To Kill and To Die

To Kill and To Die
IN THE NAME OF ALLAH
By Abdullah Al Araby

Jump to: Jihad (Holy War) Jihad in the "Quran" Jihad in the "Hadith" Mohammed: An Example

The following are news items quoted from newspapers in the last few years:

September 11, 2001
"Thousands of Americans are missing and presumed dead in the worst terrorist attack by Muslim extremists in U.S. history. Two hijacked airliners on a suicide mission crash into New York's twin towers, causing their collapse. A third crashes into the Pentagon, and a fourth goes down in western Pennsylvania, its mission believed to have been thwarted by passengers."
October 12, 2000
" "Seventeen Americans are killed and dozens injured after a small boat apparently loaded with explosives and led by Muslim extremists crashes into the Navy destroyer USS Cole in the port of Aden, Yemen. The explosion blows a 40-foot by 40-foot hole in the ship."

August 7, 1998
"Bombs placed by Muslim extremists explode at U.S .embassies in Kenya and Tanzania, killing at least 224 people, including 12 Americans. Washington responds with cruise missile attacks on sites allegedly linked to Osama bin Laden -- a rare public strike on an alleged terrorist."
November 17, 1997
"Muslim militants marched into the Temple of Hatshepsut in southern Egypt and massacred 58 tourists. The incident was one of the deadliest acts of terrorism directed specifically at tourists."
June 25, 1996
"A truck bomb placed by Muslim extremists explodes outside the Khobar Towers housing complex near Dhahran, Saudi Arabia, killing 19 U.S. Air Force personnel and injuring more than 500 Americans and Saudis."
October 19, 1994
" A powerful bomb, apparently placed by Islamic militants opposed to the Arab-Israeli peace negotiations, blew up a crowded bus during the morning rush hour in the heart of Tel Aviv, Israel, killing 22 people and wounding 48."
July 18, 1994
" A huge bomb placed by Muslim extremists exploded destroying a seven-story downtown building housing two Jewish groups in Buenos Aires, Argentina. At least 26 people were killed and 127 were injured."

February 26, 1993
" A tremendous underground explosion believed to be caused by a bomb placed by Muslim extrimists, shook the 110-story twin towers of Manhattan's World Trade Center, in New York, killing at least five people, injuring more than 1000, and sending tens of thousands of workers fleeing for their lives down crowded smoke-filled stairs .

May 4, 1992
"13 Egyptian Christians were shot dead by Muslim fundamentalists in Mansheit Nasser, Egypt . Ten Christian farmers were ambushed and murdered while working in their fields. A Christian teacher was shot in the local school while teaching a class of ten-year olds. A Christian doctor was shot dead outside his home."

These are just few samples out of thousands of terrorist attacks, which all have one element in common: they were all committed by Muslim extremists. While there are extremists in other groups, who are capable of committing acts of violence, it seems that violence committed by Muslim extremists exceeds the violence of other groups.

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Why do Muslim extremists act this way?
Are Muslims inherently inhumane, savage and evil? - of course not. Muslims are ordinary people, just like anybody else. They are fathers, brothers and sons. They could be doctors, engineers and lawyers. They are your co-workers, and your next door neighbors. Violence is committed by a minority of Muslim extremists.

So, what goes on their minds when they act violently? To understand this one must understand an important and dangerous Islamic teaching called "Jihad" ( or Holy war). It is important to understand that not every Arab is a Muslim, not every Muslim is an Arab, and not every Muslim is a extremist. We are not trying to attack a group of people here, we are only exposing a teaching in a religion that could have a serious effect on society.

It is also important to know that in exercising Jihad, Muslim extremists may not think they are trying to maliciously hurt others, but rather they are only obeying God's commandments. And in doing so, they are assuring themselves a place in Paradise.

Jihad (Holy War)
Jihad is one of many sacred duties Muslims perform. The word "Jihad" is an Arabic word, which means, "struggle". Jihad can mean striving to be a better Muslim, but it can also mean fighting in the name of Allah. In this sense Jihad is the struggle for the cause of spreading Islam, using all means available to Muslims, including force. This kind of Jihad is often referred to as "Holy War".

In resorting to force, Muslims will not have any problem finding passages in the Quran (believed by Muslims to be Allah's word), and the Hadith (Mohammed's sayings as recorded by Al Bukhari), that will not only condone violence, but will also demand it.

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