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Suicide Bombing in Islam: Difference between revisions
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This article discusses suicide bombing (martyrdom operations) in [[Islam]], and why a number of scholars have deemed it to be permissible under [[Islamic Law|Islamic law]]. | This article discusses suicide bombing (martyrdom operations) in [[Islam]], and why a number of scholars have deemed it to be permissible under [[Islamic Law|Islamic law]], while many other scholars have condemned the practice. Large surveys in the second decade of the 21st century have found a trend of increasing majorities who disapprove of al Qaeda and suicide attacks against civilians in most Muslim countries.<ref>[https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2013/09/10/muslim-publics-share-concerns-about-extremist-groups/ Widespread concerns about extremism in Muslim nations, and little support for it] Pew Research Centrue, 2015</ref><ref>[https://www.pewresearch.org/global/2014/07/01/concerns-about-islamic-extremism-on-the-rise-in-middle-east/ Concerns about Islamic Extremism on the Rise in Middle East] Pew Research Centrue, 2014</ref> | ||
==Exceptions to norms== | ==Exceptions to norms== | ||
There are many [[hadith]] narrations and [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] verses forbidding suicide | There are many [[hadith]] narrations and [[Qur'an|Qur'anic]] verses forbidding suicide. However, there are also a few hadith (and one Qur'anic passage that has been related to one of them) which some have interpreted as indicating that killing oneself is allowed under certain circumstances. | ||
==Main Evidence== | ==Main Evidence== | ||
===The lady who | ===The lady who was boiled or burned for her faith=== | ||
Suicide bombings involve death at the attacker's own hands rather than the enemy's. The use of the following narrations to defend suicide bombings has been heavily contested. The main objections are that in both versions the woman was already being executed, and that the incidents occured in the pre-Islamic era. Moreover, the incidents are clearly intended to glorify faith when the victim could have renounced it and saved herself (similarly see {{Bukhari|4|56|809}}). | |||
{{Quote| 1= Imam Ahmad has narrated in his Musnad (1/310) [and a similar narration is in Ibn Majah (4030) |2= Ibn `Abbas said that the Messenger of Allah said, "On the night in which I was taken by night, a pleasant fragrance came my way, and so I said, "O Gabriel! What is this pleasant fragrance?" He said, "This is the fragrance of the hairdresser of Pharaoh's daughter, and [of the hairdresser]'s children." I said, "What is her situation?" He said, "While she was combing Pharaoh's daughter's hair one day, the comb fell from her hand, so she said, "In the name of Allah." Pharaoh's daughter asked, "[You mean] my father?" She said, "No, rather my Lord, and the Lord of your father, is Allah." She said, "Can I tell him that?" She said, "Yes.""…. | {{Quote| 1= Imam Ahmad has narrated in his Musnad (1/310) [and a similar narration is in Ibn Majah (4030) |2= Ibn `Abbas said that the Messenger of Allah said, "On the night in which I was taken by night, a pleasant fragrance came my way, and so I said, "O Gabriel! What is this pleasant fragrance?" He said, "This is the fragrance of the hairdresser of Pharaoh's daughter, and [of the hairdresser]'s children." I said, "What is her situation?" He said, "While she was combing Pharaoh's daughter's hair one day, the comb fell from her hand, so she said, "In the name of Allah." Pharaoh's daughter asked, "[You mean] my father?" She said, "No, rather my Lord, and the Lord of your father, is Allah." She said, "Can I tell him that?" She said, "Yes.""…. | ||
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The narrators of the chain [of Imam Ahmad's version] are reliable, apart from Abu `Umar al-Dareer (though al-Dhahabi and Abu Hatim al-Razi considered him "truthful", and Ibn Hibban considered "reliable"). A similar hadith is mentioned on IslamQA, fatwa no. 39678 (where it is graded as authentic). | The narrators of the chain [of Imam Ahmad's version] are reliable, apart from Abu `Umar al-Dareer (though al-Dhahabi and Abu Hatim al-Razi considered him "truthful", and Ibn Hibban considered "reliable"). A similar hadith is mentioned on IslamQA, fatwa no. 39678 (where it is graded as authentic). | ||
A similar narration involves a woman who was forced into a burning ditch, which Ibn Kathir (and other Mufassirun/Qur'an commentators), as well as Yusuf al-Uyayri, who published a fatwa which used this hadith to justify suicide bombing, has been related to {{Quran-range|85|4|9}} about the people burned in a ditch (though does not include any detail nor mention the woman). | |||
Ibn Kathir said about it: | Ibn Kathir said about it: | ||
{{Quote| 1=Tafsir Ibn Kathir, [http://www.webcitation.org/64xUSMcl1 The Story of the Sorcerer, the Monk, the Boy and Those Who were forced to enter the Ditch]|2=Then the king said, "Whoever abandons his religion, let him go, and whoever does not, throw him into the fire.'' They were struggling and scuffling in the fire, until a woman and her baby whom she was breast feeding came and it was as if she was being somewhat hesitant of falling into the fire, so her baby said to her, "Be patient mother! For verily, you are following the truth!'') Muslim also recorded this Hadith at the end of the Sahih. }} | {{Quote| 1=Tafsir Ibn Kathir, [http://www.webcitation.org/64xUSMcl1 The Story of the Sorcerer, the Monk, the Boy and Those Who were forced to enter the Ditch]|2=Then the king said, "Whoever abandons his religion, let him go, and whoever does not, throw him into the fire.'' They were struggling and scuffling in the fire, until a woman and her baby whom she was breast feeding came and it was as if she was being somewhat hesitant of falling into the fire, so her baby said to her, "Be patient mother! For verily, you are following the truth!'') Muslim also recorded this Hadith at the end of the Sahih. }} | ||
===Rewards based on intentions, and the boy who contributed to his own killing=== | ===Rewards based on intentions, and the boy who contributed to his own killing=== | ||
An earlier part of the hadith about the ditch has also been used to defend suicide attacks. Here, a boy invites his own execution as a demonstration of faith, though unlike in suicide bombings his death does not occur at his own hands. | |||
{{Quote|{{Muslim|42|7148}}| The Prophet said, 'O people! The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions, and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. | {{Quote|{{Muslim|42|7148}}| The Prophet said, 'O people! The reward of deeds depends upon the intentions, and every person will get the reward according to what he has intended. | ||
And he 'said to them: Take him to such and such mountain; make him climb up that mountain and when you reach its top (ask him to renounce his faith) but if he refuses to do so, then throw him (down the mountain). So they took him and made him climb up the mountain and he said: O Allah, save me from them (in any way) Thou likest and the mountain began to quake and they all fell down and that person came walking to the king. The king said to him: What has happened to your companions? He said: Allah has saved me from them. He again handed him to some of his courtiers and said: Take him and carry him in a small boat and when you reach the middle of the ocean (ask him to renounce) his religion, but if he does not renounce his religion throw him (into the water). So they took him and he said: O Allah, save me from them and what they want to do. It was quite soon that the boat turned over and they were drowned and he came walking to the king, and the king said to him: What has happened to your companions? He said: Allah has saved me from them, and he said to the king: '''You cannot kill me until you do what I ask you to do'''. And he said: What is that? He said: '''You should gather people in a plain and hang me by the trunk (of a tree). Then take hold of an arrow from the quiver and say: In the name of Allah, the Lord of the worlds; then shoot an arrow and if you do that then you would be able to kill me'''. So he (the king) called the people in an open plain and tied him (the boy) to the trunk of a tree, then he took hold of an arrow from his quiver and then placed the arrow in the bow and then said: In the name of Allah, the Lord of the young boy; he then shot an arrow and it bit his temple. He (the boy) placed his hands upon the temple where the '''arrow had bit him and he died''' and the people said: We affirm our faith in the Lord of this young man}} | And he 'said to them: Take him to such and such mountain; make him climb up that mountain and when you reach its top (ask him to renounce his faith) but if he refuses to do so, then throw him (down the mountain). So they took him and made him climb up the mountain and he said: O Allah, save me from them (in any way) Thou likest and the mountain began to quake and they all fell down and that person came walking to the king. The king said to him: What has happened to your companions? He said: Allah has saved me from them. He again handed him to some of his courtiers and said: Take him and carry him in a small boat and when you reach the middle of the ocean (ask him to renounce) his religion, but if he does not renounce his religion throw him (into the water). So they took him and he said: O Allah, save me from them and what they want to do. It was quite soon that the boat turned over and they were drowned and he came walking to the king, and the king said to him: What has happened to your companions? He said: Allah has saved me from them, and he said to the king: '''You cannot kill me until you do what I ask you to do'''. And he said: What is that? He said: '''You should gather people in a plain and hang me by the trunk (of a tree). Then take hold of an arrow from the quiver and say: In the name of Allah, the Lord of the worlds; then shoot an arrow and if you do that then you would be able to kill me'''. So he (the king) called the people in an open plain and tied him (the boy) to the trunk of a tree, then he took hold of an arrow from his quiver and then placed the arrow in the bow and then said: In the name of Allah, the Lord of the young boy; he then shot an arrow and it bit his temple. He (the boy) placed his hands upon the temple where the '''arrow had bit him and he died''' and the people said: We affirm our faith in the Lord of this young man}} | ||
A widely shared document defending "martydom operations" in the context of the case of a female Chechen suicide bomber quotes Ibn Taymiyyah about the incident in the above hadith: | |||
Ibn Taymiyyah | |||
{{Quote|[http://www.religioscope.com/pdf/martyrdom.pdf Majmu` al-Fatawa (28/540), Fatwa justifying suicide bombing pg 11]| "Muslim has narrated in his Sahih the story of the people of the trenches, in which the boy ordered his own killing for the benefit of the religion, and hence the four imams have allowed a Muslim to immerse himself in the enemy ranks, even if he is reasonably certain that they will kill him, provided there is benefit in that for the Muslims. }} | {{Quote|[http://www.religioscope.com/pdf/martyrdom.pdf Majmu` al-Fatawa (28/540), Fatwa justifying suicide bombing pg 11]| "Muslim has narrated in his Sahih the story of the people of the trenches, in which the boy ordered his own killing for the benefit of the religion, and hence the four imams have allowed a Muslim to immerse himself in the enemy ranks, even if he is reasonably certain that they will kill him, provided there is benefit in that for the Muslims. }} | ||
===Further Evidence=== | ===Further Evidence=== | ||
One Quran verse, {{Quran|2|195}} ("And spend in the way of Allah and do not throw [yourselves] with your [own] hands into destruction [by refraining]. And do good; indeed, Allah loves the doers of good.") has been interpreted as precluding suicide missions, though the above mentioned document cites the view of jurists that it is permissible in certain circumstances for someone to attack the enemy single handedly even if he thinks he will be killed. A number of hadiths glorify martydom. Of course, in all these cases death nevertheless occurs at the hands of the enemy rather than the person's own hands. | |||
*According to {{Muslim|20|4631}} Muhammad said “I love that I should be killed in the way of Allah; then I should be brought back to life and be killed again in His way..." | *According to {{Muslim|20|4631}} Muhammad said “I love that I should be killed in the way of Allah; then I should be brought back to life and be killed again in His way..." | ||
*A man asks Muhammad "which of men is the best?" Muhammad replies that it is the man who is always ready for battle and flies into it "seeking death at places where it can be expected." | *A man asks Muhammad "which of men is the best?" Muhammad replies that it is the man who is always ready for battle and flies into it "seeking death at places where it can be expected." | ||
*Muhammad said: “Surely, the gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords." After hearing that martyrdom leads to paradise, a young man pulls his sword and breaks the sheath (indicating that he has no intention of returning) then flings himself into battle until he is killed. {{Muslim|20|4681}} | *Muhammad said: “Surely, the gates of Paradise are under the shadows of the swords." After hearing that martyrdom leads to paradise, a young man pulls his sword and breaks the sheath (indicating that he has no intention of returning) then flings himself into battle until he is killed. {{Muslim|20|4681}} | ||
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*Abu Bakr as Siddiqi (a companion of Muhammad) said:{{Quote|Tabari|You [Khosru and his people] should convert to Islam, and then you will be safe, for if you don't, you should know that '''I have come to you with an army of men that love death, as you love life'''.<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/stalinsky200405240846.asp Dealing in Death] - Steven Stalinsky - National Review, May 24, 2004</ref>}} | *Abu Bakr as Siddiqi (a companion of Muhammad) said:{{Quote|Tabari|You [Khosru and his people] should convert to Islam, and then you will be safe, for if you don't, you should know that '''I have come to you with an army of men that love death, as you love life'''.<ref>[http://www.nationalreview.com/comment/stalinsky200405240846.asp Dealing in Death] - Steven Stalinsky - National Review, May 24, 2004</ref>}} | ||
==Fatwas | ==Fatwas about suicide bombing== | ||
In 2018, a book detailing a fatwa against suicide bombings was issued on behalf of 1,800 Pakistani clerics.<ref>[https://www.reuters.com/article/us-pakistan-religion-idUSKBN1F50L3 Pakistan clerics issue fatwa against suicide bombings] Reuters 16 January 2018</ref> In 2010 a Pakistani-Canadian cleric, Muhammad Tahir ul-Qadri, issued a 600 page [[w:Fatwa on Terrorism|Fatwa on Terrorism and Suicide Bombings]] in Urdu and English to refute the ideology of al-Qaeda and the Taliban, and was endorsed by the prestigious al-Azhar University in Cairo. | |||
A number of well known scholars such as Yusuf al-Qaradawi and influential apologists [[Zakir Naik]]<ref>[http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JtZxNqxpb8s Click here] to watch an explanation by Zakir Naik in one of his lectures aired on PeaceTV.</ref> have maintained that suicide bombing is permitted in Islam. | |||
Below is a fatwa issued by Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, discussing the reasons why it is permissible for women to participate in "Martyr Operations" (e.g. suicide bombings). | Below is a fatwa issued by Sheikh Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, discussing the reasons why it is permissible for women to participate in "Martyr Operations" (e.g. suicide bombings). | ||