Home      |      Weblog      |      Articles      |      Satire      |      Links      |      About      |      Contact


Militant Islam Monitor > Articles > Georgia Tech student wanted to die a martyr - Pakistani born US citizen "coveted jihad life"

Georgia Tech student wanted to die a martyr - Pakistani born US citizen "coveted jihad life"

Islam on Line fatwas encouraging and approving suicide bombings as martyrdom
January 22, 2008

THE CASE OF SYED HARIS AHMED: SUSPECT COVETED JIHAD LIFE
Statements detail how the indicted Georgia Tech student pursued an extremist's dream, expecting never to see his family again.
By Bill Rankin
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 01/20/08

http://www.ajc.com/search/content/metro/stories/2008/01/20/terrorsuspect0120.html


When Georgia Tech student Syed Haris Ahmed left for Pakistan in the summer of 2005, he believed he would never see his family again. His goal, his dream, was to die a martyr waging jihad in the mountains of Kashmir. Ahmed, a Pakistani-born U.S. citizen who attended Georgia Tech, never followed through on his plans. But the 23-year-old now stands indicted in federal court in Atlanta of conspiring to provide material support to terrorists —- charges that could land him in prison for decades.

He has pleaded not guilty and is being held without bond pending trial. For four days last week, Ahmed, shackled in leg chains and handcuffs, shuffled into a federal courtroom where a U.S. magistrate listened to about 11 hours of taped interviews Ahmed gave to counterterrorism agents shortly before his arrest in March 2006. The interviews show an impressionable, soft-spoken student who became transfixed by Internet sites and chat rooms that attracted hordes of extremists and promoted the annihilation of the enemies of Islam. The interviews also reveal that Ahmed had his mind set on committing a terroristic act in his adopted country. "My intentions were to do something in America," Ahmed told the agents. "Yes, attack."

Later this year, a federal jury will be asked to decide whether Ahmed's own statements help prove he is a homegrown terrorist or whether they were the wild utterings of a young man caught up in something much larger than himself. Over the course of his interviews, Ahmed dismissed his terroristic thoughts as "random," "momentary," "stupid" and "childish." He described himself as "a little simple person" who was easily persuaded, even brainwashed. In court last week, his appointed attorney, Jack Martin, noted that Ahmed never committed a violent act or developed a specific plan to carry one out. Yet during a five-month period in 2005, Ahmed met and communicated via e-mail with individuals now charged with plotting to kill Americans overseas and take high-ranking Canadian officials hostage, according to court documents. And he allegedly tried to recruit some of them to join him in Pakistan at a jihadist training camp and then fight Muslim oppressors.

Ahmed admitted he visited Internet sites that gave advice on how to slip past FBI surveillance. And his e-mails used code words. They would get a "membership" (a passport or visa) to leave "the pharaoh" (the United States), meet in "curry land" (Pakistan), have a "picnic" (a meeting) at a "restaurant" (a madrassa, an Islamic religious school), go to the "Mountain Hills National Camp" (a jihadist military training camp) and fight in the "mountains" (Kashmir). Ahmed was 12 when his family came to the United States in 1997 after winning a green card in a lottery. The family moved to Dawsonville after his father joined the faculty at North Georgia College and State University in Dahlonega. Ahmed grew up in a middle-class household where his parents and three sisters did not hold extremist views. Ahmed attended Dawson County High School, where he was an A student.

He began taking classes at North Georgia College during his senior year. He won a scholarship to Georgia Tech in 2004 and majored in mechanical engineering. Before his arrest, Ahmed became distraught over the treatment of Muslims all over the world, Ahmed's father, Syed Riaz Ahmed, said in a PBS interview last year. "He used to cry in his room about what is happening," he said. At Georgia Tech, Ahmed became increasingly observant of Islam. He lived near campus in a rental house on Ethel Street about a block from Al-Farooq Masjid, which he attended regularly. At the masjid, Ahmed met Ehsanul Islam "Shifa" Sadequee, who lived in Roswell. The two young men became friends and would eventually unite, Ahmed told agents, on a spiritual journey toward Islamic jihad. Sadequee, who is charged as Ahmed's co-defendant, also has pleaded not guilty and is being held without bond awaiting trial. In March 2005, Ahmed and Sadequee took their first step, buying a Greyhound bus ticket to Toronto.

Over a week, they met with at least two of 17 men now charged in Canada in terrorist plots to storm the Parliament, behead the prime minister and bomb power plants in Ontario, authorities allege. During these meetings, Ahmed told agents, he became "inspired" by others who wanted to launch attacks. They dreamed big: attacking oil refineries in Texas, suicide bombings, even trying to disable GPS satellites with lasers. Later, Ahmed said, he contemplated terrorist attacks on Dobbins Air Reserve Base in Marietta and the Masonic Temple outside of Washington. But foremost in Ahmed's mind was to go to Pakistan, study Islam and get accepted by a training camp. Ahmed first had to prove himself, showing he was willing to take some risks. If so, he told agents, "all the brothers would trust you over there." So Ahmed hatched a plan to travel to Washington with Sadequee and take videos of area landmarks, such as the Capitol, and for Sadequee to upload them on the Internet and send the images to "the brothers," Ahmed told agents. With his parents' camera in tow, Ahmed drove Sadequee in a pickup truck in April 2005 to the nation's capital.

Over two days, sleeping overnight in the cab of the truck, they took more than 60 "casing videos," authorities allege. "We could be spies for the people over there," Ahmed told agents, referring to extremists overseas. "It's like, uh, thrilling to be undercover and stuff like that." As they drove north into Washington one evening, one focused the camera on a well-known military landmark. "This is where our brothers attacked the Pentagon," one of them can be heard saying reverently on the videotape that was played Thursday in federal court. The amateurish "casing videos" seem ill-suited for use in staging a terrorist attack. The camera often jerks up and down or from side to side due to an unsteady, perhaps nervous, hand and because some were taken from inside the moving pickup truck. "Those videos are stupid," Ahmed told the agents during a March 15, 2006, interview. "They do not tell any information."

Yet before acknowledging his involvement, Ahmed told agents it was Sadequee's idea to take the videos, that he first found out about the idea from Sadequee on their way to Washington and that they used Sadequee's camera. All lies, FBI Special Agent Mark Richards testified. Even worse, some of the videos would later be found on computer hard drives of at least two men now facing terrorism charges overseas, including Younis Tsouli, the Webmaster who called himself Irhabi (Arabic for "terrorist") 007. And, when pressed by agents, Ahmed acknowledged he knew what the videos could be used for. "Some kind of terrorist act," he said. With his heart set on going to train in Pakistan, Ahmed told the agents, he needed to take the step of getting his body prepared. After returning from Washington, Ahmed and Sadequee headed to the North Georgia mountains. They exercised and sprayed paint balls, the agents surmised, in simulated war games.

In July 2005, Ahmed said goodbye to his parents for his trip to Pakistan, supposedly to visit relatives and study Islam. However, Ahmed told agents, he contacted Abu Umar, who was to be his conduit to a jihadist camp. They met outside a post office in Karachi and spent the afternoon at a park. But Ahmed never went to the camp. "I talked to my cousins, and they like put some sense into me, you know," he told the agents. The cousins told him he'd been brainwashed and that it was a misinterpretation to think everyone had to go to jihad. "It destroyed my whole foundation," Ahmed told agents. Ahmed later assured them he had no intention to return to Pakistan for jihadist training. But Richards, the lead case agent, testified that the FBI has evidence showing Ahmed was lying about that, too. Richards provided no details.

When Ahmed left the FBI offices in Atlanta after his final interview on March 18, 2006, he knew he was in trouble. The agents told him to keep in touch and, as they had in each of his previous interviews, told him not to contact Sadequee, who was a target of their investigation and was then in Bangladesh. Three days later, agents followed Ahmed from his family's Dawsonville home to a local library. Ahmed sat down at a computer terminal and composed an e-mail, which an agent would retrieve from the computer after Ahmed drove away. "The dogs came to me," Ahmed wrote, referring to the agents. "This time, they were not usual. They had done their homework." Ahmed wrote that he slipped up by admitting the trip to Washington. "Then it was all damage control after that," he wrote. "Basically I told them which is true to the best of my knowledge that we were kids who got just excited." Staff writers Moni Basu and Brian Feagans and former staff writer Saaed Ahmed contributed to this article.

----------------------

MIM: Fatwas on Islam on Line encouraging and approving "Palestinian" suicide bombings.

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503544306

Sayf

Title

Palestinian Martyr Operations

Question

Dear scholars, As-Salamu `alaykum. First of all, let me thank the Fatwa Corner for providing such a great service. This is commendable and it deserves recognition. The following statement is not so much a question as it is a sharing of opinion. I would like to know what you feel about this opinion: Some friends and I were talking about the Intifadah. One of the most critical topics that we discussed was the suicide bombing. Most scholars and Muslims generally agree that the suicide bombing is allowed (Halal), yet an interesting point my friend brought up could possible invalidate this ruling.

In all the hadiths I have heard and read, and what scholars quote, I got impression that suicide is Halal. No one says that the early Muslims who died in a suicide operation killed himself. In carrying out these operations, each martyr (Shaheed) obviously had nothing in mind than to die for the sake of a cause. Yet he never stabbed himself, nor did he drink poison, nor shoot himself with a bow. Each Shaheed in the operation died in a suicide mission, yet not by his own hand, or most notably, not intentionally. To go yet a little further into the matter, the only thing I can remember is that when a Mujahid did kill himself, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) condemned him.

These suicide bombers have other alternatives to resistance than strapping a bomb to themselves and dying, sometimes the plan went futile and sometimes taking other souls with them. These alternatives might lead to their demise nonetheless, yet the intention of the Muslim would not have been to die at that spot. Instead, his intention would be to carry on with the Jihad. Please respond and tell me what you think.

Date

18/Apr/2004

Name of Counsellor

Fu`ad Mukhaymar

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

MIM: Islam On Line fatwas justifying suicide bombings as "martyr operations"

Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear brother in Islam, we would like to appreciate the great confidence you place in us. We thank you in return and we are to admit that it is our responsibility to convey Allah's word and disseminate knowledge.

We'd like to address a point; all scholars agreed that what the Palestinians carry out in showing resistance against their enemies is not a suicide bombing; rather, it's to be called martyr operation.

As regards your question, the late Azharite scholar and the head of the Sunni Egyptian Institutions in Egypt, Sheikh Fu'ad Mukhaymar, states the following:

"The view adopted by the majority of our contemporary Muslim scholars, describing as martyrs the Palestinians who blow themselves up in the occupied land in showing resistance against the aggression, is correct for the following reasons:

A person who blows himself up sacrifices his life for the survival of others. He dies for his homeland and his holy sites.

Those disarmed people are annihilated every day. Their houses and factories are destroyed and their farms are devastated. They stand with their hands tied before the tanks and armored vehicles of their enemies. The least they can offer is this sacrifice. A person who does this operation is considered by Ulama as a martyr especially as he sacrifices his life, not for a material gain, but for the sake of Allah.

The Palestinians lack the military support of the whole world. In this case, do they have to wait their doom or try their best to defend themselves?

The instances cited by scholars, in supporting their arguments, are also correct. History is full of many fascinating examples in which Muslims demonstrated an outstanding courage and strong spirit in fighting their enemies; they would sacrifice their lives for the sake of achieving their aim.

As regards the questioner's reference to the narration that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) disapproved the act of a fighter who killed himself, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) did this when he knew that the man killed himself out of despair and discontent. But on the issue at hand, a Palestinian knows well what he does and chooses it with his free will. It's for this great sacrifice that he deserves martyrdom."

You can also read:

Martyr Operations Carried out by the Palestinians

Attacking Civilians in Martyr Operations

Martyr Operations or Terrorism

Allah Almighty knows best.

Name of Questioner

Mahmoud

Title

Martyr Operations Carried Out by the Palestinians

Question

As-salamu `alykum. Some people say that the operations carried out by Palestinians are considered suicidal acts and not a kind of jihad, is that true? Please tell me whether these acts are martyr operations and a kind of striving in Allah's Cause or not?

Date

26/Jul/2007

Name of Counsellor

Faysal Mawlawi

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

Answer

Wa`alykum As-Salamu wa rahmatullahi wabarakaatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear brother in Islam, we appreciate your forwarding the question to us, with the aim of getting acquainted with the teachings of your religion. This is what is required of all Muslims, to strive hard in seeking knowledge with which he will benefit Muslim Ummah.

First of all, we have to bear in mind that when we, Muslims, state that Islam is a religion of peace, we are not trying to prove something unreasonable or solve a crossword puzzle. Rather, we are just stating a fact backed by clear-cut evidence and unquestionable proofs. Even we don't need to state this fact, for Islam, in itself, is self-explanatory, in terms of its meaning, its noble teachings and the core of its message conveyed by the Prophets Allah sent to mankind. At the same time, all peoples believe that peace and security should be attained through justice and equity.

Regarding the martyr operations, following is a relevant quotation of the resolution of the Islamic Fiqh Academy affiliated to the OIC in its fourteenth session, held in Duha (Qatar) 5–13 Dhul-Qi`dah1423 A.H., 11–16 January 2003 C.E.:

The Islamic Fiqh Academy stresses that martyr operations are a form of jihad, and carrying out those operations is a legitimate right that has nothing to do with terrorism or suicide. Those operations become obligatory when they become the only way to stop the aggression of the enemy, defeat it, and grievously damage its power.


Responding to your question, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy chairman of European Council for Fatwa and Research, states:

Martyr operations are not suicide and should not be deemed as unjustifiable means of endangering one's life. Allah says in the Glorious Qura'n: (And spend of your substance in the cause of Allah, and make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good) (Al-Baqarah 2: 195).

The verse obviously indicates that failing to spend in Allah's Cause is like casting oneself into ruin. That is the reason behind the revelation of the noble verse. Reviewing the Islamic rule: "Words should be construed as imparting general meanings regardless of their specific occasions", the meaning of the afore-mentioned verse is bound to extend to include any negligence of a religious duty; i.e. forsaking a religious duty entails casting oneself into ruin. The same applies to committing sins.

Therefore, it's quite an abysmal analysis for someone to focus on the afore-mentioned verse through a narrow a perspective, without taking into consideration all relevant points.

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) strictly forbade suicide and made it clear that anyone who commits suicide would be cast into hell. But in such case suicide means Muslim's killing himself without any lawfully accepted reason or killing himself to escape pain or social problems.

On the other hand, in martyr operations, the Muslim sacrifices his own life for the sake of performing a religious duty, which is jihad against the enemy as scholars say. Accordingly, a Muslim's intention when committing suicide is certainly different from his intention when performing a military operation and dying in the Cause of Almighty Allah. So it is natural that the religious legal status would differ in each case, as Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) says in a hadith: "Actions are but by intention, and every man shall have but that which he intended."

This means that martyr operations are totally different from the forbidden suicide. Concerning the Palestinians, they carry out the operations in showing resistance to the aggression launched by the enemy who has occupied their land, destroyed their houses, desecrated their sacred places and driven about four million of them out of their houses, replacing them with even larger numbers of Jewish settlements.

The enemy relies on sophisticated military equipments while, at the same time, denying the Palestinians their basic human rights, killing their women, children and men mercilessly, and rendering the Palestinians powerless and incapable of defending themselves—even all the Arab countries face the same fate, lacking necessary weapons.

So the Palestinians have nothing in their disposal but stones which they throw at their enemy in order to defend their country. This, despite its indication of a high morale, cannot deter the enemy this way. So the Palestinians resort to martyr operations, in which the martyr blows himself/herself up, sacrificing his life for the sake of his country and inflicting serious but reciprocal harms on the enemy.

In the light of the above-mentioned facts, I believe that those missions are a sacred duty carried out in form of self-defense and resisting aggression and injustice. So whoever is killed in such missions is a martyr, may Allah bless him with high esteem. I call on every Palestinian not to hesitate in carrying out such operations as long as they are the only way of making jihad and are made with an intention of sacrificing one's life for the Sake of one's religion and nation. I wish that other scholars who hesitate concerning such a matter to reconsider their views according to what I have said and what other scholars have said. May Allah guide us all to what is right.

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503543974

-----------------------------------------------

Name of Questioner

Ahmed

Title

Attacking Civilians in Martyr Operations

Question

Is the bombing of pizza parlors and other civilian targets by Palestinian Muslims considered a legitimate form of Jihad? What should be a Muslim's response to what has recently happened? Could you provide relevant citations from the Quran or Hadith that argue one side or another?

Date

26/Oct/2003

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

Answer

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear questioner, thanks for having confidence in us and we hope our efforts meet your expectations.

We earnestly implore Allah to grant our dear brother and sisters in Palestine victory over the oppressive enemy, and to guide their steps along the path of removing the occupation, Amen.

In his response to the question, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy chairman of the European Council for Fatwa and Research, states the following:

"In fact, there is no war between Muslims and every Jew in this world; rather, our war is against those who have usurped our Holy Land and try to establish a homeland for themselves in a place that does not belong to them. In this sense, we do not kill any Jew who resides in any part of the world other than Palestine.

As for those Jews living inside our occupied lands and carry the Israeli nationality, they participate in the aggression against our fellow Palestinians. Our target should be military personnel and not civilians when Israel does not attack our civilians. But as we can see nowadays, they violate the lives of all Palestinians, civilians or non-civilians.

In their aggression, they make no distinction between a baby or an elderly person. They have also committed many massacres. Qaana, Hebron and Dir Yaseen are a few examples and evidences of Israeli atrocities. In Qaana, hundreds of terrified civilians took refuge in the UN headquarters to escape murder. However, Israel bombed the headquarters and left dozens of dead: children, elderly and women among them. Even now, we can see them targeting and killing our Palestinian brothers in cold blood. They mercilessly kill everybody in the Holy Land. According to the Qur'an, we are to stick by a principle that reads: "If ye punish, then punish with the like of that wherewith ye were afflicted."(An-Nahl: 126) We are to retaliate in the same way we are attacked.

Hence, we have no other choice but to treat them like with like to deter them. Hence, we are allowed to kill every Israeli until they stop this mass killing and paganism. It is only then that we can stop our attacks on the Israeli civilians but our Jihad against the military will never stop till they leave our land and give us back our holy site, Al-Masjid Al-Aqsa."

You can also read:

Justice... for Peace and Security

Martyr Operations or Terrorism

Martyr Operations Carried out by the Palestinians

Condemning the Martyr Operations

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503544354&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar%2FFatwaE%2FFatwaEAskTheScholar

Name of Questioner

Aya

Title

Palestinian Women Carrying Out Martyr Operations

Question

As-Salamu Alaykum. Dear brothers in Islam, may Allah accept all what you do for His Sake in aiding and supporting your fellow Muslims all over the world. Also, I would like to ask about the ruling of Palestinian women carrying out martyr operations. Fulfilling this mission may demand that they travel alone, without a Mahram, and they may need to take off their Hijab, the matter which may expose part of their `Awrah. Would you please comment on this? I'd prefer Dr. Qaradawi to answer this urgent question, if you please. Jazakum Allah Kul Khair.

Date

06/Nov/2006

Name of Mufti

Yusuf Al-Qaradawi

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

Answer

Wa `Alaykum As-Salam Warahmatullahi Wabarakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All thanks and praise are due to Allah and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear questioner, we would like to express our deep thanks and overwhelming sense of gratitude to you for this great confidence you place in us and implore Almighty Allah to make our humble efforts come up to your expectation and fulfill our task towards the whole Muslim Ummah.

Dear questioner, Muslim jurists unanimously agreed that, when the enemy attacks part of the Muslim territories Jihad become an Individual Duty on every one. This obligation reaches a certain extent that a woman should go out for Jihad even without the permission of her husband, and the son without the consent of his parents. Thus, women's participation in the martyr operations carried out in Palestine – given the status of the land as an occupied territory, in addition to a lot of sacrilegious acts perpetrated by the Jews against the sanctuaries – is one of the most praised acts of worship. Also, the act is a form of martyrdom in the Cause of Allah, and it entitles them, Insha' Allah, to the same reward earned by their male counterparts who also die in the Cause of Allah.

This is what is clarified by the following fatwa, issued by Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi the prominent Muslim scholar:

The martyr operations is the greatest of all sorts of Jihad in the Cause of Allah. A martyr operation is carried out by a person who sacrifices himself, deeming his life less value than striving in the Cause of Allah, in the cause of restoring the land and preserving the dignity. To such a valorous attitude applies the following Qur'anic verse: "And of mankind is he who would sell himself, seeking the pleasure of Allah; and Allah hath compassion on (His) bondmen." (Al-Baqarah: 207)

But a clear distinction has to be made here between martyrdom and suicide. Suicide is an act or instance of killing oneself intentionally out of despair, and finding no outlet except putting an end to one's life. On the other hand, martyrdom is a heroic act of choosing to suffer death in the Cause of Allah, and that's why it's considered by most Muslim scholars as one of the greatest forms of Jihad.

When Jihad becomes an Individual Duty, as when the enemy seizes the Muslim territory, a woman becomes entitled to take part in it alongside men. Jurists maintained that: When the enemy assaults a given Muslim territory, it becomes incumbent upon all its residents to fight against them to the extent that a woman should go out even without the consent of her husband, a son can go too without the permission of his parent, a slave without the approval of his master, and the employee without the leave of his employer. This is a case where obedience should not be given to anyone in something that involves disobedience to Allah, according to a famous juristic rule.

In the same vein, the public welfare should be given priority to the personal one, in the sense that if there is a contradiction between the private right and the public one, the latter must be given first priority for it concerns the interest of the whole Ummah. Given all this, I believe a woman can participate in this form of Jihad according to her own means and condition. Also, the organizers of these martyr operations can benefit from some believing women as they may do, in some cases, what is impossible for men to do.

As for the point that carrying out this operation may involve woman's travel from place to another without a Mahram, we say that a woman can travel to perform Hajj in the company of other trustworthy women and without the presence of any Mahram as long as the road is safe and secured. Travel, nowadays, is no longer done through deserts or wilderness, instead, women can travel safely in trains or by air.

Concerning the point on Hijab, a woman can put on a hat or anything else to cover her hair. Even when necessary, she may take off her Hijab in order to carry out the operation, for she is going to die in the Cause of Allah and not to show off her beauty or uncover her hair. I don't see any problem in her taking off Hijab in this case.

To conclude, I think the committed Muslim women in Palestine have the right to participate and have their own role in Jihad and to attain martyrdom.

Related Questions

- Martyr Operations Carried Out by the Palestinians

- Palestinian Martyr Operations

- Martyr Operations or Terrorism

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503545134&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar%2FFatwaE%2FFatwaEAskTheScholar

Name of Questioner

Maria - Australia

Title

Martyr Operations or Terrorism

Question

I was really shocked to hear about the wide debate that occurred during the sessions of the Fiqh Council affiliated to the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIC) concerning the legality of martyr operations. I heard that there was a wide debate among some member scholars there, and some of them said that martyr operations are an illegal practice done by the Palestinians, and with such operations they give Sharon's government a chance to shed more blood.

Please correct me, as I am really confused and there is much ado everywhere concerning this issue. I would very much appreciate it if you would mention the decisions taken by the Conference concerning martyr operations and the definition of terrorism they reached. May Allah reward you for your efforts in serving the Muslim Ummah. Ameen.

Date

27/Jan/2004

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

Answer

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear questioner, thank you very much for having confidence in us, and we implore Allah to guide us all to the best way through which we can serve the Muslim Ummah.

Actually, when it comes to the Palestinian issue, we need to focus on certain important points that we have reiterated in many occasions: injustice breeds contempt and violence; oppression calls for brutal reaction; peace and security should be an aspired goal for all parties to the conflict; Justice represents the rights of all people whatever their race, color and religion.

Issuing a judgment or ruling on a certain case should be done in light of all the facts that surround it. As regard the case at hand, we all see what happens daily in the occupied territories in the sense of atrocities committed daily against the innocent civilians, houses demolished, in addition to all forms of humiliation, which all culminated into a gloomy state of affair, filling the mind with utter despair. These are some of the facts taken into consideration when eminent Muslim scholars describe the resistance operations carried out by the Palestinians as a form of a legitimate Jihad against the usurpers and occupiers. This is not a matter of issuing a license to kill. Rather it echoes voices of people crying for justice.

This is the same principle that serves as a basis for the recent resolution issued by The Islamic Fiqh Council affiliated to the OIC in its fourteenth session, held in Duha (Qatar) 5–13 Dhul-Qi`dah 1423 A.H., 11–16 January 2003 C.E.,

Following is the text of the resolution:


1- Islam dignifies man as a human being, safeguards his rights and protects his honor. Fiqh or Islamic jurisprudence is the first jurisprudence all over the world which really presents local and international legislative codes for human relations both in war and peace times.

2- Terrorism equals illegal aggression, terror, threatening both in material and abstract forms which is practiced by states, groups or individuals against man, his religion, soul, honor, intellect or his property via all means, among which is the spread of corruption on earth.

3- The Islamic Fiqh Council asserts that jihad and martyr operations done to defend the Islamic creed, dignity, freedom and the sovereignty of states is not considered terrorism but a basic form of necessary defense for legitimate rights. Thus the oppressed peoples who are subjected to occupation have the right to seek their freedom via all means possible.

4-The Islamic Fiqh Council stresses that martyr operations are a form of jihad, and carrying out those operations is a legitimate right that has nothing to do with terrorism or suicide. Those operations become obligatory when they become the only way to stop the aggression of the enemy, defeat it, and grievously damage its power.

5-It is not allowed to use terms such as "jihad", "terrorism", and "violence", which have become frequently used by today's mass media as scientific terms, to mean other connotations beyond their basic well known meanings.

In light of the above, there is no change concerning the Islamic ruling regarding martyr operations as such operations are considered true jihad in the Cause of Allah.

You can also read:

Martyr Operations Carried out by the Palestinians

Attacking Civilians in Martyr Operations

What Does Islam Say about Terrorism?

Violent Teachings of… the Qur'an??

If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to write back!

May Allah guide you to the straight path, and guide you to that which pleases Him, Amen.

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503546498&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar%2FFatwaE%2FFatwaEAskTheScholar

------------------

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503543974

Name of Questioner

Mahmoud

Title

Martyr Operations Carried Out by the Palestinians

Question

As-salamu `alykum. Some people say that the operations carried out by Palestinians are considered suicidal acts and not a kind of jihad, is that true? Please tell me whether these acts are martyr operations and a kind of striving in Allah's Cause or not?

Date

26/Jul/2007

Name of Counsellor

Faysal Mawlawi

Topic

Jihad: Rulings & Regulations

Answer

Wa`alykum As-Salamu wa rahmatullahi wabarakaatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear brother in Islam, we appreciate your forwarding the question to us, with the aim of getting acquainted with the teachings of your religion. This is what is required of all Muslims, to strive hard in seeking knowledge with which he will benefit Muslim Ummah.

First of all, we have to bear in mind that when we, Muslims, state that Islam is a religion of peace, we are not trying to prove something unreasonable or solve a crossword puzzle. Rather, we are just stating a fact backed by clear-cut evidence and unquestionable proofs. Even we don't need to state this fact, for Islam, in itself, is self-explanatory, in terms of its meaning, its noble teachings and the core of its message conveyed by the Prophets Allah sent to mankind. At the same time, all peoples believe that peace and security should be attained through justice and equity.

Regarding the martyr operations, following is a relevant quotation of the resolution of the Islamic Fiqh Academy affiliated to the OIC in its fourteenth session, held in Duha (Qatar) 5–13 Dhul-Qi`dah1423 A.H., 11–16 January 2003 C.E.:

The Islamic Fiqh Academy stresses that martyr operations are a form of jihad, and carrying out those operations is a legitimate right that has nothing to do with terrorism or suicide. Those operations become obligatory when they become the only way to stop the aggression of the enemy, defeat it, and grievously damage its power.


Responding to your question, Sheikh Faysal Mawlawi, deputy chairman of European Council for Fatwa and Research, states:

Martyr operations are not suicide and should not be deemed as unjustifiable means of endangering one's life. Allah says in the Glorious Qura'n: (And spend of your substance in the cause of Allah, and make not your own hands contribute to (your) destruction; but do good; for Allah loveth those who do good) (Al-Baqarah 2: 195).

The verse obviously indicates that failing to spend in Allah's Cause is like casting oneself into ruin. That is the reason behind the revelation of the noble verse. Reviewing the Islamic rule: "Words should be construed as imparting general meanings regardless of their specific occasions", the meaning of the afore-mentioned verse is bound to extend to include any negligence of a religious duty; i.e. forsaking a religious duty entails casting oneself into ruin. The same applies to committing sins.

Therefore, it's quite an abysmal analysis for someone to focus on the afore-mentioned verse through a narrow a perspective, without taking into consideration all relevant points.

Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) strictly forbade suicide and made it clear that anyone who commits suicide would be cast into hell. But in such case suicide means Muslim's killing himself without any lawfully accepted reason or killing himself to escape pain or social problems.

On the other hand, in martyr operations, the Muslim sacrifices his own life for the sake of performing a religious duty, which is jihad against the enemy as scholars say. Accordingly, a Muslim's intention when committing suicide is certainly different from his intention when performing a military operation and dying in the Cause of Almighty Allah. So it is natural that the religious legal status would differ in each case, as Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings be upon him) says in a hadith: "Actions are but by intention, and every man shall have but that which he intended."

This means that martyr operations are totally different from the forbidden suicide. Concerning the Palestinians, they carry out the operations in showing resistance to the aggression launched by the enemy who has occupied their land, destroyed their houses, desecrated their sacred places and driven about four million of them out of their houses, replacing them with even larger numbers of Jewish settlements.

The enemy relies on sophisticated military equipments while, at the same time, denying the Palestinians their basic human rights, killing their women, children and men mercilessly, and rendering the Palestinians powerless and incapable of defending themselves—even all the Arab countries face the same fate, lacking necessary weapons.

So the Palestinians have nothing in their disposal but stones which they throw at their enemy in order to defend their country. This, despite its indication of a high morale, cannot deter the enemy this way. So the Palestinians resort to martyr operations, in which the martyr blows himself/herself up, sacrificing his life for the sake of his country and inflicting serious but reciprocal harms on the enemy.

In the light of the above-mentioned facts, I believe that those missions are a sacred duty carried out in form of self-defense and resisting aggression and injustice. So whoever is killed in such missions is a martyr, may Allah bless him with high esteem. I call on every Palestinian not to hesitate in carrying out such operations as long as they are the only way of making jihad and are made with an intention of sacrificing one's life for the Sake of one's religion and nation. I wish that other scholars who hesitate concerning such a matter to reconsider their views according to what I have said and what other scholars have said. May Allah guide us all to what is right.

Related Questions

- Attacking Civilians in Martyr Operations

- Palestinian Women Carrying Out Martyr Operations

- Types of Martyrs

Allah Almighty knows best.

------------------------

http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?cid=1119503546130&pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar%2FFatwaE%2FFatwaEAskTheScholar

Name of Questioner

Noura

Title

Types of Martyrs

Question

Dear scholars, As-Salamu `alaykum. Can you state how many types of martyrs (shuhada' plural of shaheed) are there and who are they? Is there any distinction between one type and another? Jazakum Allah khayran.

Date

12/Sep/2005

Name of Mufti

Ahmad Kutty

Topic

Muslim Creed, Muslim Belief, Funerals

Answer

Wa `alaykum As-Salamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakatuh.

In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.

All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.

Dear sister in Islam, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you place in us, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His Sake.

In Islam, martyrdom is one of the great ambitions of a true believer. This is because dying as a martyr entails abundant rewards designated for such persons in the Hereafter. `Abdullah Ibn `Umar (may Allah be pleased with him) quoted the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) as saying, "Martyrs are forgiven their sins, except debts". The phrase "except debts" also relates implicitly to usurpation of people's rights, unjustified killing, and so on.

It suffices here to quote the Divine Promise for martyrs as stated in the following Qur'anic verses: (Think not of those, who are slain in the way of Allah, as dead. Nay, they are living. With their Lord they have provision. Jubilant (are they) because of that which Allah hath bestowed upon them of His bounty, rejoicing for the sake of those who have not joined them but are left behind: that there shall no fear come upon them neither shall they grieve. They rejoice because of favor from Allah and kindness, and that Allah wasteth not the wage of the believers.) (Aal-`Imran 3: 169-71)

In his response to the question in point, Sheikh Ahmad Kutty, a senior lecturer and Islamic scholar at the Islamic Institute of Toronto, Ontario, Canada, states:

There are basically two broad categories of martyrs (shuhada') in Islam, firstly, those who have died fighting for the cause of Allah (i.e., in jihad), and secondly, those who have died being succumbed to certain types of ailments or calamities, not of their own making. The second group, although not recognized and treated as martyrs in this world, will receive rewards of martyrs in the Hereafter. As for a list of people of this category, we find a number of traditions—although not contradictory—such as the following:

1) In a report jointly reported by Imam al-Bukhari and Muslim, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) mentioned five types of martyrs: "One who dies in a plague, one who dies of intestinal ailments, one who dies of drowning, one who dies under a collapsed building, and one who dies as a martyr in jihad."

2) Imam Ahmad, Abu Dawud, an-Nasa'i, and others stated that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "There are seven martyrs". Having said this, he added the following to the list mentioned above: "…one who dies in a fire" and "…a woman who dies during child-birth."

3) A third report states that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Whoever dies while defending his own possessions is a martyr; whoever dies defending his own person is a martyr; whoever dies guarding his own faith is a martyr; whoever dies fighting in order to defend his own family is also a martyr."

4) Finally, in a report by an-Nasa'i, the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "Whoever fights to protect his rights and dies in the process is a martyr."

Imam Ibn Hajar states, "we can conclude from these traditions that martyrs are of two types: Those who are recognized as martyrs in this world, and those who are recognized as martyrs only in the Hereafter. A martyr recognized in this world is one who has died fighting in the cause of Allah without having retreated from the battle. But those who are recognized only in the Hereafter are those upon whom the laws of martyrdom are not applicable in this world, although they merit rewards of martyrdom."

According to Imam an-Nawawi, "The second category of martyrs will receive rewards of martyrdom, and yet unlike the martyrs of jihad, they will be bathed (before burial) and prayed over."

From the above discussion, however, one is advised not to jump to the conclusion that everyone who dies in similar circumstances as mentioned above will automatically merit rewards of martyrdom. Such an inference is not valid, since Allah's acceptance of a person ultimately depends on his or her state of faith or iman as well as upon the way he or she has responded to the will of Allah at the time of death. The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "A person is raised up in the Hereafter in the state he has passed away."

Related Questions

- Gathering the Mortal Remains of Martyrs

- Abdominal Diseases and Martyrdom

- Offering Funeral Prayer for Martyrs


Printer-friendly version   Email this item to a friend