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| Qur'an |
a) Some verses of the Qur'an glorify killing.
b) Extremists 'justify' their killings with the Qur'an.
c) Islam praises martyrdom.
Before going into the crux of the issue, it has to be established that the Qur’an is the constitution of Muslims where Muslims are across the globe constitute a single nation. Muhammad (SAW) said in his farewell message, “Learn that every Muslim is a brother to every Muslim and that the Muslims constitute one brotherhood”.
The Qur’an is one book; the onus is on Muslims to extract Shariah law from it guided by the examples of Muhammad (SAW) by the scholars at any particular period in time. This the scholars have done this through time, all books of Ahadith are segmented in categories; each category dealing with one aspect of society.
Some portions deal with charity, some deal with business dealings and some others deal with military confrontation with both outright and perceived enemies of progress.
Some verses of the Qur'an glorify killing
Example: "And slay them wherever you catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for indeed tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter: but fight them not at the Sacred Mosque, unless they (first) fight you there. But if they fight you, then slay them. Such is the reward of those who suppress faith". Suratul Baqarah (2:191)
People who quote verses of the Qur'an that talk about killing almost always do so out of context. They quote these verses wishing the verses mean just what they want them to mean.
Classical Islamic scholars setup an aspect of Islamic knowledge that looks into the circumstances around the revelation of all the verses of the Qur'an. This faculty is called 'Asbab al-Nuzul'. Another field that assists Muslims in understanding verses of the Qur'an in the right context is 'Tafsir'.
A Muslim or non Muslim quoting verses of the Qur'an with no knowledge of Asbab al-Nuzul and/or Tafsir will be lost indeed. Both Asbab al-Nuzul and Tafsir link the verses of the Qur'an to the life of Muhammad (SAW) hence, Muslims understand the Qur'an through the examples of Muhammad (SAW).
To get the context under which this verse above was revealed, it would be wise to know what came before and after the verse.
(2:190) Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress. Indeed. Allah does not like transgressors.
(2:191) And kill them wherever you overtake them and expel them from wherever they have expelled you, and fitnah is worse than killing. And do not fight them at al-Masjid al- Haram until they fight you there. But if they fight you, then kill them. Such is the recompense of the disbelievers.
(2:192) And if they cease, then indeed, Allah is Forgiving and Merciful.
(2:193) Fight them until there is no (more) fitnah and [until] worship is (acknowledged to be) for Allah . But if they cease, then there is to be no aggression except against the oppressors.
We see the message in (2:190), Muslims fight those who fight Muslims and unlike other scriptures, the Qur'an warns Muslims against transgressing in the cause of fighting back. We also see that this fighting/killing is defensive in nature.
As lucidly stated in (2:191), this fighting/killing is a means of getting back from the enemies what they have taken from you which is totally logical if you ask any judge on Earth.
(2:192) and (2:193) make it clear that aggression against the enemies should seize the moment their own aggression stops.
Any rational reader would observe that people are not killed simply because of their non Muslim faith, but they can be fought if they put up attitudes deleterious to the community.
Bringing it down to logic, the constitution of every nation or people determines what people in that nation can and cannot do; the constitution also oversees every facet of society from marriage to education up to the protection of the principles and territorial integrity of the nation.
Generally speaking now, every nation on earth believes in killing whether they admit it or not. This includes nations that claim the death penalty to be barbaric.
There is nothing nebulous about this as it is very well observed that these nations still maintain very robust military and paramilitary forces. Why have these two agencies been mentioned?
Simple, in every society these agencies are licensed by their government (constitution) to kill under defined conditions. In other words, members of these agencies who kill other humans under the defined conditions are not said to have committed crimes, in some cases, they are even rewarded for carrying out the killing according to law.
In America, 19 out of 50 states have abolished the death penalty. But, these states as usual have law enforcers who carry arms and are ALLOWED TO KILL under defined conditions.
In a nutshell, the difference between a nation that allows the death penalty and the one that doesn’t is that in the latter, killings are ordered only by military and paramilitary officials while in the former, killings can also be ordered by a court of law. This been said, the two group of nations allow killing whether or not it is explicitly spelt out in their constitutions.
Using a more general scenario to illustrate this, virtually every human being on earth is proud of United Nations peace keepers for the vital roles they play arresting precarious situations across the globe. But come to think of it, what makes UN peace keepers able to carry out these roles that have made us so proud of them?
The answer is not far-fetched; their willingness to kill anyone who stands in the way of peace. UN forces kill yet, they are called peace keepers.
Concluding on this point, looking at Islam from the military angle alone is greatly myopic. It is quintessential to judging a western nation by the content of its military protocols and military rules of engagement; highly beguiling that will prove to be!
Extremists 'justify' their killings with the Qur'an
It has to be understood that in Islam, executions or killings are not carried out by individuals; they have to be carried out on the instructions of the authorities of the Islamic state.
To prove this, Wa'il ibn Hujr narrated thus: While I was sitting in the company of Allah's Apostle (SAW), a person came there dragging another one with the help of a strap and said: Allah's Messenger, this man has killed my brother. Allah's Messenger (SAW) said to him: Did you kill him? And the other man said: In case he did not make a confession of this, I shall bring a witness against him.
He (the murderer) said: Yes, I killed him. He (the Holy Prophet) said: Why did you kill him? He said: He and I were striking down the leaves of a tree and he abused me and enraged me, so I struck his head with an axe and killed him.
Thereupon, Muhammad (SAW) said: Have you anything with you to pay blood-money on your behalf? He said: I do not possess any property but this robe of mine and this axe of mine. He (the Holy Prophet) said: Do you think your people will pay ransom for you? He said: I am more insignificant among my people than this (that I would not be able to obtain this benefit from my tribe). He (the Holy Prophet) threw the strap towards him (the claimant of the blood-money) saying: Take away your man.
The man took him away, and as he returned, Muhammad (SAW) said: If he kills him, he will be like him. He returned and said: Allah's Messenger, it has reached me that you said that "If he killed him, he would be like him." I caught hold of him according to your command.
Thereupon, Muhammad (SAW) said: Don't you want him to take upon himself (the burden) of your sin and the sin of your companion (your brother)? He said: Allah's Apostle, why not? Muhammad (SAW) said: If it is so, then let it be. He threw away the strap (around the offender) and set him free.
What do we learn from this? The man who dragged the killer to Muhammad (SAW) knew very well that the punishment for murder is execution, why then did he not just kill the culprit?
It should also be understood that Muhammad (SAW) did not approve of killing the culprit because it was evident that it was not a premeditated murder; it happened in a fit of rage.
It also has to be pointed out (even though Western media usually do not mention it) that Muslims are the greatest victims of the activities of these groups and this is because Muslims are the greatest opponents of these individuals. There is also significant evidence showing that these groups are simply mercenaries sponsored by western powers like we have in Libya, Syria, e. t.c. (story for another day).
Muhammad (SAW) himself foretold the coming of these individuals.
Anas ibn Malik reported: The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “There will be division and sectarianism in my nation and a people (the Kharijites) (extremists) will come with beautiful words and evil deeds. They will recite the Qur'an but it will not pass beyond their throats. They will leave the religion as an arrow leaves its target and they will not return to it as the arrow does not return to its bow. They are the worst of the creation. Blessed are those who fight them and are killed by them. They call to the Book of Allah but they have nothing to do with it. Whoever fights them is better to Allah than them.”
The great scholar of Tafsir, Ibn Kathir, said, “If the Khawarij ever gained power, they would corrupt the entire earth, Iraq, and Syria. They would not leave alone a boy or a girl or a man or a woman, for in their view the people have become so corrupt that they cannot be reformed except by mass killing".
Leaders of these groups are never able to win debates against Muslims which is why Muslims experience the greatest hostilities from these groups.
Muhammad (SAW) said, “Whoever bears arms against us is not one of us, and whoever cheats us is not one of us.” (Saheeh Muslim)
Islam praises martyrdom
"Indeed, Allah has purchased from the believers their lives and their properties (in exchange) for that they will have Paradise. They fight in the cause of Allah, so they kill and are killed. (It is) a true promise [binding] upon Him in the Torah and the Gospel and the Qur'an. And who is truer to his covenant than Allah ? So rejoice in your transaction which you have contracted. And it is that which is the great attainment". Suratul Tawba (9:111)
Muhammad (SAW) said, "Any slave (of Allah) who dies and has been bestowed good from Allah, does not wish to return to the World, even if he is given the World and what it contains; except a Shaheed (martyr), due to what he sees from the virtues of Shahadah (martyrdom). So he wishes to return to the World in order to be killed again".
It is not new knowledge that different cultures across the globe have their ways of praising those who have fought and died protecting the values of 'the land', why the case of Islam is always in the spot light is strange.
In the UK, the government awards the Victoria Cross to members of the armed forces who have discharged their duties (killing inclusive) exceptionally.
In America, members of the armed forces are celebrated every third Saturday of May and virtually every other country of the world has singled out a day or group of days on which it celebrates its citizens who have defended their homelands and the values they represent (members of the armed forces kill and are killed).
Conclusively, no nation on earth can claim to have zero tolerance for killing, the most a nation can claim is that it does not allow ‘indiscriminate’ killing and that precisely is the principle of Islam.
Calling a religion or system barbaric or inhumane because its scriptures or codes permits killing without considering the circumstances is therefore irrational.
Every verse of the Qur’an is binding on all Muslims unless where said otherwise, on that note, I end this refutation with these master quotes from the glorious Qur’an and Ahadith.
“Because of that, We decreed upon the Children of Israel that whoever kills a soul unless for a soul or for corruption (done) in the land – it is as if he had slain mankind entirely. And whoever saves one – it is as if he had saved mankind entirely. And our messengers had certainly come to them with clear proofs. Then indeed many of them, (even) after that, throughout the land, were transgressors”. Suratul Ma’idah (5:32)
“And whoever kills a believer intentionally then his recompense (is) Hell, abiding in it forever and Allah's wrath will fall on him and He (will) curse him and He has prepared for him a punishment great”. Suratul Nisa (4:93)
Muhammad (SAW) and his prominent companions used to give this advice to the Muslim soldiers, “I advise you ten things. Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm person. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter sheep or camels except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the booty, and do not be cowardly.” All these people who lives were protected by the Prophet (SAW) were non-Muslims.
The Prophet (SAW) was reported to have said, "Whoever killed a person having a treaty with the Muslims (dhimmi), shall not perceive the smell of Paradise though its smell is perceived from a distance of forty years."
A dhimmi is a non-Muslim living within the borders of an Islamic state.
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