The Religion of Peace preachers will preach what they're told when the King holds their harems hostage.
Posted on 11/18/2003 4:26:03 AM PST by kattracks
RIYADH, Nov 18 (Reuters) - A Saudi cleric detained this year for promoting al Qaeda-style militancy has apologised for his radicalism, saying on public television that suicide bombings and attacks against the kingdom were sinful.The dramatic turnaround of Sheikh Ali al-Khodeir, who had issued religious edicts backing militants bent on toppling the Saudi royal family, appeared to be part of the kingdom's drive to wipe out public support for extremists.
Khodeir, popular among the young Saudis who are prime recruits for militant groups, said in an interview broadcast on Monday night he had volunteered to speak out after realising that what he had preached was wrong.
"I would like to inform my brothers about the mistakes we made in the past and which we worked hard to justify (from a religious viewpoint)," said the elderly cleric.
"But there is still time to correct these mistaken ideas in the minds of the youth and all Muslims, God willing."
Khodeir's edicts had condemned the close links between Saudi Arabia's rulers and the West. Saudi media say he also declared security forces legitimate targets for attack, echoing Saudi-born al Qaeda leader Osama bin Laden.
His sudden confession came a day after Interior Minister Prince Nayef told militants they would get lenient sentences -- or even go free -- if they renounced violence.
Saudi newspapers and the television said Khodeir had not been coerced into changing his mind.
Turki al Hamad, a Saudi reformist and novelist whom Khodeir had declared an infidel, said the interview might prevent youths from throwing themselves into militancy, but would have little effect on die-hard extremists.
"Those who are thinking about jihad -- now they will doubt the religious discourse. That's not like the past when they took it for granted that any sheikh spoke for God," he told Reuters. "It's the beginning of doubting what (the clerics) say."
SUICIDE ATTACKS "SINFUL"
Saudi Arabia, birthplace of Islam, is battling a surge in militant violence believed to be linked to al Qaeda.
Earlier this month, at least 18 people were killed in a suspected al Qaeda suicide car bomb attack on a Riyadh compound housing mainly Arab expatriates. A purported al Qaeda statement denied the group was responsible.
The bombing, which came six months after similar attacks on three compounds killed 35 people, shocked many Saudis as most victims were Arabs and many were women and children.
The attack also occurred during the holy Muslim month of Ramadan, considered a time for prayer and peace.
Khodeir told viewers the bombing of the Muhaya compound was sinful and that Islam forbade such suicide attacks.
"Ignorance and too much zeal lead some people into wrong-doing," he said. "Everyone in the kingdom must try and resolve this problem before it becomes gargantuan."
Khodeir's apology was broadcast at a late hour that is prime time in the kingdom as most Saudis would have finished their prayers for the day.
The Saudi-owned Asharq al-Awsat daily said Sheikh Nasser al-Fuhaid, another radical cleric who was arrested with Khodeir, would also publicly repent within the next few days.
Both men were seized weeks after the May 12 attacks on the three Riyadh compounds. Khodeir had issued an edict urging Saudis not to cooperate with the hunt for 19 people on a wanted list issued days before the Riyadh blasts.
A purported email from al Qaeda, published by the London-based Al Quds al-Arabi newspaper in May, warned Saudi rulers against harming Khodeir.
The Religion of Peace preachers will preach what they're told when the King holds their harems hostage.
Now lets hear him condemn the "suicide" Homicide bombers in Israel, the airplane "suicide" homicide mass killers in NYC, Washington DC and the fields of Pennsylvania.
This is the lesson of the Treaty of Hudaybiya, in which the Prophet accepted a strategic retreat and an unfair treaty in order to insinuate his followers into the opposing society. Once those followers had established themselves and the strength of his armies had recovered, the struggle continued and ultimately conquered Mecca.
To the Western mind, this makes no sense. In Western philosphy, evil is to be opposed at all times by all people. It glorifies those who perish pointlessly in the face of impossible odds. But the Muslim strategy when faced with impossible odds is to accomodate what they see as evil, to bide time until the conditions are more favorable.
So what we are doing now in Afghanistan and Iraq is making the conditions unfavorable. As a result of this, we can expect capitulation and a finding by leading Muslim clerics that armed strugle is un-Islamic and sinful. I would expect to see many more statements along these lines over the next months and years, especially if the US maintains it's resolve.
What will follow will be a period of reletive peace, while the Muslim societies work to insinuate themselves into the West, in order to divide the opposition and sap our will to fight. I would wager that in ten years, Islamic terrorism will be a memory, but Muslim institutions will be gaining strength throughout the West, particularly in the urban areas and prisons. This is where the next threat will emerge, perhaps decades from now.
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