Assalam alaikum. How is our noble shaykh (may Allah Almighty guard him with His Protection)?

How can a Muslim do his duty now in respect to the mass slaughter our brethren are suffering in Gaza? I would like a clear answer, dear shaykh, in regards to the disbelievers usurping the results of all the constants and variables there right now.

In the Name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful,

All praise is due to Allah, and may peace and blessing be upon the Messenger of Allah, upon his household, his companions and those who have followed him. To proceed:

A questioner asked concerning a holocaust going on right now in Gaza and what the Ummah must do about it, and regarding the constants and variables in this appalling catastrophe which stirs up the faith in the hearts! And right he is to make this inquiry, when everything is in confusion, the eyes have grown wild, the hearts have reached the throats, [33:10] the believers have been tried and shaken with a mighty shaking [33:11], and the true face of the hypocrites and those in whose hearts is a disease shows through, saying: Allah and His Messenger have promised us nothing but delusions! [33:12]

The first thing we emphasize in this regard is to renew our certain knowledge that the Hand of Allah is at work in this universe, and that the Actions of Allah (Glorious & Exalted) are inseparable from His Wisdom, no matter who realizes this or who rejects it! So, when we see in our lives that which shocks us, astonishes us or takes us beyond our normal expectations, the first thing we must revise is ourselves. We must always remember Allah's Saying to the believers on the day of the Battle of Uhud (interpretation of the meaning):

{You say, "From where does this come to us?" Say (to them), "It is from yourselves (because of your evil deeds)."}

[Aal Imran 3:165]

We are definitely angry! No doubt, the entire Ummah is angry and enraged! In fact, we are practically bursting up with fury [67:8], yet we know for sure that Allah is more furious! We feel protective of these God-given rights which have been violated and the blood which has been shed, but we are certain that Allah is more protective and that everything which is happening does so under His Hearing and Sight, for a Greater Wisdom, according to His Will, which days and nights will reveal. So, do not lose hope of Allah's Mercy, do not despair of His Compassion, and let us harbor no reservations in our hearts concerning His Wisdom and Plan!

Obviously, the issue of Gaza, like any other of the Ummah's issues, is an Islamic issue, falling within its jurisdiction and subject to its authority, no matter who detests this description or who embraces it. This is a fact no less basic than the rest of the Great Truths of Islam. The imported clothing in which the Palestinian issue has been dressed, whether voluntarily or involuntarily, over the many long years that have passed, has deluded the Ummah, invented a false consciousness and splintered its course, thereby seducing its adversaries, even if this was not the design of any of those responsible and they merely got entangled in it! The Islamic nature of this issue does not mean that the popular, national and humanitarian dimension of this case should be condemned by certain parties, just as it does not necessarily mean an attack should be launched on those with humanitarian, popular or national spirit. On the contrary, we must benefit from their efforts and invest their energies, while directing them and offering advice whenever there is a way to do so. The least of this is not to raise our swords against any of them and not to allow opposition against the common enemy of the Ummah and the Religion to be turned into opposition within the Palestinian, Arab or Islamic house, not under any circumstances!

If we were to invite our Islamic heritage to voice its opinion as to what the Ummah’s position on this crisis should be, it would clearly answer that, if the enemy enters the land of any of the Muslim peoples, it becomes imperative for the inhabitants of this invaded land to fight in their own defense and that this jihad is obligatory on everyone - both men and women, the young and the elderly, slaves and freemen alike. And if they have the means to defeat their enemy, then the matter is over, and if not, then it becomes obligatory on the rest of the Ummah to enable them to do so and to help them in this with every possible means of support: military, financial, political and journalistic. The obligation begins with the nearest countries and then extends to include those that lie beside them, and then those beside them, until the obligation of jihad encompasses the whole of the Muslim world. As is obvious, ability is one condition for the positive establishment of a religious obligation in all Islamic laws, so, al-jihad bil-nafs (physical fighting) would be if the Ummah is capable of that and there is no barrier to stand in their way, even if this barrier is in the hands of a hateful enemy, or in the hands of someone who wrongs himself [see Q 18:31, 35:32, 37:113] and whose sins have surrounded him [see Q 2:81], whether next door or nearby, or a scholar qualified to make ijtihad, but who is in error, having been misguided by false considerations or losing wagers! Allah does not burden any human being with more than he is well able to bear [see Q 2:286], and He has excused from physical fighting the weak, the prevented, those who do not find the financial resources to spend and those who do not find that which will carry them to the jihad, if they are sincere (in duty) to Allah and His Messenger [see Q 9:91-92].

However, the unattainable does not absolve us of that which is feasible, so even though the doors to al-jihad bil-nafs have been shut in the face of the Ummah, other ways of jihad remain, and many of them are accessible and possible in general, and all praise is due to Allah (azza wa jall). Among these are the jihad of wealth, the jihad in the battlefields of politics, finance, journalism and da`wah, and the government cannot get to many of these. Indeed, it is not permissible to overlook that which is available in pursuit of that which is unavailable, thereby losing everything: available and unavailable!

Indeed, the choice to defend, resist and prepare the weaponry for that does not eliminate the need to be open to other options, to benefit from their advocates and to package their efforts for the good of the cause and its greater goals. The least of this is not to be preoccupied with fighting them, wasting all our energies, with hostilities breaking out and no one benefitting from that in the end but the opponents of the Religion and the enemies of the Ummah.

It is not our aim here to take a stand, judging one group's position over another, for that has its proper time and place; rather, that to which we call everyone forth and within which we need to consolidate our positions at this present, historical moment is the right of general support - the blood of more than one thousand martyrs and many more times that number of suffering and wounded is crying for us to help! The long procession of martyrs and victims is still being seen and followed, and most of these casualties and victims are from the children of the weak, defenseless and innocent! There is no relation between this obvious, definitive right and the didactics of our vision concerning the stance of Hamas or any other Palestinian faction, in terms of politics, jihad or da`wah. Suppose Gaza were under the rule of any another faction, or even under communist rule! Or what if it were under the control of the Palestinian Authority itself, and then it was exposed to the likes of this rain of destruction? Would that justify the abandonment of the innocent and the neglect of the obligation to come to their aid, claiming the excuse that this faction or that is at odds with us? Or would anyone who did that place himself completely beyond the Islamic, popular and national spirit? Indeed, before that, he would subject himself to the curse, vengeance and wrath of the Lord (Allah, Glorious & Exalted)!

The call at this stage is not to aid one Palestinian faction over another; rather, it is to spare the blood of the defenseless and innocent and to repel the assault on the weak children. This is an obligation around which all Palestinian factions and anyone left with honor, dignity or common human decency, anywhere in the world, must join forces! Indeed, every regime has its considerations which are either correct or incorrect, and the Ummah has options that stem from its belief in its Lord and its certain faith in His promise, and these are worked out by those in power, from scholars to experts. And if regimes do not base their considerations on the Religion, they should at least not make suppression of their peoples' choices their greatest concern or the extent of their knowledge. Rather, success would be to benefit from choices like these in managing the political situation. Then, popular movements would be a support for the governments in their political battle and a page from their mission statement whereby their gains and successes in managing their political situations could be achieved.

The Gazan Holocaust is not the first of its kind in the Palestinian experience and it will not be the last! The road is long, no matter who pretends it is not and no matter who lies about it purposefully and deliberately! We must prepare ourselves for a long struggle and longer suffering! Whoever thinks that with treaties the file of Israeli crimes will be shut once and for all has neglected the simplest facts of Shari'ah and history! The string of Israeli massacres on Palestinian land are still engraved in the memory of the Ummah, and before that they are still inscribed in the Exalted Record of pre-destined events: {My Lord is neither unaware nor does He forget!} [20:52] These massacres have been around long before Hamas appeared on the scene and long before they had any effective presence in the Palestinian arena, let alone as the head of a freely-elected government which (as declared in the religion of the democrats), is 100% legitimate!

If we move to the Jewish experience and contemplate the walls behind which they fight, we would find something astonishing! These are the people who, as my Lord (Allah, Glorious & Exalted) said (interpretation of the meaning):

{…fight not against you, even together, except in fortified townships, or from behind walls.}

[Surat ul-Hashr 59:14]

The mentality of fighting from behind walls persists in controlling this people’s thoughts and directing their military and political strategies up to this very day. It began with the Jews of Bani Quraydhah who aided and abetted the Meccan polytheists during the Battle of al-Ahzab from their forts - from those who {thought that their fortresses would protect them from Allah} [59:2] and ending in the Bar-Lev Line. Then they use the dividing wall in Palestine, and not far away, the walls around the Sunni areas in the Fertile Crescent (Iraq) in our times. Then there are the political walls, manifested in the American stance and its use of the veto to prevent any conviction of their ally and foster child, to the extent that, since 1982, it has been used on their behalf more than 32 times, which is more than the veto was used by any of the other countries that have the power to use it altogether! Then there are the economic and strategic ties of support on the part of all the major powers, in addition to the wall of desires and misconceptions being promoted on the satellite channels of this Ummah, whose efforts are leading people astray at the hands of some of the descendents of those who have turned their backs on the Religion. All this we mention in an attempt to realize the viciousness of the opposition and the heaviness of the cost being paid to stand up to it!

Some of these walls and the ties extended to the people [Jews] are contrived by some of the heretics who have turned their backs on the Religion and have fled from their Lord! Among these are the walls of misconceptions and desires and the walls of sin and transgression, which weaken the bond of this Ummah with their Lord and give the devils of men and jinn [6:122] power over them. So, why do we not break down these walls? Why do we not cut the ties so that we do not aid our enemy against ourselves and help him with our own hand in his hostility and oppression?!

I do not believe that it would be appropriate to waste energy in launching an attack on political leaders and raising our voices to discredit them, for that is one of the things which just makes the situation worse and which makes the tragedy reach alarming proportions. That would merely make them seek the protection of their enemies and retreat permanently to their camps, since these have become their artillery and ammunition, their present and future, after having wiped their hands of their people for good! It would certainly be better to keep busy with beneficial speech and action and to activate the possible and available, sincerely taking refuge with Allah, the Upholder of the earth and the heavens, and beseeching Him with humble submission! Look at the difference between the Ummah applying means of political and non-violent pressure, which send a clear and long-lasting message to the whole world, and between combining this with accusations, discrediting and maligning one another with allegations of treason and conspiracy theories.

The obligation of the Ummah is as follows:

·          Use this crisis to unite public, Islamic sentiment in the eastern part of the world and the west. The simplest form of this is to revive the Sunnah of performing the qunoot of tribulation in the five daily prayers and to continue doing so until Allah removes this affliction and relieves us of this trial! For, what is better than the meeting of Muslims' hearts in the East and West around this beautiful, divine rite? And what is more beautiful than for the Ummah to realize thereby that no one brings goodness but Allah and that no one removes evil but Allah!

·          Use this crisis for a holy revival of this Ummah, a spread of repentance in every corner of the Muslim world, in certain faith that no affliction comes, except as a result of sin, and that it will not be removed except with repentance!

·          Use this crisis to revive the spirit of one nation, to spread an understanding of harmony between its groups and the leaders of its jihad and da'wah, in certain faith that divisiveness is the harbinger of failure and that holding fast to the Rope of Allah together is the first step to sovereignty!

·          Use this crisis to revive the obligation of jihad, with its essential conditions and parameters, and to restore the true meaning of this word after it has gained a bad reputation in most political and media venues, and even in some da'wah circles under the influence of the Western media after the unfortunate events of 9-11!

·          Use this crisis to revive the call to Sharia rule, bringing it back into consideration after having almost being rolled up in a shroud following the assassination of Sadat, when all mention of it or indication thereof would mark you as an extremist or terrorist! This concept nearly took root in almost every segment of society. And there is no evidence of that more clear than, if you examine the vocabulary of the Islamic message after these unfortunate events, you would be shocked at the horrible retreat and enormous retraction of this issue from most of our da’wah literature.

·          Use this crisis to reinvigorate and continue the option of the resistance and rejection of the Zionist project, after agreements, treaties and direct Arab and non-Arab relations have annihilated this choice and made it seem like naturalization is the only option and an inevitable fate!

·          Use this crisis to revive the policy of using all available and possible means of da'wah and jihad, wrapping the message of da'wah in some measure of reality, instead of flying around in circles of passionate emotion, seeking to save ourselves the trouble of serious work and beneficial organization!

·          Use this crisis to revive the bonds between Muslim communities living beyond the lands of Islam. Take advantage of their role in supporting the issues of the Ummah and their connection to it, especially after the da’wah has grown to the point of these communities becoming out of touch with their roots in the East, diverting their attention to issues only of local concern and basing them on new premises, taking into consideration the particularities of time and place and calling for unconditional reform and oblivious assimilation within the melting pot of these societies - good and evil, sweet and bitter alike!

·          These communities, by virtue of their residence abroad, hold much of that which may be offered to the issues of our just and righteous Ummah, for the room available for movement and expression is relatively wide in comparison to that which is available to their counterparts within the Muslim World. Likewise, their understanding of the cultures in these societies makes them better able to get through to them, to deal with them in a positive manner and to directly influence some of their decisions. Writing a million emails and letters, organizing protest marches, directly contacting decision-makers, media channels and other mechanisms of pressure and modes of expression available in these societies are among the roles which cannot be neglected in this day and age, and it is not right to declare them permissible or impermissible through fatawa from the East, since there are those who would interpret them in light of the complications, complexities and traditions of the East, without anyone to interpret them in this new context, when constitutions and laws regulate them and they have become conventional mechanisms of expression and influence in these societies!

These are but some of the thoughts and emotions which have risen to the surface. Here the pen grabs its tip, but the file is still open and the writing will continue, by Allah’s Leave. Our intention is for Allah and He is the Guide to the Straight Path.