Download Islam Today: A Personal Perspective by Penelope Hamilton

Islam Today: A Personal Perspective
by Penelope Hamilton
Penelope Hamilton was a Trustee of Pestalozzi from
2005 until 2012 and is now a Council Member.
Penelope lived in the Middle East, mostly in Saudi
Arabia, from 1979 until 2004. She co-chaired an
organization to help expatriate women in difficult
circumstances and also chaired the International
Concert Committee which brought international
classical musicians to Saudi Arabia. Since
returning to England Penelope has continued to be
involved with music and is also an Executive
Committee member of Disaster Action.
Islam Today: A Personal Perspective.
I am going to start by reading a somewhat ironic statement
sent to me by an American ex diplomat to Saudi Arabia, and I
quote:
“Are you confused by what is going on in the Middle East?
Let me explain:
We support the Iraqi government in the fight against ISIS. We don’t like ISIS, but ISIS is
supported by Saudi Arabia who we do like.
We don’t like Assad in Syria. We support the fight against him, but ISIS is also fighting against
him.
We don’t like Iran, but Iran supports the Iraqi government in its fight against ISIS.
So some of our friends support our enemies, and some enemies are now our friends, and some
of our enemies are fighting against our other enemies, who we want to lose. But we don’t want
our enemies who are fighting our enemies to win.
If the people we want to defeat are defeated, they could be
replaced by people we like even less. And all this was started by us invading a country to drive
out terrorists who were not actually there until we went in to drive them out.”
He concludes by saying “it’s quite simple really”. The reality, I fear, is far from simple.
I would like to stress that this talk gives my personal view, informed by my 25 years of living
in the region (mostly in Saudi Arabia) and the circumstances, which most of you know, under
which I left. As a result I have had continuing contact with the government and judiciary of
Saudi Arabia, along with British diplomats and security personnel. I have retained an interest
and an affinity for the region and its people.
Michael and I arrived in Jeddah, Saudi Arabia in 1979:
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I had been no further east than Greece
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It seemed an extraordinary place
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One huge building site
But still large areas of rough land, inhabited by wild dogs
Rudimentary postal/sewage/plumbing/electricity/telephone
But the Koreans building roads – at the rate of kilometres each day
Along with new hospitals and schools
And of course shopping malls
In a country where there are no pubs, clubs, cinemas or any other form of entertainment,
shopping, I soon discovered, is absolutely paramount.
I am not an academic, but over the years I have gained an insight into Islam, its history, its core
beliefs and the problems which it faces in 2015. So how is it that in 2015 the world appears to be
watching helplessly as Islam tears itself apart in large areas of the Middle East and North Africa?
As Patrick Coburn points out in his book ‘The Jihadis Return’ , “Today’s resurgent Jihadism, which
has shifted the political terrain in Iraq and Syria, is already having far reaching effects on global
politics with dire consequences for us all”.
So, I thought it might be helpful, looking at this map, to work out where all this unrest is
centred:
http://muslimvillage.com/wp-content/uploads/2015/04/mideast-map.jpg
In Syria there has been a brutal civil war since 2011, with the Shia Alawite government Bashar
Al Assad and his allies Iran, Hezbollah, Hamas and Russia lined up against the Syrian so called
‘moderate’ opposition, largely Sunni with its allies Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Emirates, Jordan, US,
Europe and UK.
In Afghanistan and parts of Pakistan the Taliban is resurgent: as demonstrated by the
attack on the parliament building in Kabul today.
In Lebanon and Jordan—there is some unrest, mainly as a result of large numbers of refugees
fleeing ISIS putting considerable strain on their economies.
In Libya—(following the downfall of Colonel Gadhafi) there has been no effective government.
Isis has now been able to establish itself in large parts of the country.
In Egypt—the downfall of President Mubarak led to the rise and subsequent fall of the Muslim
brotherhood under Mohammed Morsi, recently sentenced to death, the current military
government of General Abdel Fatteh el Sisi is far more repressive than that of President
Mubarak.
In Tunisia—where it all began, there is relative stability, but there have been recent ISIS
attacks.
In parts of Nigeria, Somalia, Ethiopia and Eritrea, Boko Haram and Al-Shabab kill and kidnap
with impunity.
In Yemen, Iranian backed Shia Houthi rebels are fighting the Saudi backed Sunni government of
President Mansour Hadi (currently in exile in Riyadh). The crisis in Yemen has become an excuse
for a proxy war between these two leading Sunni and Shia countries glaring belligerently at each
other across the Arabian Gulf. There is also a considerable Al-Qaeda presence in the north of
Yemen.
In Bahrain, there have been protests by the minority Shias against the Sunni ruling family.
These have been largely repressed, with the help of Saudi Special Forces. Some demonstrators
have been given long jail sentences.
The remaining Gulf States have been relatively free of protest. There have been minor problems
in Saudi Arabia, but these have been mainly put down by a combination of repressive measures
and financial handouts. But recently there was a suicide attack by ISIS in a Shia mosque in the
eastern province city of Qatif.
Given all of this perhaps it might be helpful to look at the history and philosophy of Islam.
Today the 1.6 billion Muslims around the world are truly global and extremely diverse, ethnically,
culturally, theologically, economically and socially. Yet despite their incredible diversity, Muslims
are united by their core Islamic beliefs and practices. For example believers in Beijing to Boston
and Moscow to Mecca worship the same god, offer the same congregational prayers, read from
the same Koran and follow the teachings of the same prophet, Mohammed.
The prophet Mohammed born 570AD in Mecca and in 610AD he started to receive his revelations
from God through the Archangel Gabriel. These revelations form the basis of the Koran which
was written over a period of some years. The Koran provides a way of life for every Muslim and
life is regulated by observance of the five pillars of Islam:
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Shahada – declaration of the faith—there is no God but God and Mohammed is his prophet
Salat – prayers at certain prescribed hours five times a day
Sawm - fasting in the holy month of Ramadan, dawn to sunset
Hajj – pilgrimage to Mecca which must be undertaken at least once in every Muslim’s life
Zakhat – charitable donation of 10% of income to the poor
Sharia law enshrined in the Koran and later the Hadith which comprises the sayings and
teachings of the prophet written mostly after his death. The Koran reveres Old Testament
Prophets, and also regards Jesus as a prophet, although they do not recognise his divinity. Much
respect is given to Mary, the mother of Jesus: she is mentioned in the Koran almost as often as
in the New Testament. But Mohammed’s austere message was not popular in Mecca, which was
then home to a variety of religions including Judaism, Christianity and Paganism and he and his
followers fled from Mecca to Medina. This was known as the Hejira and marks the beginning of
the Muslim calendar now standing at 1436. A few years later he returned with an army and
captured Mecca turning the ka’aba into the Muslim shrine at the centre of Islam today.
Perhaps now is a good time to say something about Jihad.
Historically, Western scholarship has tended to present Mohammed as a ‘holy warrior’ who
sanctified violence and intolerance, spreading his religion by the sword to impose his beliefs on
others. This misrepresentation has dominated non-Muslims’ perception of Islam since the middle
ages. Of course there were the Muslim conquests, but this at a time late in the first millennium
when everyone was land grabbing from everyone else.
The people of conquered nations were encouraged to become Muslims, but this was not
enforced. Christians and Jews could retain their religion, but had to pay an extra tax. This is in
sharp contrast to the later Christian conquests of Latin America and the suppression of all other
religions. It is also in sharp contrast to the Christian treatment of European Jews after the
retreat of the Muslims.
‘Jihad’ literally means ‘struggle’, and it can mean an internal battle against ‘the enemy within’
against your own base instincts and desires. The ethics of military Jihad have been much
debated by Muslim scholars over the centuries. The Sharia contains a wide range of instructions
and prohibitions relating to Jihad. According to the Koran permission to fight is given to those
against whom war is being wrongfully waged, but the prohibition of aggression is unambiguously
stated.
‘Fight in the way of god against those who fight against you, but do not yourselves commit
aggression’
The Prophet also gave explicit orders to Muslim soldiers in war to prevent atrocities. He
commanded them to seek permission from their parents before going to war and he prohibited
the molestation of harmless innocents, the weak and the infirm. He also forbade the destruction
of homes, livestock and agriculture and places of worship for ‘people of the book’ – i.e. Christians
and Jews. Most Muslim scholars conclude that it is only when the existence of the Muslim
community or the borders of its lands are under attack, that military Jihad should be declared:
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Mohammed died in 632.
There was a divided succession
Some believed Mohammed named Abu Bakr – one of his
companions, as his successor
Others believed succession should follow Mohammed’s
bloodline: to Ali his nephew and son in law
Islam split into Sunni followers of Abu Bakr and Shia –
followers of Ali.
In the succeeding decades there was civil war between two sides and the rift intensified after the
battle of Karbala in 680AD, where Hussein ibn Ali, the Shia grandson of the Prophet was killed by
the Sunni forces loyal to the successors of Abu Bakr. The result was a bitter and permanent
schism between Sunni and Shia. Sunnis’ account for 85% of Islam, Shia the remaining 15%, but
the small Shia minority has a much greater impact than the numbers suggest, largely due to the
powerful influence of Iran.
Although there is surprisingly little divergence in doctrine, both Sunni and Shia regard
themselves exclusively as leaders of the ‘Ummah’ – the Muslim worldwide congregation. But in
spite of these external divisions - there was an extraordinarily rapid Muslim conquest of the
entire Arabian Peninsula, Jerusalem, North Africa and parts of Western Europe.
During these years the scholars of Islamic Baghdad and Cairo kept the flame of learning alight at
a time known as the Christian ‘dark ages’. There was a flowering of Islamic art, culture,
astronomy, mathematics and medicine. This spread to North Africa, to Sicily and into the Iberian
Peninsula with the Muslim conquests.
The Muslim advance into Europe was finally halted at the Battle of Tours in 732AD. There was a
slow retreat from Western Europe leaving behind beautiful palaces, ornate gardens, mosques,
works of art and libraries particularly in Spain and Sicily.
In 1095 Pope Urban II called on all Christians to take up the cross and liberate Jerusalem from
the infidels. Thousands joined the crusades, many of them with genuine religious intentions, but
many were merely looking for land and wealth at a time of over population in Europe (pre the
Black Death). The crusades finally ended in 1272 with Jerusalem returning to Muslim rule.
Crusades were brutal on both sides, but it is now generally accepted that the Christian armies
were guiltier of extreme violence, especially towards civilians than their Islamic counterparts,
particularly when the Muslims were under the enlightened leadership of Saladin.
What is not always recognised is that the crusades left a lasting legacy of bitterness across the
Middle East – and this is still evident today.
One of the stated aims of ISIS is to redress what they call the ‘atrocities’ carried out by the
Crusaders, and George Bush’s ill-advised remarks (referring to the us invasion of Afghanistan in
November 2001 as a ‘crusade’) were certainly not helpful.
I am now going to fast forward a few centuries and talk about Saudi Arabia; Saudi Arabia is
central to Islam, it contains two holy cities of Mecca and Medina and the title of King is Hadim al
Haramayn al Sarifayn, keeper of the two holy sanctuaries of Mecca and Medina.
In 1740 a certain Mohammed Abdul al Wahhab was born in the Nejd, north of Riyadh. He taught
what he regarded as a ‘purer’ form of Sunni Islam, returning to the days of the prophet. He
rejected art, literature and any show of wealth and any overt expression of religious zeal, such
as the Sufi holy ‘whirling’ dances. He won the support of a prominent local tribe: the Al Saud.
In 1902, nearly 200 years later, Abdul Aziz ibn Saud, father of the current monarch, King Salman
launched a campaign to unify the Arabian Peninsula into one Kingdom. After numerous
campaigns he finally established The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in 1932. In his campaign he was
aided by the Ikwan (20th century Wahhabite fighters) and a pact was made between Abdul Aziz
and the Wahhabites that the kingdom would follow the original teachings of Mohammed Abdul al
Wahab.
In 1938 oil was discovered in huge quantities and large scale extraction took place over the
succeeding decades.
In a conservative, Bedouin society, this sudden influx of huge wealth, and its associated power,
was almost impossible to handle. There was an immediate transition from an economy based on
subsistence agriculture, coastal fishing and pearl diving, limited trading in cities such as Jeddah
plus the annual revenue from Hajj pilgrims to Mecca, to an economy based on oil followed by gas
and petrochemical products. Inevitably there was corruption and flagrant displays of ‘bling’ and
they were also seen as easy targets by western companies looking to make large and relatively
quick sums of money. But on the whole the Saudi royal family and government managed the
transition reasonably successfully. But in 1979 there were three pivotal events in the region,
which were to have lasting consequences:
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The first was the siege of the grand mosque Mecca. This was led by Juhayman al Otaybi
and his fundamental Wahabbite followers
Disgust with modernisation and western ‘corruption’ of Saudi Arabia, particularly The Royal
family
They were ultimately defeated – helped by French special forces
Leaders were beheaded in public in the main Saudi cities
But a shocked Saudi government retreated from modernisation
There was an increase in power of the Ulema – the religious council
Education was curtailed – particularly for women
The Mattawa (religious police) reinforced their control over womens’ dress, ensuring that
the entire face, including the eyes were covered
Coffee shops and restaurants (previously mixed) were segregated
The Saudis’, keen to show their Sunni Wahabbite credentials started to fund the building
madrassas (religious schools) across northern Africa, Europe and the UK
The second was the Iranian revolution. After months of political unrest The Shah of Iran was
deposed and went into exile and The Ayatollah Khomeini returned to Iran from exile in Paris.
Again there was a crackdown on modernisation, westernization and the education of women. He
promoted a hard-line Shia doctrine and aimed to rival Saudi Arabia as the regional superpower
and centre of Islam. As result Saudi Arabia increased even further its building of Sunni
Madrassas.
The third was the invasion of Afghanistan by the Russians
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A fellow Islamic state was invaded by communist heretics and Saudi’s, including the young
Osama bin Laden were encouraged to travel to Afghanistan to join the Mujahadeen
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But these same fighters were to return ten years later when Russia was defeated
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They were radicalised; militarily highly trained
In 1989, the war ended in Afghanistan and in August 1990 Saddam Hussein invaded Kuwait and
threatened Saudi Arabia. Osama bin Laden believed his fighters could deal with this threat, but
the Saudi’s (probably wisely) chose the Americans and British and a disgusted Bin Laden went to
Africa and formed Al-Qaeda. He remained in Africa during the 1990s and carried out the us
embassy bombings in Tanzania and Kenya. Eventually he was expelled from Africa and returned
to Afghanistan.
September 2001 saw the destruction of twin towers by Al-Qaeda. 15 of the 19 hijackers were
Saudi nationals but it is interesting to note that after the attacks prominent members of the
Saudi Royal Family were secretly flown out of the US in spite of a complete ban on all flights.
The Saudi royal family also went on a major PR campaign in the US attempting to distance
themselves from the attacks. Prince Bandar Bin Sultan, the Saudi ambassador to the US stated
that “we the government and the people of Saudi Arabia refuse to have any person affiliated to
terrorism connected to our country”. I am not sure that this was totally convincing.
In October George Bush declared ‘war on terror’ and in November there was a US led invasion,
not into Saudi Arabia, but into Afghanistan. The aims of the invasion were to dismantle Al-Qaeda
and to deny it a safe base of operations in Afghanistan by removing their allies, the Taliban, from
power.
In 2002 it is believed that Osama Bin Laden was nearly captured near the Tora Bora caves in
Wajiristan. It is alleged that the SAS had him within their sights but were told to hold back by
the Americans. This was a missed opportunity that I, and many others, would come to bitterly
regret. But in 2003 George Bush and Tony Blair turned their attention to Iraq in order to rid the
world of the regime of Saddam Hussein. The Chilcott Report may eventually tell us whether there
was any moral or legal justification for this war, but personally, I believe there was none. But
what is beyond doubt is that it led to the destabilization of Iraq, for which we are all now paying
the price. More immediately, many recruits flocked to Al-Qaeda, which had seen a decline in
recruit’s post 9/11. Even our moderate Saudi and other Arab friends found the war
incomprehensible. Their mostly favourable view of the west (in particular the UK) was
permanently damaged. The resurgence of Al-Qaeda was particularly strong in Saudi Arabia:
Osama bin Laden’s homeland.
In May 2004 in a targeted premeditated attack, Michael [my husband] was killed as he arrived at
work. Further attacks were carried out that day. After an overnight siege the attackers were
eventually killed, captured or escaped across the border to Yemen. Two of Michael’s killers were
captured and put on trial in Riyadh in November of last year, found guilty and sentenced to
death. They are currently awaiting execution.
So moving forward a few years…
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2011 saw the beginnings of the Arab Spring
This is not a religious movement, it is a movement for reform and democracy
These democratic aims were completely understandable, but it led to destabilization across much
of the Middle East and North Africa. And ISIS has been able to establish itself in the worst
affected areas.
In my view, Western style democracy is not universally the best or most appropriate form of
government. I have always felt democracy incompatible with Islam and perhaps particularly with
the Arabs. Benign (as long as it is benign) autocracy is more suitable. Most experiments in
democracy have led to disaster. Even under the repressive and brutal regime of Saddam Hussein
(and he was not a nice man) for the average Iraqi, as long as they were not Kurds or Marsh Arabs and as long as they toed the line, had reasonable job prospects, good education, hospitals,
roads, communications and above all, security. Look at what they have now?
So now we come to 2015 and ISIS, or daesh, in Arabic. The rise of ISIS in Iraq and Syria has
been a disaster for the public image of Islam and a boom for the islamophobia industry. Here is a
group which calls itself Islamic State and claims the support of Islamic texts to justify its
medieval punishments, from the stoning of adulterers to the amputation of the hands of thieves.
Its leader, Abu Bakr al Baghdadi, allegedly recently badly injured, has a PhD in Islamic studies
and declares himself to be a ‘caliph’ or ruler over all
Muslims. He wants to extend his so called ‘caliphate’ right across the Middle East, into North
Africa and ultimately to Europe.
Yet how Islamic is ISIS? I would suggest hardly at all, and to support this view I am indebted to
an article by Medhi Hasan, a journalist for Al Jazeera and also an article by Tariq Ali called ‘the
new world disorder’.
It isn’t the most pious or devout of Muslims who embrace terrorism or join groups such as ISIS.
Religion plays little or no part in the radicalisation process. It has a role, but it is a role of
justification.
Isis fighters, from the West in particular, tend to have rediscovered Islam as teenagers, or as
converts. They are angry, bored or incipiently violent young men in search of a call to arms in
what they see as an exciting cause. Some have even been seen studying ‘Islam for dummies’ on
their flights to Turkey. Whether they are unemployed or well educated professionals, joining ISIS
offers new recruits the chance to ‘believe they are special’. Islam is an excuse, rather than a
reason.
The so called ‘Islamic state’ is therefore ‘Islamic’ in the way the British national party is ‘British’
or the democratic people’s republic of North Korea is ‘democratic’. To give groups like ISIS
religious legitimacy is handing them the ideological victory they desperately desire. Not only is it
inaccurate but an insult to the 1.6 billion non-violent adherents of Islam across the world. Above
all it is self-defeating, as it provides Abu Bakr Al Baghdadi and his minions with the propaganda
prize and recruiting tool that they most crave.
The 2003 invasion of Iraq and its aftermath is almost entirely responsible for the establishment
of ISIS in Iraq. As Mehdi Hassan writes:
“Any analysis of ISIS and of the ongoing violence in Iraq that doesn’t take into account the long
period of war, torture, occupation and sectarian cleansing is inadequate – and a convenient way
of exonerating the West of all responsibility”
The US detention camps in Iraq, notably Camp Bucca, in which thousands of prisoners were
herded into compounds were fertile breeding grounds for extremism and the Sunni oppression
under the Shia led government of Nouri Al Malaki added to the appeal of violent Sunni
opposition. Once ISIS was established in Iraq, the civil war in Syria against the Shia regime of
Bashar Al Assad enabled them to increase their territorial gains.
Can ISIS be defeated? I wish there was an easy answer.
ISIS has amassed a fortune of some $3 to $6 billion from the looting of banks, extortion, illegal
sale of oil, illegal sale of looted art, plus ransoms paid for some kidnapped prisoners. But
Western and allied Arab bombing raids are beginning to degrade their ability to fund themselves
from these activities. The American Special Forces recently killed the ISIS commander
responsible for the sale of smuggled oil and the governments of Saudi Arabia and Qatar have
stemmed the flow of illegal money from wealthy gulf Arabs sympathetic to ISIS. In spite of
recent highly publicized flights to Syria of some female potential Jihadists, there are some signs
that the flow of recruits to ISIS is lessening, mainly due to anti radicalization
programmes in Arab countries, but also Britain, the US and other European countries. For
example, the home office has an extremism analysis unit which works with Imams and
anti-extremism organisations such as the Quilliam Foundation based in London. Their aim is to
get their message out to young men (and some women) before they are radicalised.
Sophisticated internet techniques are also being used by counter-terrorism units in order to
counteract ISIS’ own use of the internet as a recruiting tool and today it was announced that a
European police agency Europol is being set up, again, to counteract online radicalization. In
addition the recently elected conservative government is already preparing to legislate against
those who incite extremism.
It is also thought that David Cameron may confront Riyadh with the part that Wahhabism has
played in radicalization. However any approach of this sort has to be carefully weighed against
the highly lucrative trade this country enjoys with Saudi Arabia. Local Arab support for ISIS is
beginning to wane with livelihoods ruined by harsh taxes, extortion and even harsher punishments and there is wide spread revulsion across the Middle East at the horrific burning alive of
the Jordanian pilot, Moaz al Kasasbeh, a fellow Muslim. The Koran specifically forbids death by
immolation and Imams across the Middle East have reinforced this prohibition. This one act
(more than any other) has brought home to ordinary Muslims across the Middle East and the rest
of the world the reality of ISIS’ brutal practices.
In Iraq, numbers in the regular Iraqi army have been increased in spite of recent losses in Anbar
Province; they did retake Tikrit earlier in the year. There are signs that there may at last be
Sunni/Shia co-operation in the war against ISIS and there is now a limited and cautious
American presence.
In Syria, a middle east diplomatic source has told me that once the Saudi’s have completed their
bombing campaign in Yemen they may well turn their attention more fully to Syria, not only to
destroy ISIS but also the Shia regime of Bashar Al Assad. If this is their aim there will be fierce
opposition from Iran but the Saudi military is now highly trained and armed with the most
sophisticated weapons and any action against Bashar Al Assad is also likely to receive the
support of the Americans. But again, as Patrick Coburn points out, “many players inside and
outside these countries are involved and Iraq and Syria have a way of delivering unexpected
events and nasty surprises”. So I suspect it will be some time before ISIS is ultimately defeated.
So, to conclude: I am not an apologist for Islam, I have experienced at first hand atrocities
committed in its name. But it remains one of the three great monotheistic religions:
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The vast majority of Muslims lead moderate peaceful lives
Living in friendly co-existence with neighbours of other religions
It is worth remembering that it is only a very small minority of the 1.6 billion worldwide Muslim
communities who adhere to the ISIS philosophy and extremist interpretation of the faith.
‘My people’ Mohammed once warned ‘are destined to split into 73 factions all of which except
one will end up in hell’. ISIS obviously believes that they alone will gain paradise.
Islam is a young religion, some 600 years younger than Christianity. 500 to 600 years ago
during the inquisition and the later reformation, those on each side of the Christian divide
believed they had the right to torture, burn and execute those whose beliefs differed, but this of
course should not be an excuse.
The image of Islam has been badly damaged by ISIS, Al-Qaeda and their affiliates and if they
wish to regain worldwide respect for their faith, then perhaps the silent majority of Muslims
should become more vocal. They should speak out against extremism in their families, in their
mosques, schools and communities. Perhaps if they do this, there might be better understanding
between Islam and those of other religions, or no religion at all and with that comes hope for a
more peaceful and less divided world.