Dare to Speak: Islam vs Free Democracy and Free Enterprise (I)
Chapter 1: The new Cold War
Back in the exciting days of the late ‘80s, when it became apparent that Communism had failed, and that Free Democracy held the keys to the future, Francis Fukuyama wrote a hopeful article called The End of History? which was later expanded into a book. [1] As he saw it, history records the evolution of society. Through it, we have learned how primitive tribes progressed through various forms of government and economy in a series of experiments that ultimately led to a perfected structure that Fukuyama felt could no longer be improved. He believed that, while actual governments and laws may still evolve, the basic structures of modern democracy, including Free Enterprise and the fair treatment of minorities, were firmly established and needed no additions. He, and many others, believed that the battle between Communism and Free Democracy was the last great conflict of humankind. The popular image of Afghani Muslims at the time was that of courageous freedom fighters, who helped the West finally break the back of the Soviet Union. With the Cold War over, we could all look forward to pounding our swords into plowshares and cashing in on the “peace dividend.”
Only one minor problem remained: the Middle East. But Yasser Arafat, Yitzhak Rabin, and Shimon Peres[2] were having productive talks in Oslo, [3] and, in 1994, their break-through agreements won them the Nobel Peace Prize. The 1979 revolution in Iran was seen by the general public as an isolated case in an isolated country. The bombing of the Marine Barracks in Lebanon in 1984, which killed 240 Americans, was portrayed as political rather than religious, and rooted in Europe’s occupation of Ottoman territories after World War I. Somalia’s bloody rejection of U.S. aid in 1993 was blamed on inept interference in a chaotic country that the U.S. knew nothing about. But all those issues were mere side-shows. The main event was Peace in the Middle East. A giddy world prepared for the revelry and looked forward to giving history its final curtain call.
Unfortunately, it did not work out that way. Yitzhak Rabin was assassinated by a Jewish extremist for negotiating away too many Jewish demands. Later, the few remaining negotiating points became stumbling blocks that broke the whole deal. On September 28, 2000, Yasser Arafat declared the Intifada, [4] and Israeli-Palestinian relations fell apart.
An amazing detail in this miserable story is that the area of land that broke the deal is less than 50 square miles, and most of it is barren wasteland. [5] Equally amazing is the fact that no one seems willing to point out that it is absurd to rage eternally over such small stakes.
Why do we ignore the silliness of these people, who sacrifice thousands of lives over a small expanse of arid dirt? It might be because it is too embarrassing – we would rather think that the world is being rocked to its foundations by something important. To Americans, living in a country formed by the Louisiana Purchase, the Alaska Purchase, and the Gadsden Purchase, the situation is unfathomable. If the parties involved really wanted to solve their problems, they could readily do so through some kind of purchase or land swap. There is obviously something more ominous afoot, and it has little to do with land.
Other events soon revealed that history was not going to end any time soon. They included the bombings of two U.S. embassies in Africa in 1998 and the U.S.S. Cole in 2000. The United States responded but was ineffective. The country was so caught up with Bill Clinton’s trysts with Monica Lewinski that people barely noticed. Osama bin Laden was a shadowy, unknown figure who had rarely surfaced in the news before these attacks. Some cynics even viewed him as a convenient distraction from Bill Clinton’s impeachment process. After bin Laden openly declared war on the United States, the U.S. assailed him with a military fly-swatter – an ineffective cruise missile attack – and then returned to its scandals.
On September 11, 2001, everything changed. With the Twin Towers collapsing in a cloud of dust, a gash in the Pentagon billowing smoke, and Flight 93 smashing into a Pennsylvania field on its way to Washington, and presumably to the White House, the United States woke up and declared its War on Terror and Osama bin Laden.
But how could Osama bin Laden, an outlaw in a remote part of the world, with only a few thousand terrorists at his disposal, strike such a devastating blow? And, how could he elude capture even to this day?
The answer is that bin Laden is not an outlaw: his actions were condoned by his Afghan host, the Taliban. And, despite his apparent outlaw reputation among most Islamic governments, he was considered by many of their citizens to be a combination of Robin Hood and spiritual leader. They saw him, and still see him, as a hero for declaring Jihad[6] against the Infidel West, and they cheer his tirades against the United States.
The alarming truth is that the only thing that can keep Osama bin Laden at large while a $25 million dollar reward hangs over his head is the intense loyalty of a vast multitude of Muslims.
What world view could possibly unite so many people around this ruthless and murderous terrorist? Bin Laden may have explained it best himself in an interview he gave ABC News reporter John Miller on December 22, 1998. In it, he skillfully combined words that were both gracious to Muslims and menacing to the West:
ABC NEWS You have been charged with masterminding the bombings of the two U.S. embassies in Kenya and Tanzania. Are these charges true?
OSAMA BIN LADEN Praise be to God, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the Worlds. Peace and blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad, his companions and his kin. Let me begin by stating that we, in the World Islamic Front for jihad against Jews and Crusaders, have…issued a crystal clear fatwa[7] calling on the Nation [of Muslims] to carry on jihad aimed at liberating Islamic holy sites, and the Ancient House [the Ka’aba, [8] a cube-like structure in Mecca[9] ],[10] and Al-Aksa Mosque[11] and all Islamic lands. …this…Nation of Muhammad…has responded to this appeal… We will continue this course because it is a part of our religion, and because God…ordered us to carry out jihad so that the word of God may remain exalted…If the instigation for jihad against the Jews and the Americans, in order to liberate Al-Aksa Mosque, and the Holy Ka’aba, is considered a crime, let history be a witness that I am a criminal.
ABC NEWS You warned that Americans would die. Then, two months later, the U.S. embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salaam were bombed. Were these bombings because of your fatwa (decree) against America?
BIN LADEN …we have repeatedly issued warnings over a number of years. Following these warnings and these calls, anti-American explosions took place in a number of Islamic countries. Most probably, these acts came about as a result of such calls and warnings…
ABC NEWS If the targets…are Americans, how can the deaths of…Africans be justified?
BIN LADEN …Suppose that the Americans have attacked an Islamic country and kidnapped my children…to use as a shield, and then [they] started to kill Muslims as is the case in Lebanon, Palestine, and these days in Iraq, and also when they supported the Serbs in massacring the Muslims in Bosnia. According to Islamic jurisprudence, if we abstain from firing on the Americans lest we should kill these Muslims…the harm that could befall Muslims at large, who are being attacked, outweighs the good of saving the lives of these Muslims used as shields.
This means that…when it becomes…impossible to repel these Americans without assaulting them, even if this involved…killing…Muslims, this is permissible under Islam…
ABCNEWS The U.S. has also said, in formal charges, that you are in a position to develop chemical weapons and try to purchase nuclear material for weapons. How would such weapons be used?
BIN LADEN …To seek…weapons that could counter those of the infidels is a religious duty…It would be a sin for Muslims not to try to possess the weapons that would prevent the infidels from inflicting harm on Muslims…
ABC NEWS Since the bombings, the U.S. has maintained…forces in Saudi Arabia and recently used them to help in the renewed air strikes in Iraq. What can the U.S. expect from you now?
BIN LADEN The American forces should expect reactions…from the Muslim world. Any thief…who enters the countries of others…to steal should expect…murder at any time.
For the American forces to expect anything from me personally reflects a very narrow perception of things. There is a nation which compromises 1200 million Muslims. This nation is angry…
There is no doubt that the treacherous attack perpetrated a few days ago against the Muslim people of Iraq by the United States and Britain [recall that this interview took place in 1998] has confirmed several things, the most important of which is that Britain and America are acting on behalf of Israel and the Jews, to strike at any power in the Islamic world, with a view to paving the way for the Jews to divide the Muslim world once again and enslave it…
As is known, a great part of the force that carried out the attack came from certain Gulf countries, which underlined the fact that these countries have lost their sovereignty. Now, infidels walk everywhere on the land where Muhammad…was born, and where the Koran was revealed to him… This happens while our scholars and Ulemas, [12] who are the heirs of prophets, are in jail.
These Ulemas are jailed while infidels, be they Jews or Christians, are free to go wherever they want in these countries…From here, I call on all Muslims to…form a leadership for resisting this crusader-Jewish invasion. The rulers have become powerless.…
ABC NEWS You have been labeled as “Public Enemy number 1” by the U.S. government. Do you deserve this label? And, secondly, how can a person who is on the run and who is being pursued come to attack the world’s only “Superpower”?
BIN LADEN Hostility towards America is a religious duty…To call us enemy number one or number two doesn’t hurt us. What we…care for is to please God…by doing jihad in his cause and by liberating Islam’s holy places from those wretched cowards.
…Osama bin Laden is confident that…the Islamic nation will carry out this duty. I have been here for a few years and I have not left Afghanistan. But I am confident that Muslims…will…be able…to end the legend of the so-called superpower that is America
ABC NEWS And, last question, have you got any message for the Muslims in the world?
BIN LADEN These days, we, as a nation, are being subjected to an unprecedented offensive. We migrated…to defend the religion of God…to liberate [the] holy Ka’aba…from the crusaders, and to liberate [the] Al-Aksa Mosque and Palestine from the Jews.
This Ancient House [the Ka’aba] is the center of attraction of people on this earth, physically and intellectually. Our life on this planet would be meaningless if we do not worship the God of the Ancient House. God…will not accept our prayers unless we are facing the Ka’aba…
If we were not to defend God’s Ka’ba and God’s Ancient House, how and for what else are we to do anything to please our God…[?]…
…Muslims should consider with care the [Koran’s] verses on loyalty, faith and jihad. They should sever any relations with the Jews and the Christians…God almighty says: “Ye who believe, take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors; they are but friends and protectors to each other. And he amongst you that turns to them for friendship is of them, verily God guideth not a people unjust” [13] …
This text shows that whoever befriends Jews and Christians becomes like them, and becomes one of them in their religion and in their infidelity. God…indicated in many verses that whoever befriends the infidels becomes one of them…: “To the hypocrites give the glad tidings that there is for them but a [grievous] penalty.” [14]
“Yea, to those who take for friends unbelievers, rather than believers; is it honor they seek among them? All honor is with God.” [15] That is why I advise Muslims not to count on present regimes. Instead, they should defend their religion and themselves and the sanctuaries of Muslims. They should consider with care the orders of God…to the Companions of the prophet, to do jihad. And, how He blamed them when they slowed down.
He said in his holy book: “ye who believe, what is the matter with you that, when you are asked to go forth in the cause of God, ye cling heavily to the earth? Do you prefer the life of this world to the hereafter? But little is the comfort of this life, as compared with the hereafter.” [16] And God also says: “when at last the order for fighting was issued to them, behold, a section of them feared men…even more than they should have feared God.” [17]
They said: “our Lord, why hast thou ordered us to fight? Wouldn’t thou not grant us respite to our natural term, near enough?” [18] This is a great calamity that has afflicted people these days. They say it would be better to delay jihad…
Whatever their reasons, the main reason is their attachment to this life. God says: “Say, short is the enjoyment of this world. The hereafter is the best for thou who do right…”[19] …That is why Muslims should take comfort in expecting the pleasure of God and their rewards in God’s paradise…May God…give us faith and peace of mind, and help us do his orders and avoid his prohibitions. And God’s peace and blessings be on our prophet Muhammad, and I conclude by praising God, the Cherisher and Sustainer of the worlds.
REFERENCES:
[1] The End of History and the Last Man, by Francis Fukuyama, 1992, publisher: Penguin Books
[2] At the time, Yasser Arafat was Chairman of the Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO), Yitzhak Rabin was Prime Minister of Israel, and Shimon Peres was Israel’s Minister of Foreign Affairs.
[3] Capital of Norway.
[4] Arabic term for “uprising.” The Intifada referred to here is more formally known as the Al Aqsa Intifada, or the Second Intifada. It refers to the uprising of Palestinians against Israel, beginning in September 2000, which began as hopes for a resolution on issues unsolved by the 1993 Oslo Accords deteriorated.
[5] Apartheid Wall, by Nigel Perry, The Electronic Intifada, 2000-2002 Palestine Independent Media Center.
[6] 1. A Muslim holy war or spiritual struggle against infidels. 2. A crusade or struggle. — The American Heritage Dictionary, Fourth Edition, ed. Joseph P. Pickett, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.
[7] A legal opinion or ruling issued by an Islamic scholar. — The American Heritage Dictionary, Fourth Edition, ed. Joseph P. Pickett, Boston: Houghton Mifflin Company, 2000.
[8] The Ka’aba is the most holy structure in Islam, toward which all Muslims face when they pray. It is also the destination of the Hajj, which is the pigrimmage that each Muslim is to take at least once in a lifetime. It was reputedly built by Abraham and his son Ishmael as the world’s first place of worship for Allah. Some Islamic traditions hold that the Ka’aba was built by Adam, and was later rebuilt by Abraham and Ishmael. Also referred to as Kaaba or Ka’bah.
[9] Located in Saudi Arabia. Also referred to as Makka or Makkah.
[10] This book uses the following convention when using parentheses in quotations: Square brackets “[ ]” denote comments by the author of this book, while parentheses “( )” denote comments from the source of the quotation.
[11] The ancient mosque in Jerusalem. Jerusalem is considered to be the third most holy city by Muslims, because it is the alleged launching point of Muhammad’s famous “Night Journey” to heaven in a dream, discussed later in this book.
[12] A body of Mullas (high ranking Islamic religious authorities) – from Mariam-Webster On-Line Dictionary, 2005-2006 Merriam-Webster, Inc.
[13] Koran, surah 5, verse 51.
[14] Koran, surah 4, verse 138.
[15] Koran, surah 4, verse 139.
[16] Koran, surah 9, verse 38.
[17] Koran, surah 4, verse 77.
[18] Koran, surah 4, verse 77, continued.
[19] Koran, surah 4, verse 77, continued.
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