The Imam Sweeney told them: “You each converted to Islam some years ago. Thereafter you were radicalised and each became an extremist, espousing views which, as has been said elsewhere, are a betrayal of Islam.” This enraged them, and they began a fight in the courtroom. It would have been interesting to see Mufti Sweeney explain what exactly was a betrayal of Islam in the actions of Mujaahid Abu Hamza and Ismail ibn Abdullah, aka Adebolajo and Adebowale. Right after the murder, Mujaahid Abu Hamza invoked the Qur’an and made specific reference to the Islamic doctrine that one must fight against those who fight against Islam.
The Qur’an says, “Fight in the way of Allah those who fight you but do not transgress. Indeed. Allah does not like transgressors” (2:190). That “do not transgress” has often been interpreted by Islamic scholars as meaning, do not begin hostilities. I.e., this verse is a foundation for defensive jihad. But in this case, as the killer himself made clear, he believed that the soldier was fighting Muslims in Islamic lands — Iraq and Afghanistan. So the soldier was already fighting Muslims, and the killer would have thought that he was not “transgressing” by therefore fighting “in the way of Allah those who fight you” — i.e., the Muslims.
And how is one to fight them? “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” (2:191). “Kill them wherever you overtake them” — even on, say, a street in Woolwich.
Until British (and American) authorities come to grips with the fact that there is ample Islamic justification for such murders, and stop playing games with their Let’s Play Pretend version of Islam, there will be many more such killings.
“Scuffle breaks out as defendants told they betray Islam,” from ITV, February 26:
The struggle in the dock at the Old Bailey was triggered when Adebolajo and Adebowale – both wearing Islamic robes – reacted angrily to comments that Mr Justice Sweeney made about their extremist beliefs.
He told them: “You each converted to Islam some years ago. Thereafter you were radicalised and each became an extremist, espousing views which, as has been said elsewhere, are a betrayal of Islam.”
Adebowale protested that this was a lie, ranting about America and Britain, and his accomplice joined in, screaming “allahu akbar” and hurling abuse at the prison guards who grappled him to the ground.
Both men were grabbed around the face as guards struggled to control them, and taken down to the cells.The soldier’s family were visibly distressed, and one relative needed medical treatment.