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An influential Muslim scholar has issued a global ruling against terrorism and suicide bombing. Dr Tahir ul-Qadri, from Pakistan, says his 600-page judgement, known as a fatwa, completely dismantles al-Qaeda’s violent ideology. The scholar describes al-Qaeda as an “old evil with a new name” that has not been sufficiently challenged. Dr Qadri’s organization, Minhaj ul-Quran, is growing in Britain and has attracted the interest of policymakers and security chiefs. Marco Werman talks with The World’s religion editor Jane Little about the fatwa.
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MARCO WERMAN: I’m Marco Werman and this is The World, a co-production of the BBC World Service, PRI and WGBH Boston. On 9/11 Americans were confronted with a powerful weapon, people willing to face certain death while committing acts of terrorism. In the years since, suicide bombers have been used frequently by Islamic extremists across the world. But whether suicide bombers are allowed by Islam is the subject of heated debate. Today in London a leading Islamic scholar issued a fatwa, or religious edict against suicide bombings and terrorism. Jane Little is The World’s religion editor. Jane, what exactly does today’s fatwa say?
JANE LITTLE: Well Dr. Mohammad Tajil al Kadri says in a 600 page document that terrorism and suicide bombing can absolutely never be justified. He says that’s the difference between his fatwa and others that we’ve heard since 9/11 when we heard condemnations of certain suicide bombing missions. He said quite often there are equivocations that Israel is an exception, that various scholars do not absolutely condemn terrorism, but he says this is the most comprehensive look at suicide bombing and he says it can never be justified. Let’s hear from him.
MOHAMMAD TAJIL AL KADRI: This fatwa or ruling which I have passed contains an absolute condemnation of terrorism. Without any excuses, without any pretexts, without any exceptions, these kind of killings and terroristic activities they lead the terrorists to hell fire.
WERMAN: Jane Little, remind us what a fatwa is and how obliged is the Muslim world to obey a fatwa?
LITTLE: When we think of fatwas we often think of death warrants issued by Ayatollah Khomeini, the late Ayatollah against Salman Rushdi for instance, when he told Muslims to go out and kill the writer. But that’s not actually a fatwa, it’s simply a religious edict or ruling issued by a scholar in some standing. They are always on very specific theological issues. They can be on anything from how to prepare for prayers to suicide bombing.
WERMAN: And again, how obliged is the Muslim world to follow a fatwa or is it just kind of a position paper by cleric?
LITTLE: Well there is, as you know, no Pope figure within Islam. There is no ecclesiastical hierarchy and so for every fatwa basically there is always a counter-fatwa out there saying the opposite. But there are some scholars who are see to have great authority and some not. Dr. Tajil al Kadri is seen to have great authority by many followers in Pakistan from the Sufi tradition and by an increasing number of people in Britain and other parts of the world. But then, there are those in more hard line schools of thought, he comes out of a Sufi tradition. There are more hard liners who will dismiss his authority completely and there is one website calling him and idolater today.
WERMAN: So I guess my final question is with a fatwa like this against terrorism and suicide bombers, are we safer in the West?
LITTLE: Well that’s a very good question. I think it’s a big symbolic gesture. It’s using the right language. Of course a fatwa is not going to change things overnight. It’s not going to reach the hard liners who are already in training camps in Pakistan and elsewhere. But what Dr. Kadri and his followers hope is that it will stir debate and that the so-called swing voters, the young Muslims who could be drawn either way, will have pause for thought and be influenced in a positive way by this document.
WERMAN: The World’s religion editor, Jane Little, always good to speak with you Jane. Thank you.
LITTLE: You too Marco. Thank you.
WERMAN: You can learn about the psychology of suicide bombers on The World’s science podcast. This week we have an interview with science journalist Shankar Vendamtam author of the book, The Hidden Brain. He talks about the workings of the unconscious and how group psychology can create suicide terrorists. Listen to the interview and chat with Vendamtam online at the world dot org slash science.
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