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Warriors for God: Terrorism and Religion

Modern Middle East

Fall 2002

Some Thoughts

� A major shift happened in the �90s away from political terrorism to religious-based terrorism.

� Likewise, this trend reflected the shift to a fundamentalist revolution in religious matters not only in the Middle East, but in the West too.

� This was a shift that had not happened since the Middle Ages.

� Could we expect a return to traditional political-based terrorism in the near future?

Fairness or Truth

� Today much of the religious-based terrorism is found in the Islamic World.

� Many apologists in the West and many Islamists disagree.

� They stress that Islamic fundamentalism is just another trend.

� They argue that the West just needs an enemy following the Cold War.

� They claim that Islam is just highly moral championing love rather than hate.

� Yet their arguments that explain the violence in the Islamic World are rather shallow.

Free vs. Unfree

� Freedom House is devoted to the study of human rights.

� Freedom House notes that 45 out of 51 nations that are �unfree� are found in the Islamic World.

� Why?

� Is it the fault of the West as claimed by Edward Said?

� Or are their other factors that account for this?

� At the moment, Islam has not yet produced a Hitler or a Pol Pot.

� But has produced a Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

What Accounts For This?

� This is an aggressive missionary zeal in Islam lacking in other religions.

� The anti-Western position is particularly strong in the Islamic World

� Much of the anti-Western feelings are deeply religious.

� Also, there were no secular beliefs for Muslims to suppress themselves.

� While the West feels that much of this violence is directed against them.

� The truth is that it is directed against other Muslim, those considered apostates.

� Algeria is a case in point.

Perceptions vs. Reality

� Does radical Islam = terrorism.

� Apologists say no.

� Yet Western perceptions are closer to the truth.

� But we should remember that Islamic fundamentalism does not have a monopoly on violence.

The Problem of Jihad

� Jihad has two meanings.

� **One is jihad bi al saif meaning Holy War by the Sword.**

� **The other is jihad bi al nafs meaning the struggle for ones soul against one�s base instincts.**

� For the most part, Islamic militants opt for the second interpretation.

� This can be especially true for the Taliban, Hamas, and Hezbollah.

Background

� Algeria won its independence in 1962.

� The government shifted from left to the military to the populist.

� While initially supporting the Islamists the government was basically secular.

� The government used the Islamists to keep the Communists in check.

� Then there was a problem with jobs and economic opportunities in Algeria.

The Islamic Revival in Algeria

� The revival took off in the late-1970s.

� The revival can be explained as a result of the malaise that set in because of the lack of popular expectations.

� A full fledge break occurred between the middle class and Muslim faithful in 1982.

� By 1990 it became a full fledge war.

� Resulting in nearly 60,000 dead by 1997.

� Far greater level of violence than what has been happening in the Palestine.

State of Islam in Algeria

� The government never persecuted the Islamists.

� Instead they were used to keep the left wing, ie., the Communists in check.

� It was also seen by the government to placate the public for the horrible state of the Algerian economy.

� The government had failed to improve the lot of the Algerian public.

� The result was Islamic terrorism.

The Start of the Violence

� A popular uprising of Islamic community came in 1988.

� And became worse in 1991 when the government annulled the 1991 when the Islamic Salvation Front won impressive victories.

� The government suspended the Front and declared a state of emergency.

� Then the GIA, the Islamist terrorist group entered the battle.

Islamic Terrorist Organizations in Algeria

� GIA

� The Army of the Prophet Muhammad

� United Company of Jihad

� Movement for an Islamic State

� Armed Islamic State

Islamic Terrorist Operations in Algeria

� Sometimes operated in large groups of a hundred or more.

� Liberating prisoners.

� Seizing villages.

� And killing the villagers.

� The Islamic terrorist groups were very similar to Pol Pot in Cambodia.

� Targeting classes of people � including teachers and scholars.

Base for Algerian Terrorists

� Poor section of Algiers.

� Fundamentalists.

Methods of Attack

� Car bombs

� Placed in public places

� In order to increase casualties

� Another favorite method is cutting the throats of villagers.

� This was done for psychological and political purposes.

� Foreigners are considered �soft� targets.

The Results of the Six Days War in 1967

� Before 1967 terrorism within Israel was rare.

� But after the war large number of Palestinians now had access to Israel.

� This became a price Israel had to pay for the creation of a �Biblical Israel.�

� New terrorist groups emerge � one was Popular Democratic Front for the Liberation of Palestine (PDFL) and the Popular Front for the Liberation for Palestine (PFLP).

Palestinian Operations Against Israel

� Hijacking jets.

� Attack on the Israeli Olympic Team in Munich.

� Fatah also was involved in Jordanian and Lebanon.

� Conducted attacks on Israelis in Northern Israel and in Lebanon.

� But on the horizon were far greater threats to Israel.

Birth of Hamas and Hezbollah

� In the 1980s Hamas emerged in the Gaza Strike and Hezbollah in Lebanon.

� Both were highly fundamentalist in temperament.

� A far greater threat than the Marxists groups that emerged earlier.

� Hezbollah is linked to the Iranian Revolution.

� While Hamas has its origins with the Islamic Brotherhood from Egypt.

� The Islamic Brotherhood had its origins in the 1920s and had a major revival in the 1980s.

Hezbollah

� Means the Party of God.

� This expression appears in the Koran.

� Hezbollah has become progressively more violent after the late 1978 following the Israeli and Syrian intervention into Lebanon.

� Hezbollah is Shiite.

� And received support from Iran.

� Soon Hezbollah has targeted the �Great Satan� in Lebanon.

Hezbollah Attacks

� Sheikh Fadlalla had become the spiritual leader of Hezbollah.

� He opposed any reconciliation with the West or with Israel which he feels is illegitimate.

� Likewise he opposed the Soviets and Sunnis.

� He authorized the first suicide attacks against the American Marines, French Paratroopers, and the Israelis.

� The Hezbollah high command opposes any accommodation with Israel.

� Most of the aid for Hezbollah comes from Iran to the tune of 30 to 60 million a year.

Hamas

� Hamas means Islamic Resistance Movement.

� It began in 1987 when the First Intifada started.

� Its base was in the Gaza and was an off-shoot of the Islamic Brotherhood.

� Palestinians who were disgruntled with Arafat found a new home with Hamas.

� Hamas now attacked not only the Israelis, but also Arabs who worked with them.

� By 1995-96, Hamas has increased in violence.

� One Hamas leader, Yehya Ayash �the Engineer� began to miniaturized bombs making more practical for suicide bombers.

� By 1994-1995 , a new group was conducting serious suicide attacks.

� That group called itself Islamic Jihad, an off-Shoot of Hamas.

Yasser Arafat: A Prisoner of Hamas and Hezbollah

� Arafat is impotent.

� He either has to accept the actions of Hamas and Hezbollah or be replaced.

� The Israelis either know this or simply don�t care.

� Since Ariel Sharon has his own agenda of a greater Israel.

� Totally disregarding the new paradigm in the Middle East.

Suicide Attacks: The Apex of Propaganda by Deed

� The impression tells a thousand words.

� If someone is willing to risk their lives in order to achieve the mission, then the mission must be significant.

� Laqueur is wrong in claiming that suicide bombings are exaggerated.

� The numbers, instead of diminishing are actually increasing since 2001.

Suicide Attacks Against Israel

� The suicide missions against Israel are not new.

� But they are the first major campaign since 1945.

� Between 1982 and 1998 over fifty such attacks were conducted against Israel alone.

� Hamas hid their operations behind a group call Islamic Jihad.

� The Koran does not permit suicide, but it is a religious duty to fight and die for Allah.

Islamic Candidates for Suicide Bombings

� Usually male, but not always.

� Between 16 and 28.

� Hamas and Hezbollah would like the West to believe that Arabs of all classes participate.

� But the evidence does not bear this out.

� Most suicide bombers come from struggling and poor families.

� Most are single men, but not all.

Religious Views of Suicide Bombers

� They are deeply religious.

� Yet hold a very primitive kind of Islamic views.

� Many are impressionable.

� The recruiters manipulate them.

� Taking their pictures.

� Taking videos.

� Making Posters.

� Assuring them that they would get a pass to heaven and 70 virgins.

� And meet their family in Paradise.

Typical Suicide Bomber

� 47% of the suicide bombers have an academic education and an additional 29% have at least a high school education.

� 83% of the suicide bombers are single.

� 64% of the suicide bombers are between the ages 18-23; most of the rest are under 30.

� 68% of the suicide bombers have come from the Gaza Strip.

Suicide Attacks Directed Against Americans

� 1996 Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia.

� 1998 attacks U.S. Embassies in Nairobi and Dar es Salam.

� 2000 USS Cole

� 2001 World Trade Centers and Pentagon.

� All linked to Osama bin Ladin.

Egyptian Terrorism

� The leading Egyptian terrorist group is the Gama� al Islamiya.

� Starting in 1992 they waged a wave of terrorist attacks killing policemen, judges, Coptic Christians, and foreigners.

� One of the worst attacks happened in Luxor in 1997.

� They also attempted to kill Mubarak in Ethiopia and attacked the Egyptian embassy in Pakistan.

� Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman was involved in the first WTC attack and subsequent attacks in NYC.

Right Wing Israeli Terrorism

� The Israeli right support expansionism.

� Most Orthodox Jewish parties were anti-zionist.

� Some did not even recognize the State of Israel.

� Most were pacifists.

� But that changes.

� Some wanted to drive the Arabs out.

� Believing that Jews and Arabs could live in peace.

Specific Acts of Right Wing Israeli Terrorism

� Meir Kahane, founder of the JDL, but murder in 1993.

� 1996 Baruch Goldstein attacks Muslims on Temple Mount.

� Murder of Yitzhak Rabin by a radical conservative Israeli, Yigal Amir.

� He considered Rabin a traitor.

� In many ways this was like the situation in the Weimar Republic.

The Flashpoint

� Kashmir is a region in contention between Hindus and Muslims.

� More than 20,000 have died since 1990.

� But how do we differentiate between terrorism and banditry and ethnic clashes.

� Normally the world was not interested.

� Until both India and Pakistan exploded atomic devices.

� Then things changed.

History of Terrorism in India/Pakistan

� There is a long history of terrorism in India.

� Prior to 1939 it was often directed against the British Raj.

� But after 1945 it was caused by both Sikhs and Muslims.

� But after 1947 the nationalist aspirations became weaker and religious extremism was on the increase.

� The Indian government has proved incapable of solving the Muslim concerns in Kashmir and the Sikh problem in Punjab.

Kashmiri Muslims

� Are secular

� Were Hindus who had adopted Islam.

� Instead of reaching an accord with the moderates New Delhi ordered the arrest of Sheikh Abdullah, the leader of the Kashmiri Muslim community.

� But currently there is a serious split between Kashmiri Muslims between the secularists and the fundamentalists.

Tactics of the Islamic Radicals

� Attack and murder Hindus and Sikhs and force them to leave.

� Burn Hindu and Sikh homes.

� Attack foreigners.

� The term �exterminate� may be too harsh, but Laqueur argues that is the objective of the Kashmiri Islamic fundamentalists.

� And make Kashmir part of Pakistan.

Pakistan and Terrorism

� The Pakistanis have condoned this terrorism.

� In other words, the Pakistanis have been using the fundamentalists as surrogates to achieve their objectives.

� This is particularly true following Pakistan�s defeat in 1965.

� Pakistani intelligence, the ISI, has been linked to Kashmiri terrorists.

� Saudi Arabia and other Muslim states have sent advisers to the Kashmiri extremists.

Trading Terrorists

� The Indian government has supported Muslim terrorism inside Pakistan via the Mohajir Quawmi (MQM).

� The Pakistanis have done the same in supporting the Sikh separatists in the Punjab.

Terrorism in India

� Found in the North in Punjab and Kashmir.

� In the East in Assam.

� As well as in the South in the Tamil Nadu.

� Partially caused by the influx of Bengali Hindus moving in and locals feeling isolated.

Warriors for God: Terrorism and Religion

Modern Middle East

Fall 2002

Some Thoughts

� A major shift happened in the �90s away from political terrorism to religious-based terrorism.

� Likewise, this trend reflected the shift to a fundamentalist revolution in religious matters not only in the Middle East, but in the West too.

� This was a shift that had not happened since the Middle Ages.

� Could we expect a return to traditional political-based terrorism in the near future?

Fairness or Truth

� Today much of the religious-based terrorism is found in the Islamic World.

� Many apologists in the West and many Islamists disagree.

� They stress that Islamic fundamentalism is just another trend.

� They argue that the West just needs an enemy following the Cold War.

� They claim that Islam is just highly moral championing love rather than hate.

� Yet their arguments that explain the violence in the Islamic World are rather shallow.

Free vs. Unfree

� Freedom House is devoted to the study of human rights.

� Freedom House notes that 45 out of 51 nations that are �unfree� are found in the Islamic World.

� Why?

� Is it the fault of the West as claimed by Edward Said?

� Or are their other factors that account for this?

� At the moment, Islam has not yet produced a Hitler or a Pol Pot.

� But has produced a Saddam Hussein and Osama bin Laden.

What Accounts For This?

� This is an aggressive missionary zeal in Islam lacking in other religions.

� The anti-Western position is particularly strong in the Islamic World

� Much of the anti-Western feelings are deeply religious.

� Also, there were no secular beliefs for Muslims to suppress themselves.

� While the West feels that much of this violence is directed against them.

� The truth is that it is directed against other Muslim, those considered apostates.

� Algeria is a case in point.

Perceptions vs. Reality

� Does radical Islam = terrorism.

� Apologists say no.

� Yet Western perceptions are closer to the truth.

� But we should remember that Islamic fundamentalism does not have a monopoly on violence.

The Problem of Jihad

� Jihad has two meanings.

� One is jihad bi al saif meaning Holy War by the Sword.

� The other is jihad bi al nafs meaning the struggle for ones soul against one�s base instincts.

� For the most part, Islamic militants opt for the second interpretation.

� This can be especially true for the Taliban, Hamas, and Hezbollah.

Background

� Algeria won its independence in 1962.

� The government shifted from left to the military to the populist.

� While initially supporting the Islamists the government was basically secular.

� The government used the Islamists to keep the Communists in check.

� Then there was a problem with jobs and economic opportunities in Algeria.

The Islamic Revival in Algeria

� The revival took off in the late-1970s.

� The revival can be explained as a result of the malaise that set in because of the lack of popular expectations.

� A full fledge break occurred between the middle class and Muslim faithful in 1982.

� By 1990 it became a full fledge war.

� Resulting in nearly 60,000 dead by 1997.

� Far greater level of violence than what has been happening in the Palestine.

State of Islam in Algeria

� The government never persecuted the Islamists.

� Instead they were used to keep the left wing, ie., the Communists in check.

� It was also seen by the government to placate the public for the horrible state of the Algerian economy.

� The government had failed to improve the lot of the Algerian public.

� The result was Islamic terrorism.

The Start of the Violence

� A popular uprising of Islamic community came in 1988.

� And became worse in 1991 when the government annulled the 1991 when the Islamic Salvation Front won impressive victories.

� The government suspended the Front and declared a state of emergency.

� Then the GIA, the Islamist terrorist group entered the battle.

Islamic Terrorist Organizations in Algeria

� GIA

� The Army of the Prophet Muhammad

� United Company of Jihad

� Movement for an Islamic State

� Armed Islamic State

Islamic Terrorist Operations in Algeria

� Sometimes operated in large groups of a hundred or more.

� Liberating prisoners.

� Seizing villages.

� And killing the villagers.

� The Islamic terrorist groups were very similar to Pol Pot in Cambodia.

� Targeting classes of people � including teachers and scholars.

Base for Algerian Terrorists

� **One is jihad bi al saif meaning Holy War by the Sword.**

� **The other is jihad bi al nafs meaning the struggle for ones soul against one�s base instincts.**