The Arab Spring, the Sultan, Protests and Conference!

Arab Spring: Democracy or caliphate?

The uprisings in North Africa and the Middle East are arguably the most significant occurrence of 2011. Spreading throughout the region like a wildfire, they have led to the ousting of decades-old dictators (Egypt, Tunisia), to widespread civil strife (Yemen) and repression (Syria), and to civil war and foreign intervention (Libya). But what does it all mean for the immediate and long-term future of the region?

The understanding of the present and anticipation of the future requires an appreciation of the past. The Muslim world for the last century has been in dire straits, and if one thing were to be selected as its standout feature, it would be its subjugation to Western colonialism. Post-WWI, Britain and France divided it up into numerous weak statelets, each graced with its own arbitrary borders, flag, proxy regime, and fair share of problems to keep it internally occupied for decades to come. In sum, the colonial project bequeathed the Muslim world a recipe for perpetual instability and chaos – a carefully crafted peace to end all peace.

Notwithstanding the comprehensive extent of economic, political, cultural and ideological imposition on the Muslim world, the motivation and vigour for resistance was always present. What was originally a primarily material (armed) resistance in the occupied lands eventually became a much more wide-ranging resistance, as it encompassed the intellectual and political fronts. Intellectually, the West failed to convince the Muslims of the superiority or efficacy of secular liberalism. Politically, any amount of support the regimes in the Muslim world had (such as popular support for Nasser in Egypt) withered away as the Muslims realised that all the regimes were mere agents of foreign powers.

Thus, we saw a more complete revivalist tendency take root across the Muslim world. By the 1970s, this Islamic revival was as clear as day, and in time became the subject of both intellectual and political attention in the West. In academia, much research was conducted on the phenomenon of ‘Islamic revivalism’. In political circles, Western leaders could see that with the demise of the Soviet Union, the next challenge would come, as Margaret Thatcher intimated, from ‘beyond the Mediterranean’. Charles Krauthammer warned in January 1990, in the Washington Post, of an “unnoticed but just as portentous global intifada…an uprising spanning the Islamic world.”

The late 1900s and early new millennium, then saw Western governments do all they could to face this ‘threat’. From reinforcing their support for dictators, to going to war to remove those who no longer curried favour, to establishing more military bases in Islamic lands, to increasing anti-Islamic propaganda globally so as to show Islam as a backward regressive force that was a threat to the progress of humanity. But they were fighting a losing battle, for let alone cheap propaganda, even standing armies are not enough to stop an idea whose time has come.

The Nation

The Deen and the Sultan are Twins – Explanation from Imam Ghazali


The following text is an excerpt from the book al-Iqtisad fil-I’tiqad written by the classical scholar Muhyiddeen Abu Hamid al-Ghazali (may Allah have mercy on him).

This section is part of his refutation of those (among the Mu’talizah sect) who claimed that there was no rational obligation for the Khilafah or Imamah, as they claimed that people can perfect themselves morally without the need for a State.

Imam al-Ghazali explained the consequences of the absence of a ruler applying Islam thus:

“The security of the world, its inhabitants and properties cannot be achieved except with an obeyed ruler (Sultan Muta`). The times of extreme sedition and chaos [following] the deaths of the rulers and the leaders bear witness to this. If this [situation] continues without another just ruler being appointed, then chaos will continue, bloodshed and oppression will become widespread, and livestock will be destroyed and industry stopped. Whoever gains power over others will loot, and none will find time for worship (‘ibadah) or gaining knowledge (‘ilm), if they manage to remain alive.

This is why it is said that,

‘the Deen and the Sultan are twins’ 

الدِّيْنُ وَ السُّلْطَانُ تَوْأَمَان

and it is said that,

‘the deen is the foundation and the Sultan is the guardian. That which has no foundation is doomed, and that which has no guardian will perish’

الدِّيْنُ اُسُّ وَ السُلْطَانُ حَارِسٌ، وَ مَا لا اُسَّ لَهُ فَمَهْدُوْمٌ وَ مَا لا حَارِسَ لَهُ فضَائعٌ

This is a sickness for which there is no remedy, except through a powerful and just ruler who will unify the disparate and differing views.

Hence, it is clear that the ruler is necessary for organisation of the world, and the organisation of the world is necessary for the organisation of the Deen. And the organisation of the Deen is necessary for the success and joy of the Hereafter, and this undoubtedly was the objective of the Prophets.

Therefore, the obligatory character of [appointing] the ruler (imam) is one of the essential matters from the Law (al-shar`) which may not in any way be abandoned.”

Key lessons:

1. Separation of religion and state is not recognised in Islam. In order to ensure societal affairs are addressed correctly, Islam has laid down the systems of governance for the rulers to establish, and thereby bring tranquillity to the citizens, both Muslim and non-Muslim.

2. Our situation today is far worse than that envisaged by Imam al-Ghazali. Not only do we see Iraq, Afghanistan, Palestine and other Islamic lands suffering under merciless occupation; not only have the traitorous rulers abandoned the application of the Shari’ah; in addition to that, they actively work to cement the occupation of our lands, and to suppress the call for the resumption of the Islamic way of life.

3. In the absence of the Khaleefah who protects the rights of the citizens, securing the basic needs becomes a daily struggle and the weak are left at the mercy of the powerful and corrupt. In such a situation, it is not surprising that ignorance of the basics of Islam, and corrupt practices become the norm for millions. If Muslims want to reform the situation of their societies, establishing Islam in authority is of the highest priority.

The Islamic ruling on protests and demonstrations

KAMĀL ABŪ ZAHRĀ

“They take their rabbis and priests to be their lords besides Allah and (they take as their Lord) Christ, the son of Mary; Yet they were commanded to worship none but Allah. There is no god but He. Praise and glory be to Him, (far is He) from having the partners they associate (With Him).”

[TMQ at-Tauba 9:31]

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/concepts/islamic-culture/12112-the-islamic-ruling-on-protests-and-demonstrations

O liberated people of the world! Look at the oppression of the regime in Uzbekistan

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/activism/central-asia/12190-o-liberated-people-of-the-world-look-at-the-oppression-of-the-regime-in-uzbekistan

28th Rajab the day when the Ummah lost its shield

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/the-khilafah/khilafah/12169-28th-rajab-the-day-when-the-ummah-lost-its-shield

Australian conference website

Below are two links from the same website that are worth mentioning. One is a interactive map and the other the timeline and both are mashallah an excellent way of sharing the uprisings that started early this year. Please take a look and add to your knowledge of the events that took place in the Middle East and North Africa.

http://www.uprisings2011.com/interactive/map

http://www.uprisings2011.com/interactive/timeline

International Khilafah Conference 2011

Imam Abu Abdullah al-Qurtubi (d. 671 AH) Imam Qurtubi said in his tafseer of the verse, Indeed, man is made upon this earth a Caliph” [TMQ 2:30]

“This Ayah is a source in the selection of an Imaam, and a Khaleefah, he is listened to and he is obeyed, for the word is united through him, and the Ahkam (laws) of the Khaleefah are implemented through him, and there is no difference regarding the obligation of that between the Ummah, nor between the Imams.” Imam al-Qurtubi also said: “The Khilafah is the pillar upon which other pillars rest”

Wedding and Funerals

Have you seen the pomp and extravagance at the Royal Wedding? The fancy costumes and the singing of hymns? The attendances of the world's 'Elite', which includes the foreign heads of state, the foreign monarchies, celebraties and politicians (including tyrants and dictators of the Muslim countries). Some people even flew from other parts of the world like Brazil and USA to attend this event! Not that I watched it but you could easily see the small highlights afterwards. Looking at other events which also holds this much if not more weight, such as the United States Presidential Inauguration, these project the power of their authority upon the world such that people in other nations and countries hold them in awe and come rushing to attend and hopefully view them.

What of the Muslim world? We are a humiliated nation. Is this something we can only dream of? No! In the not-to-distant past, we were a mighty superpower bigger than what Britain and America is now. The people of the West used to come to the Khilafah in the past the way the people of today comes to London and Washington. Look at the pictures below of the might of Islam in the past! Look at its splendour, its uniforms and dress! Look at its authority and power (by the permission of Allah swt!). This is because we were ruling by Islam and Islam alone. The pictures below are of our last great Caliph, Sultan Abdul Hamid the Second (may Allah swt have mercy on him) and he became a Caliph of the Muslims during the decline of the Uthmani Khilafah (Ottoman Empire). But he tried his best and stayed firm on Islam and mashallah kept the authority of the State to the Muslims and the Sovereignty to Allah swt. The first two pictures are when he became the Caliph of the Muslims and the last one is during his last days. Look at the last picture, look at the reaction of the crowds to the Caliph, they are so proud mashallah. Would we be like this to the numerous current rulers in the Muslim world right now?

Every sultan of the Ottoman Empire had his own monogram, called the tughra, which served as a coat of arms. A modern coat of arms, (inspired by the European heraldic tradition) was created in the late 19th century. The final design was adopted by Sultan Abdul Hamid II on April 17, 1882. It included two flags: the flag of the Osmanli Dynasty which had a crescent and a star on red base and the flag of the Islamic Caliph which had 3 crescents on a green base. Some graphic elements of the coat of arms of the Ottoman Empire such as the central oval and the vertically-oriented crescent and star were re-edited in the current semi-official emblem of the Republic of Turkey.

So let us work to re-establish this Khilafah that which our Prophet Muhammad (saw) established! So that first and foremost we can please and seek the pleasure of Allah swt that we have obeyed His (swt)'s command, and that we can finally rule by Islam and humiliate the enemies of Islam and that every town and city resonates with the takbir of Allahu Akbar! and not USA! USA!

http://www.hizb.org.uk/current-affairs/the-crown-prince-of-bahrain-and-saudi-royals-why-not-just-invite-saif-gaddafi-and-gamal-mubarak

Syria

The protests in Syria are now going full throttle but there are disturbing reports of chaos and confusion due to who is shooting who. There are reports of the Security Forces (Mukhaberat who else?) shooting at both the civilians and the army. They then withdraw silently creating chaos in their wake. Bashar al-Assad is another typical Gadaffi. Sadly another example of 'Like father like son'.

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/news-watch/middle-east/11738-deraa-a-city-under-a-dark-siege

Look at what Iran is doing. This so-called Ahmedinejad who 'supposedly' hates Israel is doing something behind closed doors. An extract below with a link is from a news articles in the New York Times...

The measures (sanctions) also take aim at Syria's intelligence agency and the Quds Force of the Iranian Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps, an elite paramilitary unit already under heavy sanctions from the United States. Iran, officials said, is using the force to funnel tear gas, batons and other riot gear to Syria.

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/news-watch/middle-east/11731-us-moves-cautiously-against-syrian-leaders

The ongoing Libya crises

Below are the Q&A of the ongoing crises in Libya. Nato has killed Gadaffi's youngest son and three grandsons. There's no telling whats going to happen next. There is a lot of bloodshed and killings going on in the Muslim world right now.

1. The invasion of Libya has now passed its first month and is fast moving towards a stalemate. Why has the Western coalition been unable to remove Gaddafi?
2. The Western coalition, which is fundamentally France, Britain and the US individually possess the capability to bring this conflict to an end, why have they failed in achieving this?
3. Who are the rebels in Benghazi? Why have they failed to remove Gaddafi and what is their military capability?
4. Does Libya form part of the global struggle between the world’s powers?
5. What direction are events most likely to take?

http://www.hizb.org.uk/current-affairs/qa-the-on-going-libya-crisis

The death of Osama bin Laden

This morning awoke with the news of the assassination of Osama bin Laden by the US Forces acting in Pakistan. This is upsetting news if true. A Victory for the West and utter humiliation for the Muslims! For how long will the Ummah keep acting as a coward? A defeated mentality and despair? We number more than a billion with 50+ big countries next to each other but we can not even unite and protect ourselves? The picture above shows how high they (the West) have become and how low we have become. Osama bin Laden was a Muslim and he is subject to the Shariah like any other Muslim. Allahu alam, but whatever he did or did not do it is up to the courts of the Khilafah with a Judge to make judgements, not a Kafir enemy conducting their Judge Dredd exercise! They did the same to Saddam Hussein and Gaddafi's son. But did we feel any good even if they were tyrants? This is the Enemy's Justice, not the Muslim's justice. For America to kill him, take possession of his body and dump it in the Sea where we can't then locate the body is utter shame to us! And they said they gave him a 'religious funeral' and buried him! We Muslims are the ones supposed to bury him, not the enemy and certainly not in the Sea!

Furthermore, what about the sovereignty of Pakistan? Abbotabad is in a Pakistan military area more specifically the Pakistan Military Academy! This area is the equivalent to West Point and Sandhurst which are the military academies of the US and UK! What was Osama bin Laden doing right on their doorstep?! And for all of the last decade?! It is inconceivable that the Pakistan Army and government did not know he was living there, a well-off area and a well-guarded sprawling complex in a mansion! If they knew then the US certainly sidestepped them, invaded the sovereign territory of Pakistan and conduct their killing! What would they say if foreign governments did the same in London and Washington?!

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/analysis/asia/11742-traitor-rulers-mount-a-suicide-attack-against-pakistans-sovereignty

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/analysis/asia/11749-america-roams-freely-killing-and-slaughtering-in-the-muslim-lands-as-if-the-lands-were-part-of-the-united-states

http://www.hizb.org.uk/current-affairs/demonising-pakistan-the-result-of-obamas-speech

Public Demo this Saturday 7th May

Join our March to show your solidarity to the Ummah; on Saturday 7th May 2011, 2pm

Meeting Point: Paddington Green

Hizb ut-Tahrir, a political party that takes care of the affairs of Muslims and their interests according to the rulings of Islam, considers it important to declare the following:

1. We remind all the Muslims that they are one ummah, they have one Lord, the One and Unique, one Prophet, One Book, one qiblah, their peace is one and their war is one.

2. We remind the Muslims that they must help their brother; rejoice in his joy, feel his pain when he is afflicted as has come in the noble hadith: “The Example of the believers in their love for each other, their nearness and compassion for each other is like one body; when one limb suffers pain the rest of the body breaks out in sleeplessness and fever” (Muslim, Sahih #2586). And from the Prophet (saw) where he said: “The believers are like one building – each re-enforcing the other…” (Bukhari, Sahih #6026).

3. We remind them too that the lesson in this is being bound to the `Aqeedah and not bound to the Sykes-Picot agreement and what it established. This is a colonial treaty utterly invalid and rejected and any resulting spurious conditions imposed by the coloniser is also rejected. Islam required the Sykes-Picot agreement to be rejected and dissolved as well as all its implications and terms.

4. That our Lord and Helper – the Mighty and Exalted – will gave help to the oppressed where He says in his Majestic Book: “And what is the matter with you that you fight not in the cause of Allah and of the weak — men, women and children — who say, ‘Our Lord, take us out of this town, whose people are oppressors, and make for us some friend from Yourself, and make for us from Yourself some helper?’”[ TMQ An-Nisa 4:75].

And we conclude with the open invitation to all Muslims to work with us to raise the word of Allah high through the pledge of allegiance to the Khalifah who will rule with the laws of Allah and to cut the hands of the greedy colonialists in our country and our affairs. The only way to liberate the Ummah from the West and those following behind her lies in the establishment of the Khilafah which we were informed about by the Noble Prophet (May Allah bless him and his family) when he said: “Verily the Imam is a shield behind whom you fight and are protected”.

Campaign video for 7th May Day of Solidarity

Check out: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KE5j5ZZFGsM&feature=player_embedded

 

OD

The year 2011...

Asalaam mu aleikum.

The year 2011 is looking to be the defining moment in the history of the Ummah where the Muslim world has spontaneously erupted against tyranny and oppression. It was with the youth that are leading this revolt. Indeed the Prophet (saw) said, "I had victory by the youth." The Sahabas (ra) were all very young as we know. The average age of the populations in the Muslim world is mainly less than 30! Now we are now witnessing Syria going up. There are reports of the security service (the Mukhaberat) using live ammunition and killing many Muslims. The Mukhaberat throughout the Muslim world seems to be doing the same thing, whether its sooner or later. They seem to be wanton killing machines of the rulers. Soon their time will come also along with their rulers inshallah.

Not only this, we have also witnessed a large earthquake followed by a tsunami in Japan. Not only this, we now have an atomic emergency due to the damage caused to several nuclear power stations. The mega-earthquake was powerful enough that caused death and destruction but this was nothing compared to the tsunami! Note that a cubic metre of water weighs one ton or more and the look at the way it literally carve through the landscape and changed it forever. Once there was a city, now there's none.

Even then, compare it to the Day of Judgement:

"When the Earth shall be shaken to its depths. And the mountains shall be crumbled to atoms. Becoming dust scattered abroad."
(TMQ Surah al-Waqia 56:4-6)

If the mountain themselves are shaken to atoms, one wonders what the measurements on the Richter Scale will be?! This brings our entire lives into perspective and shows that this life is but a test where Allah swt tests us of our faith and whether we deserve the Heaven or the Hell.

"I have only created Jinns and Men so that they may worship Me"
(TMQ Surah adh-Dhariyat 51:56)

This life is but to worhip Allah (swt) so that we may seek his (swt)'s pleasure. This involves following His (swt)'s Commands and Prohibitions till our time comes. The tsunami was literally a wall of death sweeping the landscape. Hardly anyone could outrun it and television cameras from helicopters showed this in detail.

"Wherever ye are, death will find you out, even if ye are in towers built up strong and high!"
(TMQ Surah an-Nisa 4:78)

"Every soul shall have a taste of death: in the end to Us shall ye be brought back."
(TMQ Surah al-Ankaboot 29:57)

There have been several large earthquakes in recent years and they have seemed to increase in terms of intensity and numbers. These surely are signs of the coming Day of Judgement. Also more importantly the coming of the 2nd Khilafah Rashidah is yet another sign of the Last Day:

Imam Ahmad, Al-Hakim and Abu Dawud quoted 'Abdullah Ibn Zughb Al- Ibadi who heard from 'Abdullah Ibn Hawwala Al- Azdi that:

"Rasoolallah (saw) put his hand on my head, and then said: 'Ibn Hawwala, if you see that the Caliphate has taken its abode in the holy land, then the earthquake, the tribulations and great events are at hand, and the Last Hour on that day will be closer to people than my hand is to your head."
[Musnad al-Imam Ahmad Ibn Hanbal Volume 5, p.288 No. 21449; Sunan Abu Dawud, Volume 3, No. 2173]

Not only is this an indication that the Last day on Earth is coming ever closer and we do not know if that will be in our lifetime, but the hadith above mentions that the Khilafah will take its abode in the Holy Land. This Holy Land mentioned here is al-Sham (Palestine) and the capital of the State will be al-Quds (Jerusalem). In our history, the Khilafah has not actually held the capital in Jerusalem. This hadith is a Prophecy which has yet to be fulfilled. So the return of the Khilafah is a surety and the obligation of working to establish it still stands.

Libya fighting

“But if they seek aid in Deen it is your duty to help them.”
(TMQ al-anfaal 8:72)

We again are witnessing yet another Western intervention in a Muslim country. We all know what agendas they have and what mess they create. Why is the Egyptian army standing aside while the Western powers start their plans? The Muslims in the East of Libya are calling for help and not one Muslim should ignore this call while sitting next door! Just recently it was heard that the Egyptian army is providing weapons to the opposition but many of them are not trained and have never alone handled a gun! There were reports that a jet fighter was shot down over Benghazi by the opposition but there were rumours that this was their own plane! Jihad is supposed to be an organised institution where there is training, discipline, obeidience and Iman.

It is known that the method to establish the Khilafah State lies in non-physical actions and dawah only. This indeed started in Libya like in Tunisia and Egypt, but the government suddenly waged a brutal war against its own people instead. This was in stark contrast to the hands-off approach of the military to the protests in Tunisia and Egypt (again shame about the security forces). So the Muslims were forced to fight to defend themselves and mashallah they decided to take the initiative to actually overthrow Gadaffi. What choice do they have? They have to fight to protect themselves, their families, homes and livlihoods!

However on a positive note there are reports of one experienced Libyan army commander who has defected with 8000 men. Alhumdulillah. This shows that an inviting hand must always be extended to the Armies of the Muslims. Carrying the Dawah to them and inviting them to the truth and not to treat them as enemies as they could be the potential future Ansar who will help give us the Nusrah and re-establish the Khilafah. But nevertheless there will be bad elements of the armies such as the ones helping Gaddafi and killing their own people. The Egyption army must come over and coordinate with the opposition including the defectors from the Liyban army and remove the tyrant Gaddafi instead of sitting in their barracks while the West comes in instead.

Wasalaam mu aleikum,
OD

_________________________


Statement from Hizb ut-Tahrir Britain on Western intervention in Libya
March 19, 2011



Muslims in Libya, like those in Egypt, Tunisia, Syria, Bahrain, Yemen, Algeria and Saudi Arabia, have responded to the Hadith of the Prophet Muhammad (salallahu alaihi wasallam) who said “The best Jihad is to speak the word of truth against the tyrant ruler”. What we have witnessed in the past few weeks has been the beginning of the end of these tyrant regimes. In the context of calls for Western intervention we would like to make the following points:

1. We, like the Muslims of Libya, want to see the end of Gaddafi’s regime and an end to his murder.

2. However, we strongly oppose the British, French and American intervention in the Muslim lands. These countries are the very colonial powers that backed these tyrants for decades to secure their interests in our lands. These regimes were designed in London, Paris and Washington. It is the Western powers who gave them legitimacy and sold them the munitions which they now use against the people. The humanitarian justifications for intervention are no more than a smokescreen to hide their ugly material interests. It would be a betrayal of the blood that has been spilt by those who have been martyred in these revolutions if they are hijacked and the outcome is the maintenance of the same colonial order maintaining Western hegemony in the Arab world.

3. This latest military adventure in Libya in the name of ‘liberating’ the Libyan people from the murderer Gaddafi needs to be seen in its true colonial context – to try to ensure that whoever takes over Libya will see that Libya continues to remain under Western colonial influence. No amount of talk of humanitarian values and freedom, UN resolutions and a coalition including the despots of the Arab League will erase the memories of the atrocities committed by these powers in Iraq and Afghanistan.

4. The problems of the Muslim world need to be solved by the Muslims. We have allowed others to interfere in our affairs for too long. We call upon the Muslim armed forces in the region to take up their obligation and liberate the people from Gaddafi and his cronies. With a force of over 450,000 the Egyptian army is more than capable of ending Gaddafi’s murder and mayhem. If the Saudi army can enter Bahrain to protect the tyrant there, why isn’t it able to come to the rescue of the people of Libya? If the despots of the Arab League can come to a resolution of a no-fly zone why are they not able to release their armies to enter Libya? Why have they invited in the very same forces that caused hundreds of thousands of deaths in Iraq?

5. The real issue for Muslims is the removal of these incompetent puppet rulers and their regimes and to replace them with a sincere accountable Islamic leadership that will have the backbone to solve the problems of the Muslim world without the need for America, Britain or any other Western power.

6. We call upon all Muslims who have been inspired by the extraordinary courage and determination of the people in these revolutions to work for real change which can only come by the re-establishment of an Islamic Khilafah State – a state that will unify the Muslim world, will have an accountable leader that will end torture and repression of its critics, will return the natural resources in our lands into public hands and will ensure the rights of minorities and women as enshrined in the Islamic Shariah. This is the State that will realise the aspirations of the people and free the region from tyranny and colonialism.

Hizb ut-Tahrir
Britain

14 Rabi II 1432
19 March 2011

_________________________


The Arab Revolt: Reflections on the Uprising
Mafuz Rahman



In the lexicon of recent history the term ‘Arab Revolt' evokes a dark chapter from the annals of the Islamic State. For centuries the Ottomans, like their Umayyad and Abbasid predecessors, symbolised the political base of the Islamic State through the Caliphate institution that was established after the death of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم. But the power of the Ottomans was on the wane, slowly its influence and grasp on the Muslim World receded, blow after blow the State began to fragment. It received one of its biggest blows in 1916 when the treacherous Amir of Mecca, Hussein Bin Ali, sided with the British and initiated the ‘Arab Revolt' which would eventually sever the Arab lands from the Ottoman Caliphate. The Ottomans limped on and the biggest blow would come a few years later when the Caliphate was itself abolished in 1924 and the Muslims were for the first time in their history without a Caliph.

In 2011 the term has found new meaning, in recent months we have seen vast populations of the Ummah from the Arab and North African World rise up against tyranny, oppression and corruption. It began last December when Mohamed Bouazizi, a Tunisian vendor, set himself on fire - he would later die from the injuries - in protest after his produce was confiscated by the local authorities who had continuously harassed him. This injustice struck a chord with many Tunisians, who had themselves been suffering oppression for years, and they took to the streets in an unprecedented uprising. Their actions gradually gained international coverage and resulted in them ousting President Ben Ali. The uprising then spread to Egypt where the pharaonic tyrant Hosni Mubarak also fell, similar protests have also taken place in Algeria, Bahrain, Jordan, Morocco, Saudi Arabia, Syria, Yemen, and at the time of writing this, major uprisings and protests have been taking place in Libya against the dictator Colonel Gaddafi. These unprecedented events have reached a global audience as news channels and newspaper columns have continuously covered the developments. But as the coverage on the mainstream media slowly dies down it's important that we reflect on these historic changes and take lessons from what we have witnessed in these past months.

From the outset it is important to address what the protestors have been calling for, we're well aware that the Ummah arose after decades of suffering repression at the hands of these despotic regimes, but many Western media outlets and political leaders have been quick to provide their own narrative. We've been told that this has been a ‘secular' uprising as many commentators have rushed to discern these events from the Iranian revolution of 1979. Many analysts have pointed to the absence of ‘Islamist' elements in these events to highlight that the call of the people has been of ‘democracy' and ‘freedom' as opposed to calls for Islamic revival. One could not be faulted for mistaking this narrative with some sort of policy paper drawn up in Whitehall or the White House. The reality is that after years of oppression the Ummah wants to free herself from the shackles of tyranny and wants to have a corrupt free transparent government that can be accountable. The slogans of ‘democracy' and ‘freedom' represent these wishes and the people are certainly not calling for the liberal systems we find in the West which allow for social behaviours that are seen as reprehensible in the Muslim World. The protests themselves have been organised in Masjids and taken place after Friday Prayers, we've seen masses of people offering the prayers in congregation in Tahrir Square, chants of ‘Allahu Akbar' are clearly audible therefore it seems odd that these uprisings are being labelled ‘secular'. Is the Ummah really looking up to secular values when we've witnessed the devastating effects of these values in the last decade through failed forays into Afghanistan and Iraq, the war on terror, the global economic crisis, social breakdown along with the regular scandals caused by the behaviour of politicians.

We're sure that these developments have led many Western leaders to suffer from insomnia as they work around the clock surveying the damage and trying to work out which of their stooges is next. However the term amnesia would be more appropriate to describe their behaviour; they have all come out to denounce the likes of Mubarak and Gaddafi but these were the same leaders who were praising the likes of Gaddafi and Mubarak recently. In the past few weeks we have seen numerous expose's on how politicians and elites from the West have been propping, supporting, funding and arming many of these despotic leaders. The same weapons were and are still being used to kill and maim many who are involved in the uprising.

These events have quietened the naysayers, pragmatists, sceptics and those with a defeatist mentality. For years now many from our midst have said that the Ummah is incapable of bringing about change by citing odd arguments linking our plight to the way - or lack - of performing rituals. Those who have called for change have done so at a cost, for years they said that the only way to bring about change was through compromise; by adopting erroneous systems, ideas and entering un-Islamic institutions. There have been those who have promoted apathy by staying on the sidelines when they should have been actively involved in bringing about change. The Ummah has shown that it still has goodness within it, as many have been martyred in this struggle, it has shown that change is possible and can be achieved by mass organised movements free from the established political frameworks. But these movements need to be given guidance, the Ummah needs to realise that the answer to their ills lies within the very values which they carry. The Ummah needs to be shown that the Islamic system of governance; which has been highlighted in the Quran and Sunnah, is accountable and transparent; and can solve their problems whilst liberating them, freeing them from oppression and providing them with prosperity and hope.

Most of all, these developments have shook the thrones of all the tyrants from the Muslim World, it is a stark reminder to them that their time is nearing to an end. The story of Hussein Bin Ali, who led the revolt against the Caliphate in 1916, should be a cautionary tale for them. This man sided with the colonialists, helped them disunite the Ummah further, and then expected to be rewarded well. However Hussein Bin Ali was humiliated and sidelined by the British a few years later as they gave their support to the Al-Saud family and helped them establish Saudi Arabia. The likes of Saddam Hussein and now Mubarak and Gaddafi, who expected to sit in their Ivory Towers longer, have received the same treatment. Verily it is Allah سبحانه وتعالى who grants power when He wills and takes it when He wills.

Finally we should not be naive to think that everything will be rosy from here onwards, we need to show awareness about the political developments as the power brokers from the West try to slip in another face that will do their bidding, there needs to be an overhaul of the whole system as opposed to a change of face. We must remember that the last Arab Revolt was one of the many events that led to the destruction of the Islamic State and left the Muslims without a Caliph, something that had seemed unlikely and unfathomable only a few years before. This is the main lesson for us now; although it might seem unlikely and unthinkable to some that these uprisings can lead to anything fruitful, perhaps these events will be the beginning of many that will lead to the Ummah uniting and returning to Islam. We pray to Allah سبحانه وتعالى that this is the case.

وَاللَّهُ غَالِبٌ عَلَىٰ أَمْرِهِ وَلَٰكِنَّ أَكْثَرَ النَّاسِ لَا يَعْلَمُونَ

"Allah is in control of His affair. However, most of mankind do not know."
(Yusuf, 12:21)

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Western Intervention in Libya
Adnan Khan



The UN Security Council has backed a resolution on Libya that supports a no-fly zone and "all necessary measures" to protect civilians. After days of bickering over differences Western allies have, with the absence of China and Russia, managed to pass a resolution that in theory imposes a no fly zone, and allows the West to carry out military strikes under the justification or more likely guise of protecting civilians.

After much discussion, the Americans have now not only backed the British and French resolution on Libya but beefed it up. All of this has taken place as the forces fighting Colonel Gaddafi have been losing their strongholds which were gained when many of Gaddafi's forces defected. In observing the last two weeks and the current UN resolution we make the following points:

1. Western leaders can not be trusted. The West has a long history of pursuing its colonial interests under the guise of humanitarian intervention, liberal interventionism, human rights and protecting people from their rulers. Intervention in Sierra Leon, Iraq, Somalia and Afghanistan led to prolonged wars with the deaths of numerous civilians at the hands of the West - who were there in an apparent peace mission.

2. Western talk of intervention in Libya comes when Europe armed Gaddafi and stood by as he killed all those who opposed him. Western complicity with brutal dictators is not an exception but the norm. The US armed both Iraq and Iran when they went to war in the 1980's, the West supported the overthrow of Ben Ali and Mubarak, but freelanced over the fact that they armed them and had cordial relations with them.

3. The imposition of no fly zones is an ominous sign, as this was the same pretext used against Iraq in order to weaken it paving the way for military action. Whilst the West has been clearly exposed in its colonial adventure in Iraq, it is peddling the same justification to intervene in another Muslim country. US intervention in World War II led it to maintain bases to this day in both Japan and Germany 60 years later.

4. In the same week the West constructed a UN resolution against Libya, Saudi Arabia sent its army into Bahrain. Libya shares an artificial border with the most powerful Arab nation, with the region's largest army in Egypt. Intervention by Muslim armies would bring a swift end to Gaddafi.

5. Whilst the West has called for joint operations with Arab countries in the region, it is merely to bring international legitimacy to this new colonial venture. The fact is Egypt can single handily remove Gaddafi and bring an end to this massacre in Libya. Egypt shares a border with Libya and has a fleet of 839 fighter aircraft, with total ground troops of 1.3 million. The Muslim world does not need any more foreign intervention whatever the justification. The intervention of Muslim armies is what is necessary to end the wanton killing by Gaddafi and his spent regime.

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Libya: The silver lining in the hypocrisy of Western intervention
Abid Mustafa



Once again the allied crusader forces have manufactured false pretexts under the fig leaf of international law to invade another Muslim country for the sole purpose of securing Libya's valuable oil resources. Like with Iraq and Afghanistan before it, it is obvious to any sane person with a modicum of common sense that such wars are not about protecting civilians, finding weapons of mass destructions or removing brutal dictators coveted by the West for decades- rather it's all about oil security.

As the crusader forces pummel Gaddafi's obsolete hardware and ravage the country through indiscriminate bombing, resulting in hundreds of civilian causalities-one cannot ignore the fact that only six weeks ago Gaddafi and his family were portrayed by the West as reformed modernizers with a gleam of democratic credentials. Indeed, in Britain Gaddafi and his family mixed with the aristocracy and hobnobbed with the likes of Nat Rothschild who through his friend Lord Mandelson a confidant of ex-Prime Minister Tony Blair helped engineer Libya's rehabilitation in the so called comity of nations. As part of this clandestine assistance, Blair also exercised great freedom over the Libyan Investment Authority, which at the last count had $70 billion of plundered money belonging to the Libyan people. Yet none of these intertwined commercial interests between Britain and their protégé Gaddafi prevented the former from turning against their surrogate for the last forty-one years.

Sensing the cataclysmic nature of protests across Libya, the UK was quick to abandon Gaddafi and expunge any vestiges of cooperation between the two countries. William Hague UK foreign secretary scurried to announce Gaddafi‘s exit to Venezuela and that the UK was looking to a post-Gaddafi era. Nonetheless, the enigmatic Gaddafi whom the British nurtured and protected dug in his heels and decided to fight. Outraged by Gaddafi's defiance the British mobilized Western countries and the UN to use force to remove him power-the unofficial goal of military intervention.

The story hitherto is reminiscence of the lives of several other brutal dictators that the colonial powers brought to power, armed to the teeth, watched as their protégé oppressed the ummah and when the time came ditched them like a disposal tissue. Saddam, Suharto, Musharraf, Mubarak and Ben Ali are just some of the names that come to immediate recollection.

West's unrepentant treachery is not limited to their agents-it is far worse in both scope and magnitude when applied to the Muslim world. For the past eighty odd years, the West has ignored the plight of the Muslim masses, denied them the same values they espouse for their own citizens and turned a blind eye the tyranny of the Arab and Muslim rulers. The callousness of Western duplicity has reached new heights which humanity is not accustomed to. Where is the West's moral compass and human rights standards when Israel slaughters Palestinians at will, Russia covers up the killing fields in Chechnya, India desecrates the daily lives of the Kashmiris and China routinely carries out extra-judicial killings of Muslims in East Turkestan? The crimes of these states dwarf what Gaddafi has committed, but West is muzzled in its criticism. Then there is bitter tyranny of the Saudi and Syrian regime against its people, the savagery of the Bahraini monarchy and the cruelty of Yemeni government. This selective application of western values has left an ineffaceable impression on the Muslim masses about the West's true intentions.

Nevertheless, despite West's colonial suppression of Muslim masses and years of propping-up dictatorial regimes a silver lining is fast emerging that makes uncomfortable reading for both the West and their agent despots. In a recent poll, he University of Maryland surveyed Muslims in Indonesia, as well as Egypt, Pakistan and Morocco, and found that 77% agree to unify all Islamic countries into a single Islamic state. The quest for the return of the Caliphate is no more a dream, but a reality that is shaping the contours of current thinking regarding alternative political systems for both Muslims and non-Muslims alike. In an IBD/TIPP poll, 61% of Americans believe that the establishment of the Caliphate is likely in the next 10 years. The West through its own handiwork has already lost the Muslim masses and now the inner power circles of other loyal agents to Western powers must be teetering on who to support next. The choice is a simple one- the very same colonial powers that someday will intervene and hound them out of power or the e-establishment of the Caliphate that will make them heroes overnight and guarantee their survival in this world and the hereafter.

يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ ۖ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِ وَأَنَّهُ إِلَيْهِ تُحْشَرُونَ

"O you who believe, answer (the call of) Allah and His Messenger when he calls you to that which gives you life, and know that Allah intervenes between a person and his heart, and that to Him you shall be gathered."
(Al-Anfal, 8:24)

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EVENT



SATURDAY 26TH MARCH
AT 7PM

OD

87 years...

Asalaam mu aleikum!

We have now passed the 87-year mark of having no Imam over our necks, 87 years of ruling other than the Shariah, 87 years of more than one tyrants, dictators and despots, 87 years of oppresion and decay. But after 87 years, the protests that started in Tunisia has snowballed and caught the West and the Rulers of the Muslim countries with their pants down.

This was 3rd March 1924. Now we are in 2011 and change is still now continuing unabated. Inshallah we may be witnessing looming protests (large ones inshallah) in the Heart of the Muslims world...Saudi Arabia! Next Friday will be the one to watch. Please make dua that the current protests throughout the Muslim world enlarges and spreads until it engulfs all the Muslim countries, and that the Ummah of Muhammad (saw) starts calling for real change, including the removal of all the rulers and the re-establishment of the Khilafah Rashidah ameen.

The closed societies of the Muslim world are now opening up and this means opportunities for the dawah to reach to the wider sections of society. Crucially the armies are now in contact with the people and we know how important it is for the armies to discover the role that they can play in supporting the call for the Khilafah. Witness what is happening in Libya. We have many of the army personnel defecting to the opposition and they with the civilians have formed a fighting unit to dislodge the Gadaffi government. May Allah swt bless their revolution and grant them the victory ameen.

Wasalaam mu aleikum!
OD

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87 Years after destruction of Khilafah, the Ummah is marching for real change!



3rd March 1924 – 3rd March 2011 After 87 years of oppression, corruption and weakness. The Ummah is marching for real change!

3rd March 2011 is the 87th anniversary of the destruction of the Khilafah (caliphate). It was on the 3rd March 1924 the Islamic Khilafah State in Istanbul, Turkey was formally destroyed by Mustapha Kemal in collaboration with imperial Britain. It was the day the Muslim Ummah as one Ummah and one state lost her leadership, the Khalifah. The Khilafah State was replaced by countless statelets spanning the entire Muslim world to be ruled by puppet rulers subservient to the agendas of the European powers. From then on, the Muslim Ummah has been governed by kings and dictators who have held onto their thrones by brute force, repression and terror. These puppet rulers have been there to guard the interests of the Western powers in our lands, keeping the ummah divided and ensuring the pillage of our resources.

Even at its weakest, the Khilafah State was considered a world power. At its best, when it followed the Islamic ideology and Prophetic example most closely, it was the shining beacon of justice and civilization for humanity – where lives were secured; where the poor and weak were cared for; where technology and learning flourished; and where men and women of different creeds and colours could live together side by side in harmony.

Yet since its demise the Ummah has been weak, divided and colonised, possessing little political influence and no leadership to harness its bountiful resources: approximately 20% of the world’s population, over 60% of the world’s oil reserves and 55% of gas reserves, approximately 37% of the world’s gold reserves, and almost 25% of the world’s defence personnel.

Muslims had become used to living under the tyranny and oppression of illegitimate rulers; and have become used to their lands and resources being exploited by Western colonial powers until this year – 2011 CE, 1432 AH. This year, in a matter of weeks everything changed. The Ummah rose up and threw off the decades-old rule of tyrants Ben Ali in Tunisia and Mubarak in Egypt. The Ummah rose up and weakened Gaddafi in Libya and Ali Abdullah Saleh in Yemen, almost to the brink of collapse. And now a fire is burning under the thrones of the illegitimate rulers of Bahrain, Saudi Arabia, Jordan, Syria, Oman, Iraq, Algeria and Morocco.

The Ummah is united in one voice of frustration at the rulers and their unjust systems; one cry of anger at the west who supported them; one voice of despair at food prices and the lack of jobs.

Yet as America, Britain and France have felt their grip on the Arab and Muslim world weaken, they are doing everything to retain control. The leaders of Tunisia and Egypt have been ousted by the people, but the regimes and ruling structures, which support kufr systems and Western interests, remain. They will allow constitutional amendments as long as they maintain their hegemony. They will encourage ‘democratisation’ as long as elections allow their puppets to win, their economic interests to be secured and the secular framework – that blocks the liberating power of Islam in political life – remains.

The Western media has been in overdrive to tell the world that this is not an Islamic revolution. They are doing everything they can to stop people overthrowing not only the ruler, but any system that is subservient to western ideals and values. However, the reality is that the people in the Arab world want the ability to elect and account their rulers and want to be freed from the hegemony of American and British puppets. In some Muslim countries polls show up to 70% of people want the return of the Khilafah. This is unsurprising when we see the cries of ‘Allahu Akbar’ and the congregational prayers even during the heat of demonstration. Muslims know that only Islam can bind people together in the Muslim world, unite people, and bring dignity, justice and security to this Ummah again. The Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wasallam) said “A single day under a just ruler is better than 60 years of ibadah” [Bayhaqi / Tabarani].

By contrast ‘freedom and democracy’ brought death and destruction in Iraq and Afghanistan. It brought torture and detention in Guantanamo Bay, Abu Ghraib and Bagram. It has led to the decline in society in the West, breakdown of family life and the sexual exploitation of women and children. The global capitalist system has collapsed and the gap between rich and poor in western countries has been exposed for the world to see. This is not the future the Muslim Ummah wants.

In previous years, we have called this Ummah to remove these treacherous rulers as they have been the thorn in our side for far too long. This year, we add to this, that it is not individual men – whether Mubarak, Ben Ali, Gaddafi or Zardari – who are the only problem. It is the systems they lead that oppress and enslave our people. Fir’awn did not rule alone – without Qarun and Haman – and an entire Pharaonic system. When Musharraf was removed in Pakistan, people thought that change had come. The corruption of the Zardari-Gilani ‘democratic’ regime has shown the Muslims of Pakistan that change is not achieved simply by removing one man. Only by removing the entire secular capitalist system and replacing it with an Islamic constitution will an elected and accountable government be realised in the Muslim world. Any other change of face will be another disaster for this Ummah. ‘Democracies’ blessed and supported by Cameron and Obama will simply ensure continuity of the existing corrupt policies in our countries.

We pray that these uprisings and protests do not stop until these evil systems are replaced with the just Islamic Khilafah system, with an accountable Khaleefah at its head. A Khalifah who will be bound by the Islamic Shariah, whose contract with the people will be to rule by justice and fairness, who will return the resources of the Muslim Ummah back to the people, unify the Muslim lands and eject the occupiers from our lands.

Hizb ut Tahrir calls upon the Muslim Ummah that now is the time to re-establish the Islamic Khilafah State. Now is the time to make this the most important issue in our lives and do whatever we can, wherever we are to contribute to furthering the establishment of the Khilafah. We pray that through these uprisings Allah brings real change and that we all see with our own eyes the promise of the Prophet (Sallallahu alaihi wasallam) who said

“There will be Prophethood for as long as Allah (SWT) wills it to be, then He will remove it when He wills, then there will be Khilafah on the Prophetic method and it will be for as long as Allah (SWT) wills, then He will remove it when He wills, then there will be biting Kingship for as long as Allah (SWT) Wills, then He will remove it when He wills, then there will be oppressive kingship for as long as Allah (SWT) wills, then he will remove it when He wills, and then there will be Khilafah upon the Prophetic method” and then he remained silent ‘[Ahmad]

Hizb ut-Tahrir
Britain
3rd March 2011

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Are Muslims calling for democracy or elections?



Surveys show the silent ‘majority’ of Muslims want Islam yet the western media persists in trying to portray the uprisings as pro-democracy.

“…democracy is more than elections”(1).
Tzipi Livni – Israeli Minister of Foreign Affairs, Washington Post, February 24, 2011.

Brave protestors are still on the streets struggling against many of the tyrannical Arab regimes. The world continues to watch the efforts of once-ordinary people who finally shook off their fear of their dictatorial regimes and chose dignity instead.

In the aftermath of the uprising an important question remains unanswered; are Muslims calling for democracy or elections?

The question exists because Western news reporters and camera crews report demonstrators calling for democracy but what does this mean to them? CNN and the BBC may report that they use the phrase democracy but there’s an unsurprising bias, particularly when the Western media scour the streets for those who can explain their ideas in English. Do we take these calls at face-value or do we investigate if that’s what they are really calling for?

There’s no doubt ‘democracy’ is recognised as a contested and elusive term(2). So we could take a simple meaning which depends on procedural elements such as civil rights, particularly fair elections; the rule of law; equality before the law; economic opportunity and a fairer distribution of wealth; accountability and transparency as well as an end to the corruption of crony capitalism. All of this fits within what many ascribe to democracy.

However, we could also take a deeper meaning of democracy that includes Western values, not least the notions of secularism and that legislation comes from man. This meaning of legislation through popular will and separation of church from state is essentially a rejection to the Right of Allah SWT, as al-Hakim, to be the sole legislator and as al-Malik, to be sovereign alone.

Awareness of this conflict between the two definitions means it is clear we must guard against employing the term ‘democracy’ so carelessly.

One answer on what the people want comes from the explicit calls for Islam by demonstrators from Tunis and Cairo to Sana’a to Benghazi, easily available on YouTube but conspicuous by their absence in Western news reports.

Another comes from the calls of the Islamic jurists motivating the people to rise on the basis of Islam. Al-Arabiyya reported the publication of a statement of 90 ‘Ulema from various countries supporting the uprising but condemning democracy adding:

“In democracies, people might vote for things that are prohibited in Islam like establishing brothels, allowing homosexuality, drinking alcohol, and usury, and prohibiting the call for prayers or the veil”(3)

This was supported by a fatwa by the Network of Free ‘Ulema of Libya telling all Muslims it was their Islamic (rather than democratic) duty to rebel stating:

“They (the government and its supporters) have thereby demonstrated total infidelity to the guidance of God and his beloved Prophet (SAW)…this renders them undeserving of any obedience or support, and makes rebelling against them by all means possible a divinely ordained duty” (4)

Yet another answer comes from the objective polling data taken from reputable bodies. The Pew Research Centre’s Global Attitudes Project asked Muslims if democracy was preferable to any other kind of government in a report published in January, 2011(5). They found strong agreement in Lebanon (81%), Turkey (76%), Jordan (69%), Nigeria (66%), Indonesia (65%), Egypt (59%) with Pakistan trailing in behind (42%).

However, when Muslims were asked in the same poll if Islam was seen as a positive rather than negative influence in politics it found impressive margins in favour of Islam in Indonesia (91% positive to 6% negative), Egypt (85% to 2%), Nigeria (82% to 10%), Jordan (76% to 14%) and Pakistan (69% to 6%). A separate Pew report on Religion & Public Life from April 2010 found substantial majorities of Muslims polled in sub-Saharan Africa who favoured making shari’ah the official law of the land including Djibouti (82%), DR Congo (74%), Nigeria (71%), Uganda (66%), Ethiopia and Mozambique (both 65%), Kenya (64%) and Mali (63%)(6).

This coincides with previous polls. The Program on International Policy Attitudes (PIPA) at the University of Maryland conducted a major survey in February 2007 in Egypt, Morocco, Pakistan, and Indonesia. Its summary concludes:

“On average, about three out of four agree with seeking to “require Islamic countries to impose a strict application of sharia,” and to “keep Western values out of Islamic countries.” Two-thirds would even like to “unify all Islamic counties into a single Islamic state or caliphate”(7)

The Centre for Strategic Studies (CSS) at the University of Jordan surveyed Muslims in Jordan, Palestine, Egypt, Lebanon and Syria back in February 2005(8). It found approximately two-thirds of Muslim respondents in Jordan, Palestine, and Egypt stated that the shari’ah must be the only source of legislation; while the remaining third believed that it must be “one of the sources of legislation”. By comparison, in Lebanon and Syria, a majority (nearly two thirds in Lebanon and just over half in Syria) favored the view that shari’ah must be one of the sources of legislation.

So the desire for rights is clear and the desire for Islam is clear. The people may sometimes use the term ‘democracy’, which will be eagerly seized on by western media networks, but there is clearly awareness that Islam provides the rights that people want.

Some Muslims, fearful of being labelled extremists have gone to great lengths to downplay any fervour for Islam in governance while the Western media have reported events to support their bias for democracy. However, this should not lead to confusion. Muslims have risen, with iman in their hearts. They’ve put their lives on the line facing tanks, jets, artillery, machine guns and snipers, chanting loudly that they want the fall of their regimes and that they want their rights.

There is certainly more to democracy than elections and it should not surprise any of us that the people of a Muslim-majority region want Islam.

Notes:

1 http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2011/02/23/AR2011022305364.html

2 http://www.globalbarometer.net/GBS_Oct_2010/08.%20Bratton%20Print.pdf

3 http://www.alarabiya.net/articles/2011/02/21/138583.html

4 http://af.reuters.com/article/libyaNews/idAFLDE71K1TQ20110221

5 http://pewresearch.org/pubs/1874/egypt-protests-democracy-islam-influence-politics-islamic-extremism

6 http://pewforum.org/newassets/images/reports/sub-saharan-africa/sub-saharan-africa-full-report.pdf

7 http://www.worldpublicopinion.org/pipa/articles/brmiddleeastnafricara/346.php?nid&id&pnt=346&lb=brme

8 http://www.css-jordan.org/SubDefault.aspx?PageId=37&PollId=140&PollType=3

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Anti-government protests: Allah is preparing the Ummah for victory

26 February 2011
Abdul-Kareem



As anti-government protests sweep the Muslim world and tyrants begin to fall the question of who will replace them is now on the minds of the ummah.

If we look back to the time of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and his struggle to establish the first Islamic State, we see he صلى الله عليه وسلم approached many tribes seeking the support (nussrah) for establishing the authority of Islam. He صلى الله عليه وسلم suffered persecution and difficulty in seeking the nussrah most notably in Ta'if where they hurled insults and stones at him until the whole of his body including his feet bled.

Whilst the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم and sahaba were struggling in the dawah in Makkah, Allah سبحانه وتعالى was preparing two tribes with the honour of becoming the future Ansar who supported the establishment of the first Islamic State in Medina.

These two tribes were Al-Aws and Al-Khazraj and five years before the hijra a severe battle took place between them called the Battle of Bu'ath, which led them on the path to becoming Muslim and giving the final nussrah.

'Aisha (ra) narrates about this point: The day of Bu'ath was a day (i.e. battle) which Allah caused to take place just before the mission of His Messenger so that when Allah's Messenger came to Medina, they (the tribes) had divided (into hostile groups) and their nobles had been killed; and all of that facilitated their conversion to Islam. [Bukhari]

The Battle of Bu'ath was a defining moment in the history of Islam and the anti-government demonstrations today may also turn out to be such a turning point.

Today, the ummah is feeling the shocks of the regimes collapsing and martyrs falling in the streets and this will generate an intellectual process which seeks answers for a way forward.

This is mentioned by Taquideen an-Nabhani in the book Attakattul el-Hizbi (Structuring of a Party):

Vitality usually streams into the Ummah when severe shocks occur in the society and produce a common feeling. This collective feeling leads to an intellectual process, which in turn produces a host of propositions and ideas as a result of discussions about the causes and effects of the shock, as well as the direct and indirect means to save the Ummah.

The problems people face in life will naturally provoke thinking in the person as they search for a solution. Similarly, the severe problems and shocks faced by the ummah during the fall of the tyrants have provoked many elements of the society to question and debate the next steps. The scholars, politicians, media, political parties, army, Islamic groups and western governments are all involved in this debate to varying degrees of influence. Even if after the revolutions in Tunisia, Egypt, Libya and beyond a Khilafah does not emerge, this should not be a source of despair for the ummah and the dawah carriers in particular. Rather these demonstrations have achieved many positive outcomes for the Islamic revival and are a step closer to the victory of Allah سبحانه وتعالى and the establishment of the Khilafah.

1. For any idea to become a concept that shapes people's behaviour it must have a reality that people can perceive and relate to. During the 1950's and 60's in the Arab world there was widespread support for the rulers even though they were dictators ruling by non-Islam who upheld the interests of their colonial masters. At this time Hizb ut-Tahrir exposed the rulers, their oppression and their subservience to the west but this was viewed as "strange" by many in the ummah. However, actions speak louder than words, and over time through decades of oppression the ummah has realised who their rulers truly are. The hatred of the tyrants, the destruction of their portraits and hounding them out the country shows the ummahs true feelings towards them.

2. The ummah were in fear of the rulers who tortured, abused and imprisoned them. Those few dawah carriers who stood up were dealt with brutally to the point where thousands languished in the dungeons of the tyrants. But these demonstrations removed the fear from the ummah who faced the tanks and live ammunition with their bare chests chanting Allahu Akbar!

3. The hypocrisy of western leaders who supported and armed these tyrants is now plain for the ummah to see, such as when the police use anti-riot weapons with "made in Britain" on them or when the British PM tours the Middle East with arms companies in tow.

4. The Hizb adopted a clear and precise method for establishing the Islamic State from the sunnah of the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم, which stressed the importance of building a public opinion for revival and gaining the physical support (nussrah) from those who prop up the rulers (primarily the armies). Many Islamic groups rejected this method in favour of compromise, gradualism and power sharing with the governments. Yet the millions protesting in Tunis and Cairo proved beyond a shadow of a doubt the power of public opinion in generating change.

5. Some Islamic movements condemned the Muslim armies as corrupt and began developing their own nussrah by creating armed groups to fight the governments directly, or ignored the armies completely in their dawah believing public opinion was enough. However, the pivotal role the armies played in propping up the regimes became clear when the armies removed their support for Ben Ali and then Mubarak. The army in Tunisia, Egypt and now Libya refused to fire on demonstrators and many held their own demonstrations and joined the protestors. The days spent mingling with the armies has helped break down the barriers imposed by the tyrants and will lead to greater dialogue and trust in the future between the armies and the wider society.

6. Another positive outcome is an awakening of the scholars who may now begin to distance themselves from the corrupt regimes and take their place as leading figures in the Islamic revival.

A statement issued by 90 preachers and religious scholars from all over the Muslim world praised the revolutions that ousted the dictatorships of Tunisia and Egypt for defeating oppression and ushering in a new era of justice and freedom.

The statement, however, criticized the revolution's call for the installation of full democracies. Democracy, Muslim clerics argued, allows the people have the final say in their countries' affairs, which leads to the prevalence of several un-Islamic practices.

"In democracies, people might vote for things that are prohibited in Islam like establishing brothels, allowing homosexuality, drinking alcohol, and usury, and prohibiting the call for prayers or the veil."

Calling itself the Network of Free Ulema of Libya, the group of over 50 Muslim scholars said the government and its supporters "have demonstrated total arrogant impunity and continued, and even intensified, their bloody crimes against humanity."

"They have thereby demonstrated total infidelity to the guidance of God and his beloved Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم," said the undated statement obtained by Reuters on Monday.

"This renders them undeserving of any obedience or support, and makes rebelling against them by all means possible a divinely ordained duty," said the scholars, who asked not to be named for security reasons.

7. In Tunisia Islam was suppressed for decades. The post "independence" leader Bourguiba called the hijab an "odious rag", seized properties held by Islamic trusts, closed their courts and enshrined secular family codes. He even went so far as arguing that fasting during Ramadan should not be observed for it reduces productivity! He then appeared on television with his cabinet, eating and drinking during Ramadan! His successor Ben Ali was no different. Women who wore hijab were denied access to education and jobs. Many say police used to stop them in the streets, strip them of their headscarves and force them to sign papers renouncing the hijab. Men with long beards were similarly treated.

A similar suppression occurred in Central Asia under the Soviets where they closed down mosques and drove Islam underground. However, after the collapse of the Soviet Union Central Asia saw Muslims re-opening their mosques, women wearing hijab and people starting to learn their religion. Central Asia today has millions of supporters for Khilafah. Tunisia may go in a similar direction. The mosques are beginning to fill up, women openly wearing hijab and public protests calling for Islam.

The Muslims living in the future Khilafah may very well study these protests in their history books and see the part they played in reviving the ummah and establishing the Khilafah, just as the Battle of Bu'ath did in establishing the first Islamic State.

Allah سبحانه وتعالى tests the Muslim ummah out of love so they become purified and return to the straight path - sirat ul-mustaqim. These tests bring us closer to the victory of establishing the Khilafah and prepare the ummah for being the future rulers of the world.

The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said: "A man will continue to be tested until he walks upon the face of the earth with no sin on him." [Ahmed]

The dawah carriers now face a test to answer the ummah's questions that have arisen as a result of these shocks and explain the correct Islamic concepts and Islamic method for moving the Muslim world forward. Even if these protests bring no immediate change we shouldn't be disheartened or become defeated that we can never establish the Khilafah. Rather it means we need to work harder to gain Allah's سبحانه وتعالى pleasure and work righteous deeds so we are worthy of victory.

وَعَدَ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا مِنْكُمْ وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ لَيَسْتَخْلِفَنَّهُمْ فِي الْأَرْضِ كَمَا اسْتَخْلَفَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ وَلَيُمَكِّنَنَّ لَهُمْ دِينَهُمُ الَّذِي ارْتَضَىٰ لَهُمْ وَلَيُبَدِّلَنَّهُمْ مِنْ بَعْدِ خَوْفِهِمْ أَمْنًا ۚ يَعْبُدُونَنِي لَا يُشْرِكُونَ بِي شَيْئًا ۚ وَمَنْ كَفَرَ بَعْدَ ذَٰلِكَ فَأُولَٰئِكَ هُمُ الْفَاسِقُونَ

"Allah has promised those of you who have iman and do right actions that He will make them successors in the land as He made those before them successors, and will firmly establish for them their deen with which He is pleased and give them, in place of their fear, security. ‘They worship Me, not associating anything with Me.' Any who are kafir after that, such people are deviators." [An-Nur, 24:55]

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Revolutions: False comparisons and the agent of change

26 February 2011
Abid Mustafa



The unprecedented torrents of revolt sweeping in the Arab world have led many observers to make comparisons with the demise of the Iron Curtain in 1989 or the Iranian revolution in 1979. Both assessments in many ways are misleading-at best they are simply fictitious.

In the fall of the Iron Curtain nations abandoned ‘godless socialism' and embraced free market capitalism. Eastern European countries shifted from Russia's sphere of influence to American colonization. The super power struggle between Soviets and the Americans ended with Russia's defeat and the ascendency of the lone super power America.

In contrast, the domino effect that is toppling autocratic leaders across the North Africa has not ended free market capitalism, nor has it ousted the world's lone super power. Tunisia and Egypt remain staunchly secular, its solutions are capitalistic in nature and both are firmly in the grip of Britain and America. Furthermore, the geopolitical struggle is confined between Europe and America over who controls the hydrocarbons and other riches of the Arab world. If change does materialize, then this will merely be the elimination of European hegemony-especially British control- over countries like Morocco, Algeria, Tunisia, Libya, Yemen and the Gulf countries. Additionally, the face of the ruling system and apparatus will undergo some modifications to make America's rule more palatable to the people and stymie further uprisings.

Equating the Arab revolution with the Iranian one is equally flawed. The fall of the Shah and the arrival of Khomeini only switched the rule in Iran from British hands to America hands. Capitalism still flourishes and is peppered with Islamic dressing which to most observers is misconstrued as a form of theocracy. The fact of the matter is that Iran is a secular regime with some facets of democracy and staunchly operates within ambit of American rules. Again, the present uprising in Iran is not seeking an end to capitalism, American hegemony or for that matter an end to Western patronage. This is the only similarity between the present rebellions in the Arab world and the Iranian revolution.

If valuable lessons have to be learnt then it is quite evident that almost all revolutions in societies that covet change -irrespective of ideological orientations-require domestic partners that can tangibly deliver change and ensure genuine independence from Western interference. These partners are the powerful armies of the Arab and Muslim countries. General Rachid Ammar of Tunisia and General Chief of Staff Lieutenant General Sami Hafiz could have easily catapulted the revolutions towards real and meaningful change. Instead, they betrayed the pure feelings of their people and chose to stand by their Western masters Britain and America. Therefore in both cases the regimes that were responsible for years of despotism, aggression and kufr are still in place awaiting further instructions from the West.

Allah says in Surah Ar-Ra'ad:

إِنَّ اللَّهَ لَا يُغَيِّرُ مَا بِقَوْمٍ حَتَّىٰ يُغَيِّرُوا مَا بِأَنْفُسِهِمْ

"Verily, Allah does not change the condition of a people until they change what is within themselves."

The ummah must realize that their appalling situation is destined to change but they must put pressure on the armies who are part of the ummah to join them in this quest to liberate the ummah from the yoke of Western colonialism an return to the rule of Islam.

Feb 22 2011

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Q&A on Khilafah



http://www.hizb.org.uk/what-is-khilafah/qa-on-khilafah

An in-depth Q&A on the Khiafah and it’s plan for the Muslim World

Q&A on Khilafah

1. How will the Islamic state deal with different Madhabs (Schools of Thought in Islam)
2. Is the Khilafah state solely for Muslims?
3. Are you working to establish the Khilafah in Western states like Britain?
4. Will women be given education?
5. What will the Khilafah teach other than Islamic education in it's schools?
6. What will be the Khilafah's view towards technology and the internet?
7. Can the Khilafah solve the problems of poverty in our countries?
8. Will the Khilafah close itself to the foreign world like North Korea and other rogue states?
9. How will a Khilafah state emerge?
10. What will be the basis of foreign relations?
11. How will your Islamic state deal with political actions such as embargoes, isolation and other political actions from hostile states?
12. How will your Islamic state deal with Israel?
13. What will be the basis of relationships with other Muslim countries?
14. Will your state be run by clerics?
15. Would the Caliph be elected and held accountable for all his actions?
16. Explain in brief the key principles of the Islamic political system
17. What do you mean by ‘authority belongs to the people’?
18. People say this would be an election that is ‘one-man one-vote one-time’
19. But with no fixed-term limits, doesn’t this just become an elected dictatorship?
20. Apart from the head of State are there any other elected institutions in the Caliphate?
21. What are the powers of these assemblies?
22. If legislation is divine in origin, does that not make the Islamic State a theocracy like Iran or Saudi Arabia?
23. Political parties who adhere to the constitution should operate freely within the system. But if you believe the Caliphate is not theocratic, then surely your state is religious and therefore not pluralistic?
24. But aren’t people in the West are free to criticise their leaders and their political systems?
25. How can this be reconciled with a ‘free media’?
26. If legislation is sourced from divine law, how can you progress and solve new challenges and problems?
27. Are you therefore saying that people have no role in policies because everything is divinely ordained?
28. Political leaders should represent the interests of all the people, not just a narrow elite. You are obviously critical of the closeness of big business in democratic societies, but how would you stop that happening in the Caliphate?
29. There should be a judiciary independent of the executive and who can hold the executive to account. Are you saying the judiciary is therefore independent from the State in the Caliphate?
30. Are you therefore saying that no individual or group is above the law?
31. Are you saying that the Caliphate will not discriminate against any of its citizens on the basis of creed, race, gender or disability? Surely by being based on Islam, Muslims will always be favoured and surely secularism is the best way to go?
32. Arbitrary arrest, spying on citizens, internment, torture and extraordinary rendition should be absolutely prohibited. However if you do not believe in democratic rights, wouldn’t people say that made the system a Police State?
33. Didn’t religious rule in Europe in the medieval period hold Western society back in terms of material progress?
34. Even if you reject the Western model based on its corruption and inability to tackle longterm challenges isn’t China an alternative?
35. How would you choose a ruler in the Khilafah?
36. How is a ruler accounted or changed in the Islamic Khilafah system?

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Other tidbits..


Demonstrations in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, and continuing fighting in Libya.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=IK609ep7aRE


A History of the Khilafah system

http://www.hizb.org.uk/what-is-khilafah/a-history-of-the-khilafah-system


The Obligation of Khilafah
by Kamal Abu Zahra

''The one who removes his hand from obedience he will meet Allah without a proof for himself' and Whosoever dies without a bay'ah on his neck dies the death of Jahiliyyah.''

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/the-khilafah/issues/2752-the-obligation-of-khilafah


O Muslims in Syria: Be a model for the change spreading in the region, by establishing the Khilafah-Rashidah
Monday, 28 February 2011

On 27th March 2008, the administration of Sednaya prison carried out severe torture of prisoners, which reached the level of "combing their flesh with iron hooks". The prisoners who suffered this torture, who were mainly from the Islamic activists, began to call out for Allah's help from the unbearable cruelty. Their voices reached the other prisoners who became enraged at this, and they began to raise their voices in Takbeer (Allah-o-Akbar). Some of the prisoners escaped their cells, and a wide-scale rebellion took place for several days, after which the prison guards regained control and inflicted indescribable types of torture upon the prisoners....

read on:

http://www.khilafah.com/index.php/analysis/middle-east/11368-o-muslims-in-syria-be-a-model-for-the-change-spreading-in-the-region-by-establishing-the-khilafah-rashidah