"The Taliban Are Not Terrorists"

30 prominent Pakistani misunderstanders of Islam say "The Taliban are not terrorists"
They justify suicide bombing, also.

Misunderstanders of Islam? Actually, this is a statement by 30 prominent Islamic scholars in Pakistan.



"Statement by 30 Prominent Pakistani Islamic Scholars: "The Taliban Are Not Terrorists; Do Not Look Through American Eyes at [Those You Call] 'Terrorists,'" from MEMRI (thanks to Sr. Soph):

In late January 2008, 30 prominent Islamic scholars and principals of madrassas in Pakistan issued a joint statement, published in Pakistan's newspapers, discussing the state of affairs in the country and suggesting ways to deal with it. The signatories, who belonged to different schools of Islamic thought and who control a vast network of madrassas, affirmed: "We do not belong to any political group; neither do we have any political agenda."
The following are excerpts from the statement as it appeared in the London edition of the Urdu-language Pakistani newspaper Roznama Jang: [1] [...]

"Can a Suicide Attack be Carried Out to Cause Serious Harm to the Enemy During A Right And Justified War?"

In their statement, the scholars examined the justification of suicide attacks according to shari'a. A thin difference emerges between a suicide committed by an individual in despair and suicide bombings as a tactic of war. They discuss the conditions under which suicide bombings can be justified, stating:

"These are collectively the apparent situations which created irritation in the hearts of some individuals that is appearing in the form of suicide attacks. Insofar as the status of suicide attacks in shari'a is concerned, almost all Muslims know that [individual] suicide is forbidden in Islam, and in this regard the orders of the Koran and the hadith are absolutely clear.

"But can a suicide attack be carried out to cause serious harm to the enemy during a right and justified war? As per jurisprudence and shari'a, there can be two different opinions about this.

"Some scholars think that if a need is realized during a right and justified war, and if targets are not innocent people, then a suicide attack is right. This would be the type of suicide attack [carried out] at the Chavinda Front during the 1965 [India-Pakistan] War, when the soldiers of Pakistan's army tied bombs to their bodies and crashed into Indian tanks, and as a result of which the advance of the tanks was stopped - and tales of this are popular.

"Because this is an issue for ijtihad [reasoning by consensus as a source of legislation in Islam], and if an individual took such a step [i.e. suicide bombing] during a right and justified war, then there is hope that Allah will accept his sacrifice in consideration of the beauty of his intention." [...]




How refreshing! They have reopened the gate of ijtihad, closed for centuries, but not in order to create a framework for peaceful coexistence between Muslims and non-Muslims as equals on an indefinite basis. Rather, they are only engaging in this new legal reasoning in order to justify suicide bombing.

Admit That the American Strategy has Failed; Military Operations Should Be Stopped; Turn Musharraf's Anti-U.S. Statements Into Policy
In their statement, the Islamic scholars list a series of measures for the consideration of Pakistani government and policy-makers. Some of these measures are:

1. "We [should] admit with open heart that the American strategy we have adopted blindly in the name of the 'War on Terror' has failed completely. This strategy has given us nothing, but has snatched much from us; it is the fundamental reason for our internal conflicts, and because of it, it appears that our dearest nation itself is at stake...."

2. "The military operations in the Northern and Tribal Areas [should] be stopped forthwith, and an effort must be made to understand the causes of the insurgency there. Talks should be held with the leaders of those areas with open heart, and importance should be given to their just demands, which they deserve."

3. "Realize this reality: The Taliban are not in fact terrorists, and neither do all of them have extremist sentiments. There are among them elements with whom talks can reasonably be held."...