B.

EXTERNAL CAUSES for RISE OF FUNDAMENTALISM

8. Results of US and USSR interference
8.1 COLD WAR POLITICS IN MIDDLE EAST
Saw USA and USSR seeking allies /proxies in their geo-political struggle to increase their own
influence. US: Alliances formed to protect its oil supplies and Israel's interests.
USA support for Israel in Arab-Israeli dispute
Arab resentment towards US double standards:
Staunch US support for Israel
o Militants want USA to cease support for Israel. (Muslims often call Israel the 51" American
state !! ) Very strong Israel lobby in US that US presidents cannot ignore. Eisenhower
Doctrine saw the increase in arms and funds to Israel - helped in massive build up of its
armed forces. A contributory, crucial factor in its ability to defeat its neighbours in wars like the
1967 war and 1973 Yom. Kippur war.
o `Although Israel's religious fundamentalism, its possession of a nuclear weapons capability,
and its on-going extra-territorial military occupation are tolerated by the US, the same is
not true when Arabs Muslims aspire to similar goals.' (Huband)
** CRUCIAL FACTOR!
US support for oppressive, corrupt regimes: .
Under the Eisenhower Doctrine of 1957, Saudi Arabia, Iraq and Lebanon aligned themselves with
the USA while Syria and Egypt allied with the Soviets in the Cold war politics.
- Egypt (Sadat switched over from the Soviet camp - his belief in America's influence over Israel and
ability to relieve Egypt's economic plight. He expelled the Soviets in July 1972 and sent word to
President Nixon for talks)
- Iran : close US-Iranian relationship in the decade prior to the Iranian revolution. Iran's unique geopolitical position, with the Soviet Union to the north and the world's largest oil deposits to the south, Fnade it
invaluable to US strategic interests. Between 1972 -and the Shah's downfall in 1979, the value of US
military sales to Iran amounted to some $20billion. In 1976, the two countries signed a five year trade
program that provided for the purchase of $50billion worth of American goods, including $10b worth
of military equipment. On the eve of the revolution, the number of Americans working in Iran exceeded
27,000.
- US double standards in Iran: they conveniently overlooked their opposition to nuclear proliferation
and agreed to sell Iran eight large nuclear power plants for civilian purposes, they tolerated the
Shah's persistent striving for higher oil prices, praising instead his refusal to participate in the
1973-4 oil embargo, they supported the Shah's subversive activities in Iraq in the early 1970s
through the Kurdish uprising in the north of the country, they looked the other way when he betrayed
the Kurds to the Iraqi regime once they had outlived their usefulness to him.
The emergence of militant Islamist group; in the region in the 1970s (e.g. campuses of Egyptian
universities, Palestinian refugees in Lebanon) were the consequence of US alliances with unpopular
regimes, militias, and dictators.
Fundamentalism: a by-product of American foreign policy?
- democracy at home, but not abroad
- as long as countries were non-communist, America turned a blind eye to matters such as a lack of human
rights & free elections. political impotence/ frustration
- result: countries such as Pakistan, Saudi Arabia could retain American support despite disregard for
democratic principles
- Pakistan: ruled by a series of military dictatorships since independence
- Iraq: Sadam Hussein s regime backed by America up until the '91 Gulf War

The threat : the Great Satan (USA ) in the Middle East

~ The role and presence of the USA in Middle East have given many Islamic
militants grievances and a target to focus on. A convenient target for venting
anger and frustration pent up for generations. Islamic militants tend to blame all the
Middle East failures and ills on the US.
Concept of 'Satanisation' (need to fight the influence of the great Satan) : to
the religious nationalists, there is a global conspiracy against religion, orchestrated
by the United States_( in the Middle East - US portrayed as the Great Satan )
Extremist ideology portrays the US as the "Enemy of Islam."
For more than seven years the United States has occupied the land of Islam in the holiest of its
territories - Arabia - plundering its riches, overwhelming its rulers, humiliating its
people, threatening its neighbours, and using its
bases in the peninsula as a spearhead to fight against the neighbouring Arab
peoples.
- Declaration of war against US issued by Osama bin Laden,
February '93.
Militants demand that the USA withdraw support for Egypt, Jordan and Saudi Arabia
- The Gulf war of 1990 ( Since 1930s, the US has nurtured a relationship based on "oil for
protection" with Saudi Arabia. When Egypt threatened Saudi sovereignty in the 1950s and
1960s, the US provided military support. In 1979, as developments in Iran and Afghanistan
caused alarm in the Saudi kingdom, the USA remained a solid ally. Likewise , again in 1990,
when Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait, the US stood shoulder to shoulder with the Saudis to
protect their oil fields - George Bush sent 500,000 American troops to Saudi territory along
with token contingents of Egyptian, Syrian, Moroccon and European troops in order to offset
Islamic extremist opposition )
- Evidence: 'Islamists have capitalized on the friction between the US and its
opponents in the region eg Saddam's invasion of Kuwait and the US although not the
perpetrator was portrayed as the enemy:

The early days of the Gulf War 1990, the Palestinian Islamic movement,
Hamas, issued a comminque that the "US commands all the forces hostile to
Islam and Muslims." It singled out George Bush, who it claimed was not "only the
leader of the forces of evil": but "also the chief of the false gods_" When
Americans sent troops to the Saudi Arabia desert following Sadam
Hussein's invasion of Kuwait in 1990, a comminque by Hamas declared it
to be "another episode in the fight between good and evil. "
Islamic fundamentalists had the foIIoDuing complaints : American infidels
were desecrating sacred soil, it was un-Islamic to ally with infidels to fight
Muslims, the Americans wanted to dominate Saudi Arabia
August 1996, Osama bin Laden's "Declaration of Jihad against the
Americans Occupying the Land of the Two Holy Places." Addressed to "
Muslim brethren all over the world generally & in the Arab peninsula
specifically," the declaration proudly announced the readiness of the Islamist
forces to launch a new jihad from the Afghan mountains "whereby the grace of
Allah- the largest infi del military force in the world was destroyed. This
jihad would start with the liberation of the "Land of the Two Holy Places"
from American occupation - the greatest aggression hatched against the
world of Islam since the death of Prophet Muhammad. " this would be
carried out by the world-wide Muslim community. "Clearly .. there is no
more important duty than pushing the American enemy out of the Holy
Land."
Osarna's declaration reinforced the concept of Jihad :" Our youth believe in
paradise after death .. those youths are diff erent from your soldiers. Your
problem will be how to convince your troops to fight, while our problem
will be how to restrain our youth to wait for their turn in fighting and

operations .... These youth know that: if one is not to be killed, one will die
(anyway) and the most honourable death is to be killed in the way of Allah."
8.2 US involvement in Afghanistan
US support of forces that were anti-communist (Eg.Afghanistan ), strengthened the hand of
the religious extremists. Set stage for the power of the Taliban as an alternative power base with the
withdrawal of the Soviets and also triggered international jihadism.

T h e S o v i e t - A f g h a n War 4 Triggered international jihadism

US ROLE: Helped to recruit volunteers (particularly from North Africa) to aid in the war against the
Soviets: `the entire Afghan war was orchestrated and executed by the United States through
the use of totalitarian proxies. ' (Tariq Ali)
Americans gave aid to the Mujahideen to fight the Soviets in context of Cold war politics: the
Mujahideen built a jihad mechanism that had a life of its own-much of CIA funds used for Islamic extremist
indoctrination and militant training . US turned a blind eye, as long as it was meant to help expel the Soviets.
But, the training, indoctrination and education in Islamic militancy of the 1980s, came back to haunt the US in
the 1990s and beyond. After the expulsion of the Soviets, Islamic extremist elements used this jihad'
mechanism to export Islamic militancy world wide.
For the Islamic fighters ( especially the foreign volunteers) - it was the victory of Islam over the "godless
infidels'. One superpower had been humbled, now it would be the turn of the other superpower ( the
USA)
Soviet-Afghan war left behind a wide coalition of Islamic organizations intent on promoting Islam against all
non-Muslim forces - they had thousands of experienced fighters, training camps, links across the Islamic
world, large quantities of arms and explosives and the confidence that Afghanistan had given them.
Arabs, like Osama Bin Laden, organized and trained Arab volunteers, known as Afghan Arab Mujahideen,
many of whom later became the backbone of Al-Qaeda
Thewar in Afghanistan provided a generation of young Muslims with a sense of purpose and military skills.
Muslims from the Middle East, Southeast Asia, and even those living in the West volunteered to join the armed
struggle.
Result:.
- Served to radicalize and militarize lslamist movements.
- Heightened confidence: An `Islamic triumph,' it `confirmed the belief that the armed struggle was
superior to any political strategy.' (Best, Jassi and Mailo)
Example: `Graduates' from Afghan War utilized their skills to perpetuate violence against foreign targets in
EGYPT (1992-7).

9. Effects of the collapse of communism: Rise of ethnic/

religious conflicts
Soviets had 2 approaches to religion: d i sp l a c e an d c o n t rol .

Party promoted a secular Marxist ideology and created new institutions and events (like
community weddings in the secular Hall of Marriage ), which was to make religion redundant.

Religion was assumed to have become irrelevant.

Soviet communism: 'Perhaps the most politically powerful and globally successful antireligious
movement in history.' (T.S_ Shah
Post Cold War, as government legitimacy declined, religion was invoked by the religious
leaders to target the govt. Collapse of communism created a political vacuum in numerous
developing countries, which some religious groups were able to fill.

Collapse of the SU in 1991 and the communist party unleashed forces of ethnicity and
religious
. diversity. Nationalist draw on religion to mobilize a common national identity -

C A S E S T U D Y : Y U G O S L AVI A

Tight communist rule helped to hold together different ethnic and religious groups of the Christian
faith and the Muslims in Yugoslavia
1980: d e a t h of Tito :his 35-year rule kept the lid on the multinational, multiethnic, and
multireligious renegade Communist state. (Yugoslavia -a federation of different peoples held together for 35
years by the. power of the Communist Party and personality of Tito. Rivalry between the Serbs (Orthodox Christians) and
Croats (Roman Catholics). Another group: Bosnian Muslims (had converted to Islam during days of Ottoman Empire). .

- 1980: Tito's death ushered in a decade of rising tension among its inhabitants: resurgence of
Serbian nationalism Serbs led by Slobodan Milosevic began to take over the federal republic. As
the Yugoslav federal army came under the effective control of SERBIA, the largest and most populous of the
republic, violent clashes ensued as republics began to break away While Tito had deliberately
discouraged the celebration of divisive religious events and symbols; Miloselvic encouraged the Serb
Orthodox Church to 'celebrate its 500'" anniversary and actively supported the Orthodox bishops.
IMPACT : CIVIL WARS OF A RELIGIOUS NATURE
- In the face of Serbian aggrandisement and fall of SU, triggered off calls for greater autonomy and
independence of other ethnic groups. Yugoslavia collapsed into war. As each group of nationalists
pressed its case, it capitalized on its religious heritage the clergy of each religion played a role_

Ethnic wars
BOSNIA-HERZEGOVINA:

Ethnically diverse: 44% Muslim Slavs, 33% Serbs, 17% Croats.

March 1992: Bosnian independence declared (with a Muslim as president of the state)

Bosnian serbs - opposed to the indpc. Serb refusal to be submerged in a Muslim

controlled sovereign state: Declared independence of their own ethnic enclave, boycotted a
referendum which resulted in Bosnia's independence of the Yugoslav federation

Serbian soldiers in Yugoslav army assisted Bosnian Serbs: 1992 - Bosnian Serb forces
placed capital city (Sarajevo) under siege, subjected its population to continuous mortar-fire,
and began an `ethnic cleansing' campaign to expel Muslims from Serb-controlled areas.

West refusal to act forced Bosnian leaders to seek aid from fellow Muslims in various
Arab countries and from Pakistan. Muslim states provided weapons and money to pay
mercenaries. Arms shipments from Iran_ Saudis mobilized the organization of the Islamic
Conference to send other forms of aid to the Bosnian Muslims. As in Afghanistan in the 1980s,
Muslim volunteers from around the world came to Bosnia to assist their co-religionists, Their
total number exceeded 4,000 (some had fought in the earlier Afghan war, while others
Were -'from the Iranian Revolutionary Guard.
European allies an US : uneasy about this increased Islamic activity in the Balkans, but since they
were not willing to take military action, there was little they could do to curb it. By second

9. Effects of globalisation: Stimulated the growth and spread of

radicalism
9.1. Globalisation b Failure of state economies to cope economically
The economic stagnation in regions like the middle EAST and CENTRAL ASIA (e.g.
UZBEKISTAN) stem from a weak and distorted integration into the global economy.
This, in turn, creates the socio-economic inequality which serves to radicalise the
religious beliefs of disaffected people, particularly youths.
9.2. Technological advancements
The spread of global communications has also contributed to the spread of radicalism.
The proliferation of the Internet has allowed for the emergence of new 'imagined' Islamic
communities which bypass nation-state boundaries. The Islamist terrorist group Al-Qaeda utilizes
the Internet as a 'battle space': the Internet as a territory for propaganda, recruiting, training,
financing and planning.
Christian fundamentalists in America - "televangelism" Pervasiveness and large-scale reach of
television.' radio: 'Gospel.. .being marketed like soap powders". Sophisticated & systematic use of media
to spread hard-line religious messages and fundraising
Islamic fundamentalists fighting Russians in Chechnya use websites to champion their causes

Hidutwa militants used the WWW & e-mail to promote a feeling of 'Hindu Identity'
john Gray: Al-Qaeda a product of modernity -'a hybrid of theocracy & anarchy': enthusiastic use
of modem technology (weaponry, satellite communication systems, mass media etc)

thrived on the availability of modern methods in service of a pre-modern value system

Stuart Sim: Al-Qaeda "parasitic on modernity"
Taliban: obsession with weaponry

9.3. Global democratisation

o T.S. Shah and M.D. Toft argue that the globalisation of democracy has been crucial for the
rapid rise in fundamentalism.
a. `Where political systems have become more open and democratic, religious leaders, movements,
and political parties have proved competitive at the ballot box, winning unprecedented political power.'
PALESTINE: The militant Islamist organization Hamas contested and won many local
elections. Capitalized on secular ruling party Fatah's policy failures, and won over Palestinian
audiences with its vehemently anti-Israel rhetoric.
TURKEY: Islamist parties were a force to be reckoned with throughout the 1990s. The Welfare
Party gained the largest share of seats in the 1996 parliamentary elections before it was
outlawed (although it was rehabilitated under different names to continue its foothold in Turkish
politics).
MALAYSIA: Islamic Party of Malaysia (PAS), an Islamist party that aims to establish Malaysia as
a country based on Islamic law, became the first opposition party to win a Malay state in
Terengganu in the 1999 elections.
9.4. Radicalisation of Muslims in the West
New arid larger bases of Islamist radicalism and terrorism appear to have developed in Muslim
communities in Europe and North and South America.
The democratic and liberal environment of Western countries fostered Islamic pluralism, giving
free rein to the activities of many different groups reflecting many different trends of Islamic
thought.
However; many of these groups went on carrying the fundamentalist banner of many
of the Islamic movements in their Arab and Muslim homelands.
Sense of alienation deeply felt by Muslims in the W est further encourages the
rapid spread of radical doctrine.
- In effect, the growth of Islamic fundamentalism in the West served to plant the notion of a global cultural war in

Arab and Muslim societies, fuelling the movement on an international scale.