Yet once again he doesn’t explain how exactly they’re getting Islam wrong. And considering that he himself has endorsed suicide attacks against Israelis, it is unlikely that his vision would be all that peaceful in any case. One also wonders what kind of “jihad” he wants to see waged against the terrorists. An interior spiritual struggle? Or actual hot warfare? And if the latter, that in itself demonstrates that he endorses religious warfare, and we are back to square one.
And why is he backing a non-Sharia government against those who would impose Sharia?
“Al-Azhar cleric urges “˜jihad” against terrorists,” from APP, May 19 (thanks to James):
ISLAMABAD: Professor Dr Muhammad Syed Tantawi, grand sheikh of Al-Azhar University in Cairo, has urged clerics to wage “˜jihad” against terrorists who do not surrender before the government. “Ulema and mashaikh should try to educate them and if they do not shun their activities then must wage jihad against them.” Dr Tantawi was talking to Central Imam Hussain Council Chairman Dr Ghazanfar Mehdi who called on him at the university. He prayed for security, stability and prosperity of Pakistan. Dr Tantawi urged the international community to help Pakistan in the rehabilitation of the internally displaced persons of the NWFP.