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Roots of Islamic Extremism
Part 3: Extremist Groups and People
These are some of the most important individuals, groups and
movements which have lead to the current radical Islamist ideologies:
The Kharijites
An original Muslim dissident movement, this group asserted that Islam
had strayed from the real directives established by Allah, and that
most Muslims weren't really Muslims after all. Economics played a
role in their popularity, because the growing numbers of non-Arab
converts to Islam were not being treated as well as Arab Muslims.
Kharijites, however, endeavored to practice what they preached, and
promised that if there was a return to the pure traditions of
Muhammad, economic and religious problems would be solved.
Salafiyya
The school of salafiyya has to do with "getting back to the roots" of
Islam and restoring traditional beliefs and practices. It has at
times embraced modernism, but today the tradition normally opposes
any blending of modernity and Islam. Yet all versions share the
premise that the societies in which Muslims now live no longer apply
Islamic principles. True justice and peace are attainable, but only
if Islamic law is fully and rigidly implemented.
Wahhabism
A reform movement which has been restricted mostly to the Saudi
peninsula, Wahhabism sought to eliminate non-Muslim elements which
had become popular over the centuries and corrupted Muslim's beliefs.
A second goal was to return Islam to the purity of its roots - people
had been ignoring Islamic obligations, and as a result many Muslims
suffered, especially in the economic realm. The founder was one of
the first to use the term jahiliyya to apply to ostensibly Islamic
lands, thus justifying the use of force to make fundamental changes.
The Mahdi
An Islamic concept of a "guided one" who will restore Islam and bring
about an era of peace, it also resulted in a political movement in
the Sudan which has consequences even today. According to the Mahdi,
non-Islamic practices had corrupted Islam and resulted in hardships
for common Muslims. In response, he led a revolt against the Ottoman
rulers which also ended up including Western powers as the enemy
behind those rulers.
Muslim Brotherhood
A social and political movement which started in Egypt in 1928 by
Hasan al-Banna for the purpose of establishing a pan- Islamic state,
transcending all current political and geographic divisions. Like
those before him, al-Banna also regarded the West as posing a
fundamental threat to the future of Islam. He felt that even worse
than military campaigns were the attempts to import Western culture
and political ideals. The root of Muslim problems was that the
shari'a had not been implemented - once this was accomplished,
everything would be better.
Jamaat-i-Islami
A still-active political party in Pakistan established by Maulana
Sayyid Abul Ala Maududi for the purpose of ensuring that Pakistani
society fully implements Islamic law (shari'a). According to Maududi,
secular authorities do not need to be followed if they are not
genuinely Muslim. Revolution against such rulers is not simply a
right, but it is in fact a duty. Jihad was thus placed at the center
of a Muslim's life, taking on a role similar to the traditional Five
Pillars of Faith. Maududi was one of the first people to connect
Islam with modern political movements on a fundamental level.
Sayyid Qutb
A member of the Muslim Brotherhood, Qutb created an ideological basis
for political and even armed resistance to a Muslim government by
declaring that any government which does not completely follow
Islamic law is not really Muslim at all. He painted the world in
stark terms of black and white, arguing that any government which
relied upon secular legislation was usurping God's sovereignty. His
ideas later bore fruit in the assassination of Egyptian President
Sadat, and the organization responsible for it included as its
members Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman, currently in a U.S. jail for
terrorism, and Dr. Ayman al-Zawahiri, currently second-in-command of
Osama bin Laden's terrorist organization.
Jama'at Islamiyyah
Student groups in Egyptian universities during the late 1970s, their
members became radicalized and even violent in their effort to
establish Islamic "purity" on campuses and throughout Egypt. They
were often very successful, and as was later shown in Afghanistan,
they demonstrated that Islamic goals could be accomplished through
force and intimidation, thus eliminating the need to try and do
things democratically.
Al-Da'wa
A magazine published in Egypt by former members of the Muslim
Brotherhood, it expressed a number of fundamental Islamist ideals. Of
particular importance is their treatment of "Jews and Crusaders,"
allegedly two of the greatest evils facing Muslims today. Although
not the only outlet of Islamist ideas, it was one of the most
important, and it can be used to gauge just what people were thinking
and how their ideology developed. This focus on "Jews and Crusaders"
was to have deep, lasting effects.
Hassan al-Turabi
Leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Sudan, al-Turabi worked with the
Mahdist party and was a mentor of Dr. Ayman al- Zawahiri, who later
became a close aide of Osama bin Laden. Al-Turabi continued to
develop three ideas which have been fundamental to the Islamist
movement: that Islam is a necessary source of identity, that the
current ills in society are due to the failure to implement shari'a,
and that once society is fully Islamic, it will rise up and
successfully challenge the West because Islam is the superior system,
coming directly from God. All of these have strong appeal to Muslims
who are inheritors of one of history's great religions and
civilizations, but who currently live in grinding poverty while the
West dominates the world political scene.
Sheik Omar Abdel Rahman
Honored by Osama bin Laden as a "spiritual leader," Rahman was
involved with those who assassinated Egyptian President Sadat and
regards violent jihad as a legitimate means of Muslims to defend
Islam against the West. Like many earlier Islamists, his original
concern was with the Egyptian government, and he does not consider
any ruler acceptable who ignores Islamic law. Over time, however, he
has turned his attention to the West as being the greater enemy. He
not only justifies the use of jihad, but is even willing to employ it
if it kills innocent people.
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