The Ummah’s tragedy: ‘Court Ulama’ | AhlulBayt Islamic Mission (AIM)

The Ummah’s tragedy: ‘Court Ulama’ | AhlulBayt Islamic Mission (AIM)

Syria in the US-Saudi-Israeli prism

by Zafar Bangash Events in Syria are not entirely based on domestic factors. There are three other conflicts underway that are all being played out through the struggle in Syria. No conflict in any society anywhere in the world is entirely due to internal factors. There are always external players that exploit internal divisions to advance their own agendas. This is even more so in Syria that lies at the confluence of numerous political fault lines and where the interests of many powers collide. While at a superficial level, it can be said that the Syrian people were motivated by the same desire as people elsewhere in the Muslim East — Tunisia, Egypt et al. — to seek freedom and have a greater say in governance, it would be wrong to assume that this was entirely a domestically inspired movement. Enough evidence exists, courtesy of Syrian opposition sources, to confirm that the plot was hatched outside Syria, to wit, in Paris under the auspices of the Americans, Israelis and Saudis in February 2011. Events in Syria must be understood against the backdrop of three other conflicts: the Israeli-Saudi struggle against Iran for regional influence; US-Russian power struggle for regional domination, and the US-Iran struggle for ideological influence. In all three arenas, the US and its allies have suffered setbacks. Turkey and Qatar have also joined the US-Saudi-Israeli nexus against Syria, and by extension Iran. The Syrian opposition’s offer of talks with Damascus, albeit with caveats, is proof that some of them have understood the regional dynamics. They have come to realize who wields the most power and influence in the region. It is not Riyadh, Tel Aviv, Ankara or Washington; it is Tehran. And Islamic Iran can be relied upon to play the role of honest broker, unlike the duplicitous Americans and devious Saudis. The plot to weaken the resistance front against Zionist Israel has ended up weakening the gang of conspirators and the setback they have suffered in Syria will unravel their other devilish plots as well. Let us start with Russia’s role in the Syrian crisis. By refusing to cede control of Syria that would have turned the Mediterranean into an American lake, Moscow served notice that there will be no repeat of the Libya scenario. Both Russia and China felt betrayed by the manner in which a UN no-fly zone resolution on Libya was turned into a shooting rampage decimating Colonel Muammar Qaddafi’s forces and infrastructure. Once the US-NATO war was unleashed, there was little that Moscow or Beijing could do to stop it. Unlike Libya however, Syria is of great interest to Russia. There is a 40-year long relationship; Syria is the biggest importer of Russian arms in the region and there is a Russian naval base at Tartus. Russia had too much to lose and it refused to roll over at the UN leading to the use of three vetoes against US-sponsored resolutions that would have authorized a NATO attack on Syria. China, too, sided with Russia. Next came the US-Saudi-Israeli nexus that wanted to cut an important arm of the resistance front against Zionist Israel. For its own reasons that we need not go into here, Syria has been an important pillar of the resistance front. Without its cooperation, Hizbullah, Hamas and Islamic Jihad could not have been helped to maintain their resistance against Zionist aggression. Turkey and Qatar joined this axis for their own reasons. Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayip Erdogan fancies himself as the “new leader” of the Muslim world and the Turkish model as an example for other Muslim countries to emulate. Both the US and Israel have also been peddling this line. Tiny Qatar has, by getting so deeply involved in the Syrian crisis, projected itself on the world stage but it is likely to come up against the harsh reality of global politics and its bubble will be punctured sooner rather than later.

Turkey has run into serious problems domestically as well as regionally with its Syria policy and in recent weeks, it has become more circumspect in its pronouncements about Syria. The strident demands from Ankara for Bashar al-Asad to resign have been toned down. In fact, the ruling party is facing stiff resistance not only from other opposition parties in Turkey but also from the Turkish people that see the government’s Syria policy as a failure bordering on the disastrous. Zionist Israel’s animosity toward the Islamic Republic is well known. It has made no secret of its evil intentions toward Tehran and to strike it if it could. The Zionists, however, know that any such misadventure would result in serious blowback for which even these arrogant aliens in the Holy Land are not prepared. Thus, they joined the conspiracy to undermine and overthrow the Asad regime so that Iran would lose an important regional ally. The Zionists tried their hand first against Hizbullah in Lebanon in 2006 and were soundly defeated. Then they went after the softer target of Hamas in Gaza in December 2008–January 2009, and again they were unsuccessful. Their latest foray into Gaza last November also ended in failure. In fact, it exposed them to Hamas and Islamic Jihad rocket attacks that for the first time reached Tel Aviv. Should the Zionists make another mistake, more sophisticated rockets will be used in the next go around. If the Zionists are unable to defeat Hamas in a vulnerable enclave like Gaza, what chance do they have against Iran’s dedicated Revolutionary Guards that will make minced meat of the pleasure-loving Zionists. That brings us to the tribal-ruled Saudi Arabia, the perennial troublemakers of the Muslim world. Prior to the Islamic Revolution in Iran, the Saudis had donned the mantle of leaders of the Muslim Ummah, at least in matters religious. The fact that the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah were in Saudi Arabia added to their aura although they had nothing to do with it. The Islamic Revolution in Iran exposed their fraudulent Islamic credentials. Initially, the Saudis went along with the rest of the Ummah in “welcoming” the Islamic Revolution but their true intentions were soon exposed in two developments: support for Iraq’s attack on Iran in September 1980 and soon thereafter the creation of the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), bringing together the tribal sheikhdoms on the western shores of the Persian Gulf. Some dubbed the GCC as the Gulf Conspiracy Council. The Saudis have also chafed at the fact that Iraq, far from falling under the US umbrella despite being liberated from the clutches of Saddam Husain has become an ally of Iran. This has undermined Saudi influence even further hence their full throttled spouting of anti-Shi‘i venom and the murderous campaign of suicide and car bombings in places like Syria, Iraq and Pakistan. Saudi financing of terrorist operations in Syria is part of their effort to undermine al-Asad and by extension Iran. They have also dropped their mask and become open allies of Zionist Israel. They were always subservient to the US but their open alliance with the Zionists to oppose Islamic Iran has exposed them even more.

Let us finally consider the US-Iran struggle for ideological influence in the region. Behind all these moves in the region — whether in Syria, the Zionist regime’s wars against Hizbullah and Hamas or US attacks on Afghanistan (2001) and Iraq (2003) — was the intended Western-Israeli attack on Islamic Iran. We must consider why the US is so obsessed with Islamic Iran. There are two reasons behind this. First, Islamic Iran is the only legitimate government in the region and is implacably opposed to the Zionist regime in occupied Palestine. Both the US and Israel know that the Arabian regimes were never serious in their opposition to Zionism. Their rhetoric was meant to camouflage their impotence and to hoodwink their own populations into believing that they were serious about liberating Palestine. Only Islamic Iran is serious and since the Zionists control the US, Washington’s rulers have been led by the nose to undermine Islamic Iran for the sake of Zionist Israel.

Iran’s real “sin” is that it has challenged the global order that was crafted by the victors of the Second World War. Iran has broken out of that stranglehold and refuses to abide by US or Israeli demands. Both Washington and Tel Aviv know that this poses a serious challenge to their exploitative policies because if allowed to succeed, it would influence the thinking of other people as well — both Muslim and non-Muslim — and help them launch campaigns to free themselves from the yoke of US imperialism. For more than 30 years, the US has been involved in a relentless campaign to undermine Islamic Iran through sabotage, assassinations, sanctions, wars and every kind of other illegal means. Despite all these pressures, Islamic Iran has stood its ground and not compromised on its principles. Instead, all these challenges have strengthened its resolve and given it more self-confidence. The US can clearly see that as a consequence of Iran’s successful experiment, increasing numbers of Muslims have turned to Islam to find solutions to their problems. The US attempt to destabilize the Asad regime — admittedly not democratically elected but one that is not without some degree of internal support either — is part of the ongoing campaign to destroy the Islamic Republic. Washington’s warlords have repeatedly suffered defeats in their nefarious plans and their conspiracy in Syria is also coming to naught. Unlike previous wars, the Afghan and Iraq wars have bankrupted America. Both US President Barack Obama and his former Secretary of State Hillary Clinton have admitted that war is not an option for the US in Syria. This is quite an admission from an arrogant self-proclaimed superpower that was used to getting its away in the world. In the ideological struggle for the hearts and minds of people, the US and its allies have lost. There is a new world order in the making that is centered around Tehran. Muslims everywhere would do well to understand this reality and adjust their thinking accordingly. As Allah says in His noble Book, “O you who are securely committed to Allah, if you help the cause of Allah, He will give you victory and fortify your [advancing] resolve.” (47:07). What better deal do Muslims want from the Creator and Sustainer of all the worlds? March, 2013

Consequences of Qardhawi seditious stances

Head of the so-called Union of Muslim Ulama in Qatar Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qardhawi has launched a new wave of Iranophobia and Shiaphobia.

While demanding the Sunni youths to be dispatched to Syria to fight on the side of the opposition, Qardhawi claimed that the Iranians intend to kill the Sunnis through pre-planning. The Egyptian Qardhawi residing in Qatar used an insulting language against the leader of the anti-terrorist Lebanese Hezbollah Sayyed Hassan Nasrallah and called him the devil Hassan and Hezbollah as the party of the Satan. Meanwhile the Saudi Mufti Sheikh Abdul-Aziz bin Abdullah bin Muhammad Al-Sheikh voiced his support for the unfounded and biased remarks of Qardhawi against Lebanese Hezbollah and the Islamic Republic of Iran. Living in Qatar for some years, Sheikh Qardhawi has actually turned into a court mullah who has obtained with the support of Aljazeera TV network a status in political circles and the media. The Fatwas of this extremist mullah are aimed at aggravating differences between the Shiites and Sunnis within the framework of the western governments' policy of Iranophobia and Shiaphobia. Unfortunately Qardhawi has been entrapped by the Zionist regime and western governments to ignite sectarian wars in the Islamic states and strengthen the fake Israeli regime. Saudi Arabia and Qatar are the main supporters of the armed groups in Syria who are seeking to overthrow the government of Bashar Assad.

The armed terrorists are fighting the Syrian army within the framework of the policies of the Zionist regime and its western supporters for eliminate Syria from the forefront of resistance against the Zionist regime. Sheikh Qardhawi is one of those who legitimize the measures of terrorists in Syria whereas they are actually destroying the country and the Syrian nation under the pretext of freedom-seeking. Representing the western governments, the extremist armed groups have entered Syria and committed many crimes some of which have been revealed by independent media. Following the failure of terrorist groups in Syria, Qardhawi and the biased and hostile scholars like him are seeking to deceive more youths with their illogical Fatwas and send them to Syria to shed more blood. The Fatwas are in full compliance with the demand of the western states in a manner that Qardhawi has become known as the Sheikh of NATO. He also assured the Zionist regime that the Takfiri groups in Syria pose no threat to the regime.

Leader of the Islamic revolution Ayatollah Sayyed Ali Khamenei in his speech on the day of Mab'ath or the ordainment of Prophet Mohammad (SAWA) emphasized on distancing from discord and the necessity of unity among Muslims. Addressing the reciters and memorizers participating in the 30th international Qur’an Competitions, the leader stressed that one of the important commands of the holy Qur’an to Muslims is preservation of unity and solidarity and said: "Any throat or tongue that calls Muslims to unity is a divine throat and any throat that calls on Muslims and Islamic denominations to fight one another is the throat of Satan." Ayatollah Khamenei added: "One of the Qur’anic commands to Muslims is that they should stick to the rope of Allah all together and avoid disunity. In contrast to this command, there is the colonial teach and method whose aim is to create discord among the Islamic Ummah and intensify sectarian prejudices." The leader said that certain Muslim governments have been deceived and are playing in the enemy's ground. He reiterated: "Unity among Muslims is an urgent necessity.” Leader of the Islamic Revolution said that bloodshed, blind terrorism and the resulting tragedies, and creating opportunities for the usurper Zionist regime are among the consequences of discord among the Islamic Ummah. He added: "Today is the day of a great test for Muslims and Islamic governments, and Muslim nations should be completely vigilant." Ayatollah Khamenei referred to the wave of Islamophobia and stressed: "The Western enemies have unsheathed their swords against Muslims; so the Islamic Ummah should strengthen the factors that contribute to its internal power and capabilities. One of the most important factors in this regard is unity, solidarity and concentration on commonalities." The seditious statements of Qardhawi have widely echoes among Islamic states. The Friday leader of holy Najjaf Seyyed Sadreddin Qabanchi said that instead of inviting Muslims to unity Qardhawi invites them to sedition and his remarks are unacceptable in Islam. The United Ulama Council of Greater Syria in a statement declared as null and voids the so-called Fatwa issued by the controversial Qardhawi sanctioning the killing of fellow Muslims. The council added that Qardhawi’s instigation for bloodshed in Syria is far from the principles of religion, Hadith and practice of the holy Prophet of Islam. The statement declared that the conduct of Qardhawi as the head of the International Muslim Union has questioned the union's credibility. The Algerian daily Al-Watan severely criticized the stances of Qardhawi and wrote: "Sheikh Qardhawi who has several times released Fatwas on the Arab revolutions has no religious sanctity to us anymore, for; he has impudently abused his religious status in the service of Qatari regime's diplomacy.” The Algerian newspaper seriously criticized Qardhawi for his resort to provocative Fatwas aimed at creating sedition in the Arab states. Al-Watan added: "The peace birds which Qardhawi was supposed to lay on the ground flew up and instead of them eagles of war landed.” Regarding Qardhawi’s role in the Syrian crisis, the Algerian daily writes: "The forces of Al-Nusra front who fight the Syrian army always laud the provocative role of Qardhawi.” The British Daily Telegraph in a report on the biased and seditious remarks of Qardhawi wrote: "By inviting the Sunnis for war against the Alavis and Shiites in Syria, Qardhawi showed that he is seeking to intensify religious tensions all over the Middle East.” These are just part of reactions to the seditious remarks of the Egyptian Sheikh who considers permissible the killing of women and children for being Alavi. But are these hostile Fatwas compatible to the Islamic teachings? Which part of the holy Qur’an and the holy Prophet’s practice and behavior says that if a group does not think like us they should be killed? In his entire life the holy Prophet respected the life of those who lived under Muslim conquest but did not embrace Islam as long as they did not resort to arms. The Islamic ruler was mandated to preserve their life just as the life of Muslims. Which Qur’anic ayahs allow Qardhawi to dub the Alavis as worse than the Jews and Christians and shedding their blood Halal? What Qardhawi says about Iran and Shiites is unfounded and results from his hostility towards Shiites. Before becoming an anti-Shiite Sheikh he attended the assembly for proximity of Islamic schools and praised the Lebanese Hezbollah and the status of Seyyed Hassan Nasrallah in countering the Zionist regime. The reality is that differences among Islamic denominations do not cause discord and separation. The Assembly for proximity of Islamic schools was shaped on this idea, for; there are far more commonalities among various religious factions rather than differences. Qardhawi and the Wahabbi mullahs who consider discord among Muslims as their goal are well aware of this point. Therefore they try to introduce the Shiite ideas improperly to the Islamic communities and by distorting the Shiite books they inculcate the lie that the Shiites have no faith in the holy Qur’an. Just like the western regimes portray Islam as promoter and spreader of violence, Qardhawi and the Wahabbis try to create a negative picture of the Shiites. With this propaganda, they want with the aid of Saudi and Qatari rulers to distract attentions from the realities in the Islamic world and push forward their objectives. The objectives that the western governments pursue in the Islamic lands especially in the Middle East are implemented by Qatar and Saudi Arabia and confirmed by Qardhawi.

The Ummah’s tragedy: court ulama

by Zafar Bangash July, 2013 The ulama are supposed to be inheritors of the Prophets but only if they adhere to the divine commands. When they fall for worldly temptations, they become a curse. This is what appears to have happened to Shaykh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, a well-known alim, who has now joined the hate-spewing Saudis in spreading sectarianism. ‘Ulama are supposed to be successors to the Prophets (Å). Since no more prophets will come to guide humanity, the role of the ‘ulama has assumed great importance. If they adhere to the Qur’an and the Sunnah, they are a blessing for the Ummah; should they fall for temptations of the dunya, they become a curse. Who is unaware of the Pakistani politician Fazlur Rahman, a Deobandi maulana, whose antics and corruption are legendry? They have caused havoc in Pakistan. But in the hierarchy of ‘ulama, Fazlur Rahman is a minor figure. Much more serious is the role of figures like Yusuf al-Qaradawi, the Egyptian ‘alim who has a television program on the Qatari-owned al-Jazeera with a following of some 60 million people worldwide. At a rally in Doha, Qatar on June 1, Shaykh al-Qaradawi called upon “Sunni” Muslims from around the Muslim East to go to Syria and fight against Hizbullah, which had joined the battle for Qusayr in support of Syrian government forces. Al-Qaradawi alleged that “the Shi‘is [meaning Iran and Hizbullah] wanted to exterminate the Sunnis.” He went on to denounce Hizbullah as the “Party of Shaytan [Satan].” Not surprisingly, the Saudi Grand Mufti, Shaykh ‘Abd al-‘Aziz Aal al-Shaykh welcomed al-Qaradawi’s call since Saudi Arabia is in the forefront of fomenting sectarianism in the Ummah. This is the only game they know and since the Saudi rulers and court ‘ulama cannot justify on the basis of Islamic principles their illegitimate rule over the Arabian Peninsula, they want to entangle Muslims in disputes that dissipate their mental and physical energies. One is constrained to ask, when did the Saudis or Shaykh al-Qaradawi ever call upon Muslims in the Muslim East or anywhere else to go to Occupied Palestine to help liberate their Palestinian brothers and sisters from decades of Zionist oppression and occupation? Iran, Hizbullah and Bashar al-Asad’s government are the only players that have confronted US-Zionist hegemony in the region. While every Muslim, indeed every human being that cares for human rights and dignity must support the legitimate aspirations of the Syrian people, the issue is no longer about the rights of the Syrian people. Thousands of mercenaries from neighbouring countries backed and armed by the Saudi, Qatari, Jordanian, Turkish, American and Zionist regimes have flooded into Syria to advance the imperialist-Zionist Anglo-Wahhabi agenda. Their aim is to undermine the resistance front against imperialist-Zionist hegemony. When their direct military assault failed, they unleashed sectarianism to divide Muslims in a conflict that has already claimed thousands of lives in Syria. Shaykh al-Qaradawi has lent his considerable weight to this perfidious campaign. As Dr. Chandra Muzaffar, President of the International Movement for a Just World, Malaysia, wrote, “He was among the earliest public figures to endorse NATO’s airstrikes over Libya. In the middle of last year he even opined that if the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) came back today, he would support NATO. This earned him the derisive moniker ‘NATO Mufti’ among some Arab commentators.” Imagine a noted Muslim scholar maligning the noble Messenger (pbuh) in this manner! Contrast this with the joint appeal by former Malaysian Prime Minister Dr. Mahathir Mohamed and former Iranian President Mohammad Khatami in May calling for an end to sectarian fighting and killings.

Regrettably, Muslim history is replete with examples of some scholars standing against injustice while others endorse it. Soon after the Khilafah was subverted into monarchy, the Umayyad and ‘Abbasid rulers punished those scholars — Imams Abu Hanifah, al-Shafi‘i and Ahmad ibn Hanbal — who refused to endorse their illegitimate rule, but those who went along with the corruption were richly rewarded with worldly goods and positions (read that: hush money). Shaykh al-Qaradawi and many in the Arabian Peninsula have also succumbed to the lure of political partronage from those who prefer to make tawaf around the White House instead of the Ka‘bah. Living in palatial homes lined with carpets and plush sofas and a bevy of servants at their call, these scholars have forgotten the Islamic duty of al-amr bi-al-ma‘ruf wa-al-nahy ‘an al-munkar. Instead, they are actively promoting munkar. Neither the Saudi nor Qatari rulers are legitimate; they have usurped power and authority in rebellion against Allah’s (swt) commands and are subservient to the power of global kufr. It is their shameless and treacherous behavior, and not the level of Islamic scholarship, that ought to determine how obedient ordinary Muslims should be to the errant recommendations of scholars who have never acquired a level of comfort with cogently analyzing things that matter. Muslims have paid a terrible price for such faulty thinking in the past and cannot afford any more disasters. Instigating hatred among Muslims to advance the illegitimate rulers’ agenda is not only shortsighted, it is also mean spirited and ultimately disastrous for the Ummah. The blood of innocent Muslims will be as much on the hands of these scholars as it is on those who pull the trigger. Zafar Bangash is Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought

Intensifying the proxy war in Syria

by Zafar Bangash July, 2013 With the takfiri mercenaries suffering repeated military defeats in recent weeks (they never had any mass support), they and their foreign sponsors have resorted to the most vicious form of sectarian hatred in Syria. With rebel forces on the run in the 27-month long proxy war in Syria, their foreign sponsors have panicked. Led by the US and aided and abetted by Britain, France, Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Jordan and Turkey, the so-called Friends of Syria met in Doha, Qatar on June 22 and pledged more weapons to the rebels. While US Secretary of State John Kerry said they still preferred a political solution to the conflict, their decision to supply more lethal weapons would hardly advance the cause of peace. American officials, however, have always spoken from both sides of their mouth and it is no different in the case of Syria. Only a few weeks earlier, Kerry had urged Russia to convene another conference in Geneva to work out a negotiated settlement to the Syrian conflict. What happens to Geneva-II after Doha? American and British commandos have been training Syrian rebels in Jordan where large stockpiles of weapons are stored for possible use against the Syrian army. Under the guise of conducting military exercises, the real purpose was, and has been for quite some time to train the mercenaries so that they are better able to fight. In recent weeks, the Syrian army has made major gains especially in the strategic town of al-Qusayr with the help of Hizbullah fighters. Located near the Lebanese border, the town has great strategic importance since most of the weapons and mercenaries from Lebanon transited through al-Qusayr. After two weeks of intense fighting, the rebels fled. They had occupied the town for nearly two years destroying it completely. The Syrian army is now closing in on Aleppo to flush the mercenaries from there. The foreign sponsors of the mercenaries see their plans for turning Syria into an imperialist-Zionist outpost unraveling, hence the hurried meeting in Doha.

Nothing demoralizes fighters more than successive defeats. Since they do not enjoy the support of the overwhelming majority of the Syrian people — this was evident from the first day the mayhem was unleashed in March 2011 in a non-descript town like Dar‘a rather than any major city — they are now resorting to more brutal tactics. These are signs of desperation. If people do not join them, their policy is to torture and kill them. Car-bombings, killing leading religious figures like the 84-year-old Shaykh Sa‘id al-Buti in the masjid together with scores of worshippers as well as publicly beheading supporters of President Bashar al-Asad, are standard rebel tactics. They have now turned to cannibalism. By ripping open the body of a dead Syrian soldier and chewing his organs, Abu Sakkar, a well-known rebel commander has shown the rebels’ true face. The video was aired on a rebel website with vows to continue. Such barbarism was witnessed in the Battle of Uhud when Hind, the wife of Abu Sufyan ripped open the body of Hamzah (ra) and chewed his liver in a fit of rage. Muslims then and Muslims now condemn such acts of barbarism and the desecration of dead bodies. Such acts have nothing to do with Islam or its values; this is a return to the days of jahiliyah. This is not the only act of sacrilege perpetrated by the rebels. They slit the throats of children of their opponents and even descecrated the grave of Hujr ibn ‘Adi (ra), a well-known companion of the Prophet (pbuh) who was killed by the Umayyad king, Mu‘awiyah. According to reports, Hujr’s (ra) body was still intact after nearly 1,400 years. He was executed on the orders of Mu‘awiyah because he (Hujr) had objected to the vilification of Imam Ali (a) and Ahl al-Bayt from the minbar. This was a policy instituted by Mu‘awiyah because of his hatred of the family of the noble Messenger (pbuh). Muslims that go berserk and believe it is justifiable to kill fellow Muslims because they criticize some of the Sahabah, have been silent about this sacrilege against the grave and body of a well-known Sahabi. Is it alright to indulge in such behavior if it is perpetrated by people they support? The ongoing mayhem in Syria has exposed a number of players and their true character. First, those leading the so-called Syrian National Council (SNC) have little or no support inside Syria. Most of them reside abroad in five-star hotels or palaces provided by the corrupt Arabian rulers. The regimes supporting rebel fighters who have flooded in from neighboring as well as distant countries, are unrepresentative and tribal dictatorships: Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Jordan. Those calling themselves republican — Turkey, Egypt, etc. — are subservient to the US. The latest addition is President Mohamed Mursi of Egypt. He has disappointed many people both inside Egypt as well as outside by the manner in which he has surrendered to the most oppressive monarchies and to imperialist-Zionist interests. The same goes for Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan. He is already facing a blowback; Mursi will not escape that fate either. While we do not hold any brief for Bashar al-Asad and fully support the right of the Syrian people to have their own representative government, the issue in Syria has gone beyond that. It is an imperialist-Zionist project whose principal aim is to undermine the resistance front against Zionist aggression and occupation, and ultimately push for regime change in Iran. From their affiliations and statements, members of the SNC have exposed themselves as US-Zionist puppets. Those calling for US/NATO intervention should ponder over the plight of Afghanistan, Iraq and especially Libya. Since when has the US or Zionist Israel been friends of the Muslims? What is underway is no longer about the rights of the Syrian people. If the SNC thinks it has mass support in the country, it should participate in next year’s presidential elections and prove it. Destroying Syria to turn it into an imperialist-Zionist outpost will serve the interests of neither the Syrian people, nor of the SNC. Syria is being turned into a hellhole from which only the Israelis will benefit.

Mursi joins the US-zionist-Saudi crusade in Syria

by Ayman Ahmed July, 2013

President Mursi has succumbed to US-Saudi-zionist pressure and joined the crusade in Syria. Since becoming president, he has badly mishandled Egypt’s affairs and with a bankrupt economy, he has embarked on a policy that will have serious repercussions for the country’s future. In recent days, many observers have found Egyptian President Mohamed Mursi’s behavior quite erratic. Whether this is forced upon him by circumstances and/or powers that be or reflect his own thinking is difficult to tell but instead of showing leadership he has succumbed to the forces of darkness that are leading him down a blind alley. His latest antics come amid shrill calls from the US and its Western allies to devise plans to send heavy weapons to the mercenaries in Syria that have already caused havoc in the country. On June 13, President Barack Obama alleged that the Syrian government was guilty of using “chemical weapons” — Obama’s red line — and that he was authorizing the Central Intelligence Agency (CIA) to arrange for arms shipments to the rebels. The same day, a conference of some 70 religious scholars was held in Cairo, Egypt. Was it a coincidence or choreographed to provide an Islamic crutch to what is a Western crusade against another Muslim country? Convened by the International Union of Muslim Scholars, a body headed by Shaykh Yusuf al-Qaradawi and generously funded by Qatar and Saudi Arabia, it was attended by some 70 court ‘ulama from Saudi Arabia and the Persian Gulf monarchies. These so-called ‘ulama have never had the tawfiq to utter one word of condemnation against Zionist crimes inflicted on the long-suffering Palestinians but they waxed eloquent in support of the Syrian people and the mercenaries fighting there. The conference attendees were shown a crude video, most probably doctored, to highlight “crimes” perpetrated by the Syrian army against the people. Even if true, there is no shortage of crimes being perpetrated by both sides in Syria. Recently a horrible video appeared on YouTube, uploaded by the rebels, in which one of the Saudi-Zionist-American-backed mercenaries ripped open the body of a dead Syrian soldier and chewed upon his liver. Even Russian President Vladimir Putin was so appalled by this that he publicly chastised British Prime Minister David Cameron at a June 16 press conference in London telling him, “Do you want to arm people that eat their enemies’ organs?” Cameron offered the lame excuse, “Not all of them do it.” How many cannibals would it take for the West and their Arabian puppets to stop arming such beasts? The website for Shaykh al-Qaradawi’s organization ran a statement claiming the Cairo meeting was designed to “show the real face of Iran, the Asad regime and Hizbullah,” in reference to the allegation that Islamic Iran and Hizbullah’s backing is keeping Bashar al-Asad’s government in power. There is no proof of Iran’s direct military involvement in Syria although Tehran has made no secret of its political backing for al-Asad as part of the resistance front against Zionist aggression. Hizbullah did support the Syrian army to liberate al-Qusayr in May but that came two years after the mercenaries had occupied the border town and perpetrated terrible crimes against civilians, many of them Lebanese. On the other hand, it is well documented that at least 40,000 mercenaries from 27 countries are operating in Syria. Regimes supporting such mercenaries or allowing them to use their territory to cross into Syria are in clear violation of international law — yes, the one crafted by the West itself that is so often invoked against those that challenge Western hegemony — and thus are perpetrating war crimes. Such violations, however, have not bothered the West’s human rights crusaders because they are determined to overthrow al-Asad even if the mercenaries they are supporting indulge in acts of cannibalism. In fact, such acts advance the West’s long-standing agenda to depict Islam in the most negative light. Barring a few exceptions, the overwhelming majority of Muslims worldwide have recoiled in horror at such behavior. It reminds them of the barbaric practice of Abu Sufyan’s wife Hind in the Battle of Uhud when she ripped open the body of Hamzah (ra), the Prophet’s uncle, and chewed upon his liver. Are the mercenaries in Syria any better? More crucially, those backing them are following in the footsteps of Abu Jahal, Abu Lahab, Abu Sufyan and his wife Hind. Back to the days of jahiliyah!

The Cairo conference and those attending it had a nefarious agenda: to stoke sectarian conflict in the Ummah. They declared the anti-government struggle in Syria as “jihad” and urged “Sunni Muslims” from all over the world to join it. But making such declarations at a conference attended by a mere 70 court ‘ulama including the Shaykh of al-Azhar Ahmed al-Tayeb, who is known to be a decent person, would not get much traction; nor would Shaykh al-Qaradawi’s website help advance the cause of the “jihadi mercenaries.” A more direct approach was deemed necessary to reach a wider audience. The next day, on Jumu‘ah, a direct appeal was made to the masses at salat al-jumu‘ah. Saudi preacher Mohammed al-‘Arify used his guest sermon at a central masjid in Cairo to harangue thousands of worshippers to not only support the mercenaries in Syria but to join them by enlisting in “jihad.” It was al-‘Arify who had earlier issued a call for Muslim girls to join what he referred to as jihad al-munakahah in Syria. What this means is that Muslim girls should go to Syria to service the sexual needs of mercenaries fighting there. Unfortunately some gullible girls from Tunisia and other places have joined what is essentially a prostitution racket to advance the Zionist-imperialist agenda in the region. Worse still, those that call themselves ‘ulama are advocating such conduct. Even Masjid al-Haram, the sacred House of Allah (swt) in Makkah has not been spared. Sheikh Sa‘ud al-Shuraym, using the minbar of Masjid al-Haram on Jumu‘ah urged Muslims to help the Syrian rebels “by all means” possible. He even broke down while making the appeal, whichwas broadcast live on several Arabian TV channels. How many times has any Saudi preacher made an appeal to help the Palestinians, much less shedding tears for them? Muslims struggling for their legitimate rights elsewhere, in Kashmir or Afghanistan, for instance, should not entertain any illusions that a Saudi preacher would ever pray for them much less ask for material help. In the desert kingdom, use of the two sacred masjids — Masjid al-Haram and al-Masjid al-Nabawi — or indeed any other masjid, for political sermons is strictly forbidden. Talking rituals is the order of the day. The House of Saud is terrified lest some independent-minded shaykh might emerge and take its members to task for corruption or lewd behavior. Pre-approved khutbahs are handed to them to deliver from all the masjids in the kingdom. The abuse of the minbar to vilify fellow Muslims revives memories of the dark days of the Umayyad rulers when they instituted the policy of cursing Imam ‘Ali (a) and the Prophet’s (pbuh) family, the Ahl al-Bayt (nastaghfir-allah). After participating in the khutbah crusade, the preachers assembled in Cairo, feasted on rice and lamb, and then rested for a while, as is their wont, before invading the presidential palace to harangue Mursi to join their campaign. Seeing Saudi- and Qatari-backed preachers and smelling riyals, Mursi could not resist the temptation. Egypt is suffering from a severe financial crisis making him vulnerable to petro-dollars and riyals. He succumbs to whoever comes with offers of cash for his cash-strapped country. After his meeting with the preachers on Friday night, Mursi addressed thousands of supporters in a Cairo stadium the following day for a “Free Syria” rally. Some of the religious preachers from the conference were also present. Mursi announced cutting all relations with Damascus. He said Egypt was closing its embassy and withdrawing its Charge d’Affaires from Damascus while he demanded the Syrian ambassador leave Cairo. Mohamed Seif al-Dawla, a former advisor to Mursi recalled that after Israel attacked Syria in May, he had demanded the closure of the Zionist embassy in Cairo. Instead, Mursi has shut down the Syrian embassy! Just over a year earlier, Mursi had announced the formation of a four-member Contact Group to resolve the Syrian crisis peacefully. He had made the appeal at the Organization of Islamic Cooperation meeting in Makkah. He reiterated the same call at the Non-Aligned Movement summit in Tehran a couple of weeks later. The quartet, according to Mursi would comprise Egypt, Iran, Turkey and Saudi Arabia. With his support base at home shrinking and under US-Saudi-Qatari pressure, Mursi has abandoned his own plan to resolve the Syrian crisis through dialogue. Instead, he has joined the Anglo-Wahhabi-Zionist-imperialist crusade. He even demanded that a no-fly zone be imposed over Syria in the manner of Libya. Russia has made clear it will not support any such move and would veto any resolution presented in the UN Security Council. It is depressing to note that those calling themselves ‘ulama resort to tactics that are bound to deepen existing fissures in the Ummah. Exactly a century ago, the British had injected the poison of nationalism to create divisions between the Ottoman Turks and Arabian chiefs. While these tribal chiefs did not get independence, their betrayal led directly to the implantation of the Zionist entity in Palestine. Today, sectarianism is being promoted in order to safeguard the Zionist entity from the growing awareness in the Ummah, especially the Muslim East. The Arabian chiefs will pay a heavy price for such treachery. In any case, their days are numbered and sooner rather than later, they will be consigned to the dustbin of history where they rightly belong.