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Egyptian Clerics 'declare war on America'
Worldnetdaily.com ^ | 11/03/01

Posted on 11/02/2001 11:58:31 PM PST by Freedom of Speech Wins

Egyptian clerics 'declare war on America' Professors, academics advocate joining 'jihad' against U.S.

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© 2001 WorldNetDaily.com

Muslim clerics and college professors in Egypt, long considered a moderate and even friendly Arab state by the U.S., are openly declaring war on America in light of the current military campaign in Afghanistan. Moussa Hal, a reporter for the unofficial website of Egypt's Al-Azhar University, has posted many anti-American statements made by the university's clerics and professors under the heading, "Islamic clerics in Egypt declare war on America."

As translated from Arabic by the Middle East Media Research Institute, or MEMRI, here are some of the comments:

* Sheikh Ali Abu Al-Hassan, head of Al-Azhar's Religious Ruling Committee: "It is the sense of danger that unites the West. They have put together a coalition against Islam. They sense danger only from Islam. This feeling has united them against a single enemy, which is Islam. Why, therefore, should we ourselves not unite? ... We, Oh Nation of Islam, are all targeted by our enemy. ... Why should we not unite, therefore, around the cry, ‘There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah' and fight our enemy? ...

"Entering into an alliance with the Americans against Afghanistan constitutes Ridah [that is, turning away from belief in Islam, for which the punishment is death, with no possibility of clemency] ... The Afghan opposition [forces] must not put [their] hand in the hand of the Americans; they must stand with their countrymen [and] their co-religionists, otherwise Allah and his angels will curse them. ..."

On another occasion, Abu Al-Hassan told Hal: "There is no doubt that this is a case of a hostile state fighting us, and we must resist it. ... Resistance in this case is by all possible means, even by means of war. If the enemy sets foot on the lands of Islam, he must be fought. In this case, a man must set out [on a Jihad] without the permission of his father, a woman without the permission of her husband, a debtor without the permission of his lender, and a slave without the permission of his master. Islam urges us to set out on a Jihad for the sake of Allah until we accomplish one of two good things: martyrdom or victory. ... "When Islam is attacked, there are no borders. Jihad in this instance is an obligation for all Muslims. ... In this instance, the aggression is against Islam and therefore it is the obligation of all Muslims, not only the local residents, to protect this piece of land. ...

"The Afghans have the right to defend themselves, and we are obliged to help them and to defend them as best we can from the cruelty of the American attacks. Islam has commanded us to support our Muslim brothers under attack, and to fight the Jihad alongside them against the polytheists, with our souls and with our property ..."

* Dr. Abd Al-Azim Al-Mut'ani, Al-Azhar University lecturer: "This war is a criminal attack, genuinely similar to the first Crusader wars, which the West waged in the Middle Ages under the rallying cry of defending the Christian pilgrims, when their actual target was Islam and the Muslims. Now, the U.S. has declared a war on Afghanistan, under the rallying cry of fighting terrorism, when the actual goal is to harm Islam and to wipe it off the face of the earth. ... "The Islamic world must stand by the oppressed. ... The [Islamic] peoples must fulfill their obligation towards Islam and towards Muslims. The battle is a battle of the peoples and they are the ones who drive the rulers to do their duty. If the armies of Islam do not do their duty with regard to this invasion of Islam, they must be dispersed!!"

* Al-Mut'ani, on the differences between Jihad and terrorism: "Terrorism is a modern term. In Islam, the meaning of terrorism is intimidation; not all intimidation is forbidden by religious law. ... In the modern age, when [different] kinds of oppression and persecution emerged, some ethnic groups in almost every society were stripped of their rights. When they insisted on their rights, and [when] the despotic regimes rejected them – the oppressed and persecuted found no way to express themselves but by means of [various] kinds of rebellion. ...

"The most recent example of the so-called terrorism are the recent attacks against America. Whatever the interpretations may be, no one disagrees that America is the one who killed and was killed. It is America that killed itself with its distorted policy. It was completely successful in sowing hatred and loathing in the hearts of [people] of the entire world by means of its policy, a policy of double standard, primarily in all things regarding Islamic and Arab affairs. ... At this point, I would like to give two examples: the problem that occurred between East Timor and West Timor. The Muslim side was the stronger side. America went berserk and mobilized all the international institutions to defend the non-Muslims. Within 24 hours there were United Nations troops in addition to special forces from the U.S. at the scene. America did not stop until it had achieved its goal. ... In contrast, it allows Israel to slaughter Palestinians and to destroy the mosques. ...America did not lift a finger to save the Palestinian people. After all this, America still wants Allah to give it security. [Yet] it is the one that attacked itself because it angered the world.

"What America has done against Afghanistan is a crime, and one of the most loathsome kinds of international terrorism. [This is] interfering in others' domestic affairs, which is not accepted both by the monotheistic religions and by the laws [made by man]. ... We could have stood with America had it sought a precise definition of terrorism and had it established statutes of punishment for terrorism in the U.N. After that, every state could have sought the terrorists within its own jurisdiction. But that the U.S. should carry out this mission [by itself] -- no, no, a thousand times no! Even if the present regimes support America, these regimes are only passing clouds. They do not enjoy stability; stability is in the hands of the peoples. ...

"What America is doing now is world terror waged against the weak. Even if the Islamic peoples are not worthy of the support of Allah -- because they themselves do not support Him -- the forces of tyranny deserve to be defeated."

* Dr. Abd Al-Sabour Shahin: "The truth is that the way Islam uses the word ‘terrorism' is honorable, as Allah said: 'Make ready for them whatever you can of armed strength and of mounted pickets at the frontier, whereby you may daunt the enemy of Allah and your enemy.' The terrorism mentioned in this verse refers to intimidation or threat, not necessarily to damage. For this reason, accusing Islam or Muslims of terrorism is mistaken, because Muslims as a nation are the symbol of peace in the world and the Muslim nation has never attacked a neighboring nation. ...

"There is a huge difference between terrorism and Jihad. Jihad is a general term that includes Jihad by means of words, Jihad by means of leadership, and Jihad by means of war. War is only on behalf of the nation and in accordance with its decision, and not according to the decision of an individual. What is happening with the Palestinians is a Jihad that is legitimate according to religious law, aimed at defending the Islamic holy places. What the Afghani people is doing in response to the aggression is also a Jihad that is legitimate according to religious law. ..."

* Dr. Abd Al-Hay Al-Farmawi, a lecturer: "The American attacks on Afghanistan are terrorism, oppression, repression [and] barbarism, and can even be called bullying. The American missiles were directed at innocents among the defenseless Afghani people. America is doing this without presenting any proof of Osama bin Laden's guilt. This proves that this war, as Bush said, is a crusader war against Islam and Muslims. We must awaken before the U.S. forces reach us."

* Dr. Yahyah Isma'il, official spokesman of the Al-Azhar clerics: "This war is a war against Muslims and Islam. Everyone must offer help to the mujahideen brothers in Afghanistan. They should not be abandoned in the tragedy to which they are subject."

* Sheikh Youssef Al-Badri called on "Muslims to declare a Jihad against the Americans. We all must prepare for Jihad, because the strikes will reach even us, in many Islamic countries. What America and the West have done is an international crime, ... a great crime against humanity. This is a war against Islam, as the leaders of the West and the leaders of the U.S. have said. We have no choice but to declare our own position: Are we with Islam or are we with Bush? The answer is what will determine the fate of the Islamic nation in the new millennium."

Editor's note: The Washington, D.C.-based Middle East Media Research Institute is an independent, non-profit organization that translates and analyzes the media of the Middle East.


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To: Freedom of Speech Wins
Muslim clerics and college professors in Egypt, long considered a moderate and even friendly Arab state by the U.S.

Uhhh, just who in the U.S. are we talking about? No surprise here.

21 posted on 11/03/2001 12:38:48 AM PST by arm958
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To: Freedom of Speech Wins
Now you know where all the massive US foreign aid to pacify Egypt went to. Egypt and Saudi Arabia are the primary funding arms of Islamic militant extremism. They should be at the top of the terrorist sponsoring nations list and not "coalition partners". They cannot be trusted and will eventually turn against us openly.
22 posted on 11/03/2001 12:44:22 AM PST by Imperial Warrior
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To: Imperial Warrior
It's the same story all over. Islam is a religion of the downtrodden. Their leaders use hatred to control the masses. We are and have always been the subject of that hatred. Now their leaders don't know what to do. Too bad eh.
23 posted on 11/03/2001 12:50:47 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: Freedom of Speech Wins
I REST MY CASE This is insanity. See Matthew 24 for the truth, and the rest of the story.
24 posted on 11/03/2001 12:52:07 AM PST by justabig
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To: Freedom of Speech Wins
An embargo is a total refusal to trade and is generally imposed on an individual country in the form of sanctions. It usually has to be imposed by a coalition of countries as was the case in South Africa. A protective tariff on oil from outside of Nafta would be more feasible and could be imposed by an act of Congress. The arabs might object to the WTO as Canada is doing in the case of softwood lumber tariffs. The irony of this is that Canada is an ally which we are supposed to have free trade with and lumber imports are hardly a threat to security; while arab oil dependency does compromise security, yet Bush has just imposed a 30% tariff on Canadian lumber. Why not impose a 30% tariff on Arab oil? I would also expand Nafta to include Britain and Ireland.
25 posted on 11/03/2001 12:55:33 AM PST by ganesha
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To: justabig
Looks like the beginning of a new world order.
26 posted on 11/03/2001 12:56:27 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: wirestripper
This is escalating on a gut level, world wide.
27 posted on 11/03/2001 12:58:38 AM PST by justabig
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Comment #28 Removed by Moderator

To: Cavalry
"We are losing friends by the millions with these rash actions in the Afghanistan."

NEWS FLASH: They are either with us or against us.
What possible reason would YOU have for worrying about them instead of your own country?
Define what a "rash action is?" And your military experience to know better action than our military does.
Tell me what YOU are doing to protect our great nation.
29 posted on 11/03/2001 1:02:51 AM PST by 68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub
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To: ganesha
NAFTA was created to compete with the EU. I don't think the Brits would join NAFTA unless the liberals in Britain decide to keep the pound and screw the EU.
30 posted on 11/03/2001 1:03:13 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub
Waste of time Tonk. Berserkly educated calvary.
31 posted on 11/03/2001 1:04:55 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: Freedom of Speech Wins
Islam urges us to set out on a Jihad for the sake of Allah...

All muzlim bashing put aside for a moment, I never could figure out this whole "holy war" thing. How can anyone believe that allah; the Living God; or any other god would want us to go kill people for being "infidels"? Couldn't a god do that much more efficiently on his own?

America is doing this without presenting any proof of Osama bin Laden's guilt. This proves that this war, as Bush said, is a crusader war against Islam and Muslims.

We don't need proof here. This is war, not law enforcememt. Al Quaeda is a serious threat which should have been eliminated years ago. Also, you'd best get down on your knees and thank your sick "god" that this isn't a war on Islam.

We must awaken before the U.S. forces reach us."

Believe me, you'll be better off dying in your sleep.

32 posted on 11/03/2001 1:09:43 AM PST by cold_vicious_logic
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To: 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub
Calvary be doin the Zero!
33 posted on 11/03/2001 1:12:31 AM PST by DooDahhhh
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To: justabig
I figured it would when it started. It's been smoldering for a long time. Really started getting bad after WWII. We were too busy with the russians to notice but history is repeating itself, as it is duty bound to do.
34 posted on 11/03/2001 1:13:11 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: wirestripper
"Berserkly educated"

yeah I know it's a waste of time with the likes of him and his kind.
But I know active duty military read Free Republic daily
and I'll be dammed if I'm not going to challege and label every poster
who makes anti-American remarks on Free Republic.
For some reason when I catch posters like this they never seem to reply back to me,
and you notice I don't even call them names, I just ask specific questions.
Their bosses really must hate seeing me challenging their underlings.
35 posted on 11/03/2001 1:13:55 AM PST by 68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub
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To: 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub; Cavalry
NEWS FLASH: They are either with us or against us.

Waste of time talking to that character. He was celebrating the disco bomb in Israel and was probably celebrating the WTC. If you look at his posts for months back, you'll hardly find anything but antisemitism and jihadism. Just another loozer.

36 posted on 11/03/2001 1:15:52 AM PST by Cachelot
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To: DooDahhhh
"Calvary be doin the Zero"

he's the typical hit and run poster
makes anti-American statements then runs away
37 posted on 11/03/2001 1:17:34 AM PST by 68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub
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To: Cavalry
Great...the only way we are going to stop terrorism is to because an imperialist state that pretty much takes over the muslim world.

That's fine by me. It is quite obvious that the mere existence of Islam-based states is fundamentally dangerous to the entire free world. They will have to be destroyed and converted to some sort of secular government eventually; better to do it now before they get their act together and become real threats.

38 posted on 11/03/2001 1:18:39 AM PST by Timesink
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To: 68-69TonkinGulfYatchClub
Keep up the good work! I had already flamed him. I tend to shoot from the hip.

I hope he gets deprogramming at his earliest convienience.(There! hows that?)

39 posted on 11/03/2001 1:20:06 AM PST by Cold Heat
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To: Cachelot
"Just another loozer."

and he is also has shown his true colors.
you have to love the 1st amendment, it gives the anti-Americans a chance to reveal themselves
40 posted on 11/03/2001 1:20:35 AM PST by 68-69TonkinGulfYachtClub
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