Muslim scholar: Terrorists
are mass murderers, not martyrs
by Richard Schienen, September 15, 2001
San Jose Mercury News
Tuesday's terrorist attacks have saddened and maddened millions -- and raised
questions for many about Islam. Speculation abounds that the hijackers were
inspired by terrorists like Osama bin Laden, who teach that violent acts can
pave the way to paradise. But what does Islam really say about such matters?
About jihad and martyrdom?
We asked Hamza Yusuf, an Islamic scholar in the East Bay, who said the attackers
were ``enemies of Islam.'' Not martyrs, but ``mass murderers, pure and simple.''
Yusuf, whose articles about Islam are published internationally, talked about
the attacks, the hysteria that he fears could grip the United States, and the
role that Muslims and others must play in opposing violence. ``We've got to get
to some deeper core values that are commonly shared,'' he said.
Why would anyone do what the hijackers did?
Religious zealots of any creed are defeated people who lash out in desperation,
and they often do horrific things. And if these people indeed are Arabs,
Muslims, they're obviously very sick people and I can't even look at it in
religious terms. It's politics, tragic politics. There's no Islamic
justification for any of it. It's like some misguided Irish using Catholicism as
an excuse for blowing up English people.
They're not martyrs, it's as simple as that.
Because?
You can't kill innocent people. There's no Islamic declaration of war against
the United States. I think every Muslim country except Afghanistan has an
embassy in this country. And in Islam, a country where you have embassies is not
considered a belligerent country.
In Islam, the only wars that are permitted are between armies and they should
engage on battlefields and engage nobly. The Prophet Muhammad said, ``Do not
kill women or children or non-combatants and do not kill old people or religious
people,'' and he mentioned priests, nuns and rabbis. And he said, ``Do not cut
down fruit-bearing trees and do not poison the wells of your enemies.'' The
Hadith, the sayings of the Prophet, say that no one can punish with fire except
the lord of fire. It's prohibited to burn anyone in Islam as a punishment. No
one can grant these attackers any legitimacy. It was evil.
What role should American Muslims have in opposing this brand of violent Islam?
I think that the Muslims -- and I really feel this strongly -- have to reject
the discourse of anger. Because there is a lot of anger in the Muslim
communities around the world about the oppressive conditions that many Muslims
find themselves in. But we have to reject the discourse of anger and we have to
move to a higher moral ground, recognizing that the desire to blame others leads
to anger and eventually to wrath, neither of which are rungs on a spiritual
ladder to God. It's times like these that we really need to become
introspective.
The fact that there are any Muslims -- no matter how statistically insignificant
their numbers -- who consider these acts to be religious acts is in and of
itself shocking. And therefore we as Muslims have to ask the question, ``How is
it that our religious leadership has failed to reach these people with the true
message of Islam?'' Because the acts of these criminals have indicted an entire
religion in the hearts and minds of millions. Ultimately, this is a result of
the bankruptcy of these type of people who claim to be adherents to the Islamic
religion. These people are so bankrupt that all they have to offer is
destruction.
Why do some people regard the hijackers as martyrs?
That's an abomination. These are mass murderers, pure and simple. It's like
Christians in this country who blow up abortion clinics or kill abortion
doctors. I don't think anyone in the Christian community, except a very extreme
fringe, would condone that as an acceptable Christian response. In the same way,
there's no Muslim who understands his religion at all who would condone this.
One of the worst crimes in Islam is brigandry -- highway robbery, or today we'd
say armed robbery -- because it disrupts the sense of well-being and security
among civilians.
Suicide bombers have cited a Koranic verse that says, ``Think not of those who
are slain in Allah's way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in
the presence of their Lord.''
That is meant for people who are legitimately defending the lands of Islam or
fighting under legitimate state authority against a tyrannical leader. There is
no vigilantism in Islam. Muslims believe in the authority of government.
Imam Malik, an early Islamic legal authority, said that 60 years of oppression
under an unjust ruler is better than one hour of anarchy.
Then why is there such strong support in parts of the world for the attacks?
Because we're dealing in an age of ignorance and an age of anomie, the loss of
social order. And people are very confused and they're impoverished. What
Americans are feeling now, this has been business as usual for Lebanese people,
Palestinian people, Bosnian people.
What about Israeli people?
Certainly the fear element is there for Israeli people -- that's true, and the
terror that they've felt. And there are still a lot of Jewish people alive who
remember the fear and terror of what happened in Europe, so that's not far from
people's memories.
It seems at some point, the cycles of violence have to stop. It's a type of
insanity, especially when we're dealing with nuclear power. People are saying
that this was an attack on civilization -- and that is exactly the point. And I
think the question we all have to ask is whether indiscriminate retaliation is
going to help preserve civilization.
The perpetrators of this and, really, all acts of terror are people who hate too
much. There's a verse in the Koran that says do not let the hatred of a people
prevent you from being just. Being just is closer to piety. The evil of wrath is
that justice and mercy are lost.
How do you explain Palestinians and others celebrating the attacks in the
streets?
When you see ignorant people in the streets, rejoicing -- the Prophet condemned
it. It's rejoicing at the calamities of your enemies, and Islam prohibits that.
They do have a lot of anger toward America, because America produces much of
Israel's military hardware and so many American tax dollars go to support
Israel. You have a lot of animosity in the Arab world. But the vast majority of
Arabs are horrified by what's happened. There's animosity in the Muslim world
toward American foreign policy. This is the unfortunate price of power and its
exercise in the world, that you incur the resentment and animosity of a lot of
people. But the majority of Muslims who I know don't have anger toward
individuals or the American people.
The concept of jihad has been widely used to justify violence.
Jihad means struggle. The Prophet said the greatest jihad is the struggle of a
man against his own evil influences. It also refers to what Christians call a
``just war,'' which is fought against tyranny or oppression -- but under a
legitimate state authority.
What is the Arabic word for martyr?
Shaheed. It means witness. The martyr is the one who witnesses the truth and
gives his life for it. There are people in this country like Martin Luther King
who would be considered a martyr for his cause. Also, if your home, your family,
your property or your land or religion is threatened, then you may defend it
with your life. That person is a martyr. But so is anybody who dies of terminal
illness; it's a martyr's death. Because it's such a purification that whatever
wrongs they once did, they're now in a state of purity.
And the greatest martyr in the eyes of God is the one who stands in the presence
of a tyrant and speaks the truth and is killed for it. He is martyred for his
tongue.
What does Islam say about suicide?
Suicide is haram in Islam. It's prohibited, like a mortal sin. And murder is
haram. And to kill civilians is murder.
What is a martyr's reward?
The Prophet said that a martyr who dies doesn't have a reckoning on the Day of
Judgment. It's an act through which he is forgiven. But the Prophet also said
that there are people who kill in the name of Islam and go to hell. And when he
was asked why, he said, ``Because they weren't fighting truly for the sake of
God.''
If there are any martyrs in this affair it would certainly be those brave
firefighters and police that went in there to save human lives and in that
process lost their own.
Richard Scheinin can be contacted at (408) 920-5069 or by e-mail at rscheinin@sjmercury.com