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The Real Face of the Terrorists
Who Act in the Name of Religion
Those who believe and do not mix up their belief
with any wrongdoing, they are the ones who are safe… (Qur'an, 6:82)
All these examples reveal that organising
acts of terror against innocent people is utterly against Islam and it
is unlikely that any Muslim could ever commit such crime. On the contrary,
Muslims are responsible for stopping these people, removing "mischief
on earth" and bringing peace and security to all people all over the world.
It is not possible to talk about "Christian terror", "Jewish terror"
or "Islamic terror". Indeed, an examination into the background of the
perpetrators of these acts reveal that the terrorism in question is not
a religious but a social phenomenon.
Crusaders: Barbarians Who Trampled Their Own Religion
The true message of a religion or a system of belief can be at times
distorted by its own pseudo-adherents. The Crusaders, whose period constitutes
a dark episode in Christian history, are an example of this type of distortion.
The Crusaders were European Christians who undertook expeditions from
the end of the 11th century onwards to recover the Holy Land (Palestine
and the surrounding area) from the Muslims. They set out with a so-called
religious goal, yet they laid waste each acre of land they entered spreading
fear wherever they went. They subjected civilians along their way to mass
executions and plundered many villages and towns. Their conquest of Jerusalem,
where Muslims, Jews and Christians lived under Islamic rule in peace,
became the scene of immense bloodshed. They massacred all the Muslims
and Jews in the city without mercy.
Under Muslim rule, Muslims, Jews and Orthodox
Christians had lived together in peace in Jerusalem. When the Crusaders
invaded Jerusalem (as seen above) they carried out terrible acts
of slaughter. The Crusaders continued on to sack many more towns
and murdering civilians as they went. |
In the words of one historian, "They killed all the Saracens and the
Turks they found... whether male of female."16 One of
the Crusaders, Raymond of Aguiles, boasted of this violence:
Wonderful sights were to be seen. Some of our men (and this was more
merciful) cut off the heads of their enemies; others shot them with arrows,
so that they fell from the towers; others tortured them longer by casting
them into the flames. Piles of heads, hands and feet were to be seen in
the streets of the city. It was necessary to pick one's way over the bodies
of men and horses. But these were small matters compared to what happened
at the Temple of Solomon, a place where religious services are normally
chanted ... in the Temple and porch of Solomon, men rode in blood up to
their knees and bridle reins.17
In two days, the Crusader army killed some 40,000 Muslims in the barbaric
ways just described.18
The Crusaders' barbarism was so excessive that, during the Fourth Crusade,
they plundered Constantinople (present-day Istanbul), a Christian city,
and stole the golden objects from the churches.
Of course, all this barbarism was utterly against Christian doctrine.
Christianity, in the words of the Bible, is a "message of love". In the
Gospel according to Matthew, it is said that Jesus said to his followers,
"Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you" (Matthew, 5:44).
In the Gospel according to Luke, it is said that Jesus said, "To him who
strikes you on the cheek, offer the other also." (Luke, 6:29) In no part
of the Gospels is there any reference to the legitimacy of violence; thus
murdering innocent people is unimaginable. You can find the concept of
"murdering the innocent" in the Bible; but only in the cruel Jewish King
Herod's attempt to kill Jesus while he was a baby.
If Christianity is a religion based on love that accommodates no violence,
how did Christian Crusaders carry out some of the most violent acts in
history? The major reason for this was that the Crusaders were mainly
made up of ignorant people who could better be defined as "rabble". These
masses, who knew almost nothing about their religion, who had probably
never read or even seen the Bible once in their lifetime, and who were
for the most part completely unaware of the moral values of the Bible,
were led into barbarism under the conditioning of Crusaders' slogans which
presented this violence as "God's Will". Employing this fraudulent method,
many were encouraged to commit dreadful acts strictly forbidden by the
religion.
On September 12, 1204, the Crusaders entered
Constantinople, which was held by their fellow Christians. They
sacked and looted the city even to the extent of ripping the gold
out of the churches. |
It is worth mentioning that in that period, Eastern Christians - the
people of Byzantium, for instance - who were culturally far ahead of Western
Christians, espoused more humane values. Both before and after the Crusaders'
conquests, Orthodox Christians managed to live together with Muslims.
According to Terry Jones, the BBC commentator, with the withdrawal of
the Crusaders from Middle East, "civilized life started again and members
of the three monotheistic faiths returned to peaceful coexistence."19
The example of the Crusaders is indicative of a general phenomenon. The
more the adherents of an ideology are uncivilised, intellectually underdeveloped
and ignorant, the more likely they are to resort to violence. This also
holds true for ideologies that have nothing to do with religion. All communist
movements around the world are prone to violence. Yet the most savage
and bloodthirsty of them were the Red Khmers in Cambodia. This was because
they were the most ignorant.
The Bedouin Character in the Qur'an
In the period of the Prophet Muhammad, there existed two basic social
structures in Arabia. City-dwellers and Bedouins (desert Arabs). A sophisticated
culture prevailed in Arab towns. Commercial relations linked the towns
to the outer world, which contributed to the formation of "good manners"
among Arabs dwelling in cities. They had refined aesthetic values, enjoyed
literature and especially poetry. Desert Arabs, on the other hand, were
the nomad tribes living in the desert who had a very crude culture. Utterly
unaware of arts and literature, they developed an unrefined character.
Islam was born and developed among the inhabitants of Mecca, the most
important city of the peninsula. However, as Islam spread to the rest
of the the peninsula, all the tribes in Arabia embraced it. Among these
tribes were also desert Arabs, who were somehow problematic: their poor
intellectual and cultural background prevented some of them from grasping
the profundity and noble spirit of Islam. Of this God states the following
in a verse:
The desert Arabs are the worst in disbelief and hypocrisy,
and more fitted to be ignorant of the limits which God has sent down to
His Messenger. But God is Knowing, Wise. (Qur'an, 9:97)
The desert Arabs, that is, social groups who were "worst in disbelief
and hypocrisy" and prone to disobey God's commands, became a part of the
Islamic world in the Prophet's time. However, in later periods, they became
a source of trouble for the house of Islam. The sect called "Kharijis"
that emerged among the Bedouins was an example. The most distinctive trait
of this perverse sect (which was called "Kharijis", the "rebels", because
they greatly deviated from Sunni practices), was their wild and fanatical
nature. The "Kharijis", who had little understanding of the essence of
Islam or of the virtues and the values of the Qur'an, waged war against
all other Muslims basing this war on a few Qur'anic verses about which
they made distorted interpretations. Furthermore, they carried out "acts
of terrorism". Ali, who was one of the closest companions of the Prophet
and was described as the "gate of the city of knowledge", was assassinated
by a Kharijite.
In later periods, "Hashashis", another brutal organisation, emerged;
this was a "terrorist organisation" made up of ignorant and fanatical
militants bereft of a profound understanding of the essence of Islam and
thus who could be readily influenced by simple slogans and promises.
In other words, just as the Crusaders distorted and misinterpreted Christianity
as a teaching of brutality, some perverted groups emerging in the Islamic
world misinterpreted Islam and resorted to brutality. What is common to
these sects and the Crusaders was their "Bedouin" nature. That is, they
were ignorant, unrefined and uncultivated, lacking a true understanding
of their religion. The violence they resorted to resulted from this lack
of understanding, rather than from the religion they claimed to espouse.
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A Terrorist is Without Pity
Whose Only Purpose is to Destroy
The founder of Russian
Anarchy, Michael Bakunin and his disciple Nechayev define an ideal
terrorist in this way:
The whole work of his [a revolutionist's] existence,
not only in words, but also in deeds, is at war with the existing
order of society, and with the whole so-called civilized world,
with its laws, morals and customs, he is an uncompromising opponent…
He knows only one science; the science of destruction. (The Alarm
Newspaper Article, "Bakunin's Ground-Work for the Social Revolution,"
1885 Dec. 26, p. 8)
As understood from these words of Bakunin and
Nechayev, terrorists are people who sever their relationship with
every material and spiritual institution thereby rejecting every
moral value, and who view these institutions as impediments to their
designs. Bakunin also said, "Day and night dare he [a revolutionist]
have only one thought, one aim: the unmerciful destruction; while
he, cold-blooded and without rest, follows that aim, he himself
must be ready to die at any time and ready to kill with his own
hands any one who seeks to thwart his aims." In his Ground-Work
for the Social Revolution, there is this description of what kind
of person a terrorist must be:
Michael Bakunin |
Stringent with himself he must also be to others.
All weak sentiment towards relation, friendship, love and thankfulness
must be suppressed through the only cold passion of the revolutionary
work.
These words lay bare the dark face of terrorism
and show that it is completely opposed to the religion of Islam
which is founded on peace, tolerance and love. In this verse, God
reveals that peace is the real salvation of humanity and that pursuing
the opposite, that is war and conflict, is to walk in the steps
of Satan:
O You who believe! Enter absolutely into peace
(Islam). Do not follow in the footsteps of Satan. He is an outright
enemy to you. (Qur'an, 2:208)
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The Mass Psychology of Terrorism
Another important
characteristic of terrorists is that they act with a collective
spirit. Within this spirit, individual ideas and personal choice
are disregarded as everyone is directed toward one single goal.
Those who act within this collective spirit may do things they would
never do in their right mind and commit acts without using their
own will and consciousness. In many countries of the world, terror
groups composed of a few unintelligent and uneducated people get
caught up in the emotional hysteria of mass meetings, slogans, and
without even knowing what they are doing or why, they get involved
in committing mass atrocities. In one moment, such people can turn
into killers with blood on their hands, and even terrorists who
are able to commit inhumane acts. A person may seem quiet and calm
when he is alone, but when he becomes a part of a terrorist group,
he may become capable of committing acts of arson and assault for
no apparent reason. Such spells are cast over individuals that they
are even willing to be killed for their cause. The majority of those
who take part in acts of terror often have weak wills and consciences,
and they become like a flock of sheep under the influence of mass
psychology. Good sense and judgment are substituted by excessive
and extravagant emotionalism and a tendency toward violence and
aggression. Such people are easily provoked, intolerant and know
no limitation set by any law.
The error of this mass psychology is revealed
in the Qur'an where it says that human beings must act according
to their own will and intelligence:
Do not pursue what you have no knowledge of. Hearing,
sight and hearts will all be questioned. (Qur'an, 17:36)
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One of the Sources of Terrorism: Third World Fanaticism
These examples from history may help us gain better understanding of
the present phenomenon, the so-called "Islamic terror", which is nowadays
at the top of the international agenda. That is because those who emerge
and carry out acts of terrorism in the name of Islam and those who back
such acts, representing a tiny minority in the world of Islam, stem from
this "character peculiar to Bedouins", not from Islam itself. Failing
to understand the essence of Islam, which is essentially a religion of
peace and justice, they make it a tool of barbarism, which is simply an
outcome of their social and cultural structure. The origin of this barbarism,
which may well be called "Third World Fanaticism", is the benighted initiatives
of people who are devoid of love for their fellow human-beings.
It is a fact that, for the last few centuries, Muslims in all corners
of the Islamic world, have been subjected to violence by Western forces
and their allies. The colonialist European states, local oppressive regimes
or colonialists backed by the West (Israel, for example) have caused great
suffering to Muslims at large. However, for Muslims, this is a situation
that has to be approached and responded to from a purely Qur'anic stance.
In no part of the Qur'an does God command believers to respond to violence
with violence. On the contrary, God commands Muslims to "respond to evil
with goodness":
A good deed and a bad deed are not the same. Repel the
bad with something better and, if there is enmity between you and someone
else, he will be like a bosom friend. (Qur'an, 41:34)
It is no doubt a legitimate right of Muslims to react against this cruelty.
However, these reactions should never turn into a blind hatred, an unjust
enmity. God warns about this in the following verse:
... Let not the hatred of a people [who once] obstructed
you from the Sacred Mosque lead you to transgress. Help one another in
benevolence and piety, and help not one another in sin and transgression…
(Qur'an, 5:2)
Consequently, carrying out terrorist acts against the innocent people
of other nations under the pretence of "representing the innocent nations
in the world", is by no means compatible with Islam.
Another point that deserves a special mention here is that all Western
nations and communities cannot be held responsible for the aforementioned
violence and oppression against Muslims. Actually, the materialist, irreligious
philosophies and ideologies that prevailed in the 19th century are in
the main responsible for these dismal acts. European colonialism did not
originate from Christianity. On the contrary, anti-religious movements
opposing the values of Christianity led the way to colonialism. At the
roots of the greatest brutalities of the 19th century lies the Social
Darwinist ideology. In the Western world today, there are still cruel,
mischievous and opposing factors, as well as a culture dominated by peaceful
and just elements that have its roots in Christianity. As a matter of
fact, the main disagreement is not between the West and Islam. Contrary
to the general opinion, it is between the devout people of the West and
of the Muslim world on the one hand, and the people opposing religion
(materialists, atheists, Darwinists etc.) on the other.
Another indication that Third World Fanaticism has nothing to do with
Islam is that, until recently, this fanaticism had been identified with
the communist ideology. As is well-known, similar anti-Western acts of
terror were carried out in 1960s and 1970s by Soviet-backed communist
organisations. As the impact of the communist ideology faded, some of
the social structures which gave birth to communist organisations have
turned their attention to Islam. This "brutality presented under the guise
of religion", which is formulated by the incorporation of some Islamic
concepts and symbols into the former communist literature is entirely
against the moral values which constitute the essence of Islam.
A last remark about this issue is that Islam is not peculiar to a particular
nation or geographical region. Contrary to the dominant Western perception,
Islam is not an "eastern culture". Islam is the last religion revealed
to mankind as a guide to the true path that recommends itself to all humanity.
Muslims are responsible for communicating the true religion they believe
in to all people of all nations and cultures and making them feel closer
to Islam.
Consequently, there is a unique solution for people and groups who, in
the name of Islam, resort to terror, form oppressive regimes and turn
this world into a dreadful place instead of beautifying it: revealing
the true nature of Islam and communicating it so that the masses can understand
and live by it.
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One of The Methods of Terrorism
is to Cause Fear and Panicin Society
One of the most important
characteristics of terrorism is that it selects its targets indiscriminately.
The fact that it determines these targets without discrimination
is one of the most important reasons for the spread of fear, because
no one can feel secure. If people know that they are possible targets
for no reasons, no one will feel safe from the terrorists. There
is nothing a potential target can do to protect themselves, since
terrorists act according to their own rules, in a time and place
of their own choosing. Thus acts of terror in society are arbitrary
and unpredictable.
 
Terrorist organisations attack their targets indiscriminately
which means that innocent and defenceless individuals are
killed or wounded. A typical example of this was the nerve
gas attack in the Tokyo Metro on March 20, 1995. |
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The Error of Radicalism
There is another idea that we must examine together with that of terror;
that is, the phenomenon of radicalism.
Radicalism means supporting sudden revolutionary destructive changes
in any sphere and applying a strict uncompromising policy in order to
achieve them. Radicals are characterised by their desire for revolutionary
change and the stern, sometimes aggressive attitude they adopt.
In this, as in every sphere of life, the guide for the Muslim is the
Qur'an. When we look at radicalism in the light of the Qur'an, we see
that it has nothing to do with the way in which God commands the believers
to behave. When God describes a believer in the Qur'an, He depicts him
as a loving, soft-spoken person, shunning conflicts and arguments, approaching
even the most hostile people with warmth and friendship.
An example to guide us in this matter is the command given by God to
Moses and Aaron to go to Pharaoh and speak gently to him:
Go to Pharaoh; he has overstepped the bounds. But speak
to him with gentle words so that hopefully he will pay heed or show some
fear. (Qur'an, 20:43-44)
Pharaoh was one of the most cruel and rebellious unbelievers of his time.
He was a despot who denied God and worshipped idols; moreover, he subjected
believers (the Israelites of the time) to terrible cruelties and murder.
But God commanded His prophets to go to such a hostile man and speak to
him gently.
You will notice that the way shown by God was the way of friendly dialogue,
not the way of conflict with sharp words, angry slogans and agitated protests.
God commands you to return to their owners
the things you hold in trust and, when you judge between people,
to judge with justice. How excellent is what God exhorts you to
do! God is All-Hearing, All-Seeing.
(Qur'an, 4:58) |
There are a few other examples to show Muslims how to behave in the dialogue
between Shu'ayb and the deniers. This dialogue is related in the Qur'an
in this way:
And to Madyan their brother Shu'ayb. He said, "My
people, worship God! You have no deity apart from Him. Do not give short
measure and short weight. I see you prospering and I fear for you the
punishment of an all-encompassing Day.
My people! Give full measure and full weight with
justice; do not diminish people's goods; and do not go about the earth,
corrupting it.
What endures with God is better for you if you
are believers. I am not set over you as your keeper."
They said, "Shu'ayb, do your prayers instruct you
that we should abandon what our fathers worshipped or stop doing whatever
we want to with our wealth? Yet you are such a lenient, normal person!"
He said, "My people! What do you think? If I do
possess a Clear Sign from my Lord and He has given me His good provision,
I do not want to oppose you in what way I am forbidding you. I only want
to put things right as far as I can. My success is with God alone. I have
put my trust in Him and I turn to Him." (Qur'an, 11:84-88)
When we examine what he says, we see that Shu'ayb invited the people
to believe in God and to adopt high moral principals and he did this with
friendliness and humility. We can explain some of the reasons behind of
the things said in these verses:
* When Shu'ayb says "I am not set over you as your keeper." to the people,
he does not want to dominate them; his only intention is to inform them
of the truth that God has revealed.
For terrorists, killing people, wreaking destruction
and havoc is a way of life. For them, bloodshed is a deliberate
act. They can shoot innocents, throw a bomb at children or blow
up a house without any feeling of compassion. |
* "You are clearly the forbearing, the rightly-guided": These words of
the deniers to Shu'ayb show his warm, gentle and courteous character and
that this was particularly appreciated by the deniers.
* "My people! What do you think?" This expression used by Shu'ayb shows
that he calls on the deniers to use their intelligence and conscience.
In other words, he does not use insistent pressure, but questions their
ideas from an opposing stance and invites them to consider and come to
a conclusion based on their own free conscience.
* "I do not want to oppose you in what way I am forbidding you". Shu'ayb's
prohibition here is not actually a prohibition. He explains that some
acts are sinful and invites the people to abandon them. Moreover, when
Shu'ayb says "I do not want to oppose you", it is not his purpose to dispute
with the people; he does not want to make them uncomfortable and incite
a quarrel; he wants only to invite them to faith and the practice of high
moral principles.
If you examine the Qur'an you will see that a warm, gentle and tolerant
disposition characterized all the prophets. God describes Abraham as "tender-hearted
and forbearing." (Qur'an, 9:114) and in another verse, the prophet
Muhammad's moral principles are described in this way:
It is a mercy from God that you were gentle with them.
If you had been rough or hard of heart, they would have scattered from
around you. So pardon them and ask forgiveness for them, and consult with
them about the matter. Then when you have reached a firm decision, put
your trust in God. God loves those who put their trust in Him. (Qur'an,
3:159)
An obvious characteristic of radicalism is its anger. This disposition
can be clearly seen in the speeches, writings and demonstrations of radicals.
However, anger is not an attribute of Muslims. When God describes believers
in the Qur'an, he describes, "those who give in
times of both ease and hardship, those who control their rage and pardon
other people - God loves the good-doers" (Qur'an, 3:134)
There is no situation in which a Muslim displays anger. The only thing
a Muslim wants from other people is that they believe in God and live
according to moral principles, but this is possible only by the grace
of God. No matter what we do, no matter how much we try to explain the
truth to people, human hearts are in God's hands. God reminds Muslims
of this very important fact in this verse, "...
Do those who believe not know that if God had wanted to He could have
guided all mankind? ..." (Qur'an, 13:31)
There is another verse that emphasises this same fact;
If your Lord had willed, all the people on the earth
would have believed. Do you think you can force people to be believers?
(Qur'an, 10:99)
Therefore, it is the duty of a Muslim only to explain the facts and to
invite people to accept them. Whether or not people accept the invitation
is completely up to their own conscience. God reveals this truth in the
Qur'an when He says that there is no compulsion in religion.
There is no compulsion in religion. True guidance has
become clearly distinct from error. Anyone who rejects false deities and
has belief in God has grasped the Firmest Handhold, which will never give
way. God is All-Hearing, All-Knowing. (Qur'an, 2:256)
Therefore, there is no coercion to make people believe and become Muslims,
or to make Muslims perform prayers and beware of sin. There is only advice.
God reveals in a few verses addressed to the Messenger of God that Muslims
are not oppressors:
We know best what they say. You are not a dictator over
them. So remind, with the Qur'an, whoever fears My Threat. (Qur'an, 50:45)
Say: "Mankind! The truth has come to you from your Lord.
Whoever is guided is only guided for his own good. Whoever is misguided
is only misguided to his detriment. I have not been set over you as a
guardian." (Qur'an, 10:108)
Muslims are responsible only for explaining their religion, they apply
no pressure or coercion on anyone and are enjoined to speak gently to
even the most tyrannical deniers. Such persons cannot be radicals, because
radicalism stands for the opposite of those qualities we have enumerated.
Indeed, radicalism is an unIslamic current of thought and a political
stance that came into the Islamic world from outside. When we examine
social phenomena described in terms of radicalism, it will be seen that
these are basically a collection of methods and pronouncements used by
communists in the past, or an expression of the "fanatical rage" that
has no place in true Islam. (The Qur'an, 48:26)
All Muslims must totally reject an angry, unbending argumentative attitude
which goes against the very nature of the Qur'an and in its place adopt
a friendly, gentle, tolerant, calm and compassionate one. Muslims must
set an example to the world and be admired for their maturity, tolerance,
moderation, modesty and peacefulness. Muslims must live Islam in the best
possible way and be its representatives to the world, not only in these
things, but also by their achievements in the fields of science, culture,
art, aesthetics and social order and others.
Explaining Islam to others and defending Islam against ideas alien to
it are included in what we have listed above. In the verse below, God
clearly reveals what attitude a Muslim must assume with regard to others:
Call to the way of your Lord with wisdom and fair admonition,
and argue with them in the kindest way. Your Lord knows best who is misguided
from His way. And He knows best who are guided. (Qur'an, 16:125)
Terrorist Methods and Psychology
The concept of terror has a wider meaning in today's language. Generally
it refers to the armed conflict carried on by radical ideological groups.
In general, terror means intimidation. But this intimidation encompasses
a broad field including the whole lives of people who feel the intense
threat of fear and violence. Terror includes intense and systematic intimidation
designed to make people adopt a certain way of thinking and behaviour,
as well as every kind of violent act carried out to produce this intimidation.
But in every situation, the target of terrorism is directly or indirectly
the citizens themselves.
Terror organisations use terror to rally support. The intimidation they
use is calculated to increase their strength and so to gain the support
of some or all the citizens.
Terrorists aim to damage people both physically
and psychologically to attain a certain goal. Morals of religion,
however, is opposed to terrorism in that it aims to foster love,
well-being, compassion, joy and hope in society. |
The first thing that people think of when we mention the word "terror"
is generally the kind known as "leftist terror", but there is also a kind
of terror found in Third World countries and practiced by dictatorial
regimes. Actually the reality here is nothing other than a massive implementation
of leftist terror tactics. A dictator or a group in power is oppressive,
using their power only for personal gain and for this reason they experience
various kinds of social opposition. In this situation, the dictatorial
regime always resorts to the same formula to show that it is stronger
than the opposition; they inaugurate the use of terror so that citizens
will be afraid and their own power are consolidated.
Terror organisations, on the other hand, in accordance with the ideologies
they espouse, claim that their aim is to remove a government and its administrators
which they regard as illegitimate and cruel and, in so doing, that they
will reach their goal of establishing a happier and more just way of life.
However, this is not a realistic claim. In the Qur'an, in the first verses
of Sura Baqara, God issues this command to those who think in this way:
When they are told, "Do not cause corruption on the earth,"
they say, "We are only putting things right." No indeed! They are the
corrupters, but they are not aware of it. (Qur'an, 2:11-12)
For terrorists, killing people is a way of life. They may shoot innocent
people without pity and throw bombs at children. For them shedding blood
is a pleasure. They have ceased to be human beings and turned into raving
savage beasts. If there is anyone among them who shows the least feeling
of compassion, they brand him as a coward or a traitor and demote him.
Often they use their guns against one another and carry out bloody purges
against internal factions in their own organisation.
It can be seen that terrorism is nothing other than a totally diabolical
source of bloodshed. Whoever supports this cycle of savagery is defending
a satanic system. If a terrorist uses religious language and symbols,
this must not deceive anyone. Terrorists who hide under the cloak of false
religion are doubly guilty, both of the blood they have shed and for the
anti-religious propaganda they have spread while committing these crimes
in the name of religion.
Terror and religion are completely opposed to each other. Terrorism adopts
the way of aggression, murder, conflict, cruelty and misery. But according
to the Qur'an, all these things are kinds of oppression. God enjoins peace,
harmony, goodwill and compromise. He forbids terror and every kind of
act that does not promote peace, and, condemns those who commit such acts:
But as for those who break God's contract after it has
been agreed and sever what God has commanded to be joined, and cause corruption
in the earth, the curse will be upon them. They will have the Evil Abode.
(Qur'an, 13:25)
The basic quality that terror and those who are infected by its cruelty
have in common is that the fear and love of God is something completely
alien to them. Their hearts have become hardened and they are spiritually
ill. In the Qur'an, God speaks about the character of such people:
But do not obey any vile swearer of oaths, any backbiter,
slandermonger, impeder of good, evil aggressor, gross, coarse and furthermore,
despicable.(Qur'an, 68:10-13)
To rebel for no cause and to commit acts of assault are forbidden by
God. In Islam, acts of what we call terror and anarchy today are forbidden.
In the Qur'an it is said:
Say: "My Lord has forbidden indecency, both open and
hidden, and wrong action, and unrightful tyranny, and associating anything
with God for which He has sent down no authority, and saying things about
God that you do not know." (Qur'an, 7:33)
  
…Heed God (alone). God is aware of what you
do.
(Qur'an, 5:8) |
Acts of Violence- One of the Most Important Methods
of Terrorist Propoganda
Terrorists regard acts of violence as propaganda for their organisations.
For them, killing innocent people, robbing banks, assassinating people,
kidnapping and planting bombs all act as propaganda for their struggle.
To the terrorist who is bent on wreaking chaos, what publicity a single
act of violence can generate in one day is much more publicity than what
millions of brochures could do.
This idea is totally foreign to every kind of human feeling of compassion,
mercy, concord and tolerance; it is alien to the moral teaching of the
Qur'an and can gain a following only in those societies in which anti-religious
ideologies hold sway. For this reason, the only possible solution that
can save humanity from this benighted way of thinking is the widespread
acceptance of the moral teachings found in the Qur'an and taken as a way
of life.
God calls to the Abode of Peace and He guides whom
He wills to a straight path. (Qur'an, 10:25)
God calls to the Abode of Peace and He guides
whom He wills to a straight path.
(Koran, 10:25) |
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