The new “caliphate” of Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi—the Islamic State, formerly “ISIS”—recently made clear that it means to follow in the footsteps of the original caliphate of Abu Bakr al-Sadiq (632-634), specifically by directing its jihad against fellow Muslims, in Islamic parlance, the “hypocrites” and “apostates,” or in Western terminology, “moderates.”
This came out in the context of the current conflict between Israel and Hamas, with some Muslims asking the newly formed “caliphate” when it would launch a jihad on the Jewish state.
The Islamic State’s response? “Allah in the noble Koran does not command us to fight Israel or the Jews until we fight the apostates and hypocrites.”
On one of the Islamic State’s question-and-answer websites, some asked why it was “not fighting Israel but instead shedding the blood of the sons of Iraq and Syria.” The new caliphate responded:
The greater answer is in the noble Koran, when Allah Almighty speaks about the near enemy. In the majority of verses in the noble Koran, these are the hypocrites, for they pose a greater danger than the original infidels [born non-Muslims, e.g., Jews and Christians]. And the answer is found in Abu Bakr al-Sadiq, when he preferred fighting apostates over the conquest of Jerusalem [fath al-Quds], which was conquered by his successor, Omar al-Khattab.
There’s much to be said about this response, rife as it is with historical allusions.
First, it is true. After the prophet of Islam died, a great number of Arabian tribes that had submitted to his rule by becoming Muslims—the word muslim simply means “one who submits”—thought they could now renege, and so they apostatized in droves. This sparked the first Ridda, or “apostasy wars,” waged by Abu Bakr al-Sadiq, who became the first caliph on Muhammad’s death in 632. For nearly two years, till his own death in 634, his caliphate’s entire energy was focused on waging jihad on all the recalcitrant Arab tribes, forcing them by the edge of the sword to return to the fold of Islam.
Tens of thousands of Arabs were burned, beheaded, dismembered, or crucified in the process, according to Islamic history, especially by the “Sword of Allah.” It was only afterwards, under the reign of the second caliph, Omar al-Khattab (634-644), that the great Islamic conquests against the “original infidels”—those non-Arab peoples who had never converted to Islam, Christians, Jews, Zoroastrians, etc.—took place.
Islam’s war on the apostate, so little known in the West, figures prominently in Islamic history. Indeed, Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, one of the most influential Islamic clerics today, while once discussing the importance of killing any Muslim who apostatizes from Islam on Al Jazeera, correctly stated that “If the [death] penalty for apostasy was ignored, there would not be an Islam today; Islam would have ended on the death of the prophet.”
In short, and as the Islamic State is now arguing, the first and greatest enemy of Islam—the “nearest” enemy—is the “apostate” and “hypocrite,” for they are the most capable of subverting Islam from within.
This phenomenon of “pious” Muslims fighting and killing “lukewarm” Muslims, or Shia and Sunnis fighting one another—while the original infidel stands by or gets away—has many precedents throughout history. For example, in its response, the Islamic State further justifies not fighting Israel by saying:
The answer is found in Salah ad-Din al-Ayubi [Saladin] and Nur ad-Din Zanki when they fought the Shia in Egypt and Syria before [addressing] Jerusalem. Salah ad-Din fought more than 50 battles before he reached Jerusalem. And it was said to Salah ad-Din al-Ayubi: “You fight the Shia and the Fatimids in Egypt and allow the Latin Crusaders to occupy Jerusalem?” And he responded: “I will not fight the Crusaders while my back is exposed to the Shia.”
All of this history quoted by the Islamic State is meant to exonerate the new caliphate’s main assertion: “Jerusalem will not be liberated until we are done with all these tyrants, families, and pawns of colonialism that control the fate of the Islamic world.”
Some observations:
- Although the Islamic State is trying to suggest that only autocrats like Syria’s Bashar al-Assad are “apostates” and “hypocrites,” and that most average Muslims are eager for Sharia, the fact is, a great many of the world’s Muslims fit under this rubric. The largest revolution in history, Egypt’s June 2013 anti-Brotherhood revolution, attests to this. Thus the new caliphate’s jihad is not just against “tyrants,” but many average Muslims as well, as the organization’s carnage in Iraq and Syria attests.
- The Islamic State’s declaration justifying non-confrontation with Israel is not winning it much popular support in the Arab world and is naturally portrayed as a copout. It further validates the popular Arab narrative that the United States is siding with the Islamists to create havoc in the region; to have the various sects (Sunni vs Shia, Moderate vs. Islamist) fight each other in order to divide and weaken the region. Thus Dr. Ahmed Karima, a leading professor of Islamic jurisprudence in Al Azhar, said that the Islamic State’s position concerning Israel proves that “it is a creation of U.S. and Israeli intelligence” and that the new caliphate “is the biggest of all hypocrites.”
- Alternatively, others, especially Islamists, appreciate that the Islamic State is patterning itself after the first caliphate of Abu Bakr—hence why its first caliph chose that name—because it finds itself operating in the same circumstances. Nascent and without much support, it first mission, like Abu Bakr, is to re-subjugate Muslims to Islam. Only then can it focus on the “original infidels.”
- While this approach may be temporarily good for Israel (and all infidel states), in the long run, a fully functioning and unified caliphate with “reformed” Muslims next door is not a pretty picture. After all, the Islamic State is not exonerating the infidel, but rather saying his turn will come once the caliphate is capable of an all-out assault. At best, it’s a temporary reprieve.
Buraq says
“Those whom God wishes to destroy, he first makes mad.” Euripides
Nothing more apt to describe this bunch of clowns — mad, swivel-eyed nutters. Hope they murder each other by the million!
Reality Check says
I have no problem with Muslims killing other Muslims as long as this reduces the number of those who secretly hate us and want our men to be their slaves and our women their sex slaves.
adc714 says
in other words…Israel will kick the shit out of us, so let’s not be too hasty.
cheekturner says
Absolutely spot on! This Baggydude twat has nowhere to go except to turn on his own excrement, and all power to him in this exercise!
And the idea that this all is an Israeli/US plot to cause havoc in the region is simply a way of letting the rest of the world know that ISIS hasn’t got a clue what it is doing and that it’s success is only due to the cowardice and feeble mentality of those muslimes it has so far overrun. Face a real opponent (i.e Israel) and they will fold and disperse and crawl back under their pig dunghills.
Anushirvan says
Alas, 21st Century reality clearly demonstrates that Salafists will not adhere to a certain hierarchy of priorities, where killing apostates / hypocrites takes precedence over killing default non-muslims, and where the latter is postponed until the former has been completed. The Egyptian, Syrian and Iraqi examples clearly show that muslims will invest equal energy in doing both of these things simultaneously.
Beagle says
This post is yet another example of Jihad Watch allowing a modern person to make sense of what appears to be an increasingly nonsensical world. Using the usual tools one learns in college, Marxist historical materialism and economic determinism, Islam is an insoluble mystery, wrapped in an enigma, inside a riddle.
I have yet to see one mainstream analyst link the IS to its attempt to root itself to the Baghdad Caliphate. One general mentioned the Ottoman Caliphate and seemed to suggest that was the only one. So the best analysis I’ve heard on TV was mostly wrong. But not all, so best.
Kepha says
Abu Bakr al-Baghdadi probably knows that if he sends his forces against Israel, they will win nothing but their so-called martyrdom. Hence, he chooses an easier target.
Philo Vaihinger says
No wonder the Christians of the 7th and 8th centuries thought their world was being overrun by devils from Hell.
I sympathize, and I am an atheist.
ECAW says
Thanks to Robert Spencer for explaining the background so brilliantly, as always.
Jay Boo says
Those who expect to find gold in a full diaper are still much wiser than those who seek truth from Islam.
Petey says
you know I seem to recall somewhere in Ezekiel 38 invasion of Israel that the invading armies would attack and destroy one another, lets hope these stupid bastards keep killing each other. Obviously the mainstream media seems to be okay with it, as long as the evil jooooos are killing “Innocent” palestininian human shields, this really amuses them. ISIS keeps killing muslims in the thousands, Lets hope the Jewish army can keep up the offensive as long as possible, the more hundreds of palestininians who die will be matched by thousands in Iraq and Syria. Let them blame everybody else for their problems, they always do anyway. I say let them go; feed them weapons then nuke some popcorn and watch the show, let the libtards whine!
farook says
funny people hiding under women’s wardrobe if you cant even use your name to comment pls dont comment, its u Christian and jews who do all sex on road and seduce others wife and call yourself holy, u people r swine, thank god jesus is not here to see you Christians fucking each others in his name….islam and its strict rule is needed…..
Reality Check says
This is the kind of exaggerated garbage that you Muslims like to tell yourselves to feel better about the shit you are and the shit you live in.
The truth is you have no morals, no self-restraint, no respect for others and no conscience to feel bad about your total lack of moral compass.
I have seen more Muslim men behave like dogs on the roads and try to have sex with any woman than Christian men trying the same.
You are animals, all of you, and you deserve to be put down for everybody’s good if this planet is to continue to prosper and exist.
And yet you keep calling yourself “pious” and your nasty Quran “holy” while breaking all the commandments of nature and life. It’s because Islam is unnatural and anti-life and all of you have followed the rules of Satan since the day you were born.