Islam and terrorism

The claim is made by two constituencies who agree about the reading and disagree only about whether to celebrate it: the polemicist, and the extremist he is describing.

The text

Qur’an 5:32 states that whoever has killed one innocent soul has killed all humanity, and whoever has saved one soul has saved all humanity. The Prophet explicitly forbade the killing of non-combatants, of women, and of children. The Qur’an instructs Muslims toward forbearance and justice even toward those who have wronged them.

Muslim organisations across the world condemned the attacks in New York and in London as violations of Islam’s fundamental principles. The condemnation was ignored, because it was inconvenient to the thesis.

The conditions on force

Islamic law permits the use of force under three conditions: where Muslims are persecuted for the practice of their faith, where people are oppressed and silenced in the pursuit of freedom, and where people’s land is forcibly taken from them. Force operates within a system of law, enforced by a legitimate authority. War is never described as holy. It is described as a necessary instrument for the restoration of peace, and it is fenced accordingly.

None of that authorises a private individual to appoint himself an army and kill civilians on a train.

The verses in dispute

The verses produced as proof of perpetual war are verses about war, revealed in specific circumstances, addressed to specific adversaries, and read by the overwhelming majority of Muslims across fourteen centuries as such.

The extremist requires the polemicist’s reading of these verses to justify himself. The polemicist requires the extremist’s actions to justify his reading. Each is the other’s best witness. Neither is a reliable guide to the text.