The Apocalypse and the End of History: Modern Jihad and the Crisis of Liberalism by Suzanne Schneider

Author:Suzanne Schneider [Schneider, Suzanne]
Language: eng
Format: epub
ISBN: 9781839762413
Google: 4oo8EAAAQBAJ
Publisher: Verso Books
Published: 2021-11-15T23:26:09.917114+00:00

Qutb also envisioned at least procedural democracy within his idealized Islamic state. “No ruler has any religious authority direct from Heaven, as had some rulers in ancient times; he occupies his position only by the completely and absolutely free choice of all Muslims.”15 That is, even if one holds that the law is already given and even perfected, there is no reason that people cannot choose those who will administer it and hold them accountable for their shortcomings. Importantly—and much in contrast to those who governed states during Qutb’s lifetime—shari‘a was a body of law to which rulers would also be subject, effectively serving to restrain them from the arbitrary pursuit of their own private whims. A utopian vision perhaps, but one shaped against the very real backdrop of the postcolonial state.

The specter of democracy as the tyranny of the majority was also highly influential in shaping Abu Mus‘ab al-Zarqawi’s strategic logic during the early years of the Iraq War. Largely dismissive of the US forces—whose heavy losses would one day send them packing, he predicted—al-Zarqawi argued in a 2004 communiqué to al-Qaeda’s leadership that the only possible road to victory was stoking a sectarian war between Iraq’s Sunni and Shi‘a populations. Identifying the latter as the major enemy, al-Zarqawi argued that extreme, spectacular violence would be necessary to drive Iraqi Sunnis into the jihadi camp—a destination many had proven reluctant to visit. Timing was of the essence, as the reconstitution of Iraq as a democracy would, given the demographics, lead to Shi‘a political domination. The fight against the democratic path was thus not only about theology, but about a minority population’s fear of majoritarian rule.

While Maududi and Zarqawi were preoccupied by demographics and Qutb by dictators, al-Qaeda stands out for joining its critique of democracy to that of capitalism. Take, for instance, Osama bin Laden’s 2007 video address, “The Solution.” Addressed to the American people, the video offers a remarkable explanation for al-Qaeda’s rejection of democracy—seen not as the guarantor of rights and freedoms, but as the engine of the most coercive force in human history, namely capitalism:

This greatest of plagues and most dangerous of threats to the lives of humans is taking place in an accelerating fashion as the world is being dominated by the democratic system, which confirms its massive failure to protect humans and their interests from the greed and avarice of the major corporations and their representatives. And despite this brazen attack on the people, the leaders of the West—especially Bush, Blair, Sarkozy and Brown—still talk about freedom and human rights with a flagrant disregard for the intellects of human beings. So is there a form of terrorism stronger, clearer, and more dangerous than this?

This is why I tell you: as you liberated yourselves before from the slavery of monks, kings and feudalism, you should today liberate yourselves from the deception, shackles and attrition of the capitalist system. If you were to ponder it well, you would find that in the end, it is a system harsher and fiercer than your systems in the Middle Ages.

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