Islam jihad terrorism and world peace

Terrorism: “Use or
threat of violence to
cause fear and to
advance political,
religious, or
ideological goals”
(Source; Quizlet.com)

Let’s accept it there is a lot of chaos in
the world.
• Although we do
not know the
root-cause of
everything, and
some acts like
terrorism are
irrational, a little
historical context
can give some
insights.

Terrorism has been used to
Overthrow
governments
Fight for
independence
Change society

Criminal
Classification of Terrorism
Political Psychological
Sub-state
State State
Supported
1. Social Revolutionary
2. National Separatist
3. Religious Fundamentalist
4. New Religions
5. Right Wing
6. Single Issue

The main causes of violence
Religious reasons
Religious differences have been the cause of
many wars in history e.g. the Crusades, the
struggles between Roman Catholics and
Protestants in Northern Ireland
Economic reasons
This is when one country grabs land or wealth
from another. In the past the wealth may have been
silver or gold, nowadays it is oil or mineral
resources. This can lead to the exploitation of a
small country by a more powerful one.
Moral reasons
This might be because one community feels
obligated to attack another to restore the
inhabitant’s human rights.
Social reasons
This may happen when one community wants to
force another group to behave in the same way as
they do, or attacks them because of their ethnic
differences. This is what happened in Bosnia, where
ethnic cleansing took place.

Terrorism is not just a modern
phenomenon
• Acts of
terrorism for
thousands of
years

The 1st Recorded Case of Terrorism
In the year 48 A.D. a Jewish sect calling itself the
“Zealots” carried out a campaign of terror
hoping to spur an insurrection against Roman
occupation of Judea (Israel/Palestine).
Their tactics were assassination with daggers of
Roman soldiers along with specific Jewish
collaborators.
This is the origin of the modern day term “zealot”
– meaning a fanatical partisan. 8

Zealot Tactics
The Zealots were not capable of, and were not
interested in, mass casualties.
They were not as much motivated by religion as
they were nationalism – that is, to end foreign
occupation of “their land.”
The objective was to send warnings to Roman
officials, soldiers and collaborators by
spreading fear among them.
9

The Sicarii
The Sicarii (Ziccari, Siccari) was a jewish religious sect
that fomented a popular uprising against Roman
occupiers of Palestine between 66 and 70 A.D.
They struck in broad daylight with dagger attacks with
plenty of witnesses to show the Romans could not
protect themselves or their collaborators. The
purpose was to provoke indiscriminate counter-
measures by the Romans and they succeeded in this.
The Sicarii met their end at their last fortress at Masada
in 70 A.D. when they all committed ritual murder and
suicide rather than be taken prisoner.
10

The “Assassins”
Take their name from the Arab word for “hash eaters” --
“Hashashins.”
They were a division of a Shiite Muslim sect that appeared
in the 11th century. The Mongols wiped them out in the
13th century, so they lasted 200 years.
The killed victims (mostly enemies) with golden daggers
while under the influence of the drug (often while
victim was asleep). The drug was meant to invoke
visions of paradise before they set out on their missions.
They are the inspiration of the modern radical Islamic
terrorists who believe they will ascend into heaven if
killed while on a murderous holy war (jihad) mission. 11

The “Thuggee”(1550-1857)
An Indian Hindu group whose 300 year existence
introduced the word “thug” into several languages.
“Thugs” believed that Bhowani or ‘Kali the Black One’
bestowed success on the worthy but demanded the
sacrifice of lives in return.
They strangled their victims with silk scarves in a ritualistic
murder, often after encountering them on highways.
The choice of victim was random and indiscriminate. They
chose targets of opportunity, not religious or
philosophical enemies. They made no demands and did
not target rulers or officials.
The British drove them underground in 1837 and they
were extinct by 1857).
12

21st century Terrorism
•England, Irish Republican Army (20th and 21st
centuries fight for independence against British)
•British Palestine: Irgun: Zionist paramilitary
organization operating against British and
Palestinians in 1940s
•Sri Lanka, Tamil Tigers (1983-2009). First modern
day suicide bombers (men and women)

Which brings us to the present

Why are Islam the religion and Muslims at large
perceived to be the hotbed of Global Terrorism?

Again a little historical context

Some Facts about Islam
• Islam is the fastest growing religion in the world
• There are over 1.6 Billion Muslims meaning one
out of every 5 people in the world is a Muslim
• Islam is a word that means submission (to God)
and through it achieve Peace.
• Islam’s main message is the continuity (to the
previous Prophets including Moses and Jesus) of
the message to worship One God, and finality of
Prophet Muhammad.
• The Muslim greeting As-Salam-ualikum, means
Peace be Upon you.

Islam Terms
• Islam: an Arabic word that means “submitting to
God” and “peace”
• Muslim: a person who follows the teachings of
Islam and “submits to God and finds peace in
Him”. All creation is Muslim.
• Shahadah: “There is no god but God and
Muhammad is the Messenger of God”.
• Allah: Arabic name for God. It is preferred over
other names because it has no gender affiliation
and does not have plurality

Understanding Islam
• Islam is a rational religion:
“The vilest of creatures are those
who choose to be deaf and dumb
and do not use their reason.”
(Qur’an 8:2)
• Muhammad reminded his followers
that “The first thing God created
was reason”. Therefore, believers
must take personal responsibility for
one’s actions and faith.

The early Islamic empire…
23

Source: Thorp, Gene,
and Swati Sharma.
2015. “Fighters to
Syria.” The
Washington Post
January 27.

Clash of Civilizations (Samuel Huntington)

But it doesn't have to be: Peace is
Possible

We must get back to talking with each
other than at each other for our
common good.

Human Equality
• “O humankind! You were created from a
single soul, male and female, and made you
into peoples and tribes. So that you may know
one another. Truly, the most honoured of you
in God’s sight is the greatest of you in piety.
God is All Knowing, All Aware”
(Qur’an 49:13)

All human life is precious independent
of race, nationality, religion or status
• “Whosoever killeth a
human being for other
than manslaughter or
corruption in the earth,
it shall be as if he had
killed all mankind, and
whoso saveth the life of
one, it shall be as if he
had saved the life of all
mankind.” Quran (5:32)

Islam and War
• Like Christianity, Islam permits
fighting in self defense, in defense
of religion, or on the part of those who have been
expelled forcibly from their homes
• Strict rules for combat, which includes prohibitions
against harming civilians and against destroying crops,
trees and livestock
• “Fight in the cause of God against those who fight you,
but do not transgress limits. God does not love
transgressors” (Qur’an 2:190)
• “And fight them unitl persecution is no more, and
religion is for God. But if they desist, then let there be
no hosility excpet against wrongdoers” (Qur’an 2:193)

Jihad
• Jihad does not mean “holy war”
• Literally, jihad means to strive, struggle and exert
effort.
• Concept includes struggle against evil inclinations
within oneself, struggle to improve quality of life in
society, struggle in the battlefield for self defense or
fighting against tyranny or oppression
• There is no such thing as “holy war” in Islam, but it is
the frequent repetition in the West that many people
accept it as if it were a fact

Muslim reasons why violence is wrong
They see using
violence without a
just cause as sinful,
and bullying always
involves unjust
violence
The Qur’an teaches that
harming other
people will bring
bad results in your
life after death.
They see human
beings as a
creation of God-
bullying is
mistreating God’s
creation.
The Qur’an teaches
that it is the duty
of religious people
to protect the
weak and
innocent.
Muhammad defended
people who were
considered weaker in
society and religious
people must follow his
example.

Islam, Reconciliation and Forgiveness
Attitudes:
• Islam teaches that Muslims should try to resolve conflicts
• They are taught that they should be forgiving to those who cause them
offence.
• Nevertheless, Muslims believe that a conflict about morality or religion
would not be resolvable if, for example, the children were following
Islamic teachings and the parents were not.
Reasons:
1. God is compassionate and merciful to sinners, so Muslims should also
be forgiving.
2. How can Muslims ask God’s forgiveness on the Last Day if they are not
prepared to forgive people?
3. The Qur’an says that Muslims should forgive those who offend them.
4. Muhammad said in many Hadiths that Muslims should be forgiving.

The West Versus Islam
Many hotspots in Muslim
World
• Israel-Palestine
• Iraq
• Syria
• India-Pakistan
• Saudi Arabia- Iran (Sunni-
Shia)
• Russia-Chechnya
• Disenfranchised Muslim
communities in Europe

Some Figures on Muslim Populations of Four
Western Countries
CIA PEW CIA PEW
France 6,405,779 3,554,000 10.0% 6%
Germany 3,046,201 4,026,000 3.7% 5%
UK 1,650,057 1,647,000 2.7% 2.7%
United States* 1,843,273 2,454,000 0.6% 0.8%
(CIA World Factbook for 2009 and Pew Research Center, 2009.)
*Another source, Muslim Population Worldwide for 2008, gives figures similar to the CIA
except for the U.S., for which it gives 6,420,000 and 6.12%. This disparity of figures for the
U.S. is well known.

Islamophobia:
Preach All Muslims Are Evil

Some Muslim grievances against the
US
• The U.S. invaded and colonized two Muslim
countries - Afghanistan and Iraq
• The U.S. oppresses the Palestinians by supporting
Israel
• The U.S. supports tyrannical “apostate”
governments in the Middle East
• The U.S. supports regimes that actively oppress
Muslims (e.g. Russia, China, India)
• The U.S. robs the Muslim world of its precious
resources (oil)

Religious Fundamentalists
• Radical Utopian
Movement
• They believe every
government is corrupt
and must be replaced
with a “Islamic”
Religious Government
• Religious terrorists
dismiss the religious
views of others
• Based mainly on
simpleton and ignorant
people who are
clueless about faith

To fight and eliminate terrorism
• No quick simple solutions
• We may never totally eliminate terrorism, but we
can minimize the losses inflicted by terrorists &
reduce the frequency of attacks.
• The problems have fermented over time
• We need to address them on all fronts, not just
military, but political, economic, social, and
religious.
• No one country, faith or community can solve this
on their own. It requires trust, faith and
cooperation.

Terrorists and Right wing Zealots use
common practices
• Instill fear in a mass audience
• Polarize public opinion
• Attract converts and support to the cause
• Spread false and misleading information
• Exploit the exaggerated media image of a
powerful, omnipotent group.
• Profit from “free advertising”
• Remember ISIS is NOT Islamic and NOT a State,
don’t give them or other groups currency.

Conclusion
• Let’s get back to the basics
• Before we are Jews, Christians, Hindus,
Buddhists, or Muslim we are human beings.
• Every faith values and respects human dignity
• If whatever faith someone claims does not
respect humanity, then they are following the
wrong faith.
• Peace is at the core of all faiths, including Islam
• Peace is possible, but it takes commitment and
courage.

Islam jihad terrorism and world peace

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