Article Review: “the Religious Sources of Islamic Terrorism” by Shmuel Bar

Secular terror is anything that does not have to do with religion; however, religious tactics can be used to get ahead in secular terrorist organizations. Religious terror is based on the protecting, converging, and maintaining beliefs of a religion upheld by a religious terrorist group. Although different tactics are carried out by each different group of terror, they have some core features in common, such as emotionally evocative symbols, rituals, and myths (Alcorta, Phillips, Sosis, 2012). With their differences and similarities, the question at hand is which terror is greater? Religious

The events on September 11,2001 in my eyes destabilized the United States for a brief moment, and radical Muslim groups from the middle east became an immediate emergence for the U.S. and its national security. The never ending growing number of radical groups and explosions of information obscured the lines between strife, typical, atypical low intensity conflicts. Circulation of information in and near the battlefield will push the limits of the U.S., policy makers and militarily as well, through the middle east and beyond. This will be an inevitable challenge and emerging threat for the United States.

The study of terrorism is a growing field, primarily due to the world’s interest in the subject matter. Although death by terrorist attack is rare in the United States, as common as death by asteroid or comet (Jackson 2011: 132-133), many citizens view it as a primary concern that threatens the nation. Because of the world’s fear of terrorism, it has gained a huge budget of its own and has become a primary topic/focus. Terrorism: A Critical Introduction, written by Richard Jackson, Lee Jarvis, Jereon Gunning, and Marie Breen-Smyth, examines the orthodox study of terrorism. While analyzing the orthodox scholarship they find and discuss a few key issues. Their critique includes methods/research, emphasis on non-state actors, Western

Religious terrorism occurs when the use of terrorism is systematized by an ideology and fanatical interpretation of a religious text. Terrorist group functioning in the absence of this pretext create junk. Religious terrorism functions on the basic of five essential principles. These are: means justify the end, holy war, blind obedience, absolute truth claims and the ideal times . Kimball explains that ‘truth claims’ are essential point in a religion “at which divergent interpretations arise. Extreme interpretations of ‘truth claims’ provoke the ideology upon which religious terrorism is based. However the “authentic religious truth claims are never as inflexible and exclusive as zealous adherents insist. The staunch ‘truth claims’ professed

The emergence of radical Islamic movements in the past century has proven to be a principle source of instability and vulnerability in the modern world. Since the end of the 20th century, with the fall of the Soviet Union, the world has witnessed first-hand the reawakening of the modern Islamic world in various regions due to the advancement of Western Culture. The rise of radical Islamic fundamentalist groups such as the Taliban and Al-Qaida has allowed them to disseminate their ideologues of advocating for jihad, a struggle to fight against the enemies of Islam, and has perpetuated an effort to confront Islamic and non-Islamic states. Through their ceaseless endeavor to establish an Islamic state, Islamic fundamentalists have threatened the

Islam is not just a religion or system of theological thought, but it is the primary source for creating legal norms, guidelines, and demands in order to adhere and devote one’s life to Islam. Islamic doctrine delineates between acts of martyrdom and what the Western world describes as terrorism. Islamic jus in bello, or the laws of waging war, clearly outlines actions that can and cannot be justified according to Islam when engaged in war. Historical Islamic definitions of jihad in modern society have been redefined and interpreted in order to justify suicide attacks despite Islamic texts indicating otherwise.

When terrorism is at our doorstep we often ask “why?” The clearest and concise actions enacted are motivations of socially, political, and financial determination. With terrorist groups like Al-Qaeda, Hamas, and Hezbollah, extremist’s Islamic groups are on a mission from Allah (Middle Eastern God). Terrorist actions carried out by Islamic groups are typically political. The F.B.I defines terrorism as actions carried out by the unlawful use of force, or violence against persons, or property to intimidate or coerce a government, civilian population, or segment thereof, in furtherance of political or social aim (NIJ,2013). Given the nature of the intended political goal motivations behind terrorism are intended to cripple an infrastructure and regain control under their regime.

This essay provides an analysis of the terrorist group Jemaah Islamiyah from its foundation and grass roots development up until the splintering of the group in 2000. It also provides analysis of the motivations behind its founder and the future of JI and radical Islam.

With the traumatic events that occurred on November 13th, 2015, many politicians and media hosts have responded by attacking the religion of Islam as well as the groups that perpetrated these events. Often referring to the beliefs held by groups—such as the Islamic State and Boko Haram—as a radical and medieval version of Islam, these individuals are not wrong in a sense, but rather they are failing to notice that no ancient religion is peaceful or nonviolent. It is true that the beliefs that are held by members of terrorist groups are archaic, but it isn’t because the culture and system of modern Islam is medieval in itself, but because the terrorists that are perpetrating these are attacks are modern fanatics of the olden days. If one were to look at another major religion’s history, such as Christianity, one would notice that there have been similar moments of religious fanaticism through acts such as the Crusades.

By showing these common viewpoints, both authors highlight the consequences of such categorization on society. By addressing how the religion is portrayed as merely political, the authors seem to give importance to the nature of religion which is also a common theme in some of the other articles. The nature, in this case, is the general concept, not the nature itself that the articles portray differently. In Should we blame Islam for terrorism? Shariamadari emphasizes the importance of the nature of the religion in terms of understanding its interaction with the other components of the trilogy. In addition in How Religion can Lead to Violence, by Gary Gutting, the nature of religion is also a key factor to comprehend the issue of theological violence.

Since the attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, a large focus of the Western Powers, like the United States, has been on the Middle East. Out of this has come a conclusion that this area of the world is prone to be more violent than other parts and this is largely to due to the Islamic religion. This the West has concluded in large part through observation coupled with some qualitative data. However, is this, an adequate assertion of the area, and of the religion of Islam? To begin various types of violence will be explored quantitatively and qualitatively to see if there is a difference in the level of violence seen in the Middle East as compared to other Western States. Once it has been determined if there exists a difference in the amount of violence in the Middle East, as compared to other Western States, it than shall be explored to see what role Islam may play in it.

In the aftermath of the September 11th 2001 suicide attacks orchestrated by al-Qaeda, the 9/11 Commission Report “chose to… adopt a neo-Orientalist approach by locating Ibn Taymiyya as the root cause of the al-Qaeda phenomenon” (Lambert, 2011: 172). With al-Qaeda claiming responsibility for the 9/11 attacks, this terrorist organisation shall be the focus of the essay to ascertain whether or not the 9/11 Commission’s suggestion is supported. Section one shall explore Ibn Taymiyya’s teachings and the context in which he was writing in the 13th Century. Section two shall analyse arguments that support the 9/11 Commission. Following this, sections three, four and five shall examine sources that challenge the notion that Ibn Taymiyya’s teachings are the root of modern Muslim terrorism, due to contradictions with al-Qaeda’s ideology. Throughout, the essay holds that the origin of modern Muslim terrorism does not stem from Ibn Taymiyya’s teachings. The basis for this position is that the organisation responsible for the 9/11 attacks, al-Qaeda, has used his writings on the Mongol invasions to justify jihad against the threat of Westernisation despite al-Qaeda and Ibn Taymiyya representing “two forms of religious consciousness” (Heck, 2004: 117).

The affair between the Islamic race and the rest of the world is a complicated one. Preached by the stubborn and paranoid, an unjustified generalization has been forced upon all practitioners of the Islamic faith. Following tragedies inflicted by radicalists, some have taken it upon themselves to label each and every muslim, “terrorists” considered to be too dangerous to live among other people. Innocent men and women have fled from the

Islamic radical revolutionary movements are calling for complete elimination of the Western and especially American interests and influences from the life of the Islamic states (Yasmeen & Markovic, 2014). Their rejection sometimes takes the form of jihad, which means ‘holy war’ and acts as a form of terrorism. Although the majority

Islam and radical Islam are a hot topic among media outlets and dinner tables, often being confused that they are either two different things or derivatives of early Christianity. The fact remains that Islam and radical Islam are one and the same and, though there may be some early similarities to the Old Testament, Islam and Christianity are as different as the clouds in the sky to a deep, barbed pit. Though I will not be covering every facet that exists between the Bible and the Qur’an, I will be covering the so-called “difference” between radical Islam and its “moderate” counterpart, abrogation and how it works within Islam, differences between Jesus and Muhammad as figure heads, and the ethical behavior between neighbors in relation to Islamic and Christian beliefs.