“In the Qur’an, Allah states that the believing men and women have permission to murder anyone responsible for the killing of other believing men and women.” I trust Ibrahim Hooper and others are readying refutations of this as we speak.
As for the “19” miracle, Taheri-azar is referring to an extrapolation of Qur’an 74:30, which says cryptically, and with no relation to the surrounding verses: “Above it are nineteen.” This has given rise to a great deal of speculation in Islamic tradition, culminating in Rashad Khalifa’s elaborate exposition of the alleged miracle, which you can find here (thanks to JS). Yes, that is the same Rashad Khalifa who was murdered in Arizona in 1990 by jihadists angered by his Islamic heterodoxy.
Since Taheri-azar has demonstrated that this Qur’anic number-game can turn deadly, here is an excellent refutation of the supposed 19 “miracle.”
From The Herald-Sun, with thanks to Charles Johnson:
In the name of Allah, the merciful, the compassionate.
To whom it may concern:
I am writing this letter to inform you of my reasons for premeditating and attempting to murder citizens and residents of the United States of America on Friday, March 3, 2006 in the city of Chapel Hill, North Carolina by running them over with my automobile and stabbing them with a knife if the opportunities are presented to me by Allah.
I did intend to use a handgun to murder the citizens and residents of Chapel Hill, North Carolina but the process of receiving a permit for a handgun in this city is highly restricted and out of my reach at the present, most likely due to my foreign nationality.
I am a servant of Allah. I am 22 years of age and I was born in Tehran, Iran. My father, mother and older sister immigrated to the United States in 1985 when I was two years of age and I’ve lived in the United States ever since.
I attended elementary, middle and high school in North Carolina and I was accepted into the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. I began my college career in August 2001 and graduated in December 2005 with a bachelor’s degree in psychology and philosophy with Allah’s help.
I do not wish to pursue my career as a student any further because I have no desire to amass the impermanent and temporary fame and material wealth this world has to offer. However I made the decision to continue my studies and to graduate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill so that the world will know that Allah’s servants are very intelligent.
Due to the killing of believing men and women under the direction of the United States government, I have decided to take advantage of my presence on United States soil on Friday, March 3, 2006 to take the lives of as many Americans and American sympathizers as I can in order to punish the United States for their immoral actions around the world.
In the Qur’an, Allah states that the believing men and women have permission to murder anyone responsible for the killing of other believing men and women. I know that the Qur’an is a legitimate and authoritative holy scripture since it is completely validated by modern science and also mathematically encoded with the number 19 beyond human ability. After extensive contemplation and reflection, I have made the decision to exercise the right of violent retaliation that Allah has given me to the fullest extent to which I am capable at present.
I have chosen the particular location on the University campus as my target since I know there is a high likelihood that I will kill several people before being killed myself or jailed and sent to prison if Allah wills. Allah’s commandments are never to be questioned and all of Allah’s commandments must be obeyed. Those who violate Allah’s commandments and purposefully follow human fabrication and falsehood as their religion will burn in fire for eternity in accordance with Allah’s will.
Sincerely yours,
Mohammed Reza Taheri-Azar