In Open Letter To Muslim World, French Muslim Philosopher Says Islam Has Given Birth To Monsters, Needs Reform

In an essay published October 3, 2014 in the French newspaper Marianne, Abdennour Bidar, philosopher and author of Self Islam, a personal history of Islam(Seuil, 2006); Islam without submission: a Muslim existentialism (Albin Michel, 2008), and History of humanism in the West (Armand Colin, 2014), wrote that believing Muslims cannot avoid a discussion of the causes of jihadi excesses by merely denouncing terrorist barbarism. He says that in the face of the dogmas and political manipulation to which it is being subjected, the Muslim world must be self-critical, and must act to reform itself. The following is his essay:

Abdennour Bidar (image: aujourdhui.ma)

"I See That You Are Losing Yourself, Losing Your Time And Your Honor, In Your Refusal To Recognize That This Monster [ISIS] Is Born Of You"

"Dear Muslim world: I am one of your estranged sons, who views you from without and from afar – from France, where so many of your children live today. I look at you with the harsh eyes of a philosopher, nourished from infancy on tasawwuf (Sufism) and Western thought. I look at you therefore, from my position of barzakh, from an isthmus between the two seas of the East and the West.

"And what do I see? What do I see better than others, no doubt precisely because I see you from afar, from a distance? I see you in a state of misery and suffering that saddens me infinitely, but that makes my philosopher's judgment even harsher. Because I see you in the process of birthing a monster that presumes to call itself the Islamic State, and which some prefer to call by a demon's name – Da'esh. But worst of all is that I see that you are losing yourself, losing your time and your honor, in your refusal to recognize that this monster is born of you, of your irresoluteness, of your contradictions, of your being torn between past and present, of your perpetual inability to find your place in human civilization.

"What, indeed, do you say when faced with this monster? You shout, 'That's not me!' 'That's not Islam!' You reject [the possibility] that this monster's crimes are committed in your name (#NotInMyName). You rebel against the monster's usurpation of your identity, and of course you are right to do so. It is essential that you proclaim to the world, loud and clear, that Islam condemns barbarity. But this is absolutely not enough! For you are taking refuge in your self-defense reflex, without realizing it, and, above all, without taking responsibility to self-criticize. You become indignant and are satisfied with that – but you are missing an historical opportunity to question yourself. Instead of taking responsibility for yourself, you accuse others: 'You Westerners, and all you enemies of Islam – stop associating us with this monster! Terrorism is not Islam! The true Islam, the good Islam doesn't mean war, it means peace!'"

"The Root Of This Evil That Today Steals Your Face Is Within Yourself; The Monster Emerged From Your Own Belly"

"Oh my dear Muslim world, I hear the cry of rebellion rising in you, and I understand it. Yes, you are right: Like every one of the great sacred inspirations in the world, Islam has, throughout its history, created beauty, justice, meaning, and good, and it has [been a source of] powerful enlightenment for humans who are on the path through the mystery of existence...Here in the West, I fight, in all my books, so that this wisdom of Islam and of all religions is not forgotten or despised. But because of my distance [from the Muslim world], I can see that which you cannot... And this inspires me to ask: Why has this monster stolen your face? Why has this despicable monster chosen your face and not another? The truth is that behind this monster hides a huge problem, one you do not seem ready to confront. Yet in the end you will have to find the courage [to do so].

"The problem is that of the root of the evil. Where do the crimes of this so-called 'Islamic State' come from? I'll tell you, my friend. And it will not make you happy, but it is my duty as a philosopher. The root of this evil that today steals your face is within yourself; the monster emerged from your own belly. And other monsters, some even worse, will emerge, as long as you refuse to acknowledge your sickness and to finally tackle the root of this evil!

"Even Western intellectuals have difficulty seeing this. For the most part they have so forgotten the power of religion – for good and for evil, over life and over death – that they tell me, 'No, the problem of the Muslim world is not Islam, not the religion, but politics, history, economics, etc.' They completely forget that religion may be the core of the reactor of a human civilization, and that tomorrow the future of humanity will depend not only on a resolution to the financial crisis, but also, and much more essentially, on a resolution to the unprecedented spiritual crisis that is affecting all of mankind."

"I See In You, Oh Muslim World, Great Forces Ready To Rise Up And Contribute To This Global Effort To Find A Spiritual Life For The 21st Century"

"Will we be able to all come together, across the world, to face this fundamental challenge? The spiritual nature of man abhors a vacuum, and if finds nothing new with which to fill it, it will tomorrow fill it with religions that are less and less adapted to the present – and which, like Islam today, will [also]begin producing monsters.

"I see in you, oh Muslim world, great forces ready to rise up and contribute to this global effort to find a spiritual life for the 21st century. Despite the severity of your sickness, you have in you a great multitude of men and women willing to reform Islam, to reinvent its genius beyond its historical forms, and to be part of the total renewal of the relationship that mankind once had with its gods. It is to all these, both Muslims and non-Muslims, who dream together of a spiritual revolution that I have addressed my books– to whom I offer, with my philosopher's words, confidence in that which their hope glimpses."

"Al-Qaeda, Jabhat Al-Nusra, AQIM, And Islamic State – They Understand All Too Well That These Are Only The Most Visible Symptoms Of An Immense Diseased Body"

"But these Muslim men and women who look to the future are not yet sufficiently numerous, nor is their word sufficiently powerful. All of them, whose clarity and courage I welcome, have plainly seen that it is the Muslim world's general state of profound sickness that explains the birth of terrorist monsters with names like Al-Qaeda, Jabhat Al-Nusra, AQIM, and Islamic State. They understand all too well that these are only the most visible symptoms of an immense diseased body, whose chronic maladies include: the inability to establish sustainable democracies that recognize freedom of conscience vis-à-vis religious dogmas as a moral and political right; chronic difficulties in improving women's status towards equality, responsibility and freedom; the inability to sufficiently free political power from its control by religious authority; and the inability to establish respectful, tolerant and genuine recognition of religious pluralism and religious minorities."

"Could All This, Then, Be The Fault Of The West? How Much Precious Time Will You Lose, Dear Muslim World, With This Stupid Accusation[?]"

"Could all this, then, be the fault of the West? How much precious time will you lose, dear Muslim world, with this stupid accusation that you yourself no longer believe, and behind which you hide so that you can continue to lie to yourself?

"Particularly since the eighteenth century – it's past time you acknowledged it – you have been unable to meet the challenge of the West. You have childishly and embarrassingly sought refuge in the past, with the obscurantist Wahhabism regression that continues to wreak havoc almost everywhere within your borders –the Wahhabism that you spread from your holy places in Saudi Arabia like a cancer originating from your very heart. Or, you followed the worst of the West – with nationalism and a modernism that caricatures modernity. I refer here especially to the technological development, so inconsistent with the religious archaism,that makes your fabulously wealthy Gulf 'elite' mere willing victims of the global disease – the worship of the god Money.

"What is admirable about you today, my friend? What do you still have that is worthy of the respect of the peoples and civilizations of the Earth? Where are your wise men? Have you still wisdom to offer the world? Where are your great men? Who is your Mandela, your Gandhi, your Aung San Suu Kyi? Where are your great thinkers whose books should be read worldwide, as they were when Arab or Persian mathematicians and philosophers were referred to from India to Spain? You are actually so weakened behind the self-assuredness that you always display... You have no idea who you are or where you want to go, and it makes you as unhappy as you are aggressive... You persist in not listening to those who call on you to change by finally freeing yourself from the dominion over all of life that you have granted to religion.

"You chose to consider Muhammad a prophet and king. You chose to define Islam as a moral, political, and social religion that must rule as a tyrant in the state as well as in civilian life, in the street and in the home, and in everyman's conscience. You chose to believe that Islam means 'submission' and to impose that belief – while the Koran itself declares that 'there is no compulsion in religion' (the ikraha fi Din). You have made [the Koran's] cry for freedom into the reign of coercion. How can a civilization so betray its own sacred text? I say that in Islamic civilization, the time has come to institute this spiritual freedom – the most sublime and difficult of all [freedoms]– in the place of all the laws invented by generations of theologians!"

"Numerous Voices That You Refuse To Hear Are Rising Today In The Ummah To Denounce This Taboo In This Authoritarian Religion That Cannot Be Questioned"

"Numerous voices that you refuse to hear are rising today in the ummah [Islamic nation] to denounce this taboo in this authoritarian religion that cannot be questioned... to the point where many believers have so internalized a culture of submission to tradition and to the 'masters of religion' (imams, muftis, sheikhs etc.) that they don't realize that we are talking to them about spiritual freedom or personal choice vis-à-vis the 'pillars' of Islam. All this is a 'red line' for them – so sacred to them that they dare not allow their own conscience to question. And there are so many families in which this confusion between spirituality and servitude is implanted from such an early age, and in which spiritual education is so meager, that nothing concerning religion may be discussed."

"But this [taboo] is clearly not imposed by the terrorism of some crazy fanatics who have been accepted as part of the 'Islamic State.' No, this problem is infinitely deeper. But who is willing to hear? In the Muslim world, there is only silence on this matter; in the Western media, they only listen to all those terrorism experts, who exacerbate the general myopia day by day. Do not delude yourself, my friend, by pretending that by finishing off Islamist terrorism we will settle all Islam's problems. Because what I have described here – a tyrannical, dogmatic, literalist, formalistic, macho, conservative, and regressive religion –is too often the ordinary Islam, the everyday Islam, that suffers and that causes suffering to too many consciences, the irrelevant Islam of the past, the Islam that is distorted by all those who manipulate it politically, the Islam that always ends up strangling the various Arab Springs as well as the voice of all the young people who are demanding something else. So when will you finally bring about this revolution in societies and consciences that will make spirituality rhyme with liberty?

"Of course, there are pockets of spiritual freedom in your great territory: families that hand down [to their children]an Islam of tolerance, personal choice and spiritual depth. There are places where Islam still gives the best of itself, a culture of sharing, honor, pursuit of knowledge, and spirituality in search of the sacred place where man and the ultimate reality called Allah meet. In the land of Islam, and in Muslim communities worldwide, there are strong and free consciences. But they are condemned to live their freedom without the recognition of real rights, facing the peril of community control or sometimes even of religious police. Never yet has the right to say 'I choose my Islam' or 'I have my own relationship with Islam' been recognized by the 'official Islam' of the dignitaries, who fight to impose [the view] that 'the doctrine of Islam is unique' and that 'obeying the pillars of Islam is the only right path (sirâtou-l-Moustaqim).

"This denial of the right to freedom vis-à-vis religion is one of the roots of the evil from which you suffer, oh my dear Muslim world; it is one of those dark wombs in which, in recent years, monsters grow, and from whence they leap out at the frightened faces of the whole world. For this iron religion imposes excruciating violence on all your societies; she too closely confines your daughters, and your sons, in the cage of good and evil, the lawful (halal) and the illicit (haram), chosen by none but imposed on all. It traps the wills, it conditions the mind, it prevents or hinders every personal life choice. In too many of your countries, you still tie together religion with violence – against women, against 'bad believers,' against Christians and other minorities, against thinkers and free spirits, against rebels – so that religion and violence ultimately merge in the most unbalanced and fragile of your own sons – in the monstrous form of jihad."

"You Must Begin By Reforming The Entire Education You Give To Your Children, In All Of Your Schools, All Of Your Places Of Knowledge And Power; You Must Reform Them According To Universal Principles"

"So, I beg of you, don't pretend to be amazed that demons such as the so-called 'Islamic State' have taken your face. Monsters and demons steal only those faces that are already distorted by too much grimacing. And if you want to know how to not bring forth such monsters, I will tell you. It's simple yet so difficult: You must begin by reforming the entire education you give to your children, in all of your schools, all of your places of knowledge and power. You must reform them according to [the following] universal principles – even if you are not the only one violating or disregarding them: freedom of conscience, democracy, tolerance, civil rights for [those of] all worldviews and beliefs, gender equality, women's emancipation from all male guardianship, and a culture of reflection and criticism of the religion in universities, literature, and the media. You cannot go back, and you can do no less than this. For it is only by doing so that you will no longer give birth to such monsters. If you do not do so, you will soon be devastated by [these monsters'] destructive power.

"Dear Muslim world: I am but a philosopher, and as usual some will call the philosopher a heretic. Yet I seek only to let the light shine once again –indeed, the name that you have given me commands me to do so: Abdennour, Servant of the Light. If I did not believe in you, I would not have been so harsh in this letter. As we say in French, 'He who loves well, punishes well' – and those who today are not tough enough with you, who want to make you a victim, are doing you no favors. I believe in you. I believe in your contribution to build the future of our planet, to create a world that is both humane and spiritual!

"Salaam, peace be upon you.

Palestine – the Engineered Disappearance of a Nation

 Catherine Shakdam

While Israeli officials have always been keen to front a desire to achieve regional peace in the Levant by working together with the Palestinian Authority – PA – toward a political solution to the ever thorny issue which is the Palestinian dossier; Israel’s tantrum over Sweden’s decision to recognise Palestine as a sovereign state underscores its inherent hypocrisy.

If foreign powers and public opinion have felt so incline as to close their eyes to Israel’s ever-spiralling descent into genocidal darkness and fascism, let us all remember that the very cornerstone upon which Israel was built remains tainted with the blood of thousands of Palestinian men, women and children. It is difficult on such a basis to reconcile the atrocities committed on Nakba Day – May 15, 1948 – and Israel’s claims it wants to end the bloodbath – especially since Israel is doing much of the shooting.

Looking back at Israel’s long history of abuses and gross human rights violations against Palestinians, its imperious desire to disappear Palestine and its people, only to better re-write its history and finally claim moral righteousness, one can understand how “upsetting” Sweden’s decision to unclog Palestine’s legal status limbo might have been and how much of a betrayal it might have felt for a state used to getting exactly what it wants from the international community.

America’s darling could see crumble its entire house of cards at a point in time when it thought it had won already.

Sovereign Palestine

If Israel said to be “disappointed” by Sweden, so much so that Tel Aviv felt the need to summon Swedish Ambassador to Israel, Carl Magnus Nesser, to review the situation, it is evident that such disappointment is marring absolute fury. In an interesting comment to the press Aviv Shir-On, Israel Foreign Ministry’s deputy director-general for Western Europe rationalized Tel Aviv’s objections to the idea of state recognition by alleging that such a move would “not contribute to the relations between Israel and the Palestinians, but in fact worsen them”.

He added, “The Swedish prime minister’s remarks diminish the chances of reaching an agreement, since they create among the Palestinians an unfeasible expectation of being able to reach their goal unilaterally and not through negotiations with Israel.”

Coming from a state which has based the legitimacy of its coming to political and institutional existence on the back of Zionists’ swords could come across as ironic if it wasn’t for the tragedy such narrative inherently carries. As expressed by Golda Meir in 1969, “”there is no such thing as Palestinians”.

There lies Israel’s truth, its very matrix, the cornerstone of its ideology – There can only be Israel; anything and anyone else is by definition irrelevant. Israel lives exclusively; it can only truly manifests itself wholly by the denial of the other, in this case Palestine.

Since 1948 Israel has based its narrative and its policies, both national and foreign, around the idea Palestine is but a figment of one’s imagination, a fallacy which Arab states and Palestinians have spun only to deny Jews the right of return to the Promised Land. It is this exact narrative of religious ego-centrism which has torn a once peaceful region apart; pitting faiths against each other through the promotion of war.

Israel now says that the Palestinians can only receive their promised state through direct negotiations and not through other diplomatic channels. But really it is implying that Palestinians’ fate is tied to Israel’s will, or rather its heel.

Interestingly Israel Prime Minister Benyamin Netanyahu seconded Shir-On’s denunciation of Sweden’s move by refuting Swedish Prime Minister Stefan Loefven’s logic that recognition would be a step towards resolving the decades-long Israeli-Palestinian conflict. “A two-state solution requires mutual recognition and a will to coexist peacefully. Therefore, Sweden will recognise the state of Palestine,” Loefven said on Friday.

But since PM Netanyahu made already crystal clear back in July 2014 that there will never be a two states solution and no end to Israel’s supra-colonial control over Palestinian land, it should come to no surprise that his administration would oppose any attempt to legally assert Palestine as a potent and legitimate sovereign state.

National Nihilism

Back in 2013 in his address to the nation, President Shimon Peres blurted before the world his rejection of Palestine as not only a state or even a nation but as an existing entity by emphatically noting, “I remember how it all began. The whole state of Israel is a millimetre of the whole Middle East. A statistical error, barren and disappointing land, swamps in the north, desert in the south, two lakes, one dead and an overrated river. No natural resource apart from malaria. There was nothing here. And we now have the best agriculture in the world? This is a miracle: a land built by people.”

There it is … “There was nothing here.” There is a great ideological evil in denying not only one people’s identity but its very existence. Such affirmation of Israel’ subversive nature was however completely lost on the international community, so immunize has the world become to Palestinians’ oppression and struggle.

In a report to Electronic Intifada, Ilan Pappe raised a key concept when he stated that Zionist Israel is attempting to solve its “cognitive dissonance,” by engineering the disappearance of Palestinians and thus ultimately the idea of Palestine as a state to reconcile with its belief system.

Zionist Israel will never agree to envision a Palestinian state as it would be negating its very nature, its core and to an extent its justification as an ideology. But where does this leave Palestine?

Palestine has been a disappearing state since 1948 when hundreds of thousands of its children were forcibly expulsed from their homes, stripped from their claim to a nation on account Zionists successfully brokered a deal with colonial Britain. Since, Palestinians have suffered a thousand humiliations, expulsions, unlawful land-grabbing, unwarranted arrest, detentions and tortures.

Palestine has almost become but an institutional memory. If not for the sheer resilience of its people, their stubborn determination to stand before tyranny and never abandon their national dream, Palestine would be no more.

For all its wars and cleansing policies Israel will forever fail to break Palestine’s resolve as this land and this people are much more than just flesh, blood and earth. Palestine has come to represent the very idea of independence and absolute defiance before oppression, the expression of one’s will before evil.

Catherine Shakdam is the Associate Director of the Beirut Center for Middle Eastern Studies and a political analyst specializing in radical movements, exclusively for the online magazine “New Eastern Outlook”.

West Despotism Behind Saudi Death Sentence

By Finian Cunningham

Saudis demonstrate in solidarity with detained Shia cleric Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr.

October 16, 2014 "ICH" - "Press TV" - - The sentencing to death this week of Saudi pro-democracy leader Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr illustrates at least two things.

The utter barbaric nature of Saudi Arabia under the rule of the House of Saud’s absolute monarchy; and, secondly, the utter fraudulence of the US-backed military coalition bombing Syria and Iraq in the name of eradicating extremism.

Within hours of US President Barack Obama hosting military leaders from 21 countries, including favoured client state Saudi Arabia, allegedly to improve bombing tactics to defeat the IS terror network, a Saudi court announced the death penalty on Sheikh al-Nimr.

Saudi prosecutors have called for al-Nimr to be “crucified” – which means death by public beheading.

His crime? Al-Nimr is one of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent and respected Shia clerics, who for the past 10 years has been an ardent critic of the kingdom’s autocratic rulers. He has consistently championed the democratic rights of ordinary Saudis, defended the thousands of political prisoners rotting away in Saudi dungeons, and has called for the end of absolute rule under the self-styled House of Saud monarchy.

In particular, Sheikh al-Nimr has highlighted the chronic injustice against the Saudi Shia population, who form a majority in the country’s oil-rich Eastern Province but who have endured decades of poverty and oppression under the Wahhabi House of Saud.

At no time in his years of campaigning for justice has Sheikh Al-Nimr advocated violence. He is on record for explicitly condemning violence and has urged followers to use the “roar of the word” to challenge Saudi despotism.

In other words, his only “crime” is that Sheikh al-Nimr has eloquently exposed the oppression and corruption of Saudi rule under a dynastic, backward family.

He has also denounced the illegal occupation of Bahrain by Saudi forces since March 2011, when they were sent into the neighbouring island state to crush a pro-democracy movement there and bolster the Al Khalifa regime, which is a surrogate of the House of Saud. Western patronage has also been a lynchpin of the Al Khalifa dictatorship in Bahrain.

In July 2012, al-Nimr was ambushed by Saudi military police while travelling in a car near his native Qatif in Eastern Province. He was shot four times in the leg. The Saudi authorities claimed that the incident was a shoot-out - a claim that the cleric’s family strenuously deny and which is wholly inconsistent with his peaceful political activism. Of course it is a smear, aimed at justifying his subsequent persecution.

The Saudis also claim that al-Nimr is a “fifth columnist” for Shia Iran - another risible slander - aimed at obscuring the real nature of massive injustice in the oil-rich kleptocratic kingdom.

Now, after months of being tortured in solitary confinement and denied any legal defence, the cleric is to be executed.

His fate exposes the barbarity of the Saudi dictatorship, headed up by King Abdullah. That feudalistic state owes its entire existence and survival completely to the patronage of Washington and London, partly because of its propping up of the bankrupt petrodollar system and partly because of its propping up of the Western military-industrial complex.

Through its monarchial family relations with other Persian Gulf Arab regimes, the Saudi rulers also ensure that these similarly despotic entities remain loyal vassals of the Anglo-American axis.

The cause of democracy in Saudi Arabia – social justice, elections, free speech, human rights, representative government - is the antithesis of American and British interests in the region. Strip away the venal rhetoric from Washington and London, and what we see is the grotesque reality of their unswerving support for despots whose every instinct is to brutally decapitate any form of democracy.

When it comes to forcing Western regime change to thwart democracy in the region, the Arab despots are ever ready to join that coalition through sponsoring extremism and terrorism - or, as of late, sending their American and British-supplied warplanes to bomb target countries.

Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr is a “dangerous” leader. His critical words and ideas have inspired sedition – for all the right reasons. Tens of thousands of Saudis have been strengthened by his courage to denounce the Western-backed, indeed the Western-mandated, oppression of the masses in that country.

Following the irreproachable logic of Sheikh al-Nimr not only undermines the shaky, criminal foundations of the House of Saud; it also leads to damning conclusions about the West’s cardinal role in sponsoring oppression and terrorism in the Middle East.

That is why this man of peace and real power is being framed up on the most specious of charges - to be executed. The despotic Saudis and their despotic Western patrons are desperate to extinguish his voice of truth.

People of the world, and especially the despotic West, must rally to the defence of Sheikh Nimr al-Nimr to ensure that he is not only spared, but ultimately set free.

His fate is united with our own. We must expose the tyrants and their tyrannical system that operates all the way from the high offices of Washington and London to the streets of Saudi Arabia and beyond.

Finian Cunningham (born 1963) has written extensively on international affairs, with articles published in several languages. He is a Master’s graduate in Agricultural Chemistry and worked as a scientific editor for the Royal Society of Chemistry, Cambridge, England, before pursuing a career in journalism.

History of Masjid al-Nabawi and the Green Dome

by Zafar Bangash

Understanding the history of expansion of Masjid al-Nabawi and how the Green Dome over the Prophet’s (saws) tomb was erected will enable Muslims to understand its true significance. There is hardly a Muslim who upon sighting the Ka‘bah in Makkah for the first time is not awe struck. The simple cube structure, symbolizing Allah’s (swt) house on earth, reminds every Muslim of his/her deeds (good and bad) on earth and whether he/she will be granted Allah’s (swt) mercy and forgiveness, the very purpose of his/her visit to the sacred sanctuary. If the sight of the Ka‘bah evokes awe, the first sight of the green dome in al-Masjid al-Nabawi fills a Muslim’s heart with love and affection. No eye remains dry upon approaching so close to the final resting place of the noble Messenger (pbuh) after whom the masjid is named: al-Masjid al-Nabawi. The city, whose original name was Yathrib, was renamed Madinah al-Nabi (the City of the Prophet) after he migrated from Makkah and settled there. While it is called Madinah for short, Muslims who are aware of its importance refer to it with great reverence as al-Madinah al-Munawwarah (the radiant city). Soon after arriving in Madinah, the noble Messenger (pbuh) and his companions embarked on building the masjid. It was a modest structure and measured no more than 98 ft x 115 ft, having mud walls raised over stone foundations. The roof was made of trunks and branches of date palm trees. Only a portion of the masjid had a roof to protect attendees and participants from the Sun. The Prophet (pbuh) personally took part in its construction. On the south side there was also a bench that served as the place for Ahl al-Suffah (literally, people of the bench), the poorest of the poor companions who had no homes, and were supported by the Prophet (pbuh). There were three doors to the rectangular enclosure: Bab al-Rahmah (The Door of Mercy) to the south; Bab Jibril (Door of Gabriel) to the west, called thus because the Prophet (pbuh) had received revelation near it, and Bab al-Nisa (Door of the Women) to the east. Initially, the qiblah was toward Jerusalem (facing north) but when the qiblah direction was changed to face the Ka‘bah in Makkah, which is due south, the masjid was also re-oriented accordingly. The simple masjid has undergone many phases of expansion, the first being seven years after its construction. Its height was increased to 11 feet, facilitating better ventilation in the oppressive heat of Arabia. Major expansions occurred during the khilafahs of ‘Umar and ‘Uthman (ra), the latter building an arcade of stone and plaster and making the columns of stone instead of tree trunk. The Umayyad and ‘Abbasid rulers also carried out expansion work. In the year 707ce, the Umayyad ruler al-Walid ibn ‘Abd al-Malik demolished the old structure entirely and built a new larger one in its place incorporating the tomb of the noble Messenger (pbuh) into the masjid. The hujarat (dwellings) of the Prophet’s (pbuh) family that were right next to the masjid were also incorporated into the masjid. The place between the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb and his minbar is referred to as Riyad al-Jannah (Garden of Paradise) and according to a hadith of the noble Messenger (pbuh), any du‘a’ made there is never rejected. It must be borne in mind that the Umayyad ruler al-Walid also built the Dome of the Rock in al-Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem that some Muslims confuse with al-Masjid al-Aqsa (the two are very different buildings). During the ‘Abbasid period, the ruler al-Mahdi (775–785ce) also enlarged al-Masjid al-Nabawi by extending it further to the north, adding 20 additional doors. Eight each were added to the east and west walls while four were added to the north wall. During the rule of the Mamluk Sultans, al-Mansur Qalawun built a dome over the tomb of the Prophet (pbuh) in 1279ce. This was the first time that a dome was erected. It was made of wood and was colorless. Later it was painted white and blue. In fact for a while, the dark blue color predominated, a favorite of the Arabs. Al-Mansur also built an ablution fountain outside of Bab al-Salam (Door of Peace). Another Mamluk Sultan, al-Nasir Muhammad, rebuilt the fourth minaret that had been destroyed earlier. More than 200 years later (in the year 1481ce), a massive fire destroyed much of the masjid as well as the wooden dome over the Prophet’s (pbuh) grave. Ashraf Sayf al-Din Qa’itbay, the Sultan of Egypt (1468–1496ce), a great patron of architectural buildings, rebuilt the east, west and qiblah (south) walls. He sponsored not only the rebuilding of al-Masjid al-Nabawi but also of al-Masjid al-Haram in Makkah and al-Haram al-Sharif in Jerusalem in addition to building huge projects in Damascus, Aleppo, Alexandria and Cairo. A huge citadel is named after him in Alexandria that stands to this day. Sultan Qa’itbay also replaced most of the wooden base of the dome with brick structure to prevent its collapse in the future. Then he used plates of lead to cover the new wooden dome. He may not have realized at the time but this prevented the dome’s destruction many centuries later at the hands of the Wahhabi hordes when they erupted from Dar‘iyyah in 1744 and swept westward toward the Hijaz. Qa’itbay also undertook extensive renovation of the tomb of the Prophet (pbuh). The Green Dome The Mamluk sultans to whom Qa’itbay belonged were followed by the Ottomans who took control of the Arabian Peninsula, especially the Hijaz with its two holy cities of Makkah and al-Madinah. Their domain extended to Palestine, then a province of al-Sham (Syria) encompassing present-day Lebanon and Jordan. The Ottomans administered the Hijaz through their governors (the sharifs) from 1517 until the end of the Fist World War (1918), when the Ottoman Empire disintegrated and British puppets took control of the region effectively falling into the hands of the British. The Ottoman Sultans had great reverence for the stature and moral preeminence of the noble Messenger (pbuh) as is required of any good Muslim. They approached al-Masjid al-Nabawi, especially the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb with the utmost respect. Even while undertaking expansion work in the masjid, they did it with great respect and care always cognizant of the fact that the last Messenger of Allah (pbuh) is buried there and nothing should be done that would appear even remotely indicative of any disrespect to him. It was the Ottoman Sultan Mahmud II who in 1818 built the green dome that covers the Prophet’s (pbuh) grave. It was built on top of the existing dome that was built by Qa’itbay in 1481. The green painted dome distinguishes the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb from other domes that are silver in colour. The green paint was first applied to the Prophet’s (pbuh) dome in 1837. It has remained this way ever since to distinguish it from the multiple silver domes that can be seen atop al-Masjid al-Nabawi. In 2007, the Saudis tried to paint the dome silver to make it look like all the other domes. The people of Madinah suspected this to be a sinister ploy on the part of the Saudi regime and launched an unprecedented protest against the municipality in Madinah, forcing it to repaint the dome to its original green color. One is constrained to ask: why did the municipality feel the need to paint the distinctive green dome to silver color so that it would become indistinguishable from other domes? Critics of the Saudi regime that have followed and exposed the regime’s wholesale destruction of the sacred sites suspected that there was a sinister motive behind it. Unlike the Saudis, the Ottomans showed great respect to al-Masjid al-Nabawi and the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb that is located in the southeast corner of the masjid. Sultan Suleiman the Magnificent (1520–1566ce) rebuilt the western walls of al-Masjid al-Nabawi and built the northeastern minaret known as al-Suleymaniyyah. He also added a new mihrab (al-Ahnaf) next to the Prophet’s (pbuh) mihrab (al-Shafi‘iyyah), and placed a new dome covered in lead sheets above the tomb or Rawdah of the Prophet (pbuh), referred to as al-Rawdah al-Mutahharah. Sultan ‘Abd al-Majid (1839–1861) remodeled the entire masjid, enlarging it extensively. He did not, however, touch the tomb of the Prophet (pbuh), the three mihrabs, the minbar and the Suleiymaniyyah minaret. The prayer hall to the south was doubled in width and covered with small equal sized domes. The only exceptions were the domes that cover the mihrab area, Bab al-Salam and the tomb of the noble Messenger (pbuh). Sultan ‘Abd al-Majid was so careful in the work he undertook that he had an entire generation of huffaz prepared from a very young age and trained by the best of craftsmen in the Islamic realm. He had the craftsmen prepare paint from trees cut from those forests that had never been touched by human activity. Under his instructions, an entire city was built outside Madinah where stones and other material were cut and trimmed to be used in al-Masjid al-Nabawi. He also gave orders that the craftsmen, all huffaz, must be in wudu’ all the time and must be reciting the noble Qur’an while at work in the masjid. The domes were decorated with Qur’anic verses and lines from Qasidah al-Burdah (Poem of the Prophet’s (pbuh) Mantle) composed by the famous Moroccan Sufi poet, Muhammad ibn Sa‘id ibn Mallak al-Sanhaji better known as Shaykh al-Busiri (he descended from the Berber Sanhaja tribe). He is reported to have composed the poem after the Prophet (pbuh) appeared to him in a dream and covered him with his mantle. Al-Busiri, who was paralyzed was cured. When he woke up and saw his totally changed condition, Shaykh al-Busiri composed the qasidah whose actual title is al-Kawakib al-Durriyah fi Madh Khayr al-Bariyah (The Celestial Lights in Praise of the Best of Creation). Sultan ‘Abd al-Majid also had the qiblah (south) wall covered with glazed tiles that carried Qur’anic calligraphy. The floors of the prayer hall and the courtyard were paved with marble and red stones and a fifth minaret (al-Majidiyyah), was built to the west of the enclosure. Contrast this great respect accorded by the Ottoman Sultans to al-Masjid al-Nabawi, especially the Rawdah, with that of the Saudi/Wahhabi hordes. When they first occupied Madinah in 1805, fresh from their “success” in destroying the masjid and leveling the grave of Imam Husayn (ra) in Karbala’ in 1802, they destroyed all the domes atop every tomb in Jannah al-Baqi‘ and the Uhud cemetery for the shuhada’ of Uhud. They would have destroyed the dome over the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb as well but for the lead plates, thanks to Sultan Qa’itbay’s foresight. The Saudi/Wahhabi hordes were driven out of Madinah and ultimately defeated in their Najdi stronghold of Dar‘iyyah in 1819 but not before they had stolen all the gold and jewels from the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb as they had plundered the tomb of Imam Husayn (ra) in Karbala’! The Saudi chronicler, ‘Uthman ibn ‘Abdillah ibn Bishr proudly recounts how the masjid of Imam Husain (ra) was destroyed and his grave flattened to prevent Muslims from committing shirk! When they returned to the Hijaz in 1925, they once again embarked on their destructive mission with an even greater zeal. In the 90 years since they have occupied the Haramayn (the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah), the Saudi/Wahhabis have indulged in the wholesale destruction of almost all the important monuments of Islam. Some (like domes over the graves of the Prophet’s (pbuh) family and companions in Jannah al-Baqi‘) have been destroyed under the pretext that Muslims indulge in their veneration, which according to their reductionist definition is shirk, and others under the pretext of expansion of al-Masjid al-Haram and al-Masjid al-Nabawi. More than 90% of Islamic historic sites in Makkah have been bulldozed. In Madinah, a similar destructive frenzy is underway. Even the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb has not escaped their hateful pulse. It would be wrong to assume that the recent revelation in the British daily, The Independent (September 1) that they want to destroy the green dome over the Prophet’s (pbuh) tomb is the first time. This subject has been frequently broached in order to pave the way for its ultimate destruction. For instance, in 2007, The Independent reported that a document issued by the Saudi Ministry of Religious Affairs and endorsed by the grand mufti, read, “the green dome shall be demolished and the three graves [of the Prophet (pbuh) and his two companions Abu Bakr and ‘Umar] flattened…” Muslims would do well to pay close attention to what is underway in the Arabian Peninsula and consider ways and means to prevent such destruction. Why the Saudi/Wahhabis are so insistent on destroying all vestiges of Islamic history can be speculated upon but once destroyed they can never be retrieved. It is historic evidence lost forever. Muslims cannot remain indifferent on an issue of such vital importance. -Zafar Bangash

A jahili Hajj

By Abu Dharr

Makkah and al-Madinah were always open to all Muslims but under the Saudis, these have become off-limits. If the Prophet (saws) or Prophets Ibrahim and Ismail (as) wanted to perform Hajj today, the Saudis would insist they obtain a visa before coming!

The Hajj (the annual journey to sanctified Makkah) is in progress as these words are being written. Alas, the Hajj this year, as has been the case for many, many years, is a non-Hajj. Why? Simply because it is a fact, and a recurring one at that. Hajj was meant to have meaning(s).

In Hajj we have the tears of Hajar (Isma‘il’s loving mother); we have the survival of Isma‘il, the dying baby. We have the desperate but hopeful mother Hajar running between al-Safa and al-Marwah to save the life of her infant son who was dying of natural and social causes on the hot Arabian sands of that desolate area in Hijaz. Hajj was meant to relay to humanity the physical and behavioral construction of Allah’s (swt) sanctuary and asylum for the homeless and the stateless.

Makkah itself came into existence to lodge and accommodate Prophet Ibrahim (a) who was expelled by his own people from his original society and its culture. Prophet Ibrahim (a) lived humanity’s first dispersion and homelessness. Thus came a time and place where Ibrahim and his son Isma‘il (a) would (re)construct Allah’s (swt) sanctuary — the inviolable Ka‘bah — as a haven for the world’s displaced and destitute. One of the meanings of circling around the Ka‘bah is to establish the fact that we (the displaced, the marginalized, the oppressed, the victims) do exist — in the manner that neutrons (elementary particles with zero charge and mass about equal to a proton) enter into the structure of the atomic nucleus, eventually becoming a mass — crowds of people, critical mass with meaningful and life-sustaining movement.

The Hajj is meant to motivate us to take issue with Satan in a physical way. The pelting of stones (ramyu al-jamarat) at the symbol of Satan demonstrates our willingness to do battle with the forces of evil, and not be satisfied with words of condemnation alone. These are the forces of evil that have rendered us the forlorn Rohingya, the rootless African-American Muslims, the exiled Islamic movement members, the landless Palestinian populations of the world and the tens of millions of refugees who have been scattered all over the world.

One of the meanings of Makkah, alienated from our conscience, is to offer meat and food to the starving, the poor, the hungry, and the malnourished. When Prophet Ibrahim was ordered to sacrifice his eldest and begotten son Isma‘il (a), the very fiber of human nature said “no.” How can a father (Ibrahim) sacrifice his own son Isma‘il (a) who together with Hajar are the genesis of Makkah, their newly and only home and homeland? How can an alienation of a lifetime suffered by Ibrahim be permitted to revisit him again as a consequence of Isma‘il (a) being sacrificed? But Allah’s will had to be done. And when the father began to actualize the putting to death of his beloved Isma‘il (a), Allah’s (swt) mercy, His sole prerogative, intervened and overturned His command to Ibrahim (a). Allah (swt) did not want human sacrifice; it was a test of Ibrahim (a).

Thus we have, at a minimum, a meaning and a lesson: (a) obeying Allah (swt) eventually leads to feeding the hungry, the thirsty, and the dying; and (b) the intention to sacrifice the most precious thing one has in life becomes reclamation of life itself.

This inclusive and hospitable Makkah lost its meaning and identity, the first time around, when its rulers forced our beloved Prophet (pbuh) to leave under the threat of assassination — when he went to Yathrib (Madinah). Nowadays, Makkah has again lost its meaning and identity when its rulers forbid the Hajj and the ‘Umrah to anyone who recaptures and assimilates the character of Prophets Ibrahim, Isma‘il, and Muhammad (a).

The Hajj was meant to break down all barriers and to fulfill the objective of unity and uniformity among all those who attend. Muslims shed their worldly positions and their social status when they don the ihram. You can’t tell by looking at a person whether he/she is upper class or lower class, military or civilian, from the elite or from the working class, etc.

All of these meanings and much more are absent from the Saudi-ized Hajj. Initially, their British masters and now their American overlords have managed to macro-manage the Hajj through the Saudi petro-family. And due to the absence of the thinking Muslim Ummah the Yahudi-Saudi Hajj has become meaningless ceremonial customs and ossified observances and programmed practices.

Who said that Muslims are only allowed two or three weeks in the land of the Prophet (pbuh) and the Qur’an? With current Saudi rules and regulations Prophets Ibrahim, Isma‘il, and Muhammad (a) would have to apply for visas to go to Makkah and Madinah, and then have to endure security checks once they arrive.

Makkah, Madinah, and the Hijaz have always been open to all the Muslims of the world, until, that is, the advent of the Anglo-Yahudi Saudis. Makkah was the melting pot of the Muslims of the world. Any Muslim from anywhere in the world — from Sumatra to Timbuktu — had he/she so intended and was able to do so, could go to Makkah for the Hajj and/or the ‘Umrah and stay there for the love of Allah (swt) and His Prophet (pbuh). Not any more. Now the Saudi regime sees to it that all Muslims who come to perform the Hajj and ‘Umrah must leave the land of Muhammad (pbuh)… and stay away. The security setup is going electronic and the Saudis with coaching from Washington and Tel Aviv will have files on Muslims coming for Hajj!

Poor Muslims! Under these imposed conditions, they do not have it within their larger selves to take these hydrocarbon Saudis to the cleaners. O Muslims! Where is the ‘Umar and ‘Ali in you? Don’t you know you have all the Allah-given rights to go and be in the vicinity of the Prophet (pbuh) and be there as long as you can support yourselves without the Saudi bid‘ahs of imprimaturs, visas, and other secular endorsements that beg the permission of royals to obey Allah (swt)?

At a time when Palestine is occupied in the bloody manner that breaks out in wars every few years, resulting in thousands of people killed, tens of thousands wounded, and hundreds of thousands becoming homeless, why can’t you the Muslims demand to go to Khaybar? Is Khaybar off-limits to the hujjaj (pilgrims)? Is Khaybar occupied territory? At a time when the Saudis are meeting incessantly with the Yahudis to do war against Islamic self-determination, at a time when their intelligence chiefs are frantically exchanging notes and ideas on how to defeat an awakening of Muslims in Asia and Africa, at a time when Wahhabi Arabia finds common purpose with Talmudic Zionism, at a time when Riyadh receives its orders to classify activist Muslims as “terrorists,” with all the accompanying legal and penal consequences, isn’t it high time that we the Muslims who are going to a purposeful Hajj also go to Khaybar to recollect our thoughts and inspire our generation with our Prophet’s (pbuh) defeat of Yahud in Arabia the first time around?

You heard it here first. Hajj has to become meaningful — it has to have a meaning and a purpose. Al-Hijaz has to be accessible to all Muslims every day of the year. And every place the Prophet (pbuh) went in Arabia should be approachable by any Muslim who so intends to walk the footsteps of the Prophet (pbuh) That obviously and boldly includes Khaybar, the stronghold of Yahud, that was liberated by the Prophet (pbuh) and his committed generation of combat-ready Muslims.

Have you ever taken a few minutes to think about the fact that we don’t have even a picture of Khaybar today? Even the Muslims, who are Saudi citizens and who — it would appear — do not have the same restrictions and restraints placed upon them as other Muslims have — even they do not trek up to Khaybar and have programs there about Zionism and its evil nexus of clients who all cooperate to reduce Palestinians, Arabs, and Muslims to what we have become in today’s world.

Why can’t we, the Muslims of the world, think about holding an international and global conference about Palestine in Khaybar itself? Is there any sacred or secular law that says we can’t or shouldn’t? Why aren’t all programs pertaining to Palestine — political, humanitarian, social, educational, academic, etc. — convened in Khaybar?

The simple answer is that Yahud have reoccupied Khaybar through their Saudi soulmates. Just like Palestine no longer belongs to the Muslims, Khaybar, too, no longer belongs to the Muslims. Palestine is under Hebrew occupation and Khaybar is under Arabian occupation.

The Saudi regime is wasting our precious time on their imperialist and Zionist sponsored Hajj. They are wasting our holy places by physically and morally demolishing them in Makkah and Madinah. They are wasting our wealth by financing the imperialist-Zionist military industrial banking complex. They are wasting our din by their Wahhabi nihilist outfits.

And what is due to Allah is for people to journey to the Inviolable House — whoever is able to trek that path… (3:97).

The main fight has to be done by us, by the Iraqis - Hoshyar Zebari

Alwaght-Hoshyar Zebari, Iraq’s former foreign minister and new deputy Prime Minister, in an interview with CNN said that ISIS terrorist group in Iraq could be defeated. “I think they are on the run, on the defensive … I think they would be defeated, at least here in Iraq. We have every confidence,” he told.

He pointed to the formation of the new government in Iraq and told“Yes, well, we’ve changed places, as you know. The idea was to bring older Iraqi key leaders and faces together to give weight to this new government, to the new prime minister, Dr. Haider Abadi, and to work together.”

He went on saying that “Everybody is happy that we made it and defied all the critics. And now we have the tools to fight ISIS, jointly and collectively, and we have a common enemy now in order to work together and hold, bring the country together in this fight.” Indeed, Zebari believes that ISIS terrorist group came to tear Iraq apart, but has instead united it; with a new enemy the government has focus.

Emphasizing on Iraqis' ability to rescue their country, Hoshyar Zebari told “The main fight has to be done by us, by the Iraqis. This is our fight. But as you know, this fight has regional, international dimensions.” He added, “And I think the key issue would be to rely on local Iraqis in those areas where ISIS is in control, specifically in Sunni areas … for them really to push ISIS away from the neighborhood, away from cities.”

It is noteworthy that, although Iraqi Government and people are doing their best to get rid of ISIS terrorist group, it seems that they cannot defeat them, unless some western and regional countries for this savage group cut  their supports from ISIS group. America and its western and regional allies have armed and funded ISIS terrorist group in Syria to overthrow the Syrian Government. They made some parts of Syria stronghold and are making money by selling its oil. Indeed, Iraq is not faced with a single terrorist group, but with a coalition, namely Ameica and its allies, who found and found terrorism to achieve their goals, toppling Bashar al-Assad and finding a pretext for military return to Iraq.   

Saudis mull destruction of the Prophet’s tomb

Under the primitive Saudi clan, nothing is safe as far as Islam's holy sites are concerned. A new report has emerged that recommends destroying the Green Dome over the Prophet's (saws) tomb and relocating his body to Baqi Cemetery to be interred in an unmarked grave. Muslims worldwide should take note and act before this sacrilegious act is perpetrated by the sworn enemies of Allah, His Prophet (saws) and Islam.

There appears no limit to the hatred the Saudi clan from Najd has for Islam and the noble Messenger (saws). Consider this: a controversial plan has emerged that calls for demolishing the tomb of the noble Messenger (saws) and relocating his body to the Baqi‘ Cemetery to be interred in an unmarked grave.

The latest proposal, though not new, is the brainchild of Ali ibn Abdulaziz al-Shabal, professor at Imam Muhammad ibn Saud University in Riyadh. His 61-page document has been circulated among the supervisors of al-Masjid al-Nabawi in Madinah, where the noble Messenger (saws) is laid to rest. A Green Dome above marks the site of the grave.

According to the document whose contents were referred to by the British daily, The Independent newspaper on Monday (September 1), the rooms surrounding the tomb should be destroyed and the Green Dome demolished in preparation for removal of the Prophet’s (saws) body from there.

The rooms surrounding the tomb were used by the Prophet’s (saws) family—wives and daughters—in early Islamic history.

“[Once relocated to Baqi], the Prophet’s [(saws) grave] would be anonymous,” Dr Irfan al-Alawi, director of the Islamic Heritage Research Foundation, told the British daily adding, “Everything around the Prophet’s mosque has already been destroyed. It is surrounded by bulldozers. Once they’ve removed everything they can move towards the mosque.”

While a final decision about demolishing the Green Dome and relocating the Prophet’s (saws) body has not been taken, the fact that the Saudis can even consider such a possibility is outrageous and is bound to inflame Muslims worldwide.

The Saudi clan emerged from the desert of Najd and follows a narrow literalist interpretation of Islam that the overwhelming majority of Muslims completely reject. Yet by illegally occupying the entire Arabian Peninsula, including the two holy cities of Makkah and Madinah, the clan has shown visceral hatred towards the noble Messenger (saws), nastaghfirullah, and Islam.

The overwhelming majority of Muslims, following the teachings of the Qur’an show great love and respect to the noble Messenger (saws). The Saudi/Wahhabi literalists misinterpret this as “Bid‘a” (innovation in Deen) and “shirk” (associating partners with Allah).

The very fact that the Arabian Peninsula, so name by the noble Messenger (saws), has been renamed “Saudi” Arabia, as if the primitive clan owns the land, is the biggest form of bida and shirk.

Unfortunately, this simple truth seems to have escaped the court ulama and their equally obliging “professors” at universities.

The planned attack on the Prophet’s (saws) tomb is not the first instance is Saudi history. Only a few years ago, the Municipality in Madinah changed the colour of the Green Dome to white.

There are numerous other domes with silver colour. There is only one Green Dome. This was done in preparation for destroying it and hoodwinking the Muslims in to believing that a silver dome has been destroyed.

This sacrilegious act may have gone largely unnoticed but for the fact that the people of Madinah came out to protest. This was a rare example of courage in the face of the regime’s extreme brutality toward any form of dissent.

Under public pressure, the municipality was forced to re-paint the dome back to its original green colour.

The Saudi regime has appointed Abdul Rahman al-Sudais, who performs the duties of Imam in Masjid al-Haram, to oversee the expansion project. This is done on the pretext that huge numbers of pilgrims visit Makkah and Madinah each year.

While true, there are alternate ways to expand the facilities without destroying the historic sites of Islam. The Saudis and their court ulama, however, are motivated by very different considerations.

They want to element important historical sites—95 percent of these have been destroyed in Makkah, according the Washington-based Gulf Institute—and they are busy targeting the Prophet’s (saws) Mosque and tomb.

It is revealing that everything related to Abdulaziz ibn Saud, founder of the Saudi “kingdom” has been preserved.

Muslims should ask themselves: are the artefacts of ibn Saud more important than the final resting place of the noble Messenger (saws) of Allah? And who gave the Saudi corrupters the authority to make decisions for the entire Muslim Ummah?

The Saudi ideology of hatred have given the world such monstrosities as the takfiris (otherwise called the so-called Islamic State of Iraq and Sham) that have gone on a rampage in Syria and Iraq murdering innocent people.

The world of Islam must take serious note of the latest Saudi outrage before it is too late.

Muslims should also seriously plan for the removal of this corrupt regime and its thieving members from power.

-by crescent-online.net