ISLAMIC THREAT OR MYTH

ISLAMIC THREAT MYTH OR REALITY

by Cheryl Bennie on Friday, June 17, 2011 at 9:16am

by Christopher Spencer Canadian Department of Foreign Affairs and International Trade Updated: 12 MAR 11

John L.Esposito The Islamic Threat: Myth or Reality? Revised Edition(New York: Oxford Univ. Press 95):-plethora of recent books on Islam, Islamic Fundamentalism and the Islamic"threat" partly reflects a tendency in the West to confuse the new political power of Islamism(which is not”fundamentalist”in the Christian sense, and influences such major countries as Turkey, Iran, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Malaysia and Indonesia)with Arab nationalism(which involves a considerably smaller number of states and people - from Morocco to Iraq - most deeply concerned with the Israeli issue). This book is among the best on Islamism. It is neither an apologia nor an alarm, but an objective and informative source for Western readers, particularly those concerned about an inevitable"Clash of Civilizations"(see Huntington,op.cit.). Fouad Ajami, The Dream Palace of the Arabs: A Generation's Odyssey(New York: Pantheon, 1998):-UN”peace agenda” seems overwhelmed by ethnic conflict, which competes with its Charter role of constraining broader national ambitions. Yet bothethnicity and nationalism have long provided motives for violence - and even world wars. Their deep-seated combination constitutes an inflammable and enduring cause of conflict, both inter- and intra-state. This is tragically true of the Arab world, through the 20th century a focus of instability. Ajami's well-written book tells the story of Arab intellectuals' key role in generating pan-Arabic nationalism, pro-and anti-Western cultural aspirations and hatred of Israel - and in impeding development. The very arguments and myths used to foster Arab identity are promoting ethnic conflict in Arab states. The process is globally relevant. Bernard Lewis,“Licence to Kill: Usama bin Ladin’s Declaration of Jihad”in Foreign Affairs Vol.77/No.6(Nov/Dec 1998):-offers a valuable historical and religious gloss for the amazing, if largely ignored, declaration of jihad against“the Jews and the Crusaders”(sic)issued by bin Ladin(suspected of bombing two US embassies in Africa)and several Islamist leaders. The statement accuses the US of occupying, plundering and humiliating Islam’s holiest territory (i.e. Arabia) and of planning to repeat the slaughter of a million(sic)Iraqis, for religious(sic)and economic reasons and [of course] to serve Israel.Fata:“To kill Americans and their allies, both civil and military, is an individual duty of every Muslim who is able, in [any possible] country”(p.15). A specific demand for mass terror. The Economist 19 Feb 00“Iran, Islam and Democracy”(19-20):-also takes a careful and objective look at Islamism, this time in the context of an Iranian election in which the world’s most revolutionary and militant theocracy was sharply instructed to become more democratic and tolerantby a generally religious electorate frustrated with“clerical despotism”opposed to all things Western. The Editor notes that while the Islamic world is“not burdened with examples of good government, let alone democracy,...religion is seldom the culprit; look, rather, for cruel autocrats, corrupt feudal systems, overbearing armies[, with] Arabs inhabiting the least democratic patch on God’s earth...Religion is largely irrelevant to this common misbehaviour”. Sometimes Islamism itself is a”principal villain”[Sudan, Afghanistan], but in general the”actions of a few zealots have helped to discolour understanding of political Islam.” While this“still provides dangers,[the Iranian example] also provides reasons for hope”. John F. Burns,“An Arab Militia, Glimpsing Victory, Could Lose Peace” New York Times 28 Feb:-rare summary of the history, actions and aims of Hezbollah, a key player in Middle East events, whose apparent mutation may be relevant to wider trends in terrorism, sub-state violence and religious politics. Hezbollah has”dispensed and suffered sudden death on a numbing scale for 18 years” -mainly around the“security zone” Israel has maintained in southern Lebanon since 1985, and from which Israel has undertaken to withdraw. Sheik Hassan Nasrallah, a Shiite cleric, still leads 1500 guerrillas and 20,000 active members, but the”Party of God”is no longer the umbrella body that“once directed the Middle East’s most brutal Islamic terrorists”. Instead it controls the largest single bloc in the Lebanese Parliament, and runs major social and media networks. Its two principal backers, Iran and Syria, and Lebanon’s government, will influence Hezbollah’s options following any general peace agreement, but its conversion to moderate politics and democracy, and from dreams of a militant Islamic state, appears to be genuine. Nevertheless, its self-identity as a trans-Arab and trans-Islamic movement remains, as does its membership. Jeffrey Goldberg,“The Education of a Holy Warrior”NYT 24 Jun:-Afghanistan’s Taliban regime may now be the world’s strictest theocracy. Moreover, its rule is based on an extremely rigid, reactionary, and belligerent interpretation of Islamic doctrine and tradition. This first-hand account of the methods and views found in or created by key religious schools(madrasas)that produced the Taliban zealots, thus gives valuable insight into the perspectives and motives of Osama bin Laden(accused of anti-US bombings), a variety of Islamic terrorist and combat movements, and probably many militant Islamist organizations. The 2,800-student Haqqania madrasa in the North-West Frontier Province produced many Taliban leaders, but is only one of 10,000 or so in Pakistan alone, most of their million studentsprimarily studying militant Islam: “Haqqania madrasa is, in fact, a jihad factory”. This long essay also offers interesting examples of the attitudes of Islamists plus Pakistanis with broader views(e.g. General Musharraf)on world affairs and jihads. Susan Sachs, “Everyone Asks for Arab Unity. Getting It Is Harder”NYT 06 Aug:-offers a current view of the state and significance of the Arab identity following the impasse at Jul Arafat-Barak summit, specifically over the status of Jerusalem but reflecting the world’s most intensely-competing ethnicities. Diagnosis: no political slogan is“more musty with age”than“Arab unity”: chances for an Arab summit to regroup and create a new Arab consensus are slim.”Still, the chimera of a united Arab front continues to shimmer on the horizon”- and even the US is now hoping to see an agreed Arab compromise on Jerusalem. Yet, however the new leaders of Jordan, Morocco and Syria might wish more flexibility, all have inherited domestic imperatives, while Islamism has split all governments’ reactions. Arab“Unity...has historically been reactive: a collective“no”, and the region remains“clouded with illusions””. Foreign Affairs Vol.79/No.5(Sep/Oct 00)contains four Reviews of recent books directly relevant to this topic: Shaul Mishal and Abraham Sela, The Palestinian Hamas: Vision, Violence, and Coexistence(New York: Columbia Univ. Press,2000)-includes possibility of bringing this violent group eventually into the peace process. Abdolkarim Soroush, Translated/Edited by Mahoud & Ahmad Sadri, Reason, Freedom, and Democracy in Islam(New York: Oxford Univ. Press, 2000)-a “penetrating and coherent”statement of ability to synthesize Islam with democracy and reason(science). L. Carl Brown, Religion and State: The Muslim Approach to Politics(New York: Columbia Univ. Press, 2000)-a balanced analysis of Islamic political engagement that argues”fundamentalist”thought is a radical deviation [ordered for later summary focused on relevance to global issues]. Nehemia Levtzion & Randall L. Pouwels edit., The History of Islam in Africa(Athens: Ohio Univ. Press, 2000)-up-to-date reference book covering all aspects of the subject. The Economist 07 Oct 00:“The Road to War?”(19-20);“War in Palestine”(53-5);“Burn, Baby, Burn”(54):-the Israeli-Palestinian peace process seemed at last to be focusing on the final core issue - with a US-devised complex and delicate formula for fudging East Jerusalem’s hotly-disputed sovereignty. At this moment, like”a bull deliberately charging a china shop”, Ariel Sharon, the hard-line leader of Israel’s opposition Likud party, paid a“crudely provocative”visit to the deeply/doubly-revered Temple Mount/Haram al-Sharif, “to demonstrate Israel’s continuing sovereignty over Islam’s third-holiest shrine”. Palestinian anger over Israeli dominance, whether generated or just ignited by this taunt, at first took the form mainly of stone-throwingdemonstrations, though even these - and Israeli reactions - were stronger and more bitter than during the 1980's Intifada. More relevant, however, as the(mostly Palestinian)death toll mounted, feelings on both sides became deeper and, in the Arab case, widespread. “[A] ground swell of fury has swept the [Arab] region. Angry protesters from Morocco to Oman have burnt Israeli flags...[S]eldom has an event stirred such feeling as the sight of Ariel Sharon trampling on Muslim holy ground. Even the Arab world’s undemocratic governments are having to sit up, listen and maybe do something”. Associated Press“Arab Unity Remains an Elusive Dream”NYT 11 Oct:-this article also stresses that protesters“all over the Arab world have spilled into the street to venttheir outrage”, even from pro-Western Gulf countries. The imminent Arab summit will be under pressure from this”display of unity among Arab masses...to exhibit the same kind of solidarity”. Yet Arab unity is“a dream that has eluded its most ardent supporters”. Disputes and suspicions [still] divide, and have made the Arab League”little more than a talking shop”. Mubarak has long called for annual Arab summits like those of African states, but lamented,”wecannot even sit down and talk about a summit”. Can Arabs change? Economist 14 Oct“Pogrom: Libya and Africa”(56):-there are many recent cases of Muslim (particularly Islamist)violence against those whose different religion is a/the major factor in the conflict (Azerbaijan; Bosnia; Chechnya; Egypt; Fergana; India; Indonesia; Israel; Lebanon; Nigeria; Pakistan; Sudan; Xinjiang). Conscious racist(as opposed to ethnic)violence involving Muslims/Arabs is relatively rare(Irian Jaya). Article reports on vicious(ostensibly)anti-foreigner riots in Libya, which clearly had strong elements of racism. Not only did the Libyan mob spare the 1m Arab migrant workers, but it attacked some of the 1m indigenous black Libyans(all blacks were refused entry to some hospitals/public transport). At least 150 people were killed, including 16 Libyans. “Anti-black violence [was] fired by an economic crisis [in] Africa’s richest state...per person”where most oil income is spent on Caitiff’s whims. Lately he was pushing a US of Africa, with open borders. One result w