitate these same points again
and again. Whether their strategy and tactics or philosophy is
legitimate or illegitimate according to the Quran and the
Sunnah is not addressed in their speeches or internet
declarations. They instead revolve around the real and serious
criminal brutality against Muslim civilians by the armed
forces of Non-Muslim nations. Then these crimes are used as
a means of justification for the heinous violent crimes used to
terrorize innocent civilians from the targeted nations.
Prophet Muhammad said (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him):
"The biggest of the greater sins are (1) to
join others as partners in worship with
God, (2) to murder a human being, (3) to
be undutiful to one's parents (4) and to
make a false statement," or said, "to give a
false witness."26

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In the Islamic law/Shariah, the ends do not justify the

means. So because a group wants to over throw the
government or establish the Shariah law (as they understand
it), this does not justify committing a major sin by taking the
sanctity of human life.
The Prophet said (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him): said, "Whoever carries arms
against us, is not from us."27
God's final Apostle (may God's peace and blessings
be upon him): said, "A faithful believer
remains at liberty regarding his religion
unless he kills somebody unlawfully."28
These extremist groups do not base their actions on
the teachings of Islam. Terrorist actions are forbidden by
Islam.
The Prophet (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him): said, "Whoever killed a Mu'ahid (a
person who has been granted a
pledge/treaty of protection by the
Muslims) shall not smell the fragrance of
Paradise though its fragrance can be
smelt at a distance of forty years (of
traveling)."29

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Abiding by a treaty, a covenant, or a contract is an

obligation and if a person breaks it, Islam promises him or
her punishment in the afterlife. Therefore for a Muslim to
become a legal resident in a Non-Muslim country such as
America, then to join an extremist group and attack
Americans is breaking a legal agreement like a covenant.
Likewise, a Non-Muslim who has been given residency in a
Muslim country such as Saudi Arabia and is attacked there by
an extremist group then, the attackers fall under the curse
made by the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and
blessings be upon him) in the above mentioned saying.
The attacker in both cases has been promised by the
Final Messenger of God that he will never smell
paradise/heaven. And the scent of paradise has been
described as being sensed from a long great distance away. A
Muslim is only as good as his word.
Another un-Islamic characteristic of the manner and
the way of the extremist groups is how they speak of the
scholars of Islam. These are the men and women who have
continued to teach Muslims the way of Islam, since the day
the Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him) died until today. The true and pure message of the
teachings of Islam has not changed. It has been inherited and
passed on from scholar to student; who then leaned,
increased in knowledge and grew to become a scholar. As
violent indiscriminant attacks upon civilians, the destruction
of property, peace and security are all forbidden acts in Islam,
many of the rightly guided scholars have consistently

62

criticized harshly the actions of violent extremists. As a

result, wise and respected Islamic scholars have been
mercilessly ridiculed by the mouth pieces of groups involved
in terrorist actions. Their baseless verbal assaults are attempts
to discredit the preservers of Islam's message and place
themselves in a position to dictate what Muslims should fight
for. These groups falsely describe internationally renowned
scholars of Islamic studies as not understanding "Fight Al
Waqiah" (Islamic Jurisprudence in relation to contemporary
events).
These criticisms are directly motivated with a most
serious and dire negative intention. They are seeking to turn
young Muslim men away from learning Islam from the
scholars, so instead, to attract the youth to join such groups.
To replace religious knowledge based in the Quran and the
Sunnah with the corrupt un-Islamic ideology of extremism.
This extremism mistakenly describes the most learned
scholars of this age as not holding the importance of Islam as
the highest priority. That the scholars respected all over the
world dont understand contemporary issues and the
struggles being waged in Muslim areas. They throw these
defamations at teachers who have given their entire lives to
study and teach Islam to Muslims. Again they are trying to
replace a religious way of life with a relentless merciless war
and rebel way of life. And the best scholars of Islam and the
true teachings of Islam are one of the obstacles in the way of
the extremist groups. Thus, they unleash upon them a
plethora of insults and verbal attacks. They sometimes call

63

them the scholars of the government, or that they just don't

understand the true Islam and jihad. The fact of the matter is
that anyone who promotes suicide bombing, indiscriminant
assaults upon civilians, hijacking someone else's property by
force of arms, kidnapping civilians, or changing a Muslim
government by bloodshed and fighting is the one who does
not know or understand what is true Islam or Jihad.
As a clear example, take a look at the 1996 interview
of Osamah Bin Ladin with the Nidaul-Islam magazine. "At
the same time that some of the leaders are engaging in the
major Kufr (disbelief), which takes them out of the fold of
Islam in broad daylight and in front of all the people, you
would find a Fatwa (Shariah/Islamic Legal Ruling) from their
religious organization. In particular, the role of the religious
organization in the country of the two sacred mosques is of
the most ominous of roles, this is overlooking whether it
fulfilled this role intentionally or unintentionally, the harm
which eventuated from their efforts is no different from the
role of the most ardent enemies of the nation....During the
preceding two decades, the regime enlarged the role of Bin
Baz (Grand Mufti) because of what it knows of his weakness
and flexibility and the ease of influencing him with the
various means which the interior ministry practices through
providing him with false information. So, a generation of
youth were raised believing that the most pious and
knowledgeable of people is Bin Baz as a result of the media
promotion through a well studied policy which had been
progressed over twenty years."29A

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This is an example of how extremists attempt to

place themselves in the position of Islam's scholars. Then to
direct which way the Muslims should take in dealing with
contemporary problems. By using such baseless disrespectful
criticisms the true teachings of Islam are hijacked through
verbally attacking the most knowledgeable and respected of
Islam's scholars. These scholars teach that the actions of
extremists and terrorism are contradictory to the message of
Islam revealed in the Quran and the Sunnah of the Prophet
Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon him).
Consequently, the extremists target and try to refute these
rightly guided scholars who reject violent extremism. Islam's
scholars base their rejections firmly and clearly upon the
verses of the Quran and the words and teachings of the Final
Prophet Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him). To the Muslim society these words from scholars are
very meaningful and thus part of the corrupted ideology of
extremist groups is to belittle and attack the legitimacy of
those who preserve and teach Islam's religious message.

65

J
Jihad

God Almighty revealed in the Quran:

"Those who believed (in the

Oneness of God) and emigrated
and strove hard and fought in
God's Cause with their wealth and
their lives are far higher in degree
with God. They are the successful."
30 Chapter At-Tawbah (The Repentance)
9:20
God said in the Quran:

"Let those believers) who sell the

life of this world for the Hereafter
fight in the Cause of God, and
whoso fights in the Cause of God,
and is killed or gets victory, We
shall bestow on him a great reward.
And what is wrong with you that
you fight not in the Cause of God,
and for those weak, ill-treated and
oppressed among men, women,
and children, whose cry is: "Our

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Lord! Rescue us from this town

whose people are oppressors; and
raise for us from You one who will
protect, and raise for us from You
one who will help." 31 Chapter An-Nisa
(The Women) 4: 74-75
Jihad, the word has become now, one that is
heard on American news programs weekly if not
daily. A word so often heard, but so little understood.
It comes from the Arabic root word, ja ha da, which
means to strive with great effort. Jihad is incorrectly
translated into English as meaning "Holy War."
However, linguistically it does not carry that
meaning in any way. The word is misinterpreted and
incorrectly translated in the western media and by
western orientalist scholars and writers.
The word jihad in Islam has a wide and
profound meaning. It means to strive with great
effort against something that is wrong, evil, corrupt
or unjust. Under the far-reaching meaning of the
word jihad, there are different levels or different
types of jihad. The first, primary and most important
kind of jihad is jihad an-nafs. (to strive with great
effort against the self)
Jihad an-nafs means to exert great effort
against the leanings and desires of a person's own
self; to strive to shun negative and corrupt desires.

67

For example, to strive to do a good deed that is

difficult is jihad. To be a hard working student
seeking religious knowledge is jihad.
Let me show you an example from my own
life that can help to bring what jihad means closer to
home perhaps. In 2006 I gave a talk in the Lower
East Side of Manhattan at a residential drug
rehabilitation center for homeless men. Years ago, I
use to work for the company that runs the center as a
drug rehab counselor. I spoke to the men there about
how I came to embrace Islam and explained some of
the principals of this way of life. And during the talk
I discussed how I was fortunate to have learned the
truth about Islam thus freeing my mind from the
common misconceptions about the Islam. So as I
touched upon what and how I learned all of this in
my personal life, I also spoke regarding the ever so
common misinterpretations widely spread in America
about jihad.
Then, at the end of the talk, a man raised his
hand. I called on him and he stood up, looked me
straight in the eye. He had a very serious demeanor
and looked like he was on a mission. He said,
"Brother, from what I understood you say about
jihad. I am like in jihad right now. Striving not to
pick up and get high. That's like my jihad!"

68

His words filled my heart with joy and

happiness; that by God's Mercy, I did reach one soul
with what is the true meaning of one of the principals
in Islam. All praises to God Almighty for that
blessing.
Another level or type of jihad is against
people who have chosen to become adversaries and
enemies of Islam. To fight and defend against NonMuslims who have attacked and wage war against a
Muslim nation is one level of jihad. This type of
jihad also has different aspects and levels within it.
1)

2)

3)

Jihad by the heart; to abhor evil

deeds against Islam's principals
and injustice against innocent
people; to take it to God in prayer
and to hate it in one's heart.
Jihad by the tongue; to speak
against oppressors and to refute
their arguments establishing
evidence against their corrupt
ideas.
Jihad by finance; economically
supporting programs that do jihad
by the tongue or that defend
Muslims against the attacks of
enemies.

69

4)

5)

Jihad by the sword; to defend

Muslim lands, people, property
and defending a Muslim nation's
borders.
Jihad by the sword to protect
Islam's message; to stop the
murder or torture of peaceful
religious people when they have
only been explaining Islam's
message to people.

Jihad by the heart, tongue, by finance and by

the sword can be used against an oppressor.
However, jihad is not a free-for all where any group
or organization can declare jihad as they wish. The
teachings of Islam have strict conditions that must be
adhered to because not every fight or war is jihad.
The primary and fundamental condition is
that jihad must be declared by the leader, the head of
a Muslim nation. There are strict guidelines in
waging war and what is to be fought for and upon
whom can fighting be waged. It is not Islamically
permissible for any leader of a party, a group or an
organization to declare jihad in and of itself. An
incorrectly made declaration of jihad by over zealous
individuals will have and has had tremendous life
and death consequences upon thousands of Muslims.
It affects all of the Muslims. Those who carry upon

70

their soldiers the great responsibility of rule,

leadership and governance are also the ones who
have the authority to declare jihad.
Another condition is for the Muslims to take
great care that they are not going to be fighting
against armies with Muslim soldiers in them. This is
to avoid the prohibition against Muslims killing
Muslims.
The principals in Islam of jihad have been
intentionally misrepresented in the West for
centuries. The intention behind this is to draw an
incorrect picture of Muslims as warlike and of Islam
as violent. The truth of the matter is quite the
opposite. If one travels a bit around the earth and
sees Muslim societies for oneself, it becomes much
easier to separate the truth about Islam from the
common misconceptions in America. Most of the
people in countries like Morocco, Senegal, Gambia,
Niger, Oman, Qatar, Uzbekistan, Albania, Indonesia,
Malaysia, the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Saudi
Arabia, Sudan, Egypt, Syria, Jordan, Lebanon,
Tanzania, Djibouti, Guinea, Mauritania and Burkina
Faso are the most peaceful neighbors one will ever
find. Yet each of these nations by far, is a country
with a Muslim majority.
The West began to depict Muslims and the
concept of jihad as a love of war when they were at
war with Muslims during the days of the Crusades.

71

That lie has lived on since then and has been given
new life in recent years. War or fighting, in and of
itself, in Islam is not holy. Furthermore, jihad does
not mean holy war, as it is usually incorrectly
translated to mean. The word jihad has a very
specific meaning that can only be mistranslated due
to ignorance or because of the intention to mislead
people. Jihad means to strive with great effort against
evil. The evil strived against with jihad can be in an
individual Muslim's heart. For instance, to work hard
to resist ones desires to do a sin, that is jihad. To
work hard to try to eliminate evil deeds in ones own
family, with ones wife, kids and parents is jihad. To
be watchful and seek to stop crime and danger in
ones neighborhood is jihad. To make a great effort to
fight against evil and crime in ones city, state or
homeland is jihad. Guarding a Muslim nation's
borders is also under the multi-level concept in Islam
of jihad. All of these are different aspects of the
broad concept that is jihad.
Let us take a close look at how the wide
reaching concept of jihad was taught by the Prophet
Muhammad (may God's peace and blessings be upon
him) said to his companions:
"A man said to the Prophet, "Shall I
participate in jihad?" The Prophet
said, "Are your parents living?" The
man said, "Yes." The Prophet said,

72

"Do jihad for their benefit" (by

giving service to them).32
Another aspect of Islamic teachings that is
related to jihad has been abused, misused, incorrectly
taught and falsely promoted is martyrdom. By
martyrdom, I mean that the person doing jihad who
dies is promised in the Quran and the Sunnah to be
blessed to enter paradise and with great rewards. This
is a true part of the Islamic teachings concerning
jihad. However, extremist groups misuse martyrdom
by exploiting zealous Muslims using a deviant
understanding of martyrdom.
First of all, martyrdom is part of the
knowledge of the unseen. No Muslim can ever
correctly state that any person who has been killed is
a martyr. Unless the statement is followed up with
the words "If God is willing" ("insha Allah" in
the Arabic language).
For a fighter to be accepted as a martyr by
God has conditions in the teachings of Islam. First, is
that the person's intention has to be sincere and pure.
In jihad the correct pure intention is to strive with
great effort, to fight to make the word of God, the
Quran, Islam the highest word and authority over all.
This is the intention that must be in the heart for the
man to die fighting and then become a martyr. If he
is for instance, a secular not religious Muslim who

73

fights for a political ideology, or a person in utter

desperation, or seeking revenge for the murder of his
beloved friends and family, or motivated purely by
anger, then he is far far away from the intention in
the heart of a true Muslim martyr. The Prophet
Muhammad, (may God's peace and blessings be
upon him) was asked by a bedouin:
"A man may fight for the sake of
booty, and another may fight so
that he may be mentioned by the
people, and a third may fight to
show his position (i.e. bravery);
which of these regarded as fighting
in God's Cause?" The Prophet said,
"He who fights so that God's Word
(i.e. Islam) should be superior,
fights for God's Cause."33
Furthermore, if a Muslim is fighting using
tactics of attack that Islam totally forbids and
prohibits then how could he possibly become a
martyr? A martyr is beloved by God while to attack
and wage war in a way the Final Prophet of God
(may God's peace and blessings be upon him) and the
verses in the Quran teaches is wrong and forbidden.
My dear guest, as I have tried my best to
illustrate to you what is permissible and what is
illegal in the Shariah/Islamic law regarding warfare.

74

And as you have seen, suicide is forbidden in Islam

according to the Quran and the Sunnah. Then, is a
suicide bomber a true martyr in Islam? Hijacking
airplanes, endangering innocent civilians is illegal in
the Islamic law. So when the hijacker is killed, is he a
martyr? Kidnapping civilians and holding noncombatants by force, is unsanctioned in the Shariah.
So if a kidnapper is shot dead, is he a martyr? I leave
these questions for you to ponder and know and
understand that the intention of the fighter as well as
his actions designate and determine his fate. That
which angers God is that which He has forbidden.
The words of the Prophet Muhammad, (may
God's peace and blessings be upon him) illuminate
how a Muslim's intention, jihad and martyrdom are
all interconnected and built one upon the other.
"It has been narrated on the
authority of Umar bin al-Khattab
that the Messenger of God (may
God's peace and blessings be upon
him) said: (The value of) an action
depends on the intention behind it.
A man will be rewarded only for
what he intended. the emigration of
one who emigrates for the sake of
God and His Messenger (may God's
peace and blessings be upon him)
is for the sake of God and His
Messenger (may God's peace and

75

blessings be upon him); and the

emigration of one who emigrates
for gaining a worldly advantage or
for marrying a woman is for what he
has emigrated." 34

76

IV. Terrorism in the Name of the War on Terror

Terrorism in the Name of the War On Terror

77

Terrorism, this utter brutality to intimidate and

frighten a targeted group is not a newcomer to the history of
mankind. Certainly, America could never say that her history
has no experience with terrorism. Truly, America was not
introduced to terrorism by Al-Qaeda and contemporary
events. In fact, there is no American innocence to the reality
of terrorism. Quite the contrary, America has her own
intimate history of home-grown terrorism that is as American
as apple-pie. And the terrorism on American soil was often
justified by misinterpretations of the Bible and Christianity.
So in America, I have often seen evidence of false
and twisted interpretations of scripture amongst the
Christians long before I was guided to embrace Islam. Sadly,
such nefarious interpretations of religious texts are a part of
American history. And extremist Christian Biblical
interpretations are still alive in present day America. Quite
possibly, they may have even reached as far up as the highest
ranks of the US government.
Let us go for just a brief revision of what false,
twisted and sinister interpretations of the Bible's teachings
have brought upon America.....So let us take a look back....
Now here we are in days gone by and we sit listening
in the dead of night. Then, we hear the braying of the horses
as they are spurred on into the chase. Their panting shoots

78

their breath into the night air like clouds of smoke. What
chase is this you may ask?
This is the chase and the hunt for a Black man by the
Knights of the Klu Klux Klan. On horseback or on foot for
over a hundred years they have preyed, hunted and terrorized
innocent, poor, indigent and unarmed Black men and women,
who were free (or as free as they were allowed to be, but they
were no longer slaves). The Klansmen chased them, tortured
them, hung them, mutilated their murdered corpses, and
never left them alive. These American terrorists waved an
American confederate flag and hid their faces behind white
hoods. They proudly always left their mark taking
responsibility for their crimes. And what is the mark of this
contemporary American terrorist organization? Their mark is
the smoking symbol of a burning cross; all the while
justifying their deeds with quotes from the Bible. Take a look
at some of the official KKK websites and you will see
countless twisted interpretations of the verses of the Bible.
They said that they were ghosts of the confederate
soldiers bringing a message of hope and deliverance to White
Christian America! The KKK wants to keep America white
and pure. So they said....and still they say the same thing. So
then, what are they? Should we call them Christian
Terrorists? Or perhaps many a Christian may find it terribly
offensive to associate terrorism with the religion of
Christianity. The Klan used to drag the murdered corpse of
their victims through the African-American neighborhoods;
to terrorize them. This was done very intentionally, "to keep

79

them in their place." And then the body would be left in front
of a specific building in the African-American neighborhood.
Where you may ask? The Klan systematically would leave
the dead corpse as if it was on display in front of the Colored
school. So the young African American school kids would
see it. It was to teach them a lesson. It was a form of
terrorism.
In the same way, now we can see that Al-Qaeda and
other extremist groups have sunk to the same depths. They
say they want to keep the lands of the Muslims, Muslim and
pure. Al-Qaeda, they are in fact like the Klu Klux Klan of the
Muslims.
So do not look at Islam and think that Islam justifies
terrorism. For no one should see Christianity as justifying the
terrorism of the KKK to lynch, torture, murder and burn.
Terrorism is not Islamic in nature or origin. Indeed, most of
America's Christians do not support or adhere to or agree
with the KKK and their misinterpretation of the Bible.
Neither do they agree with how they preach of murder and
torture of African-Americans. Also Islam does not justify
terrorism, murder or such corruption in any way, shape or
form. Furthermore, by adhering to the message of the Quran;
which is of peace, harmony and social equality; a level of
social equality is to be reached in a way and at a level that
America, my homeland has never ever seen. American has a
real problem with social equality and especially the ongoing
problems of color and racial discrimination. Their cure is to
be found in the teachings of Islam.

80

In our journey, I took you for a look at astray

extremist groups and how they have gone so far, far astray
from Islam. They have been misled to the extent that they
attempt to justify terrorist attacks with the scripture of Islam.
As you can see terrorism has its own special history
within America's very recent past, and lives on today. Try and
do just a little internet research and you will find current
membership to the KKK is strong, alive and well. The KKK
lives on in America and many other white extremist racist
hate groups have added their voice to this sickness; American
terrorism against Non-white human beings continues from
the past to the present and into the future....
In their own words, the KKK state, " The cross lighting
ceremony is another example of how the national media
distorts the Klan image. They purposely use the word "burn"
because of the negative image that is conjured up in the
minds of many people. To them it is a desecration, a desire to
destroy the cross.
The Knights definitely does not burn the cross, but we do
light the cross. The lighted cross of The Knights is no
different than the average church that has a lighted cross
either on top or in front of their church building. The light of
the cross symbolizes the Light of Christ dispelling darkness
and ignorance. It is the fire of the cross that reminds us of the

81

cleansing "fire" of Christ that cleanses evil from our land.

The fiery cross is a symbol that has long been popular with
the Christian faith, for example the Methodist denomination
uses the fiery cross as their symbol.
We don't burn the cross, we Light the cross. We recognize
that Christ is the light of the world..... When a Klansman or
Klanswoman participates in a cross lighting ceremony they
are making a public declaration to Jesus Christ of their
continued commitment to the Christian faith.... It is a matter
of principle.....We believe in the Ku Klux Klan. We believe
that the founders of the Ku Klux Klan were led by divine
providence and that once again just like the Klan saved the
white race during "Black Reconstruction" it will arise like the
great phoenix - The Knights Party - to bring our people once
again back from the brink of destruction. Our people led by
the hand of God will once more rule our great land. A time of
prosperity and racial healing - a great White Christian
revival! .... In order to achieve our goal of a free White
-oriented, healthy America many thousands of us must work
together in a disciplined team in The Knights. You can begin
working with us toward this goal..."35
Today is 11 January 2007, the 5th year anniversary of
the opening of the infamous Guantanamo Bay Prison. In
Guantanamo Bay they are still holding in solitary
confinement, in tiny cells, approximately 395 prisoners. Only

82

10 of them have ever been officially charged of crimes. That

small group had their day in court and charges were dropped
against all of them in the Supreme Court. All the remaining
prisoners are like kidnapped hostages who have had no trial
and have not been accused of a crime. They are confined on
a small island in the Caribbean off the coast of Cuba.
Approximately, 170 of the men imprisoned have been
released, let go and then never charged with a crime or taken
to court. In the eyes of the Bush administration, the freedom
of these men was the American government's to give and to
take as it pleased. According to the United Nations they are
illegally designated and classified. The US has designated
these prisoners as illegal combatants. 3 of them have
committed suicide inside the walls of the Guantanamo Bay
Prison while others have tried to. Imagine and picture being
imprisoned for five years of your life and never even a
chance to defend yourself in a court of justice and law. 5
years where you are caged in a tiny cell with no contact with
your family or the outside world. For men who have never
been charged with a crime, is that not terrorism in the name
of the War on Terror?
Now what of the torture used by the American
military and intelligence agencies in Guantanamo Bay and
the prisons of Iraq and Afghanistan? Like the dogs let loose
to bite and growl at the terrified prisoners as we have seen in
photographs and on video footage of the Abu Gharib Prison
in Baghdad. Scores of former prisoners from Guantanamo
Bay have given detailed accounts of how they were tortured

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and abused by their captors. We saw images of what was

inflicted upon Iraqi prisoners at Abu Gharib. Only God alone
knows of all of the torture used against these prisoners that
we have not seen caught by the camera's eye. Truly, all will
be held to account on one day. I seek refuge in the mercy of
God Almighty from dying with sins against men on my
hands like the sins upon the hands of the Guantanamo Bay
and Abu Gharib soldiers, prison wardens, officers and their
Commander in Chief.
This type of secret warfare is not new to the
American Industrial Military Complex. Have you forgotten
of the secret wars that were in the shadows and then slowly,
bit by bit, were uncovered? Remember America's CIA secret
wars in Nicaragua, El Salvador and years before in Thailand
during the Vietnam War. And now, today over 21, 500
American soldiers are being sent by President George Bush
to Iraq. How much bloodshed will they leave behind them in
Iraq? How many Americans will now never see again their
sons, brothers, fathers, and husbands? American terrorism in
the War on Terror continues. It seems the Military Industrial
Complex and the extremely wealthy American families that
run companies never seem to learn. The present American
administration even supported Israel's short war and assault
on Lebanon that caused the destruction of hospitals, villages,
schools, airports and entire city blocks in Beirut.
War on Terror has been used as a justification for
first strikes, and for beginning war in Afghanistan, Iraq and
Somalia. And who knows...where is next?

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The reports seem to just stack up of US soldiers

mistreating and abusing prisoners in this War on Terror. Even
the faith of a Muslim is not respected in this war. The
prisoners have witnessed when a Quran is stomped on and
even thrown into the garbage or even worse into the toilets.
In Haditha, Iraq 24 Iraqis were killed after a roadside
bomb exploded and killed an American soldier. The Marines
started to kill anyone in sight, passengers in cars, bystanders,
anyone. Local and international news reports painted a most
grim picture of how these Marines went into the Iraqi homes,
forced the residents outside and shot them dead. What is the
difference? Is not their attack against civilian Iraqis just as
indiscriminate as a suicide bomb?
Is that not terrorism in the name of the War on
Terror? Or what of a 6,000 pound bomb dropped on villages
in the mountains of Afghanistan? Is that not terrorism in the
name of the War on Terror?
How long will it be until every Iraqi young boy is
casting stones at American soldiers? Can we not get our
American boys out of Iraq? Or is the legacy of George W.
Bush more important than the future of America's young
fighting men and their families?

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V. Conclusion

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Conclusion

My guest, I bring my words to a conclusion and to

the end with a sorrowful farewell. I bid farewell to over
21,500 American soldiers going off to war in Iraq.
It is not clear why they are going, nor is it clear what
is hoped that they will bring to Iraq. It is a war that was
started by America and was illegal by international law from
the day it first begun.
I shed a tear for the homes, for each home where a
woman will be sitting, worried, waiting for news of her man,
her husband and the father of her children. A tear for every
mother, sister and brother and father as they wait.....and wait.
And then one day, the phone will ring on a day they never
know if it will come or not. When the news reaches her ear,
how she will drop the phone, tears rolling down her face as
she collapses on the floor and wails......Not my boy! Why!
Why!

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The question every American should ask the

president. And I ask him today...Why are American soldiers
dieing and killing in Iraq? Is it because of the War on Terror?
Or is it because the US government stands guilty of State
Terrorism in the War on Terror.

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