16 March

By Daniel Kimmage

Qatar's "Al-Watan": Abu Bakr al-Qadi criticizes a recent fatwa (Islamic legal ruling) by religious authorities at Egypt's Al-Azhar University that a U.S.-led war on Iraq should be met by a "jihad" and issues a stern warning of his own to any potential U.S. occupying force.

     "Are we incapable of learning from the lessons of the past? In similar circumstances 12 years ago, with American coalition forces preparing to expel Saddam Hussein from Kuwait, contradictory Islamic fatwas were issued.... In Egypt, Shaykh al-Sha'rawi, the grand imam of Al-Azhar, and others rejected Iraq's invasion of Kuwait, supporting their legal rulings with the Koran and the Islamic tradition. In Iraq, men of religion proclaimed their support for the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait, buttressing their fatwas with the Koran and the Islamic tradition. In Saudi Arabia, Shaykh bin Baz issued a fatwa in support of assistance from foreign "infidel" troops to repel the Iraqi invasion of Kuwait.

     "Let Saddam go. And let the Americans remain face-to-face with the peoples of the region. If they are honest about their promise of a democratic project, they will be welcomed and supported. The presence of American troops in the region will be welcomed just as it was greeted in Japan, and South Korea, and Germany -- as a foundation for democracy. But if America breaks its promise, its forces will encounter resistance and a genuine jihad from the peoples of the region."