It’s Jihad, Not Joblessness Causing Rioting (In France)

Why have the French riots happened? From many accounts one would think that the riots have been caused by France’s failure to implement Marxism. “The unrest,” AP explained, has highlighted the division between France’s big cities and their poor suburbs, with frustration simmering in the housing projects in areas marked by high unemployment, crime and poverty.” Others have blamed France’s failure to integrate Muslims into French society.

However, this has been a policy on which both Muslims and non-Muslims in France have agreed. In her seminal Eurabia: The Euro-Arab Axis, historian Bat Ye’or details a series of agreements between the European Union and the Arab League that guaranteed that Muslim immigrants in Europe would not be compelled in any way to adapt “to the customs of the host countries.” On the contrary, the Euro-Arab Dialogue’s Hamburg Symposium of 1983 recommended that non-Muslim Europeans be made “more aware of the cultural background of migrants, by promoting cultural activities of the immigrant communities or ‘supplying adequate information on the culture of the migrant communities in the school curricula.’”

The European Union has implemented such recommendations for decades. Among a generation of Muslims born in Europe, significant numbers have nothing but contempt and disdain for their native lands, and allegiance only to the Muslim umma and the lands of their parents’ birth. Those who continue to arrive in Europe from Muslim countries are encouraged by the isolation, self-imposed and other-abetted, of the Islamic communities in Europe to hold to the same attitudes. The Arab European League, a Muslim advocacy group operating in Belgium and the Netherlands, states flatly: “We do not want to assimilate.” The group’s founder, Dyab Abou Jahjah, has declared: “Assimilation is cultural rape. It means renouncing your identity, becoming like the others.” He complained that, in Europe, “I could still eat certain dishes from the Middle East, but I cannot have certain thoughts that are based on ideologies and ideas from the Middle East.”

What kind of ideologies? Perhaps Hani Ramadan, grandson of Muslim Brotherhood founder Hasan Al-Banna and brother of the self-proclaimed moderate Muslim spokesman Tariq Ramadan, gave a hint when he defended in the Paris journal Le Monde the traditional Islamic Sharia punishment of stoning for adultery. In Denmark, politician Fatima Shah echoed the same sentiments in November 2004. That same month, filmmaker Theo Van Gogh, who had made a film, Submission, about the oppression of women by Islamic law, was murdered in Holland by a Muslim, Mohammed Bouyeri. Bouyeri later declared in court: “I did what I did purely out my beliefs. I want you to know that I acted out of conviction and not that I took his life because he was Dutch or because I was Moroccan and felt insulted.” In other words, his problem was religious, not racial: Van Gogh had blasphemed Islam, and so, according to Islamic law, he had to die. Significantly, Bouyeri maintained during his trial that he did not recognize the authority of the Dutch court, but only of the law of Islam.

How many European Muslims share the sentiments of Mohammed Bouyeri? How many of these are rioting this week in Paris? Alleviating Muslim unemployment and poverty will not ultimately do anything to alter this rejection of European values by growing numbers of people who are only geographically Europeans. And the problem cannot be ignored, For France is not alone: Muslims in Århus, Denmark, have also been rioting this week. And in France, Interior Minister Nicholas Sarkozy recently revealed that this week’s riots are just a particularly virulent flare-up of an ongoing pattern of violence: Before the massive expansion of the rioting, He told Le Monde that 20 to 40 cars were being set afire nightly in Paris’ restive Muslim suburbs, and no fewer than nine thousand police cars have been stoned since the beginning of 2005.

Yet French officials show no sign of recognizing that this clash of values is the heart of the problem. That guarantees that before they will be able to say that their difficulties with their Muslim population are over, many more cars will be torched, many more buildings burned, and many more lives destroyed.

I just saw this guy being interviewed on Fox, so looked him up on Google. Chapter 13 especially was mentioned by the host as "knocking his socks off". Looks like a "must read", to me.

Book: Future Jihad
Terrorist Strategies Against America by Dr. Walid Phares
http://www.futurejihad.com/

Future Jihad is Released
excerpts from early reviews

Find excerpts from early reviews by scholars, experts and international legislators

Excerpts from International early reviews

From Paulo Casaca, Socialist Member of the European Parliament. Chairman, NATO delegation at the EUP.

"Walid Phares Jihad anatomy"

The Islamist Jihad on the United States did not start on September eleven 2001; indeed it was preceded by several other attacks as well as a formal war declaration from Bin Laden. However, America was taken absolutely by surprise. Phares' book is the best comprehensive explanation so far of this paradox: American society - including its Academia, Public Opinion, Business and Political establishment - was made dormant by a systematic and unchallenged action from the Salafist circles, and that's the reason why of the success of the attack.

This book is a must read not only for all those in America who want to better understand their enemies but specially to those who are facing the "soft-jihad" infiltration in their societies that took place before in America.

From Abdallah Hanna, Member of Parliament, member of the Commission on Foreign Affairs and Defense, Beirut

From Beirut to Washington, Dr. Phares has gathered a quarter of a century of intellectual and academic experience in the field of political and historical analysis. His book, Future Jihad, brings to Western readers what many in the Arab World have learned about first hand, and brings to international readers a global understanding of the emerging threat of Terror. One can see Phares' research and writings, throughout the past few years, inspiring decision makers around the world. From an Arab and Middle Eastern perspective, Phares book is the closest analysis to the region's ideological and political realities. His projections and predictions are cutting edge and an exclusive source to understand the clash of ideas.

From the editor's review Palgrave/St Martin

This book presents a frightening new picture of what we can expect from terrorists in the future. Phares shows that there has been a fundamental misunderstanding about al Qaeda's ultimate goal in the West and what victory means to jihadists. Called by the press, 'the only person who really can read the minds of terrorists', Phares is uniquely qualified to identify the aims and strategies of the organizations waging war on the West. He answers such critical questions as: How long will this war last? Is the United States secure on the inside? Will it have to engage the jihadists worldwide in multiple campaigns and where? Future Jihad points the way for America to win the ideological war at the heart of jihad.

From Dr Alireza Fafarzadeh, Fox News Foreign Policy Analyst

Dr. Walid Phares is among the few whose expertise allows him to enunciate the differences between those who misuse the religion of Islam for their extremist, terrorist agenda, and the mainstream Muslims who believe in democracy, religious tolerance, and the rule of law.

From Colonel Kenneth Allard, USA (Ret.), Former Dean, National War College and NBC Defense Analyst

Dr. Phares has an unmatched knowledge of the Middle East with its tightly interwoven tapestry of language, religion, history and politics. He can bring an interdisciplinary approach to complex security issues. Unlike so many analysts, he can convey his encyclopedic knowledge of the Middle East in multiple languages.

From Dr. Robert Rabil, Professor of Middle East Studies at Florida Atlantic University and Scholar at the Washington Institute of Middle East Policy:

Future Jihad addresses the issue of how the nation was paralyzed in understanding the coming of "a" 9/11 and what should be done to prevent a future that the Jihadists wanted to see unfolding years ago. "Americans and other societies were led to believe that Jihadism wasn't a threat," argues Phares in his introduction. "It was a systematic and dramatic penetration of American and Western intellectual defenses that led to Terror thrusts for a whole decade." In his introduction, ten overwhelming questions challenges us: The gist of the questionnaire is revolutionary: Did we engage in a war which was launched against us, declared against us, and which signals were blurred by many among us? Richard Clarke told the American people that the Government failed the public. Phares responds: and who failed the Government and the public? Was there a Trojan Horse inside our own political culture?

From Dr Franck Salameh, Professor of Arabic Studies at Boston College:

"In his first chapter, Phares provides a clear historical definition of Jihad. In his second chapter, he clarifies who the Jihadists were, are and would become, both Salafists and Khumeinists. Future Jihad cannot be understood without a crystal clear reading of its historical roots. Other chapters elucidates the root cause of Jihadi-related conflicts: Chapter 3 clarifies the inter-Islamist struggle after the collapse of the Caliphate. Chapter 4, their alliance with the Nazis. Chapter 5: their clash with the communists. Chapter 6: Can they accept Israel."

From Professor Joseph Saouk, Oriental Studies. Uppsala University

"On September 11, 2001, many asked the question: Why do they hate us? Many more asked the question of who are they? Phares investigates these questions. How come a nation didn't know who its enemies were? Chapter 7 explains how did the Cold War shape the strategies of the Jihadists. Chapter 8 explains how an old ideology remodeled itself to target the West and Democracies after believing that it brought down the Soviet Union. Chapter 9 is crucial for the understanding of the road to 9/11, Madrid, London, and Fallujah: It is about the strategies developed separately by the Salafists and Khuneinists. In chapter 10, Phares asserts the inevitability of 9/11. In a sense, the author argues that the Jihadists have already won a blitzkrieg against America and the West by blurring their vision for more than a decade."

From Jacob Keryakes, Researcher in Islamism, Chief Linguist at NBC Cable

"When we read Bin Laden, Zawahiri, or Zarqawi's messages and see them repeated on al Jazeera, we often miss to see their big picture. Phares chapter 11 helps us visualize the greater image: The global Jihadists strategy against America, the West and emerging democracies. Often, we are compelled to debate the shortcomings in the so-called War on Terrorism. In fact, as Phares explains it in chapter 12, there were and still are deep root causes for America's causes for failures. Understanding how the US and Western systems were penetrated, mollified and almost defeated, is a sine qua non condition for the projection of Future Jihad. In a disturbing but fascinating chapter 13, the author of this absolutely indispensable book draws the picture of what could have been a strategically successful attack against the US national security. "Had Usama waited till 2008, argues Phares (as an example), America would have plunged into chaos and the world into disasters. Chapter 13 is the most dramatic message of the book: A future Jihad we can still avoid.

From Alfred Arian, Arabic Translator at MSNBC

"Phares' Future Jihad shed light on less addressed matters: Are the US and the Jihadists strategies clashing and how? In his chapter 14 the areas of confrontation are clarified: Terrorism, foreign policy, oil, education, ideology, media. Often we watch our American and Western debate in the media and academia missing the real points. It is important to argue about our views on the conflict, but it is as important and sometimes more important to see clear in how the Jihadists and their allies see it from their perspectives. Understanding the language and the political culture of Jihadism is a must. In chapter 15, Phares analyzes Jihad's second generation, the one al Qaida, its allies, Hezbollah and the global Jihadists produced, shepherded and are using in Britain, Holland, Spain, Germany, Sweden, Australia, France and beyond. The second generation that would extend the War with Terrorism for another decade or two, both inside America and around the world."

From Professor Dominic Mohammed, Jihadism analyst, Florida International University

In his chapter 16 of Future Jihad, Professor Walid Phares shows the reader what lays ahead: a Mutant Jihad. A movement, and ideology and resources that are shaping the years to come: Adaptation to modern technologies, penetration of democratic societies and of their educational and economic tissues. The new Jihadism has decades behind it, and is planning for a rupture in world security and international relations, as demonstrated by Phares. The battlefields are numerous, Iraq, Lebanon, Sudan, Kashmir, Chechniya, Algeria, Indonesia, the Philippines, the West, but the mother ship is global: It hasn't been reached yet. Only a war of ideas, and a series of strategic decisions as outlined in chapter 17, can begin the reversal of the offensive. Phares conclusion is enlightening: What did 9/11 do to us, to the Jihadists, and to world history? And more importantly, were are we in the War with Jihad Terrorism? Are we winning, are they winning and who will help us defeat Global Jihadism?

Book's Tables of Contents

Acknowledgments
List of Illustrations
Introduction
The Historical Roots of Jihad
Who Are the Jihadists?
After the Caliphate
The Nazi Alliance
The Communist Dilemma
Israel's Fate
What the Cold War Meant for the Future
The New Jihad
Jihadist Strategies against America
The Inevitability of 9/11
Bin Laden's Strategy against America
The Root Causes of America's Failure
Protecting Future Jihad
The Clash of Strategies: America Versus Jihad
America: Jihad's Second Generation
Mutant Jihad
Guidelines and Prescriptive Policies
Conclusion
Walid Phares is currently MSNBC/NBC terrorism and Mideast expert and a senior fellow with the Foundation for the Defense of Democracies in Washington. He has been a Professor of Middle East Studies and Ethnic and Religious Conflict at Florida Atlantic University and lectures worldwide. He regularly appears on NBC, Fox News, CNN, BBC, C-Span, Voice of America, al Jazeera, al Hurra, NPR International, and Abu Dhabi TV, among others and is a frequent contributor to US and international radio programs.

Phares conducts briefings to the State, Justice, Defense and Homeland Security Departments, the US Congress, the United Nations Security Council, and other international bodies on the Middle East, Jihadism, counterterrorism, democratization, al Qaeda and other issues. His columns and articles, in such venues as The Washington Times, Philadelphia Inquirer, Denver Post, Indianapolis Star, San Diego Tribune, etc, have received much attention. He is a media communicator, and has the academic, professional, and insider credentials to offer an unprecedented analysis and prescription for the future of Jihad

Books events are slated for Washington DC, New York, Baltimore, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Miami, Palm Beach for the next weeks. More events are planned in cities across the nations.

Signed copies can be ordered at info@futurejhad.com This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it

Copies available in bookstores or online
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