Posted on 10/24/2006 8:13:35 PM PDT by Stultis
Dr. Tawfik Hamid holds a boxed lunch in one hand and offers me his book, The Roots of Jihad, with the other. A Muslim, he wears Western clothing. Still, I refrain from extending my hand. We walk back to the conference room.
No photographs of Dr. Hamid are allowed.
“For security reasons,” says the doctor, who looks younger than his 45 years.
Dr. Hamid fled his native Egypt because he espouses a peaceful interpretation of Islam based on the Koran.
Today he is one of the leading authorities on the Islamic texts (Sulafi) which are responsible for the wildfire spread of jihad in the Arab world.
As I listen to his articulate scholarship, his bitter condemnation of his own people, Icatch myself staring.
Before he embraced this new way of seeing, Dr. Hamid was an ideological extremist on the fast track to becoming a real live terrorist.
“I was eight when I first heard the teaching that says, ‘When you die a martyr, you are not dead — you are alive,’” says Dr. Hamid, who was raised in a secular Muslim family. “Dying for Allah was the only guarantee that we would not go to the grave.
“For us, the grave was frightening. Sulafi Islam teaches that only punishment awaits us in the grave. So to me, and many kids around me, the idea of dying for Allah and going to Paradise was wonderful. For me, a child, that meant eating lollipops and candy and chocolate. Believe me. This was my dream!”
Later, the dream changed.
During medical school, Dr. Hamid joined JI (Jaamma Islameia), an outlaw fundamentalist group calling for jihad against Muslims who have abandoned their faith (apostates) and non-Muslims.
He met Dr. Aiman Al-Zawaheri — now Al Qaida’s second in command under Osama bin Laden — in JI.
Asked what Al-Zawaheri was like, Dr. Hamid does not hesitate. (And any Muslim who hesitates “even for one second” when answering a question is being deceptive, he later stresses.)
“Al-Zawaheri was a very nice man on the personal level,” he says. “He was very dedicated to the concept of jihad against the US. He often came to the mosque I went to. We prayed together. We talked.”
I need to know why Dr. Hamid is no longer an extremist. What happened?
“At first I followed the teachings of Sulafi Islam. Ichanged into a person that justified the killings of innocents. I thought in a totally distorted manner. Ibecame like a beast.
“When it came time to go forward and commit certain acts — I was invited to go Afghanistan, to train for jihad, to die for Allah — I felt this struggle between my conscience and the religious teachings. I started to think.
“And this word, thinking, probably is what saved me. I began to question. You see, at the theoretical level things seemed OK. But at the practical level, when I was about to act . . .
“A friend introduced me to another form of Islamic thinking that was relatively peaceful. I say relatively peaceful, compared to the other kind.
“This sect was primarily based on the Koran. I began studying Koranic verses in a totally different manner. There are many verses in the Koran that praise B’nai Yisrael; that grant the Israelis the land. Soon I started to preach this new understanding.”
One day, he was called to preach at the mosque. “I gave a lecture, and people listened peacefully. It was good. But afterward, some fundamentalists surrounded me. They said, if you come here again we will kill you. Then they attacked me, and my friend. We ran. But soon they began stoning me.”
Dr. Hamid looks at me with pained and furious eyes.
“Unfortunately, this resistance to peaceful teaching is not limited to fundamentalists. It is now at the level of the people.”
The three dominant beliefs encouraged in the prevailing, and popular, Sulafi Islamic teachings are killing the apostate, beating women, and declaring war on non-Muslims.
“Clearly,”Dr. Hamid adds, “most adherents believe Jews are apes and pigs.”
I write his last sentence with tight fingers.
Although he won’t allow his face to be photographed and refuses to divulge where he lives, Dr. Hamid speaks throughout the US on understanding — and challenging — radical Islamic ideology.
I’m reminded of Jews trying to dialogue with Jews for Jesus and other Christian proselytizers. Either you know your Torah, or drown in their specious arguments.
The same applies to discussions with Muslims, says Dr. Hamid.
“It is vitally important to confront Islamic organizations in the US on these points. They should clarify their positions in an unambiguous manner. Of course, they will say what they say. But you must put your questions to them in a clear manner. Do not give them a chance to blame the world for their own actions. They know how to play with the words. I know, because Iwas one of them.
“For example, a Nazi can say Nazism is peaceful. But if they don’t denounce the Holocaust or the killing of Jews, what they say means nothing.” Dr. Hamid proceeds to offer his method for cracking the fundamentalist Islamic code.
“I am happy to give you the right answers to ask now,”he says, the flicker of a smile forming on his dark features.
“Ask them, ‘What do you think of killing apostates? Is it correct, or absolutely wrong?’ If they say it is absolutely wrong, take them to the next question. ‘Clarify what Saudi Arabia says about killing apostates.’ (The punishment for apostasy in Saudi Arabia is death.) Tell me whether this is wrong. If they say it is wrong, ask them to please put this up on their Website, or post it in their mosque, or have them sign a document stating that this is what they believe.
“The same is true of beating women: ‘Is is correct or absolutely unacceptable to beat women?’ Ask me. I could say to you, ‘Islam generally recommends dealing in a good manner with women.’ Or you may hear, ‘Oh, it’s only in rare instances.’ I know how they trick the world. Iwas one of them.
“Don’t let them betray you. Don’t . . .”
He struggles for an accurate English translation, his fingers jabbing the air.
Don’t leave the question open-ended, I suggest.
“Ah, never!”
He leans forward on the table.
“Ask Muslim kids what they think about Jews. Kids do not lie. They will tell you what they are being taught. If they say, ‘Jews are nice people and we can live with them in harmony,’ I will be the first person to congratulate their parents. But I assure you, if you ask Muslim kids living in the US what they think of Jews, you will be shocked.”
In the US?
“Yes. In the US. You will be shocked.”
“Dr. Hamid, do you hate your own people?”
For the first time, he hesitates — briefly.
“Iam against them,” he says. “When you preach peace, and the whole community boycotts you and your wife and your children, it is painful. Just because you preach that killing apostates is absolutely wrong and is not mentioned in the Koran, and that Jews are not ‘pigs’ and ‘monkeys,’ and the community threatens you, it is painful. But forget my passion, my emotions. Follow the logic.”
Dr. Hamid says the Islamic world did not condemn bin Laden for masterminding 9/11.
“Not one single fatwah (religious ruling) was issued against bin Laden. Ihave never heard of one. Have you? Yet 24 hours after the publication of Salman Rushdie’s book The Satanic Verses, there was a fatwah to kill Rushdie.”
In the wake of 9/11, many Muslims expressed their sorrow on American TV.
Some were genuine, Dr. Hamid says.
However, the majority were sending their approval to the terrorists via the media by not mentioning bin Laden’s name.
His narrowing brow warns me I’m not going to like what I hear.
“Listen closely. Let’s imagine that I, Dr. Tawfik Hamid, commit a terrorist act. The media invites another Muslim to appear on TV and talk about what Idid. This person says, ‘Islam is against terrorism. Islam is against violence.’ But he does not say my name. Iget the message. By not mentioning my name, he is telling me to do it again. It’s like a hidden language in our culture. I know Iam being given the justification to act.”
He notices a disbelieving shadow creep across my face.
“You are very naive,” he tells me.
Dr. Hamid, who will speak at a lecture hosted by DU’s Institute for the Study of Israel in the Middle East later that day, covers fascinating, and disturbing, territory during the hour-long interview.
• A few years before 9/11, Dr. Hamid predicted tall buildings in New York would be “brought down to ground” by Islamic terrorists.
• Mohamed is “just a human being in the Koran. Nothing more than this. But the Muslims have elevated Mohamed because he can intercede on their behalf when they come before Allah for judgement.”
• While portions of the Koran can be interpreted as anti-Semitic, the vast majority of anti-Semitism arises from the Sulafi teachings. He points to several Koranic verses, first reciting in Arabic, then translating: “Children of Israel, remember the gifts I have given you and that Ihave prepared for you above all mankind”; “I have chosen the Jews above all mankind”; “I have made you guiding lights to the world”; “The land I have given you is written as a permanent contract, a permanent inheritance.”
Near the conclusion of our talk, Iraise two more questions.
If I walk past two Muslims and they notice my Star of David, should I assume they hate me because I am Jewish?
“Certainly,” he responds without the slightest pause. “I’m sorry to say this, but certainly.”
He quickly reconsiders.
“No. That was an unscientific answer. I would say, ‘Most likely.’ Ask the Muslim children here what they think of Jews. You will see, Andrea.”
With the publication of The Roots of Jihad and subsequent speaking engagements to large audiences throughout the US, does he fear for his life?
“Yes. But I feel obligated to expose the truth. Iam morally obligated to help Muslims understand the Koran in a peaceful manner. Enabling Muslims to live in harmony with the rest of the world is far more important to me than my life. I always say that in certain times in history, there are people who stand against evil. Iam honored to be among them.”
If that be the case, there is going to be IMO one large whooping and it won't be our.
Hummm Thank you for the thread.
They got better near the end of the war but I'm given to understand that, at one point, the Afghan fighters grew so disgusted with the incompetence of the Arabs, who were proving more of a hindrance than a help, that they demanded they leave the country en mass.
BTW, Azzam (a thoroughly nasty character, but somewhat less extreme and less delusion than UBL) had wanted the Arab fighters to integrate with Afghan units. Bin Laden among others insisted they fight separately. Many believe that UBL murdered Azzam as a rival to the early al-Qaeda movement.
UBL has gotten alot of mileage out of the notion that Arab fighters defeated the Soviets in Afghanistan. I suspect that claim is way overblown, and that there wouldn't have been a dimes worth of difference if the Afghans had fought alone (with American arms).
The Muslim scholars who recently wrote to the Pope unequivocally renounced the notion of aggressive Jihad.
I have a question but also a thought about Our Holy Father,Someone close to him said he made a mistake and I said he did not.When will the Muslins scholars say they are sorry for our loss 9-11 so many beautiful lives.
"True, but without the oil riches of the Middle East, they would be a non-factor, and certainly have far less enthusiasm for their sick, perverted "cause"."
Those oil riches weren't available during the time of the Crusades. They certainly had alot of enthusiasm then.
The fourth point is holy war. The 38 signatories of the letter recall that the word “jihad” properly means “struggle in the way of God,” which is not necessarily war. Even Christ used violence when he chased the merchants from the temple. They sum up in this way Islam’s three “authoritative and traditional” rules on war:
– civilians are not approved targets;
– religious creed alone cannot make a person the object of an attack;
– Muslims can and must live peacefully beside their neighbors, although the legitimacy of self-defense and the maintenance of sovereignty remain valid principles.
So if some Muslims – they write – have ignored such well-established teaching on the limits of war, preferring to this “utopian dreams where the end justifies the means, they have done so of their own accord and without the sanction of God, His Prophet, or the learned tradition.”
you hit the nail bang on there...
i think most westners fall for the platitudes that the good doctor has identified above.
a lot of the liberal media really want to belive there is no islamic monster under the bed...so when a guy answers and says there isnt, they ignore the obvious growling....
the comment on the fatwa is very very interesting....i wonder will the Prez ask that of our 'saudi friends'
Apples and Oranges
The letter also explicitly rejects forced conversion, and asserts that the Koranic insistance that there can be no compulsion in religion supercedes any other verses or haddiths that might be interpreted otherwise.
" and killing those who convert from Islam to other religions."
Barack Obama comes to mind. There must be a big target on his back.
Good morning.
Apples and Oranges
How so?
a lot of the liberal media really want to belive there is no islamic monster under the bed
And way too many people here seem to think that there is nothing but monsters under the bed.
hahaha....good one..i shall put the tinfoil hat on then..
This war we are fighting is a big thing, one of the biggest things we've ever done, and it's a hard thing (If it were easy we could leave it to the French), in many ways harder than the Cold War. Why? Because the Soviets for all their faults did want to die, the terrorists do. They would rather die (and take you and I with them) than live in a world where people don't worship god the exact way they do. They don't care weather you are a Jew, Hundu, Muslim, atheist, or someone who thinks his great uncle Harry is God, if you don't think live act believe exactly as they do you must die.
Shameless Plug
The radical loser (Long Read)
Der Spiegel ^ | 1/12/05 | Hans Magnus Enzensberger
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1694568/posts
Posted on 09/02/2006 5:55:01 PM CDT by Valin
Hans Magnus Enzensberger looks at the kind of ideological trigger required to ignite the radical loser - whether amok killer, murderer or terrorist - and make him explode
(snip) Since before the attack on the World Trade Center, political scientists, sociologists and psychologists have been searching in vain for a reliable pattern. Neither poverty nor the experience of political repression alone seem to provide a satisfactory explanation for why young people actively seek out death in a grand bloody finale and aim to take as many people with them as possible. Is there a phenotype that displays the same characteristics down the ages and across all classes and cultures? No one pays any mind to the radical loser if they do not have to. And the feeling is mutual. As long as he is alone – and he is very much alone – he does not strike out. He appears unobtrusive, silent: a sleeper. But when he does draw attention to himself and enter the statistics, then he sparks consternation bordering on shock. For his very existence reminds the others of how little it would take to put them in his position. One might even assist the loser if only he would just give up. But he has no intention of doing so, and it does not look as if he would be partial to any assistance.
(snip)
Contrary to what the West appears to believe, the destructive energy of Islamist actions is directed mainly against Muslims. This is not a tactical error, not a case of "collateral damage". In Algeria alone, Islamist terror has cost the lives of at least 50,000 fellow Algerians. Other sources speak of as many as 150,000 murders, although the military and the secret services were also involved. In Iraq and Afghanistan, too, the number of Muslim victims far outstrips the death toll among foreigners. Furthermore, terrorism has been highly detrimental not only to the image of Islam but also to the living conditions of Muslims around the world.
The Islamists are as unconcerned about this as the Nazis were about the downfall of Germany. As the avant-garde of death, they have no regard for the lives of their fellow believers. In the eyes of the Islamists, the fact that most Muslims have no desire to blow themselves and others sky high only goes to show that they deserve no better than to be liquidated themselves. After all, the aim of the radical loser is to make as many other people into losers as possible. As the Islamists see it, the fact that they are in the minority can only be because they are the chosen few.
(snip)
/Shameless Plug
The KKK and the Salafist, Fundamentalist, radical, fascist Islamic movements have so little in common
- philosophical, religious and cultural foundations, the strengths and weaknesses of those foundations, dynamic and adaptive vs rigid organizational structures, comprehensive program and goals fully integrated with the philosophical foundations and with the political acumen to produce mass popularity vs a truly fringe movement -
leaving their most singularly common trait being their willingness to use violence and the threat of violence in their program.
Outside of that violence the KKK and the Islamic fascist movements are not analogous in any other sense.
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