Excellent observations from Singapore’s Defense Minister Teo Chee Hean on the purpose of terrorism and the proper response. From the Straits Times, with thanks to Ali Dashti: TO SUCCESSFULLY defend ourselves against terrorism, we first have to understand how terror actually strikes. At first glance, terrorism appears to be primarily a physical threat. A building […]
Piracy ‘could cripple world trade’
Pirate attacks on ships in the South Pacific are increasing in frequency and sophistication. Some see a connection to Islamic terrorism. From Reuters, with thanks to Nicolei: SINGAPORE: Attacks on ships by sea pirates in South-East Asia are resembling military operations – growing bolder, more violent and fuelling fears of an attack that would cripple […]
4-nation effort to spell out meaning of jihad
In my line of work, I hear it all the time — from Muslims and non-Muslims alike: “jihad doesn’t mean ‘holy war.’ The Arabic word means ‘struggle.’ In Islam jihad primarily means the struggle within the soul of the believer to conform his life to the will of Allah.” In Onward Muslim Soldiers I discuss […]
“Address misconceptions of Islam”
The Straits Times reports that jihad warriors have somehow gotten all kinds of misconceptions about Islam: “They think that the notion of jihad strictly means they should wage war on those who they believe are suppressing the community.” But now Muslim leaders in Singapore are going to address this problem: “Such misunderstanding of Islamic practices […]
Jihad to be explained by scholars
At long last, a group of Islamic scholars is going to cut through all the confusion and explain what the word jihad really means: “The Council of Religious Ministers for Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia and Singapore (MABIMS) will publish a comprehensive working paper for explaining Jihad (crusade or holy war) to their Ummah (followers of […]
Europe hasn’t faced up to “new terror”
Singapore’s Lee Kuan Yew says that “Al-Qaeda is not like other terror groups Europeans are familiar with . . . its reach to fanatical Muslims is unique.” This is, as I have pointed out many times, because of its appeal to traditional Islamic concepts of jihad and martyrdom — although political correctness compels most observers […]