Terrorism: Where is the Counter Fatwa?

Terrorism: Where is the Counter Fatwa?
by Mamoun Fandy, Ph.D.

The time has come for a fatwa (a legal Islamic opinion) to be issued that disconnects Osama Bin Laden and his followers from Islam. In a time in which terrorist operations have spread across world cities from New York to Casablanca, from Cairo to London, and most recently in Sharm El Sheikh, we desperately need a series of fatwas that assert that Islam does not condone violence against innocent people. However, this is not even enough. We also need to exclude those among us who believe that violence is the way to defend Islam. As a Muslim, I believe that we need total clarity on the subject. We should respond to the fatwas that are issued in our name.

Muslims all over the world should build up their courage in opposition to terrorism and clearly show that Islam prohibits acts such as those committed by terrorists. It is time that Islamic leaders declare that Bin Laden is not a Muslim in response to Bin Laden and his groups' description of moderate Muslims as "the West's allies" and as "infidels". If Islam condemns Bin Laden's acts, then there should be a clear fatwa issued from the centers of Islamic Fiqh (Jurisprudence) such as Mecca and Al-Azhar to that effect, a fatwa that would shift them outside of the realm of Islam. It is also time to remove the title of 'Mosque' from any place in which Molotov bombs are prepared.

The Leeds terrorists concocted their plan inside a mosque as they fooled others into thinking that they were at prayers. To whom were they praying, God or the devil? Muslims should denounce the locations of where bombs and terrorist plans are prepared as evil, and not describe them as mosques. Some may argue that instead, moderate Muslims should takeover these mosques; however, this is unlikely, as the moderates are not daring enough. The least that should be done is ensure that such places are boycotted by the moderates. They should realize that if a mosque becomes a ground for making Molotov bombs, it ceases to be a mosque and should be considered a crime scene. Mosques are essentially places of worship and gaining knowledge, however, if they are used for other indecent purposes then they should no longer enjoy such sanctity.

Islamic texts say that the whole of the earth was created as a place of worshipping and purity. They also state that those who spread demolition on earth should be punished with severe penalty of having their arms and legs cut off. Despite this, however, some Muslims still support Bin Laden and his followers, and some newspapers and TV channels, most notably Al Jazeera, practically support him. Those Muslims, in fact have and still maintain the message to Bin Laden that "You do to the West what we want to do but are unable to execute." This is the implied message of which the West is ignorant.

Therefore, as long as no pressure is exerted upon Muslims internationally to issue fatwas that declare Bin Laden and his followers as outcasts, no significant progress will be made in the fight against terrorism. Unless such fatwas are issued, Muslims will continuously be perceived as tacit supporters of the terrorists by the world. The issue delves deeper than apparent condemnation. I met and spoke with a number of Muslims in the West, who only condemn terrorism publicly, yet within private conversations, they say in very little words that this is what the West deserves. Publicly, they declare that terrorism is a response to what happens in Palestine and Iraq, but in private, they speak of a blind hatred, which is driven by the absurd urge for destruction. This attitude has become the virus that has infected many Muslim minds. Many Muslims have in fact condemned Bin Laden, but many have not issued any condemnation whatsoever. Most of those live in the United States and Europe, and they are not, as some naïve Westerners call them, "Sleeping Cells." They are in fact wide-awake and ready to strike at anytime.

Just as it is unbeneficial for a "good" man like London's mayor Ken Livingston to invite Yusuf Al-Qaradawi to the country, it is also pointless for Tony Blair and George W. Bush to invite prospective terrorists to attend meetings held in the headquarters of the British Government and the White House. It is also sad that the Western media, especially CNN and the BBC, present Islamist activists who support terrorism and consider them experts and analysts. Since the attacks of September 11, 2001, I have noted the naivety of Western media and politicians. George W. Bush himself has been photographed several times with terrorists and potential terrorists. For example, the White House and the U.S State Department have received Abdul Rahman Al 'Amoudi on numerous occasions who is the very person who had planned the attempted assassination of the Saudi Crown Prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz.

There are two methods to eliminating terrorism. These are the issuing of fatwas that detach Osama Bin laden and his followers from Islam, and the end of the West's naivety towards "moderate Islamists." There are no "moderate Islamists" but rather there are the normal Muslims who live normal lives, there are terrorists and there are the potential terrorists.