Numerous Ulama Issued Fatwas against Suicide Bombings, yet They Still Happen: A Great Matter of Concern
By
Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi, New Age Islam
14 February
2023
Sheikh
Yusuf Qaradawi Is One Of The Many Arab Intellectuals And Ulama Who Issued A
Fatwa Against Suicide Bombs But Also Justified An Exception As A Form Of
Resistance For Muslims In Palestine.
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Main
Points:
1. Although
numerous fatwas have been issued and suicide attacks are categorically prohibited
in Islam, they continue to occur.
2. In Pakistan,
the Ulama unanimously decided in 2005 that suicide bombings were prohibited.
3. In a
150-page book, Dr Muhammad Tahirul Qadri, the founder and leader of the
Minhajul Qur'an Movement, issued a fatwa condemning terrorism and suicide
bombings.
4. Following
the Rawalpindi incident in 2009, Mufti Muneebur Rehman, the former chairman of
the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, asserted that the suicide bombers were carrying out
a prohibited act and had nothing to do with Islam.
5. Madrasas,
colleges, and high schools should include textbooks on counterterrorism and
suicide bombings.
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Most
countries in the world are affected by suicide attacks. Particularly vulnerable
to the continuous suicide bombings include Syria, Iraq, Pakistan, and
Afghanistan. Islam categorically condemns suicide bombings, and various fatwas
have been issued to that effect. Suicide attacks do, however, still happen.
Suicide attacks were declared as forbidden by the Pakistani Ulama in 2005 after
58 eminent Ulama from various schools of thought joined the vote in favour of
the anti-terror fatwa.
The Ulama
asserted that it had been officially declared that people were preparing for
terrorism and suicide bombings in the name of religion. As a result, a fatwa
has been issued declaring it to be unlawful to kill innocent people through
suicide bombings or remote-control bombings. The Ulama continued by stating
that the fulfilment of Islamic commitments was the primary goal of issuing
fatwas.
The leading
founder of the Minhaj-ul-Qur'an Movement, Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri issued a
150-page fatwa in the form of a book outlining the distinct differences between
jihad, revolt, and corruption as defined by the Qur'an and Hadith. He provided
evidence in this fatwa that suicide bombings and other violent acts are
forbidden in Islam. In a statement relating to this fatwa, he declared that the
Quran and Sunnah strongly supported this fatwa against terrorism and suicide
bombers, even going so far as to argue that legalising a suicide bombing is
Kufr. This fatwa stated that any form of armed conflict with a Muslim nation
qualifies as rebellion. According to him, it is a blatant violation of Islamic
principles to massacre and murder members of any nation or faith, and Pakistan-hating
forces now use terrorist groups as weapons.
When a
suicide attack took place in Rawalpindi in November 2009, Mufti Muneebur
Rehman, the former chairman of the Ruet-e-Hilal Committee, a professor at
Jinnah University, the head of Burj Bank's Shariah Board, and the president of
Tanzeem-ul-Madaris, spoke to a private TV channel and emphasised that the
suicide attack was a forbidden act while also expressing compassion and
condolences to the victims of this tragedy. He asserted that the actions of the
suicide bombers have nothing to do with Islam.
In
Pakistan, mosques have frequently been the target of suicide bombings.
Following an attack, Maulana Ajmal Qadri told Waqt News that attacking mosques
is strictly forbidden no matter whether there is a state of war. Terrorists
feel they are being persecuted, despite the fact that they are the oppressors
and the ignorant victims. Islam forbids the killing of anyone. The terrorists
seek to establish their own version of sharia law. They are acting on orders
from outside masters, but the populace and the Ulama will work together to
thwart the evil intentions of the terrorists.
When the
suicide bombing took place in the mosque on Parade Lane in 2009, the head of
Jamiat Ulema-e-Pakistan and well-known religious scholar Sahibzada Fazal Karim
vehemently condemned the incident and declared that suicide bombings are
forbidden in light of the Quran and Sunnah. Islam has made it mandatory for the
state to protect the life and property, honour and dignity of every citizen. The
Islamic faith of suicide bombers is not real. According to the Holy Qur'an,
Allah does not like those who cause mischief on earth and whoever causes
mischief on earth disobeys the orders of Allah. Additionally, he stated that in
order to deter terrorism, the public, academics, legislators, and religious
leaders should collaborate to decide on an action plan.
Ulama from
many schools of thought sharply condemned the action, claiming that no Muslim
could strike worshippers who were in a prostrated position. They expressed that
some powers "want to destroy Muslims by setting them up against one
another". Mufti Hidayatullah Pasroori, central vice president of Jamiat
Ulema-e-Pakistan, claimed that regardless of how loudly this incident is
condemned, it is still a minor condemnation.
Numerous
Pakistani Ulama have issued fatwas condemning suicide bombings over the past
ten years, yet these attacks have not abated and continue to this day. Just
last month, a suicide bomber targeted a mosque in Peshawar. The incident was
what rocked all of Pakistan. Although multiple fatwas on the prohibition of
suicide attacks were issued by the sheikhs and muftis of Jamia al-Azhar in
Egypt, the suicide attacks continue. Even though the Indian Ulama from all
schools of thought also issued fatwas against suicide attacks, we still see or
hear about one or more suicide attacks every day outside of India.
Sheikh
Yusuf Qaradawi is one of the many Arab intellectuals and Ulama who issued a
fatwa against suicide bombs but also justified an exception as a form of
resistance for Muslims in Palestine. The battle in Palestine and Kashmir does
not fall under this fatwa because independence movements are seen as legitimate
throughout the entire civilised world, according to Pakistan's Mufti Muneebur Rahman,
who also issued a fatwa banning suicide attacks. This fatwa was erroneous,
according to the Qur'an and Sunnah, because suicide attacks are prohibited in
Islam, even during times of hostilities; as a result, they are not allowed in
Kashmir or any other country.
In an Urdu
column published on the New Age Islam website, Miss Kaniz Fatima made the same point and stated that
"The Ulama occasionally issue fatwas denouncing terrorism and suicide
bombers, but these crimes against humanity persist. It becomes essential in
such a circumstance to carry out a specific movement on a broad front in this
regard in order to avoid extremist and radical conceptions in particular so
that the message of peace and security prevails and terrorism is completely
eradicated."
I agree
with Miss Fatima's assertion and would like to add that everyone in the world should
be made aware of all the reasons the Qur'an and Sunnah give for forbidding
suicide attacks. Colleges, schools, and madrasas should develop a curriculum
against terrorism and suicide bombings. Imams and other speakers must talk
about the strict prohibition on suicide attacks during their lectures and
sermons at mosques, Sufi dargahs, and other locations. They also need to make
sure that everyone in the globe is aware of it by posting about it on social
media. Let people know that Islam does, in fact, forbid terrorism and suicide
bombings. But what can be done next if suicide attacks continue? Intellectuals
must be more concerned due to the painful situation.
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A
regular Columnist with NewAgeIslam.com, Ghulam Ghaus Siddiqi Dehlvi is a
Classical Islamic scholar with a Sufi background and English-Arabic-Urdu
Translator.
URL: https://newageislam.com/the-war-within-islam/ulama-fatwas-suicide-bombings/d/129099
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