Zafar Bangash
Circumstances, not entirely of their making, have forced the nearly two billion Muslims in the world to make some critical choices. There are those that have compromised with taghuti powers for expediency. This is based on the mistaken assumption that they will be spared the wrath of the tyrants and war criminals if they keep their heads low and their mouths shut.
There are other Muslims that have chosen to stand up for justice and fairness. This is what Islam teaches. The latter group of Muslims is a minority but their steadfastness has resulted in profound changes globally.
The western-crafted order, imposed by the victors of the Second World War to protect their ill-gotten gains, has been shaken to its foundations. A new, more just global order is in the process of emerging. Islamic Iran is the principal driver of this change.
Let us consider some specific examples to better understand this phenomenon. Currently Islamic Iran and the Hizbullah in Lebanon are being targeted directly by the forces of evil represented by the US and zionist Israel.
Three other theaters in what is referred to as the Axis of Resistance are also under pressure. These are the Islamic resistance in Gaza, the Ansarallah in Yemen and the militia forces in Iraq.
Targeting the Axis of Resistance are not only the evil duo—the US and Israel—but their European allies and the Arabian potentates as well. Looked at purely from a materialistic perspective—quantity of weapons and bombs—the Axis of Resistance should have been defeated a long time ago.
This has not happened. Instead, the Axis of Resistance has inflicted massive blows on the aggressors and war criminals. Even in the tiny besieged enclave of Gaza, the zionist war criminals have not had it their way despite perpetrating a genocide of the civilian population.
On February 28, when the evil duo launched an unprovoked and illegal war on the Islamic Republic of Iran, it was assumed that Tehran will be forced to surrender in a matter of days. After all, if its top leadership, including the Rahbar, Imam Seyyed Ali Khamenei, is eliminated, the system will collapse.
Such thinking is based on how secular systems work. The Islamic system of governance operates on radically different principles. It is not persona based. Its strength derives from the values it pursues.
Martyrdom plays a crucial role in this struggle. Committed Muslims are not afraid to die. The noble Qur’an highlights this phenomenon in the following words:
“Among the committed muslims are men who are true to their [life-and-death] pledge to Allah: some of them [in the course of honoring their pledge] have passed on and some of them still await without having wavered in the least” (The Ascendant Qur’an, Surat al-Ahzab, verse 23).
The concept of martyrdom is alien to the imperialists and zionists. They live for this dunya, a world of materialism and hedonistic pleasures. Death ends the pleasures of the flesh. They do not believe in the hereafter. That is why they are so terrified of dying.
Unfortunately, some Muslims have also adopted this attitude. Their commitment to Islam and its principles is quite superficial. They seek refuge in rituals hoping that this will secure for them a place in paradise.
With Muslims suffering so much oppression and persecution, some ask why Allah does not help the committed Muslims. Further, why Allah does not punish the oppressors and tyrants as He punished the taghuti powers during the times of earlier prophets? They may even cite the example of how the rebellious people at the time of Nuh (عليه السلام) were punished when a massive flood swept them. The Pharaoh’s army was drowned while Musa (عليه السلام) and his followers were saved by the parting of the sea.
Such questions are based on a lack of understanding of the Qur’an and the Prophetic Sunnah and Seerah. During his 23-year mission to establish Islam and the Islamic State, no miracles were performed. It was done through human effort, struggle and sacrifice.
This is what Muslims have to do today. They have to muster the courage and struggle for the sake of Allah upholding truth and justice. Only then will Allah’s help manifest itself.
The prophetic seerah offers many striking examples but one will suffice. The Prophet (ﷺ) did not sit in al-Masjid al-Nabawi praying for the destruction of the mushrikeen of Makkah. He went out to confront them in the Battle of Badr. Once he had mobilized whatever forces he could, then he prayed to Allah for help.
Divine intervention manifested itself in the form of angels helping the committed Muslims (Surat al-Anfal: verse 9). The lesson is clear: Muslims must first make the utmost effort against their enemies bent on perpetrating injustice and then pray to Allah for help.
Today, when hundreds of thousands of Muslims are being killed in Gaza, Iran, Lebanon, Yemen and Sudan, the answer is not more earnest prayers. Rather, Muslims must stand up and resist these forces of evil. This is what the people of Iran, Lebanon, Gaza, and Yemen are doing.
True, Muslims outside these regions cannot be with their brothers and sisters physically but that does not mean they cannot help in other ways. The first is to raise their voices against injustice and oppression. Second, they can help the many tens of thousands of widows and orphans and help rebuild the destroyed homes, schools and hospitals.
Remaining aloof or detached is not an option for Muslims.
