Global Jihad by Patrick Sookhdeo

Author:Patrick Sookhdeo
Language: eng
Format: epub
Publisher: BookBaby
Published: 2007-03-16T04:00:00+00:00

13

The Motivation of Terrorists and Suicide Bombers

The primary motivation of terrorists and suicide bombers is theological, compounded mainly of duty and reward. But there are also other reasons which serve to inspire them. Martyrdom has a very special position in Shi‘a Islam because Hassan and Hussein, the martyrs, are seen as models to be emulated, and suffering is sought after.

1 Duty to God and obedience to his command in the Qur’an

It is important to realise that most Islamic terrorists are devout and sincere in their faith. They can speak without irony of the “holy bomb” that killed nearly 200 non-Muslims in Bali, Indonesia on 12 October 2002.822 They are men and women of religion, who consider themselves to be following the example of the founder of their faith, no matter what the personal cost.

They look back to the original sources of Islam and interpret them as justification for violence. A Pentagon study came to the conclusion that, in spite of other suggested motivations, most Muslim suicide bombers are motivated mainly by the commands of the Qur’an.823 An example of this logic could be seen on the Chechen website www.qoqaz.com (now removed) where articles appeared which directly used verses in the Qur’an and incidents from the life of Muhammad to legitimise the execution of non-Muslim prisoners and hostages. For example:

In an article titled “A Guide to the Perplexed Regarding the Permissibility of Killing Prisoners” which appeared in the column “Jihad News from the Land of the Caucasus” the author suggests that the Islamic religious scholars present five different alternatives, drawn from the various interpretations of the Qur’an:

A polytheist prisoner must be killed. No amnesty may be granted to him, nor can he be ransomed.

All infidel polytheists and the People of the Book (i.e. Jews and Christians) are to be killed. They may not be granted amnesty, nor can they be ransomed.

Amnesty and ransom are the only two ways to deal with prisoners.

Amnesty and ransom are possible only after the killing of a large number of prisoners.

The Imam, or someone acting on his behalf, can choose between killing, amnesty, ransom or enslaving the prisoner.824

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