Compiled by the Israel Foreign Ministry – September 1997
- A trend of growing extremism has been observed in remarks by Moslem
religious leaders regarding Israel and Judaism in recent months –
specifically, in remarks justifying suicide attacks. - These pronouncements express attitudes current in rather wide sectors
of the Arab public and threaten to become a sweeping phenomenon – attacks
will be called for not just out of political need, but will receive
religious support and legitimization. - Because suicide is prohibited in Islam as it is in Judaism, religious
leaders do not use the term “suicide,” but “martyrdom” (“shahid”). Sheikh
Al Azhar – Muhammad Sa’ad Tantawi (one of the leading religious
authorities in the Moslem world) makes this distinction clearly: “One who
blows himself up among enemies, in order to defend his land, is considered
a martyr.” (Egyptian newspaper “Alwafd” 27/4/96). In “Al Aharam” (9/4/96)
Tantawi differentiates between acts of self-sacrifice, as when someone
blows himself up in a crowd of people, which is permitted as long as it is
directed against enemies who have adopted a terrorist and inhumane regime,
and between the prohibited act, i.e. when it is directed against
civilians, children, or innocent, unarmed people, who did not lift a
weapon or behave with violence or terrorism. - In a meeting with students at the University of Alexandria (3/8/97),
Tantawi explained that given the oppression which the Palestinians suffer,
he has no alternative “but to tell our Palestinian brothers: ‘Defend
yourselves, your rights, your land and your dignity. Defend these by the
means that Islam and the teachings of morality approve, without weapons or
aggression.'” He stressed that the monotheistic religions do not permit
the murder of children, old people or the helpless. In his opinion those
who carry out suicide attacks are in a “situation of self-defense against
their attacker and therefore do not regard him as an old person, child or
woman.” In response to a question about the verdict of the Sharia (the
Moslem law code) on someone who blows himself up, he said: “To those who
say that this is prohibited (“haram”), you must first ask what motivated
the act, and why the youth are compelled to sacrifice themselves. What can
we expect from the Palestinians when the Prime Minister repeats, every
morning and evening, that Jerusalem is the eternal capital of Israel, when
this statement contradicts logic, religion and the law? Oppression gives
birth to the attack (literally “explosion”) and a person on whom the
oppression weighs is liable to sacrifice himself: for those with dignity
prefer death to a life of submission.” - From here Tantawi derives his final ruling: “Since the Jews cause us
evil, we must fight them courageously. If I die in defense of my religion,
my land and my property, I am a Shahid.” (Tantawi, “Al Hayat” 6/11/96) - Therefore, “the youth of the Islamic resistance who blow themselves up
in order to cause casualties, are considered the greatest of those who
die, because they die as martyrs.” (Tantawi in the Egyptian “Al Sha’ab”
30/4/96) - To the request of Israeli rabbis that the Sheikh Al Azhar approach
Moslem religious leaders asking them to intervene to stop the attacks in
Israel’s city centers; and to the accusations of Israelis that Moslem
religious figures in Egypt encourage Palestinians in the use of
inflammatory slogans and incite to violence which could escalate into a
religious war, he said: “When the land is taken by force and oppression
prevails, anger spreads and attacks occur in self-defense. When Jewish
religious figures incite to oppression – should I stand silent?” (“Al
Hayat” 4/8/97) - According to the members of the “Islamic Action Front” in the Jordanian
parliament as well as several Islamic religious scholars, “the Jews
occupying today the entire land of Palestine are infidels, enemies,
fighters and thieves who robbed the entire land of Palestine, including
Jerusalem, and built on it their predatory entity.” (Radio Al-Quds
26/3/96) “Therefore it makes no difference whether they are soldiers,
civilians, men or women, or to which party they belong. The Jews are a
foreign implant in Palestine who arrived there on the basis of the
‘Promised Land’ ideology and they have no alternative but to destroy the
Al-Aqsa mosque and build the temple in its place, and to conquer the land
of the Moslems from the Nile to the Euphrates. According to religious law,
it is our duty to kill these Jews, to rout them from Palestine and to
imprison their supporters. Islam rules that one must fight the attacking
invader, even unto his death, whether he is a soldier or a civilian…
‘Estishad’ (suicide attack) is in accordance with Moslem law, and jihad
qualifies him for the reward of jihad warriors.According to the Moslem teachers, when a person carries out a heroic act
of ‘estishad’, he is welcomed by God, according to religious law. A jihad
warrior who wishes to die as a martyr to Allah presents himself as a
‘shahid’ and thus merits the status of ‘shahid’. These people never
despair of Allah’s mercy and are not afraid of death. They face all
vicissitudes filled with faith and the belief in Allah. Islamic law
encourages such acts of ‘estishad’.” (Radio Al-Quds, 26/3/96). - An essay by Fahad Rimawi, editor of the Jordanian opposition weekly,
“Almajd” 4/8/97, following the attack in Mahane Yehuda: “We praise and
glorify the double heroic act which two Palestinian ‘mujahadins’ performed
in the Mahane Yehuda market in Jerusalem. These two holy martyrs
illuminated the night in Jerusalem, protested the pain of the building in
Jabul Abu Ghneim (Har Homa) and gave meaning to Arab heroism. We do not
hide our happiness upon this act, and our happiness at the misfortune of
Netanyahu, who did not succeed in providing the security he promised his
people. We do not hide our desire to present this act as a gift to
Madeleine Albright, who allowed the Likud government to force all its
conditions on the Arabs and Palestinians. Hamas are the only ones able to
say ‘no’ in the age of ‘yes,’ and to wave their sword before the Likud and
before the Labor Party. Hamas has the ability to stop the peace process or
to let it progress, to kill hundreds of Jews or to let them continue to
live. Hamas is the only one that holds in its hand the option of struggle
or freedom of movement. Who among us, Arabs and Moslems, did not long for
an act like the heroic act that was committed in the Mahane Yehuda market?
Who among us did not want to watch the spilling of foul Jewish blood, when
they saw how soldiers kill the children of Hebron and how the Prophet is
depicted as a pig? We welcome the Mahane Yehuda operation as well as the
jihad and ‘estishad’ (suicide bombings) that will follow it, nor will we
apologize for the spilled Zionist blood nor condemn the heroic deeds of
the ‘mujahadin’, which represent the spirit of the people.” - The Syrian Mufti Kaftaro (in an interview to “A-rai Ala’am” 31/7/97):
“The Palestinians, in their war against the Israeli enemy, practice
various methods such as guerilla warfare and direct confrontation
including ‘feda’ai’ (terrorist operations) and acts of sacrifice. There is
a question whether Islam permits suicide acts when the Moslem blows
himself up in the midst of his enemies and whether there have been such
events in Islamic history. The prophet Mohammed ruled that death in battle
is not suicide and the friends of Mohammed would pray a prayer of
self-sacrifice before embarking on jihad in order to prepare themselves to
fall in battle. The ‘feda’ai’ acts are considered acts of falling in
battle, which are legitimate in Islam because they are carried out in the
name of Allah and in order to drive the heavy oppression from our land.
Several religious authorities have discussed this matter and have reached
the conclusion that this is a legitimate act in Islam.” - The general secretary of the Hizbullah, Hasan Nassrallah, in a speech
to the “Assembly for Protecting the Sanctity of Islam” in Beirut: “If the
Palestinian people wants to remind the world of its plight, it should
change just one thing: the bodies of Israeli men and women should again be
torn apart and scattered in Jerusalem and Tel Aviv. The way to restore
Palestine to the memory of the nations and states is to return to the
option of jihad and suicide for Allah’s sake: ‘Estishad’, as warriors of
Islam and the Palestinians have done in years past.”In an interview on “Almanar” television (29/8), Nassrallah stated on the
same topic: “We retain the option of suicide acts. These must occur when
we have a goal that cannot be achieved except by this method.”Nassrallah, following the attack on the pedestrian mall in Jerusalem, said
on 4.9.97 (Nur Radio, 5/9): “Blessings to the martyrs who performed their
suicide act yesterday in the heart of occupied Jerusalem, which shook the
enemy, aroused the concern of the satans in the world and once again
proved that our nation possesses life, determination and will, which give
us the ability to continue and cause our enemy repeated defeats.” - Iran: the senior Ayatollah, Ayatollah Uzmaa Fadi Lankrani said: “The
aggression of the oppressive Zionists, especially in light of their recent
activities in southern Lebanon, exposes their vision of spreading Zionism
over Moslem lands from the Nile to the Euphrates. It is the duty of
Moslems in occupied Palestine and Lebanon, and all Moslems, to carry out
jihad actions in every possible way. There should be no barriers to their
activity.” (“Jumhuryal Islam” 20/4/96). - The senior ayatollah Yusuf Sani’i (a member of the “Council of
Experts”, as well as the council for determining the interests of the
regime, and the head of the fund who offered a reward for killing Salman
Rushdie):”There is no doubt that such activities are considered ‘just’ or ‘good’,
and not burdensome or hateful. It is the duty of all Moslems to perform
jihad, and to persevere in the struggle in any way possible. All religious
persons and Islamic leaders must encourage and teach the value of the deed
of suicide. We ask God to illuminate all Moslems and to seat all the
fallen in the first row, particularly the most courageous martyrs who were
killed in suicide actions.” (“Jumhuryal Islam” 20/4/96).
