REAL REASON BEHIND TERROR DISREGARDED

Zaman, Turkey
Sept 16 2005

[The Muslim World Interview with Gulen]

Question: Can terrorism be considered a way of struggle for freedom?

What is the Islamic alternative to terrorism and struggle?

As I said in an interview with Nuriye Akman for Daily Zaman, today,
at best we can say is that Islam is not known at all. Muslims should
say, “In true Islam, terror does not exist.” No person should kill
another human being. No one can touch an innocent person, even in time
of war. No one can give a fatwa (a legal pronouncement) commending
this matter. No one should be a suicide bomber. No one can rush into
crowds with bombs tied to his or her body. Regardless of the religion
of these crowds, this is not religiously permissible.

Even in the event of war – during which it is difficult to maintain
balances – this is not permitted in Islam. Islam states; “Do not
touch children or people who worship in churches.” This has not
only been said once, but has been repeated over and over throughout
history. What Our Master Prophet Muhammad said, what Abu Bakr said, and
what ‘Umar said is the same as what, at later dates, Salahaddin Ayyûbi,
Alparslan, and Kilicarslan also said. Later on, Sultan Mehmet II,
the Conqueror, also said the same. Thus, the city of Constantinople,
in which a disorderly hullabaloo reigned, became Istanbul. In this
city the Greeks did not harm the Armenians, nor did the Armenians
harm the Greeks. Nor did the Muslims harm any other people. A short
time after the conquest of Constantinople, the people of the city
voluntarily hung a huge portrait of the Conqueror on the wall in the
place of that of the Patriarch. It is amazing that such behavior
was displayed at that time. Then, history relates that the Sultan
summoned the Patriarch and gave him the key to the city. Even today,
Islam is not understood properly. Islam has always respected different
ideas and this must be understood for it to be appreciated properly.

I regret to say that in the countries Muslims live, some religious
leaders and immature Muslims have no other weapon on hand than their
fundamentalist interpretation of Islam; they use this to engage people
in struggles that serve their own purposes. In fact, Islam is a true
faith, and it should be lived truly. On the way to attaining faith
one can never use untrue methods. In Islam, just as a goal must be
legitimate, so must be all the means employed to reach that goal.

>>From this perspective, one cannot achieve Heaven by murdering
another person. A Muslim cannot say, “I will kill a person and then
go to Heaven.” God’s approval cannot be won by killing people. One of
the most important goals for a Muslim is to win the pleasure of God,
another is making the name of Almighty God known to the universe.

Dissatisfied youth has lost its spirituality. Some people take
advantage of such people, giving them a couple of dollars, or turning
them into robots. They have drugged them. This has become a topic on
the agenda these days that can be read about in the popular press.

These young people were abused to an extent that they could be
manipulated. They have been used as murderers on the pretext of some
crazy ideals or goals and they have been made to kill people. Some
evil-minded people have wanted to achieve certain goals by exploiting
these young people. Yes, killing a human is a truly awful thing. The
Qur’an says that killing one person is the same as killing all
people. Ibn ‘Abbas said that a murderer will stay in Hell for
eternity. This is the same punishment that is assigned to deniers of
God. This means that a murderer is subjected to the same punishment
as a disbeliever. If this is a fundamental principle of religion,
then it should be taught in education.

An individual who accepts Islam from the heart will never knowingly
take part in terrorism. The acts of terrorism associated with Islam
may have been perpetrated by some Muslims who had not internalized
the depth of Islam. Terrorism, as the name itself indicates, is a
complicated issue. Analyzing terrorism is not something that is easy
to do. Despite this, because it is so ugly in its nature and because
many Muslims are charged with it, terrorism must be addressed with a
great deal of consideration. Administrators and intelligence agents
have to try to find the originators and the motivating factors of
terrorist activities. This will help develop international strategies
to stop it. Otherwise, as a result of false analysis and some
possible intelligentsia’s services, the issue may be so complicated
that some civilizations, nations and civic organizations will be
always under threat. After September 11th, the issue has developed
in this direction. The fear of terrorism has become paranoia in
our society. At an increasing tempo, general feelings and fears of
society were exploited. Terrorist organizations were used by some as
instruments of terror to reach their goals through terrorist activities
against innocent society. To my understanding, true Muslims will never
involve themselves in such vulgar and cheap activities, even if they
are behind in science and technology. The real factors behind terrorism
are worldly advantages and self-interests. These factors have been
the main reasons behind “the great games” on earth. While the main
reasons are ignored, all fingers pointed to Islam. On the other hand,
there are many conflicting interests in the Islamic regions, as well as
many competing and clashing groups. Problems such as anti-democratic
practices and human rights violations have resulted in the foundation
of various disaffected and disenfranchised groups. Being ignorant
and inexperienced, many of these groups can easily be manipulated and
used by some. Some, manipulating these groups, have worked to reach
their goals step by step. Moreover, there are multi-national covert or
open organizations who have based all of their efforts on destruction
and the creation of fear in society. To extend the borders of their
activities, they agitate the unhappy segments of society by stirring
up trouble and fomenting violence. Even though, through painstaking
and intelligent effort, the superficial reasons for terrorism may be
eliminated, without the above-mentioned considerations, it would be
impossible to end terrorism once and for all. This cursed behavior
will emerge under another name.

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