The Just War

A just war is being fought between those who represent what is good, noble and honourable, and those who represent what is evil, ignoble and dishonourable. In this war - as almost always - the unjust are know by their arrogance, their pride and their bullying nature. In this war - as almost always - the just are known by their honour, and by their noble behaviour, a behaviour which always results from observing the limits, from a knowledge that there is some power greater than themselves.

One the one side we have a military power which is trying to impose its will, and the alien customs of its country, by brute force, on another. These customs are evident in the way the troops of this military power behave. They have little or no respect for the people of the land they have invaded and occupied, nor for the way of life of these people.

On the other side, we have resistance to occupation by a group of people who, while not having a great deal of weapons, or great wealth, or even a great army, has a faith, a cause, to believe in, which cause and which faith are evident in their everyday lives. For this group of people have the humility to bow down in prayer five times a day, and fast once a year for a whole month during the hours of daylight.

The contrast is great, and startling. It is the contrast between a country which has great wealth, and massive military rescues, a country of insolence, and between a people who have very little and yet who have a way of life which breeds determination, humility, honour and a spirit of resistance. It is a contrast between a military and economic power which has at its disposal a vast, world-wide Media empire which it uses to defame its enemy and spread its own propaganda, and between a people who have only a few media outlets which remain uncensored, which media outlets are constantly targeted and often forced to close by the insolent military power.

One the one side we have a military power which swoops down on, or overuns, villages and who take away, for interrogation, torture and indefinite detention, anyone they choose. This is the military power which gets its women soldiers to provocatively strip down to their underwear when they are engaged on "search and arrest" operations, in complete defiance of the way of life of the people under military occupation, which way of life forbids the public showing of the female body. This is the military power whose troops, at their bases in the land they have occupied - and often in cities and towns (or what remains of them after years of war) - and in defiance of the the way of life of the people of that land, gamble, listen to their alien music, and indulge themselves with intoxicating liquor. This is the military power which insists on bringing their alien music, their intoxicating liquor, their lewd, sex obsessed magazines and films, to the land and the people they have occupied and rule over. This is the military power which in its insolent arrogance demands that the people of the land they have occupied adopt the customs - the laws, the lewdness, the type of government, the behaviour - of the insolent occupiers. This is the military power which hypocritically - and using its vast Media empire - demonizes its enemy, accusing them of alll the things that they themselves have done and are doing, while denying that they have done and are doing such things. This is the military power which, when things gets tough, pour more military resources, and blackmailing money, and soldiers and covert operatives, into the country, and which detains and interrogates and tortures, and murders, more people, as if these military resources, this blackmailing money, these soldiers, these covert operations, these arrests, these murders, these interrogations and tortures, can bring them victory.

 On the other side, we have a people who are heirs to a noble, civilizing tradition, and who, when things gets tough, patiently endure and pray to Allah for victory.

"Allah is with those who restrain themselves and who are honourable." (16:128 Intrepretation of Meaning)

"As for those who disbelieve, neither their riches nor their children can in the smallest way save them from Allah. They will become the fuel of Fire." (3:16 Interpretation of Meaning)

"For the unbelievers, the life of this world is decked with all manner of temptations. They laugh and jeer at the faithful, but those that fear Allah shall be far above them on that Day of Resurrection." (2:212 Interpretation of Meaning)

"You will not find any people who believe in Allah and the Last Day making friendship with and loving those who oppose Allah and His Messenger (salla Allahu 'alayhi wa sallam), even if they are their fathers or their sons or their kindred..."  [ 58:22 Interpretation of the meaning]

 "Aiding the Non-Muslims over Muslims - no matter which form of aid or co-operation it be, even if it is merely in speech - this is clear Kufr and sheer hypocrisy. The one who does this has perpetrated one of the actions which negates Islam, as has been specifically stated by the Imams of the Dawah and others, and such a person is not a believer in the aqeeda of al-Wala and al-Bara (being a patron of someone or disassociating solely for Allah)." Sheikh Safar bin 'Abdir-Rahmaan
al-Hawaali

" The first obligation after Iman is the repulsion of the enemy aggressor who assaults our Way of Life and interferes in our affairs". Ibn Tayymia.

"In exchange for their lives and their goods, Allah has given those who believe Paradise. Thus will they fight in Allah's cause, and thus will they kill, and be killed." [9: 111]

"Fight those of the disbelievers who are close to you, and let them find in you a harshness." [9:123]

Given this just war against an arrogant, insolent, tyrannical military power, what can we, as Muslims, do? The first thing we can do is support, in whatever way we can, the Mujahideen who are actively fighting the kuffar in places such as Afghanistan, Palestine, Chechnya, Kashmir and elsewhere. The very least we can do is support them in our hearts through du'a, by, for example, offering Qunot Nazlla. We can support them openly through our words, whether written or spoken. We can circulate, via any and all media, inspiring Jihad stories and news about Jihad. We can - if we are able and have the means, or assistance, to travel - support them by joining the Mujahideen on the battlefield. We can also - if we place our desire for Jannah and our love for our brothers and sisters before the life of this world - undertake our own individual acts of Jihad against the kuffar and their allies.

Allah (SWT) knows best.