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The Meaning of Gaza
by Imam Anwar al-'Awlaki
May Allah forgive the shuhada of Gaza and we ask Allah to grant the mujahideen victory.
These are a few thoughts on the meaning of what happened and is happening in Gaza:
First: We have been successfully desensitized by the enemy. The meager response to this atrocity is nowhere close to the support that is expected from the Muslim Ummah for a part of it that is suffering in pain. Rasulullah(saaws) waged war on the Jews for their attack on one Muslim woman. So far the death toll is approaching three hundred and all what we see is condemnations, demonstrations and Arab leaders calling for another useless summit. This necessitates that we raise the awareness of the people around us to what is happening and what our responsibility is.
Secondly, this should be an additional piece of evidence for what is already obvious to many since a long time ago which is that the current leadership of the Muslim world is bankrupt. It is a totally impotent leadership. The governments of the Muslim world cannot be fixed but needs to be uprooted and removed altogether. This conclusion has been reached by many in the Muslim world but sadly enough there are some who would still argue on behalf of the ones who failed us and betrayed us. The fact is that our kings and presidents have reduced themselves to the role of defending their own interests and the interests of the modern crusaders. They train their armies and security forces on how to crack down on Muslims not on their responsibility of defending Muslim interests. They have treated the masses of the Muslim ummah with suspicion and contempt. Lets not be fooled by the “condemning” of the Muslim leaders . In fact Egypt is a participant in the attack on Gaza since it is them who are laying siege on Gaza. If a Muslim thinks about Jihad today the first who would stand in his way are the governments of the Muslim world.
Thirdly, the illegal state of Israel needs to be eradicated. Just like Rasulullah drove them out of the Arabian peninsula the Jews of Palestine need to be driven out to the sea. There are no Israeli civilians unless they are Muslim. When the enemy targets our women and children we should target theirs. Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen says: If the enemy kill our women and children it appears to me that we are allowed to kill their women and children because that weakens their hearts and humiliates them. That is also included in the general meaning of the verse: “So whoever has assaulted you, then assault him in the same way that he has assaulted you.” [al-Baqarah 194]
We ask Allah to alleviate the pain of our families in Gaza, to assist them, and to grant them victory.
CLARIFICATION:
My opinion which I have stated in past recordings and is still my opinion now is that non-combatant women and children cannot be targeted. However if the type of war forced on us to fight is one in which non-combatants would end up being killed in order to reach to the fighting force then it is allowed in this case. Examples of this are the striking of al Taif by the catapult during the time of Rasulullah(saaws). Parallels of this today are the two methods that our brothers in Palestine have adopted: martyrdom operations and the firing of rockets into the occupied territories. Both of these methods inevitably do kill women and children. The current case of Gaza adds another dimension and that is that the Jews are targeting the entire community in Gaza by siege and indiscriminate bombing and this is why I am inclined to the view of Shaykh Ibn Uthaymeen in this particular situation.
In the current situation of Palestine I must say that I agree with the methods adopted by the mujahideen and I agree with them when they state that they would not stop targeting civilians until the Israeli’s do the same.
For those who asked that I reconsider my view on this, I promise I will review it again and would be happy if you could send me textual references pertinent to the discussion.
Source: http://www.anwar-alawlaki.com/2008/1...aning-of-gaza/