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CAIR's Phony
"Fatwa against Terror"
(The Council on American-Islamic Relations)
No doubt, CAIR was quite nervous when someone suggested a fatwa against terror. After all, the organization owes its existence and a good portion of funding to the same elements of Islamic extremism that supply global terrorism. CAIR has had several staff members convicted on terror charges. And, before getting caught red-handed, the group even tricked people into sending 9/11 relief donations to a group fronting for Hamas! Still, it had been four years since Muslim terrorists murdered 3,000 innocent persons on American soil, which the Council on American-Islamic Relations may have forgotten, but not anyone else. During that time, fatwas had been issued by Islamic clerics over such grave matters as mobile phone ring tones and watching soccer on television, yet no fatwas against terror from CAIR's neck of the woods. People were beginning to notice that the mass slaughter of non-Muslims ranked pretty far down on the list of Religion of Peace priorities. Clearly some window dressing was in order. Imagine the organization's relief when the Fiqh Council of North America came up with something that actually provides the best of both worlds. The self-titled, “Fatwa against Terrorism,” is a sly work of genius. It is carefully worded so that naïve Westerners will be fooled into hearing what they want to hear, while making an impact on terror that rates somewhere below that of a damp Kleenex against a telephone pole. Is it turned out, the biggest challenge for the Fiqh Council was to find a verse in the Qur’an that unilaterally forbids murder. There are literally dozens of verses that advocate killing, but none that unequivocally say “Thou Shalt Not Kill.” So a little smoke and mirrors was needed. If you look at the fatwa, you’ll see that the heart of it is the Qur’anic passage from 5:32. Here’s how the fatwa quotes the verse: "Whoever kills a person [unjustly]…it is as though he has killed all mankind. And whoever saves a life, it is as though he had saved all mankind." Oh goodness… if only the Qur’an stopped right there! What would the world be like without large numbers of Muslims eager to commit mass murder in the name of their religion across the globe each day? Think of the lives, money and heartache that would be spared if Muhammad had commanded Muslims to cherish human life in the Judeo-Christian tradition But, in fact, the terrorists have access to the full text of the Qur'an, including the aforementioned dozens of other open-ended verses that advocate things like liberating the fingertips and heads from the hands and necks of infidels. Unlike the gullible Westerners who may come across the fatwa, Islamic terrorists know the entire Qur'an, including the rest of verse 5:32 - and they aren’t fooled by the sleight of hand . Not only did the Fiqh council cut out the middle of the verse (remember the ellipses?), but they also truncated both ends to manipulate it into appearing to say almost the exact opposite of what it really does. Here is the actual verse as it appears in the Qur’an: “On that account: We ordained for the Children of Israel that if any one slew a person - unless it be for murder or for spreading mischief in the land - it would be as if he slew the whole people: and if any one saved a life, it would be as if he saved the life of the whole people. Then although there came to them Our messengers with clear signs, yet, even after that, many of them continued to commit excesses in the land.” First, notice the gaping loophole. Killing is allowed in cases of murder or “for spreading mischief in the land.” Murder seems straightforward, but “spreading mischief”? If anything begged for a careful and precise clarification, this phrase certainly would, but generations of Muslims are left to apply their own interpretation of what “mischief” means and, needless to say, the standards vary. Secondly, note the broader context of the verse. It turns out that this isn’t a command to Muslims after all. It’s a recounting of a rule that was handed down to the Jews. It isn’t an admonition against killing. It’s an indictment against Jews for violating God’s law. “Any one” doesn’t mean “anyone,” but rather “any one” of the Jews. In fact, the verse that follows 5:32 actually commands killing in cases that involve this poorly-defined “mischief.” The passage even suggests crucifixion and “the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides” as a punishment. Rather than encouraging tolerance, Sura 5 as a whole is actually an incitement of hatred with an undertone of violence. Jews and Christians are explicitly cursed as ‘wicked’ people with ‘diseased hearts’ and as hateful ‘blasphemers’ respectively. Muhammad goes on to coyly remind his people that Allah loves those who “fight” in his service… and it’s pretty obvious who the enemy is. CAIR certainly isn't advertising that! With games like these, it’s little wonder that people have their suspicions. Yes, the “Fatwa against Terrorism” does say that it is forbidden for Muslims to engage in “acts of terrorism targeting civilians” (“innocent” civilians, that is), but critical definitions are conspicuously absent. The reason this is important is that Islamic terrorists don’t think they’re committing acts of terror against innocent civilians. They openly insist that they are engaging in Jihad against infidels…which is not only permitted by Islam, but explicitly mandated. In fact, these Islamic purists are always able to quote far more verses from the Qur’an in support of their actions than can their moderate detractors. The dirty, little secret of Islamic terrorism is that it isn’t based on a radically different interpretation of Islam, but rather a different interpretation of the reality around Islam – and this is what makes clear definitions so critical. Nearly all Muslims would agree that holy war is justified when Islam is under attack, but ambiguity surrounds these exact circumstances. Despite all of the open calls to Jihad against “Crusaders,” “Zionists” and various other infidels, for example, no one attacks Muslims in the name of Jesus, Moses, Buddha, or any other religious figure outside of Muhammad and Allah. No one kills Muslims because they are Muslim. In other words, no other religion has declared war on Islam. It’s just Muslims, stumbling around with blindfolds on, convinced that there is a conspiracy against them and angrily swinging their sabers, trying hit infidels, but mostly just taking chunks out of each other in the name of holy war. The concept of an "innocent person" is also a point of debate in the Islamic world, and there is nothing in this "fatwa" that changes this. Technically, anyone who rejects Muhammad and his manufactured religion is guilty on that basis. Just the mere fact that "protected" Jews and Christians are called "dhimmis" implies a connotation of guilt, since the same Arabic word carries both meanings. Obviously, any serious action against terrorism would clarify these definitions and clear the moral ambiguity, helping Jihadis see that there is no war against Islam and thus no justification for what they are doing. If CAIR really wanted to end terror, then they would name names, identify terrorist groups as such, and acknowledge and condemn each and every act of deadly violence in the name of Islam (as any other religion would do under the same circumstances). Instead, the organization fuels the distortion and anger that propels Islamic terror by implying that Islam is under assault by America, both at home and abroad. Rather than mention that American blood is being shed overseas to keep Iraqis secure from terrorists, for example, CAIR undermines the legitimacy of the mission and refuses to denounce the killing of these very Americans. So far, the "Fatwa against Terrorism" has had negative impact on the rate of violence, as can be seen from the following chart, but then, that really wasn't the point of it anyway... was it?
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