By: Itamar Marcus and Nan Jacques Zilberdik – The Jerusalem Post

The Palestinian Authority and its leaders share the blame for the murders of those five Israelis from Itamar on Friday – including two children and an infant – along with the terrorists who committed them. It is the PA and its leaders who have prepared the ground for these murders with the incessant incitement to hatred and the glorification of violence and terror.

In spite of its conciliatory statements in English, the PA continues to use all the structures it controls to demonize Israelis and to promote violence. Terrorists are presented as heroes and role models for Palestinians, teaching that killing Israelis is a way to earn eternal fame.

Just two months ago, PA President Mahmoud Abbas sent a clear message of support for terror when he awarded $2000 to the family of a terrorist who attacked IDF soldiers. Last week, the PA’s official daily Al-Hayat Al-Jadida announced a football tournament named after Wafa Idris, the first female Palestinian suicide bomber, and three weeks ago PA TV, which is under the direct control of Abbas’s office, broadcast videos glorifying the terrorist Habash Hanani, who in May 2002 entered Itamar and murdered three Israeli students. Twice the PA named summer camps after the terrorist Dalal Mughrabi, who in 1978 led the most deadly attack in Israel’s history in which 37 civilians were killed in a bus hijacking, both in 2008 and again this past summer.

But the long arm of the PA’s promotion of violence and terror goes even farther, penetrating the realm of culture and music, which has been used so often in recent years in other places in the world to promote peace and tolerance. Last year, PA TV broadcast a number of performances of a band called Alashekeen, including a song anticipating the conquering of Israel through holy war. The song presents all of Israel as “Palestine,” mentioning the Carmel region near Haifa, and the cities of Lod, Ramle, and Jerusalem as regions to be liberated: “In Ramle we are grenades… the Palestinian revolution awaits [them]… We replaced bracelets with weapons. We attacked the despicable [Zionists]. This invading enemy is on the battlefield. This is the day of consolation of jihad. Pull the trigger. We shall redeem Jerusalem, Nablus and the country.”

More significant than the repeated exposure on PA TV and at cultural events was the fact that Abbas chose to honor the musical group. He issued a presidential decree turning it into an official Palestinian national band.

COMPOUNDING THE PA’s nationalistic hate promotion are its Islamic-based messages. The PA seems to have adopted what was once thought to be only Hamas ideology, that the conflict with Israel is a Ribat – a religious war for Allah to defend Islamic land in which conflict with Israel is uncompromising. Abbas’s appointed minister of religion, Mahmoud Habbash, has taught repeatedly that the conflict with Israel is not territorial but is in accordance with Islamic law: “Allah has preordained for us the Ribat on this blessed land. We are committed to it by Allah’s command. Let no one be mistaken or under the illusion that Ribat is a choice and nothing more. It is a commandment.”

He has also preached that the conflict against Israel – over all of Israel – is cited in the Koran: “The catastrophe, in truth, did not begin in 1948, but began perhaps in 1917 with the cursed [Balfour] Declaration, which gave a promise to those who did not deserve it… Since that date, resolute people, fighters and Ribat fighters have not ceased upon our blessed land… This conflict is explicit in the Koran and our obligation with regard to it is clarified by the Koran.”

In short, the PA, like the Hamas, is telling its people that Islam does not allow for reconciliation with Israel.

WITH CONTINUOUS messages like this coming from the so-called moderate leadership of the PA, is it any wonder that people can go on terror rampages like the one in Itamar this weekend? Palestinians may assume that their leaders and society will honor them if they murder Israelis, that their families will receive payment if they are killed, and that their religion encourages Israel’s disappearance.

Was the terrorist who committed those brutal killings dreaming about a future Palestinian summer camp in his name? Was he imagining Allah granting him everlasting rewards in paradise for fulfilling his command? Did he feel that he was fulfilling his national duty and would receive a financial reward? And what about the international community which has accepted and naively believed PA leaders’ assurances that incitement had stopped? It was the international community, represented by US Secretary of State Hillary Clinton, which stipulated preconditions for the PA to enter into a renewed peace process: “We will only work with a Palestinian Authority government that unambiguously and explicitly accepts the Quartet’s principles: A commitment to non-violence, recognition of Israel, and acceptance of previous agreements and obligations, including the Road Map” (House Appropriations Subcommittee on State, April 23, 2009).

The Road Map states that “all official Palestinian institutions end incitement against Israel.”

The international community has completely failed because it never followed up to see if these preconditions had actually been met, but gladly satisfied itself with Abbas’s promises, and continues to fund the PA.

Everyone involved in the peace process is making a tragic mistake by assuming the incitement is just another issue that has to be dealt with, like the issues of water, borders, and refugees. All of those are issues that must be negotiated as part of a peace process. But as long as the Palestinian Authority continues to teach these messages, clearly there is no peace process.

It is incumbent on the international community to inform the Palestinian Authority that a condition for “working” with it, as Clinton stated, is that it erases the messages of hate and replaces them with peace promotion.

And until that time the international community must ostracize and isolate the Palestinian Authority, just as they do Hamas, and stop pretending there is a peace process.

The big losers in Egypt’s first round of elections are Christians, who fear for their survival in a radical Islamic-controlled country.

The Coptic Church, which generally steers clear of politics, instructed its followers to vote for liberal and leftist parties backed by a Christian tycoon, the Associated Press reported.

Fears for their future shoved the Christians en masse into the voting lines last week in the first round of parliamentary elections, which the Muslim Brotherhood and the even more radical Salafi Islamic parties won 60 percent of the ballots.

“We are voting for liberal parties as a means of survival,” Farid George told the news agency. “Egypt is our country. My kids were raised here and I will die here.”

If he does die in Egypt, the question is whether he will expire in a natural death. Muslim fundamentalists already have killed dozens of Copts in recent years.

Christians resided in Egypt before the founding of Islam in the 7th century, and they comprise 10 percent of Egypt’s population. Many are preparing to leave, especially since the ouster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak earlier this year.

Pastor Al-Qis Baki Sadaqa, head of an Anglican Church told the Associated Press, “It’s not only Christians who are in danger, but moderate Muslims.”

A former Muslim Brotherhood leader spells out its ideology: Muslims “are masters of the world” and Jihad should be waged against the “thieving gangs of Zion,” according to a Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) translation of the book by Mustafa Mashur, “Jihad is the Way.”

He was the official leader of the Muslim Brotherhood from 1996 until he died in 2002.

The ideology in the book stands behind the “Freedom and Justice” party, the euphemism chosen by the Brotherhood as the name of its political party that won 40 percent of the votes in Egypt’s first-round legislative elections last week.

Another Islamist party, representing the Salafists, won 20 percent, giving the Muslim fundamentalists a solid majority.

Other choice quotes in the book: “The Islamic Ummah [nation]… [is] the most exalted nation among men;…you are the masters of the world, even if your enemies desire your degradation…”

“Jihad and preparation towards Jihad are not only for the purpose of fending off assaults and attacks of Allah’s enemies against Muslims, but are also for the purpose of realizing the great task of establishing an Islamic state and strengthening the religion and spreading it around the world…

“…Jihad for Allah is not limited to the specific region of the Islamic countries, …and it shall continue to be raised, with the help of Allah, until every inch of the land of Islam will be liberated, the State of Islam will be established…

“Then comes the power of arms and weapons,… and this is the role of Jihad…, a religious public duty… incumbent upon the Islamic nation, and is a personal duty to fend off the infidels’ attack on the nation…

“The problems of the Islamic world, such as Palestine, Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, or the Philippines,,…are problems of Islam and the Muslims, and they can be resolved neither by negotiation nor by recognizing the enemy’s right to the Islamic land he stole. Rather, the only option is Jihad for Allah, and this is why Jihad is the way.”

In light of the Obama administration’s recent overtures to the Muslim Brotherhood, such as opening dialogue with previously-shunned terrorist party, perhaps the most important comment in the book is an open statement of its strategy.

“The Brotherhood is not rushed by youth’s enthusiasm into immature and unplanned action which will not alter the bad reality and may even harm the Islamic activity, and will benefit the people of falsehood,” Mashur wrote in his book.

He also advised every Muslim, “Prepare yourself and train in the art of warfare, and embrace the causes of power. You must learn the ways and manners and laws of war. You must learn them and embrace them and adhere to them, so that your Jihad will be the one accepted by Allah.”

Mashur not surprisingly preaches war against Israel. “Honorable brothers have achieved Shahada (Martyrdom) on the soil of beloved Palestine, during the years 47′ and 48′, in their Jihad against the criminal, thieving, gangs of Zion.”

Growing global anti-Semitism is linked to Israel’s policy towards the Palestinians, the American ambassador to Belgium told stunned Jewish conference attendants in Brussels earlier this week.

Speaking Wednesday at a Jewish conference on anti-Semitism organized by the European Jewish Union (EJU,) Howard Gutman told participants he was apologizing in advance if his words are not to their liking. He then proceeded to make controversial statements about his views on Muslim anti-Semitism, Yedioth Ahronoth reported Friday.

A distinction should be made between traditional anti-Semitism, which should be condemned and Muslim hatred for Jews, which stems from the ongoing conflict between Israel and the Palestinians, Gutman said. He also argued that an Israeli-Palestinian peace treaty will significantly diminish Muslim anti-Semitism.

The American envoy, a lawyer by training, is Jewish and played a major role in fundraising for the Democratic Party. He was appointed to the post by President Barack Obama.

‘The so-called Israel critic’

The conference was attended by Jewish lawyers from across Europe. The legal experts at the event were visibly stunned by Gutman’s words, and the next speaker offered a scathing rebuttal to the envoy’s remarks.

“The modern Anti-Semite formally condemns Anti-Semitism and the Holocaust and expresses upmost sympathy with the Jewish people. He simply has created a new species, the “Anti-Zionist” or – even more sophisticated – the so-called ‘Israel critic,’” Germany attorney Nathan Gelbart said.

“The ‘Israel critic’ will never state ‘Jews go home’ but is questioning the legality of the incorporation of the State of Israel and therefore the right for the Jewish people to settle in their homeland. He will not say the Jews are the evil of the world but claim that the State of Israel is a major cause for instability and war in the region,” he said. “There is no other country, no other people on this planet the ‘Israel critic’ would dedicate so much time and devotion as to the case of Israel.”

“For no other country he would criticize or ask to boycott its goods or academics. And this for one simple reason: Because Israel is the state of the Jewish people, not more and not less,” Gelbart said.

‘Muslims appreciate Obama’

Conference attendants received Gelbart’s remarks with loud applause, while the American envoy apologized for having to leave the site as result of prior obligations and departed.

Earlier, Gutman also presented participants with a short video clip showing him received with warm applause at a Muslim school in Brussels. While he did not mention what prompted the warm reception, his message was that this is the kind of welcome given to a Jew who supports President Obama’s policy of openness to Islam.

Approached by Yedioth Ahronoth, the US envoy was asked whether Obama’s policy did not cause America to lose its influence in the region. Gutman responded by saying that the Arab world appreciates Obama following his speech in Cairo, referring to an address delivered by the president in 2009.

A report compiled by the American Enterprise Institute for Public Policy Research (AEI) suggests that ” there is a real chance that Western efforts to stop Iran from acquiring a nuclear weapon will fail,” Ynet learned Tuesday.

Should that be the case, the report says that the United States would have to “lead an international effort to contain Iran and deter the Islamic Republic from using its nuclear weapons capability.”

The AEI, a conservative Washington think-tank, is set to release its report, titled “Containing and Deterring a Nuclear Iran,” later on Tuesday.

The report was six months in the making and according to its authors, any serious US policy on Iran must operate under the premise that the Islamic Republic will become a full fledged nuclear power by 2013.

“The report is very much an acknowledgement of the very real possibility of failure of the strategy to prevent Iran from obtaining a nuclear weapon, and any responsible party should recognize that failure is an option,” AEI Vice President Danielle Pletka was quoted by Foreign Policy Magazine as saying.

“There’s been a huge disservice done by all who have spent their lives in denial of that possibility. Whenever you devise a strategy for what happens before a country gets a nuclear weapon, you should have a strategy for what happens after they get one as well.”

The project brought together AEI experts on Iran and US foreign policy. The panel attempted to determine “what would be needed to create the maximum level of confidence that, if Iran does develop a nuclear weapon, it would not decide to use it,” the authors said.

“While there can never be certain deterrence, Cold War presidents often had confidence that the United States had sufficient military power to support a policy of containment through a strategy of deterrence; for most of the period they felt that deterrence was assured,” the report states.

“It is worth repeating Dean Acheson’s basic formulation: ‘American power would be employed in stopping (Soviet aggression and expansion), and if necessary, would inflict on the Soviet Union injury which the Moscow regime would not wish to suffer.’ Assured deterrence began with assured destruction of the Soviet regime.”

“Take out Soviet and Moscow from Acheson’s quote, and sub in Iran and Tehran. Are we willing to inflict on Iran injury which the Tehran regime would not wish to suffer? I doubt it,” Pletka warned. “There’s no question that a country can be deterred from using a nuclear weapon, the only question is if there is the will to put those tools in place.”

‘Prevention is better than strike’

The report presumes that Iran could realize its nuclear ambitions before the 2012 US presidential election, and that the Obama Administration is “unwilling to go to war with Iran before November 2012 over the issue.”

“even a limited strike by Israel would not achieve a full destruction of Iran’s nuclear capabilities,” AEI experts believe.

“Strategically, Iran’s leaders would be foolish to wait until after November 2012 to acquire the capability to permanently deter an American attack on their nuclear program,” the report states.

“Sound American strategy thus requires assuming that Iran will have a weaponized nuclear capability when the next president takes office in January 2013. The Iranians may not test a device before then, depending, perhaps, on the rhetoric of the current president and his possible successor, but we must assume that they will have at least one.”

“Make no mistake – it would be vastly preferable for the United States and the world to find a way to prevent Iran from crossing that threshold, and we wholeheartedly endorse ongoing efforts that might do so,” the authors write. “But some of the effort now focused on how to tighten the sanctions screws must shift to the problem of how to deal with the consequences when sanctions fail.”

“Iran remains the leading sponsor of international terrorism, a proliferator of missiles and nuclear materials, a regional aggressor, and an abuser of human rights. We cannot afford to risk the security of future generations on a policy of containment,” the report concluded.

“Deterrence and containment are the default mode for the people who are not up for going to war, but we wanted to point out that this was not a cheap or easy alternative, which is the way a lot of people make it sound,” AEI experts Tom Donnelly said.

Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood Ideology

PMW translation of
“Jihad Is the Way” by former leader of
Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt

Central messages:

1- Muslims are “masters of the world”
2- Islamic nation’s “rightful position… the teachers of humanity”
3- “There is no other option but Jihad for Allah
4- Fighting Israel is “Jihad against the criminal, thieving gangs of Zion”
5- Has the [Muslim] Brotherhood grown weary of the challenges, thrown down their guns and abandoned Jihad?!! No!”

The Muslim Brotherhood took first place in Egypt’s first round of elections last week with 40% of the vote and the Salafist Islamists received 20%. In order to understand the implications, Palestinian Media Watch is redistributing our translation of the book Jihad Is the Way, written by Mustafa Mashhur, who was the official leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt 1996-2002. The book is the fifth volume of his work called The Laws of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity).

In the book Jihad Is the Way the fundamental concepts of the Muslim Brotherhood ideology are explained, including, the Muslim Brotherhood’s goal of establishing an Islamic state, world domination under Islam, the public and personal religious duty of military Jihad, and the necessity of timing the ultimate Jihad properly. The book warns Muslims not to rush to Jihad until Jihad is prepared and timed fully for maximum benefit. The current period is seen by the Muslim Brotherhood as one of obligatory preparation for that coming Jihad. Click to view full translation in PDF

PMW has selected the following quotes from Jihad is the way to illustrate central ideas of Muslim Brotherhood ideology. PMW’s translation of the book follows below.

Muslim Brotherhood goal: Islamic world domination

– “…the Islamic Ummah [nation]… can regain its power and be liberated and assume its rightful position which was intended by Allah, as the most exalted nation among men, as the teachers of humanity…”
– “…know your status, and believe firmly that you are the masters of the world, even if your enemies desire your degradation…”
– “It should be known that Jihad and preparation towards Jihad are not only for the purpose of fending-off assaults and attacks of Allah’s enemies from Muslims, but are also for the purpose of realizing the great task of establishing an Islamic state and strengthening the religion and spreading it around the world…”
– “…Jihad for Allah is not limited to the specific region of the Islamic countries, since the Muslim homeland is one and is not divided, and the banner of Jihad has already been raised in some of its parts, and it shall continue to be raised, with the help of Allah, until every inch of the land of Islam will be liberated, the State of Islam will be established,…”

Means: Jihad – a mandatory religious duty

-“Then comes the power of arms and weapons,… and this is the role of Jihad.”
– “Jihad is a religious public duty… incumbent upon the Islamic nation, and is a personal duty to fend off the infidels’ attack on the nation…”
– “And the youth should know that the problems of the Islamic world, such as Palestine, Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, or the Philippines, are not issues of territories and nations, but of faith and religion. They are problems of Islam and the Muslims, and they can be resolved neither by negotiation nor by recognizing the enemy’s right to the Islamic land he stole. Rather, the only option is Jihad for Allah, and this is why Jihad is the way.”
– “The symbol of the [Muslim] Brotherhood is the book of Allah [the Quran] between two swords. The swords symbolize Jihad and the force that protects the truth represented in Allah’s book.”
– “…that is, go out to battle, oh believers, young and old, by foot or with animal, under all circumstances and conditions…”

Timing: Don’t rush, prepare carefully for Jihad

– “… despite this, the [Muslim] Brotherhood is not rushed by youth’s enthusiasm into immature and unplanned action which will not alter the bad reality and may even harm the Islamic activity, and will benefit the people of falsehood…”
– “… one should know that it is not necessary that the Muslims will repel every attack or damage caused by the enemies of Allah immediately, but [only] when ability and the circumstances are fit to it.”
– “Prepare yourself and train in the art of warfare, and embrace the causes of power. You must learn the ways and manners and laws of war. You must learn them and embrace them and adhere to them, so that your Jihad will be the one accepted by Allah.”
– “… there exists an unavoidable personal duty for every Muslim to equip himself and prepare and gear-up towards Jihad…”

Personal goal: Aspire to Shahada – Death for Allah

– “Allah is our goal, the Prophet is our leader, the Quran is our constitution, the Jihad is our way, and the death for Allah is our most exalted wish.”
– “The Jihad is our way and death for Allah is our most exalted wish, this is the call which we have always called, … Many of our beloved ones have already achieved this wish, … We ask Allah to accept all of them,… and may He join us with them, …”

Jihad against Israel:

– “Honorable brothers have achieved Shahada (Martyrdom) on the soil of beloved Palestine, during the years 47′ and 48′, [while] in their Jihad against the criminal, thieving, gangs of Zion. The Imam and Shahid (Martyr) Hassan Al-Banna is considered as a Shahid (Martyr) of Palestine, even if he was not killed on its soil.”

The Laws of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) (Part 5)

Jihad is the Way

by
Mustafa Mashhur*
[*Mustafa Mashhur was the fifth Supreme Guide, the official leader,
of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt from 1996 until his death in 2002.]

Publishing House: “Dar al-Tawziah wal-Nashr al-Islamia”
[Islamic Publishing and Distribution House], 1995

Publishing House’s Address: Al Sayeda Zainab Square 8 [Cairo, Egypt]

Translated by Palestinian Media Watch
pmw@palwatch.org

PMW translation policy:
PMW has included all the main texts, ideologies, policies, views, and explanations expressed in this book, while leaving out numerous repetitions as well as some of the many Quran sources cited to support the ideology. Passages left out are indicated by three dots.

Islamic terms referring to seeking and obtaining Martyrdom death are translated as follows:
Shahada = “Martyrdom for Allah”, appears as: Shahada (Martyrdom)
Shahid = “Martyr for Allah”, appears as: Shahid (Martyr)
Istish’had = “Seeking Martyrdom for Allah”, appears as: Istish’had (Martyrdom-Seeking)
or alternatively:
Istish’had = “Achieved Martyrdom for Allah”, appears as: Istish’had (achieved Martyrdom)

Quran translations are based on USC-MSA-Compendium of Muslim Texts https://www.usc.edu/dept/MSA/quran/

PMW TRANSLATION:

The Laws of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) (Part) 5

Jihad is the Way

By
Mustafa Mashhur

Introduction
Jihad is the way. We need to be fully aware of this and to act and follow in its way. The faltering of faith has led the Muslims to their current state: one of laxity, disintegration, the dominion of Allah’s enemies over the Muslim’s resources, and the succumbing of some of them to abandoning their faith. The revival of the faith is the starting point for the revival and revitalization of the Islamic Ummah [nation], so that it can regain its power and be liberated and assume its rightful position which was intended by Allah, as the most exalted nation among men, as the teachers of humanity, and through this religion of truth they will deliver humanity from darkness unto light.

Together with the power of faith, there is no escaping from the power of unity among the Muslims to unify efforts. Then comes the power of arms and weapons, when nothing else will suffice, and this is the role of Jihad. The Imam (Muslim religious leader) and Shahid (Martyr), Hassan al-Banna (founder of the Muslim Brotherhood) learned of the need for these three forces, from the biography of the Prophet [Muhammad], may Allah bless him and give him peace…

Many questions arise regarding the Muslim Brotherhood’s stance as to Jihad… There is one who asks: Is the meaning of Jihad to force non-Muslims to become Muslim under force of arms? While another says: Do you want to fight Allah’s enemies in the East and West while they are immensely powerful and you are weak…? … And some say do you want, through the Jihad, to send Muslim youth to their death and to hand them over as easy prey to the enemies of Islam? At the same time we hear those among the enthusiastic youth who say: Has the [Muslim] Brotherhood grown weary after the challenges, thrown down its weapons and abandoned Jihad? Yet another says: Do you wish, with this passivity, to weaken the youth’s vigor and kill the spirit of Jihad in them?

Another asks: How long will you content yourselves with Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) and education without Jihad, while the enemies of Allah lie in wait and attack you from time to time, and you confront their attacks with submissiveness and without resistance?

These are all questions which are brought up regarding the [Muslim] Brotherhood and their position on Jihad… We feel it necessary to make these matters clear to all of us so that there will be a unified understanding and the efforts shall be unified with Allah’s help.

Mustafa Mashhur
…Our Islamic religion is not a religion of priests and monks, who worship their Lord individually without taking interest in others… but rather it is a complete religion which organizes peoples’ lives in this world as well as in the next life: It organizes the economic, social and political matters of Muslims and still – [is] a religion of faith, law and ritual, which addresses every minor and major issue related to man…
It is, additionally, a religion of one nation, one society, one Qibla (prayer direction, i.e., Mecca) and one book. It transforms the Muslims into one body in their mutual relations, if one of its limbs suffers; the whole body comes to its protection…

The religion [of Islam] requires its believers to perform its laws and the rules of the Quran and the prophetic traditions, and to deliver this religion of truth to all of humanity…

Is it possible for such a religion to exist and for its believers to fulfill all of its requirements without the adherents of other beliefs persecuting it with attacks on the religion and its followers, and without their attempting to prevent the believers from performing this religion and establishing it? Should the believers of this religion cease to perform it… simply because the enemies of Allah attack them? And if they [Muslims] endure patiently, does this mean that this patience has no end? Do they not have a right to repel the aggression and to remove the hurdles from their path?

From this it is evident that Jihad is an inevitable necessity, and that’s why it was made a religious duty in Islam, [a duty] which exists till the day of Resurrection. It is also the reason why [Islam] has excited the interest in [Jihad] and hastened towards it, and made it the highest pinnacle of Islam; Without it, the religion has no revival and the people of falsehood take over, and the religion of Allah becomes invalid and life is corrupted and goes astray from the path that Allah wanted. Is this appropriate for the religion of Allah, Exalted and Almighty?

In this book, we will clarify several issues pertaining to [the place of] Jihad in Islam…
Islam has dedicated much attention to the issue of Jihad and militancy and recruiting the nation and gathering it all in one line in order to defend the truth with all its might; it [Islam] has rendered Jihad a religious duty for every Muslim, which no [Muslim] can escape, and has aroused the will towards [performing] Jihad to the greatest degree; It has greatly increased the rewards for the Mujahidun (Jihad warriors) and the Shahids (Martyrs), and has threatened the procrastinators and those who avoid Jihad with the most terrible punishments…

[Translator’s note: What follows are quotes from Hassan al-Banna on Jihad, fighting and Istish’had [Martyrdom-Seeking or achieved Martyrdom]

… The Imam and Shahid (Martyr) [Hassan al-Banna] writes in his Treatise on Jihad: “All of the sages, the earlier and the later ones… agree that Jihad is a religious public duty to spread Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) incumbent upon the Islamic nation, and is a personal duty to fend off the infidels’ attack on the nation… The Muslims today, as you know, are humiliated by others, dominated by infidels, their land is overrun and their holy places are desecrated… Therefore there exists an unavoidable personal duty for every Muslim to equip himself and prepare and gear-up towards Jihad until the opportunity arises and Allah will determine His word.”

The Shahid (Martyr) Imam (Hassan al-Banna) said in another place of his Jihad Treatise about the tradition [attributed to Muhammad]: “We have returned from the smaller Jihad to the greater Jihad. They said: “And what is the greater Jihad? He said: the Jihad of the heart or the Jihad of the soul.” He said: “This tradition is not authentic Hadith (tradition) and some say that it was said by Ibrahim b. ‘Abla…

Allah has imposed the duty of Jihad on the Muslims, not as a tool for aggression or for achieving personal aspirations, but in order to defend the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity), and to ensure the peace and as fulfillment of the Muslims’ greatest mission, to guide people to truth and justice…

On mercifulness during Jihad, according to Hassan al-Banna: Allah has instructed the Muslims to be utmost merciful, when they fight they do not attack, and do not blow up (anything), and do not mutilate (dead) bodies, and do not steal, and do not plunder property, and do not desecrate (sanctity), and do not come to harm, because in their war they are the best warriors, just as they in their peace are the best peace-lovers. In addition to this it is forbidden to kill women, children and elderly, finish off wounded, provoke monks and isolated people and peaceful non-combatants.
Where is that compassion in the suffocating attacks of the civilized and the horrible atrocities and where does their International law stand in relation to this all-encompassing divine justice? Then he [Hassan al-Banna] turns to Allah and says: Allah, instruct Muslims in their religion, and save this world from this darkness through the lights of Islam.

The Muslim Brotherhood’s stance regarding Jihad
Jihad for Allah’s sake has been forcing itself upon the Islamic region in recent years, and has become tangibly noticeable in parts of the Islamic world. In other parts of the Islamic world, there is a tide of preparation for Jihad and a sense that it is unavoidable, and is the only way to retaliate against the aggressiveness of Allah’s enemies, and to liberate Islamic land from its occupiers and invaders. It has become a widespread and convincing opinion, that the way of negotiation and peace-treaties with Allah’s enemies instead of Jihad is surrender in the name of peace.

Additionally, without Jihad and the preparation towards it, the obligation cast upon every Muslim to establish an Islamic state and the Islamic Caliphate and to consolidate this religion, will not be realized…

He [Hassan al-Banna] felt the grave danger overshadowing the Muslims and the urgent need and obligation which Islam places on every Muslim, man and woman, to act in order to restore the Islamic Caliphate and to reestablish the Islamic State on strong foundations… and to liberate the Muslims and defend them from any attack, and to spread the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) of Islam in the world and to establish this great religion, which Allah wanted for his servants.

This is how the Prophet educated the Muslims through the Quran… and united them like brothers and arranged them and rushed them towards Jihad and [self-] sacrifice, until they were worthy of Allah’s victory and support, and this is how the Arabian Peninsula was cleansed of idolatry and idols, and the Persian lands were conquered, and the Greeks [the Byzantines] subdued and the Jews [were] expelled and the shadows were dispersed and the light was spread…

He (Hassan al-Banna) knew the role of Jihad in leading the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) and the importance of preparing for it, because the truth needs a force to protect it. He noticed that the spirit of Jihad was almost absent from the Muslims of that time and the spirit of surrender prevailed.

The Jihad is Our Way – The Motto of the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity)
… “Allah is our goal, the Prophet is our leader, the Quran is our constitution, the Jihad is our way, and the death for Allah is our most exalted wish.”
The symbol of the [Muslim] Brotherhood is the book of Allah [the Quran] between two swords. The swords symbolize Jihad and the force that protects the truth represented in Allah’s book…

[I]n all his (Hassan al-Banna’s) writings and conversations, he always urged towards Jihad and aroused the desire for seeking Shahada (Martyrdom)… he did not content himself only with speech and writing, and when the opportunity arrived for Jihad in Palestine he hurried and seized it. The [Muslim] Brotherhood provided the most magnificent models [for Jihad and courage] and were it not for the [evil] scheming and the treachery on the part of the leaders of the Muslim countries of the time, the situation would have been different.

After Allah honored him with Shahada (Martyrdom) -and his murder was part of this scheme [of the Muslim leaders] – the [Muslim] Brotherhood continued on the path of Jihad against the British on the banks of the Suez canal in the early 1950’s, and also continued their Jihad against the Jews in other Islamic regions outside of Egypt, as Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) was made to disappear in the prisons during [President] Abdul Nasser’s rule. Today we witness the [Muslim] Brotherhood joining their brothers, the Mujahideen (Jihad warriors) in Afghanistan, and fighting against the infidel and repressive regime in Syria.

Has the [Muslim] Brotherhood grown weary of the challenges, thrown down their guns and abandoned Jihad?!! No! …

[D]espite this, the [Muslim] Brotherhood is not rushed by youth’s enthusiasm into immature and unplanned action which will not alter the bad reality and may even harm the Islamic activity, and will benefit the people of falsehood…

The [Muslim] Brotherhood knows that hastiness without proper preparedness may be like an aborted [action]. Likewise, they know that the negligence and hesitation after the right time [for Jihad] has come… might be a spiritual death…

When the [Muslim] Brotherhood sends their youth to Jihad in the appropriate time they do not thrust them towards destruction, rather the abstention of Jihad in its appropriate time is destruction. As well, one should know that it is not necessary that the Muslims will repel every attack or damage caused by the enemies of Allah immediately, but [only] when ability and the circumstances are fit to it.

In the early days of Islamic Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity), when the Muslims were a persecuted minority, the Prophet Muhammad did not instruct the Muslims to retaliate but rather instructed them of ‘Sabr‘, patience and steadfastness … and when the conditions were right, permission to fight was given in the words of Allah: [Quran, sura 22, 39]:
“Permission [to fight] is given to those upon whom war is made because they are oppressed, and most surely Allah is well able to assist them.”

Jihad is not only for Repelling an Assault but also for the Purpose of Establishing an Islamic State
It should be known that Jihad and preparation towards Jihad are not only for the purpose of fending-off assaults and attacks of Allah’s enemies from Muslims, but are also for the purpose of realizing the great task of establishing an Islamic state and strengthening the religion and spreading it around the world…

As for the incorrect saying that the aim of Jihad in Islam is to coerce the people into the religion under threat of the sword, we do not need to work hard to disprove it. Many have already written on the subject, and it should suffice that it contradicts Allah’s saying, Exalted is He: “There is no compulsion in religion; truly the right way has become clearly distinct from error.” [Sura 2, 256] Reality and history negate this false claim.

Following this clarification and answer for the ponderings regarding Jihad in general, and the Muslim Brotherhood specifically, it is only left for us to address our Muslim youth with several basic terms which need to accompany Jihad and the preparation for Jihad so that they will be worthy of this immense honor.

To the Muslim youth in the way of Jihad
Previously we clarified the nature of our Muslim religion, the status of Jihad and its position in Islam… It may be useful, when we turn to the Muslim youth, that we first introduce a few quotes from the Imam and Shahid (Martyr), Hassan Al-Banna, in his treatise to the youth…

He says: “First, we call upon you to believe in yourselves, so you will know your status, and believe firmly that you are the masters of the world, even if your enemies desire your degradation …”

After this preface, we turn to the Muslim youth around the world, with advice and focus on the path of Jihad. We say to the youth: Know that Jihad in the way of Allah will be -Allah knows – the most prominent characteristic of Islamic action, during the next phase of the Islamic Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity). …

The Muslim youth on the path of Jihad should know that the sphere of their Jihad for Allah is not limited to the specific region of the Islamic countries, since the Muslim homeland is one and is not divided, and the banner of Jihad has already been raised in some of its parts, and it shall continue to be raised, with the help of Allah, until every inch of the land of Islam will be liberated, the State of Islam will be established, and Allah’s Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) will reach all mankind.

And the youth should know that the problems of the Islamic world, such as Palestine, Afghanistan, Syria, Eritrea, or the Philippines, are not issues of territories and nations, but of faith and religion. They are problems of Islam and the Muslims, and they can be resolved neither by negotiation nor by recognizing the enemy’s right to the Islamic land he stole. Rather, the only option is Jihad for Allah, and this is why Jihad is the way…

Know that the sphere of Jihad is now far-reaching, and that the enemies of Allah are numerous, and that war has many faces [lit. colors]. Therefore the struggle between the truth and the falsehood requires effort and time. So prepare yourself for this, and be of those who are patient…
And fully trust your religion – It is the true religion accepted by Allah. Have trust in your way and in your Society (the Muslim Brotherhood), being on the path of truth. Trust yourself and your brothers, that you can – with Allah’s help – confirm the truth and abolish the falsehood even if take time.

Oh the Muslim Youth,
Feel your responsibility for each Muslim on the face of Allah’s earth… who is subject to oppression or control by Allah’s enemies. Feel their pain, and may this pain motivate you to action and to Jihad in order to save all of them. Feel also your responsibility to guide Mankind and take it out of the darkness of heresy and error, into the light of Islam. Feel all of this tremendous responsibility, and gather with your brothers under the flag of the serious Islamic activity. And go in the true path of Jihad, in order to support Allah’s religion and to strengthen the Islamic Ummah [nation], so that mankind will return to what is good for them.

My young Muslim Brother,
Hurry into the goodness and make the profitable bargain, so that you gain this commerce with Allah the great achievement, and the clear triumph, and gain the enduring blessing and [you] shall be saved from the grievous punishment, according to Allah’s words:

“O ye who believe! Shall I lead you to a bargain that will save you from a grievous Penalty?- That ye believe in Allah and His Messenger, and that ye strive (your utmost) in the Cause of Allah, with your property and your persons that will be best for you, if ye but knew! He will forgive you your sins, and admit you to Gardens beneath which Rivers flow, and to beautiful mansions in Gardens of Eternity: that is indeed the Supreme Achievement.” [Sura 61, 10-13]

[Translator’s note: Quran verses about the reward for the Muslims in the Afterlife, in order to encourage them to sacrifice their souls for the sake of Allah.]

My young Muslim Brother,
Prepare yourself and your household members to obtain the honor of Jihad for Allah, and equip your soul with everything that shall help it in that path, in order to continue the process until victory or the Shahada (Martyrdom)…

My young Islamic Brother, on the path of the Jihad,
Prepare yourself and train in the art of warfare, and embrace the causes of power. You must learn the ways and manners and laws of war. You must learn them and embrace them and adhere to them, so that your Jihad will be the one accepted by Allah. …

Oh Muslim Youth on the Path of Jihad,
The first, most important and most powerful weapon you must acquire for the Jihad against Allah’s enemies, is the weapon of faith. It is the provision that renews itself… and pushes its owner to turn to death without fear… The young Jihad believer scares Allah’s enemies more than a nuclear reactor, and in the balance of power is also heavier and stronger than a nuclear reactor. …

[Translator’s note: Quran verses promising the final triumph of the Muslims and threatening of whoever does not participate in Jihad that he will end in Hell.]

Know, my young Islamic Jihad [warrior] brother, Allah does not need us or our Jihad. It is we who need his reward and grace and to achieve this honor.

“And whoever strives hard, he strives only for his own soul; most surely Allah is Self-sufficient, above (needs of) the worlds.” [Sura 29, 6]

My young brother in the path of Jihad,
Do not fear the strength of Allah’s enemies, even if their numbers and equipment out-number yours. Since Allah is the patron of the believers, and strengthens and supports them with his forces:
“…for to Allah belong the forces of the heavens and the earth ” [Sura 48, 4]

[Translators’ note: Quran verses explaining that the triumph comes only from Allah.]

Put your hand in the hands of your brothers in the lines of the Jihad, and embrace them strongly in the tie of brotherhood for Allah, and you’ll be like a solid cemented structure, as in the words of Allah: …

[Translators’ note: text continues with examples from the Quran and allegories of comradeship and brotherhood between Muslims and Jihad warriors].

[Translators’ note: Quran verses describing the virtues of the good Muslim.]

My young Islamic Jihad brother,
Beware of the words and positions of the hypocrites in regard of the Jihad, and beware of the ones who refrain and procrastinate [from departing on the Jihad] …

Oh the young Jihad warrior
… We do not attack and do not wish to encounter the enemy but we will repel the aggression, asking the help of Allah…

[Translator’s note: The text continues with Quran verses exemplifying the above.]

Oh, the young Islamic Mujahidun [Jihad warriors], go forward in the lines of the fighters for Allah, filled with trust that you are about to meet one of the two great destinies: Victory or Shahada [Martyrdom]; Victory that believers around the world will rejoice in, or Shahada [Martyrdom] that will grant you the status of the Shuhada [Martyrs in Islam] and their rewards.

“…and whoever fights in the way of Allah, then be he slain or be he victorious, We shall grant him a mighty reward.” [Sura 4, 74]

Keep aware of the grave consequences for the Muslim and the grave threat of Allah to whoever turns away from the [Muslim’s] attack…
[Translator’s note: Proof text from Quran]

Beware of weakness or acceptance that the believers will be defeated in battle. Know that the defeat is in the heart and not the battlefield. …

Therefore we must continue the Jihad without weakness…
[Translator’s note: More proof texts from Quran]

[Translator’s note: More proof texts from Quran and repeated Jihad promotion and warning not to sin.]

Know, my young Islamic Jihad [warrior], that we are called to action, but we are not responsible for the results. Allah commanded us to fight Allah’s enemies and repel their hostility, and did not require us to achieve victory, since victory is from Him. Therefore Allah will not prevent us from the award of the Mujahidun [Jihad warriors], even when the outcome is not in favor of the believers.
Know, my Islamic brother on the ranks of the Mujahidun [Jihad warriors], that you are an important target and valuable prey for Allah’s enemies…

[Translator’s note: Instructions to be disciplined and precise, study the Quran and the sections regarding Jihad and even learn them by heart.]

My Islamic sister,
And you, the Islamic sister on the path of the Jihad, you have an important role in Jihad, which starts at home educating the [young] generations, and preparing them for the Jihad. The woman is the producer of the men, and Muslim women used to teach their sons by heart the stories of the military expeditions, as they would teach them the Quran… In addition, the Islamic sister who lives by the spirit of the Jihad, is a help to her husband and encourages him in the path of the Jihad, and she doesn’t turn him away or weaken him… Likewise, she properly manages his possessions and children, and takes care of them while he is away on the Jihad.

In the past the Muslim women had a role in battle: she would give water to the soldiers and bandage the wounded, and sometimes she would even participate with weapons, like Nasiba the daughter of Ka’ab, protecting Allah’s Messenger [Muhammad] in the battle of Uhud.

The Istish’had (seeking or achieving Shahada (Martyrdom) in the way of the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity)
The Jihad is our way and death for Allah is our most exalted wish, this is the call which we have always called, and our people have called it by the way of the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity), people of the Da’wa… Many of our beloved ones have already achieved this wish, and among them the founder of the Society [of Muslim Brotherhood], the Imam and Shahid (Martyr) Hassan Al-Banna. We ask Allah to accept all of them, and that He may widen His gardens [of Eden] for them, and may He join us with them, and that we won’t change [our determination] and won’t fall into trial, and may He provide us with the Shahada (Martyrdom) like them, Amen.

The procession of Shahids (Martyrs) in the way of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) has been continuing for a long time. Honorable brothers have achieved Shahada (Martyrdom) on the soil of beloved Palestine, during the years 47′ and 48′, [while] in their Jihad against the criminal, thieving, gangs of Zion. They [these Martyrs] the men of Da’wa gave outstanding examples of Jihad and Istish’had (Martyrdom-seeking) in the way of Allah. Still today memory of them horrifies the Jews and the name of the Muslim Brotherhood terrifies them…

Later was the plot which was planned by the enemies of Allah and carried out by their agents among the Arab leaders of that time, and in December 1948 the decision was announced in Egypt to dismantle the [Muslim] Brotherhood, and to arrest them [members], except the Imam [Hassan] Al-Banna, whose murder was planned… They sent Arab armies or their symbols into Palestine, in the name of saving it from the Jews, but actually [the goal was] to hand it over to the Jews…
The Imam and Shahid (Martyr) Hassan Al-Banna is considered as a Shahid (Martyr) of Palestine, even if he was not killed on its soil. …

Later the enemies of Allah [among the Arabs] forced on us another front of Shahada (Martyrdom), the one of tyranny … In the prisons of [Egyptian President] Abd al-Nasser and in the gallows. They [Muslim Brotherhood members] calmly accepted the Shahada, among them … Khaled Islambouli [assassinated the Egyptian president, Anwar al-Sadat, in Oct. 6, 1981] and his brothers. Allah’s mercy upon them all.
…Many of the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) men in occupied Palestine and in Lebanon also achieved Shahada, and they are facing it, in their Jihad against the Jews…

Some think that Shahada (Martyrdom) causes loss and damages the [Muslim Brotherhood] Society, since it has lost influential people in action and Jihad. This is wrong, since the fall of the Shahid (Martyr) for the sake of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity) is [seen as] provisions and fuel for the [next] generations, and as a symbol of self sacrifice in the way of the Da’wa…
…until realization of the goals which the [Muslim Brotherhood] Society was established for, that is, establishing the State of Islam, headed by the Islamic Caliphate, in order to establish Allah religion on Allah’s land…

Muslim youth should know that the battle between truth and falsehood is hard, long, and broad, and it reaches the entire Islamic Sphere. [They must] know that Jihad is the way, and sacrifice of lives and property is inevitable, the opportunity to achieve Jihad and Istish’had [achieved Martyrdom] – will grow during the coming decades…

Our youth should not give up hope of our [eventual] victory and establishing [Islam], due to the large number of enemies and the small number of believers. In the past, the believers with the Messenger of Allah were a minority… But Allah supported his Prophet and the believers, with His battalions…
[Translators’ note: the book now quotes two Quranic verses concerning the “Battalions of Allah”]

Indeed, oh youth, death for Allah is our most exalted wish. And how not, here are the verses of the precious Quran, and the sayings of the honorable Messenger they make us love and encourage us towards Istish’had (seeking Martyrdom for Allah) the way of Allah, by what they mention regarding the status of the Martyrs, and the honor that Allah grants them.

The foremost among the status of the Shuhada’ [Martyrs] is that they become alive with their Lord, they are provided sustenance from their Lord, and they rejoice the kindness which Allah gives them.

Allah says [In the Quran] …

“Think not of those who are slain in Allah’s way as dead. Nay, they live, finding their sustenance in the presence of their Lord.” [Sura 3, 169]

[Translator’s note: Additional Quran verses are quoted.]
[Translator’s note: Hadiths (traditions) are quoted in regard to Jihad and Martyrdom]

We shall move to [discuss] some of the sayings of Allah’s Prophet, may Allah’s blessing be upon him, regarding Jihad and Istish’had [Seeking Martyrdom for Allah]:

[Translator’s note: Some of the Prophet’s sayings regarding the issue are quoted, for example:]

“Abu Hurayra said: …the Messenger of Allah was asked: What is the value of Jihad for Allah? He said: You can not imagine it. He was asked again and again… then he said: the Jihad Fighter in the way of Allah is like one who’s fasting and standing up to pray at night] …”

[Also] It was told that the Prophet said: “Not one of those who enter paradise want to return to this world… but the Shahid (Martyr), who wishes to return to this world and be killed ten times, due to the honor which he sees”…

Oh my Brother to the path of Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity), oh you who chose the path of the honest believers who committed before Allah service and Jihad… and you called from the depths of your heart: [bold in original]: “The Jihad is our way and death for Allah is our most exalted wish”. Oh Brother, this is indeed an exalted wish …

There are matters which need to be taken into account, and to adhere to, among them:

First of all: That you make a profitable deal with Allah: “Surely Allah has bought of the believers their persons and their property for this, that they shall have the garden; they fight in Allah’s way, so they slay and are slain; a promise which is binding on Him in the Torah [Bible] and the Injeel [Gospels] and the Quran; and who is more faithful to his covenant than Allah? Rejoice therefore in the pledge which you have made; and that is the mighty achievement.” [Sura 9, 111] …

Second: In order for the deal to be carried out and for the sale to be accepted, you must impose on yourself the attributes of the believers…

Third: …Your intention in Jihad and in seeking Istish’had (seeking Martyrdom for Allah) Your intention shall be raising the word of Allah on Allah’s land…

Fourth: You will ask Shahada (Martyrdom) from Allah truthfully, not only in talk but also in your heart, and with honest decisiveness, and by waiting for opportunities. This way you will reach the status of Shahids (Martyrs) and their reward, with Allah’s will, even if you die in your bed, as said in the Hadith of the Prophet …” He who sincerely asks for the Shahada (Martyrdom) from Allah, Allah brings him to the status of the Shahids (Martyrs), even if he died in his bed”…

At the same time, there is a warning to those who do not go on a raid or do not hope for it… The Messenger of Allah said: “He who died without leaving on a raid, and without making up his mind to leave on a raid, died as a hypocrite.”

Sixth: You should be prepared to answer the call of Jihad whenever you are called, in any region of the Islamic world. Our Islam is universal not regional, and all Islamic countries are one homeland. You must overcome the earth’s attractions … which makes man vulnerable to the danger of Allah’s punishment, as in the verse:

“O you who believe! What (excuse) have you that when it is said to you: Go forth in Allah’s way, you should incline heavily to earth; are you contented with this world’s life instead of the hereafter? But the provision of this world’s life compared with the hereafter is but little. If you don’t go [out to war], he will punish you ruthlessly, and will switch you with other people…” [Sura 9, 38]

…that is, go out to battle, oh believers, young and old, by foot or with animal, under all circumstances and conditions…

Seventh: As long as you are a soldier in the ranks [of the warriors], you must respect every request regarding the Jihad, and what was determined for you, both in time and place. Do not carry out personal actions… since there are negative consequences to personal disobedient actions. Many times, the enthusiasm pushes some of the young [soldiers] to personal hasty actions, which harm the overall [Jihad] process…

The reason for this narrow and limited perspective is that some of the young [fighters] think that this bitter struggle between truth and falsehood, can come to an end by killing a couple of people and blowing up bombs and actions of that sort, without grasping the [long term] results…
It was not hard for one of the Muslims, during the period of Mecca, to kill Abu Jahal or Abu Lahab [Muhammad’s enemies], or to shatter the idols around the Ka’ba, when they were being worshiped instead of Allah, in order to remove the evil. None of Muslims actually did any of this, due to the great harm that would befall the Da’wa (Islamic missionary activity), and would expose it to the danger of destruction, while it was still like a young plant…

Eighth: My Brother, study Islam’s laws of combat so that you will become bound by them, so that your Jihad will be sound, healthy, and flawless, because when the Muslims fight they do not attack, and do not blow up [anything], and do not mutilate [dead] bodies, and do not steal, and do not plunder property, and do not desecrate [sanctity], and do not come to harm, because in their war they are the best warriors, just as they in their peace are the best peace-lovers.
By Barida, may God be pleased with him: “Messenger of Allah, God bless him and grant him salvation, who used to say when he was commanding an army commander … ‘Raid but don’t exaggerate and do not act with treacherousness, and do not molest (dead) bodies, and do not kill newborns.’ reported Muslim [Hadith]…
Therefore, it is forbidden to kill women and elderly, finish off wounded, provoke monks and isolated people, and peaceful non-combatants… From the Jihad Treatise by the Imam al-Banna.

Ninth: [One must learn and perfect the skills of fighting…] However, achieving victory should not be attributed to preparation and skills but to the help of Allah and to the support he gives to his servants, the believers.

Tenth: My Brother, nurture your home and your family with an Islamic consciousness, and prepare them for the atmosphere of Jihad and Shahada (Martyrdom) – Seeking, then they will not weaken you, but will support and encourage [you] to Jihad, and they will receive the news that you have fallen as a Shahid (Martyr) – Allah willing – with joy…

Eleventh: The Imam the Shahid (Martyr), [Hassan al-Banna] … said:
“Oh [Muslim] brothers, the nation that excels in the death industry, and knows how to die a noble [death], Allah grants it a precious life in this world and eternal bliss in the Afterlife. The only weakness that shall humiliate us is the love of this world and hating death. Therefore we have prepared your souls for great action, strive for death – and life will be given to you. Know that there is no escaping death, and it will happen only once, and if you carry it out (death) for the sake of Allah, there will be profit in this world and reward in the Afterlife, and nothing will harm you except what Allah has decreed [for] you… Work for an honorable death, you will be thus granted full happiness. May Allah provide us and you, the honor of achieving the Shahada (Martyrdom) for Him.”

Indeed, Allah has already answered his [Hassan al-Banna’s] prayer and provided him with the Shahada (Martyrdom). We ask Allah to also provide us with it, for He is near and answers [prayers].

On November 29, 1947 the UN General Assembly voted on the partition plan, and  UNGA Resolution 181 was adopted by a vote of 33 to 13.

In February 1947, Great Britain, which had controlled the mandatory territory since 1917, decided to turn the issue of the Palestinian Mandate over to the United Nations. The UN established a Special Commission on Palestine (UNSCOP), which recommended the establishment of two states – Arab and Jewish – in the area and Jerusalem as an international enclave.

The Jewish population – while dissatisfied with the small size of the territory allotted to their state in contradiction to the promises made by the League of Nations in 1922, as well as the plan to sever Jerusalem from the state by internationalizing it – accepted the compromise. In sharp contrast, the Arab states and the Arab residents of the Mandatory territory rejected UNSCOP’s recommendations out of hand.

The UN General Assembly held a vote on the partition plan and on 29 November 1947 UNGA Resolution 181 was adopted by 33 to 13, with 10 abstentions.

The Post-Resolution 181 Era

The Arab rejection of the partition plan was not confined to a political act. The Arabs of the Mandate territory launched a large-scale terrorist campaign against their Jewish neighbors. This was followed by the invasion of Israel by five Arab armies who wanted to destroy Israel when it proclaimed its independence on 14 May 1948. The Jewish population defended itself against the Arabs’ declared plans to “throw the Jews into the sea” but at a heavy cost of 1% of their total population and great damage to the new state.

The Arab population of the Mandate territory also suffered as a result of their refusal to accept the partition plan. Many headed their leaders’ calls to flee, others left after being caught up in the fighting. The large numbers who stayed in Israel became full citizens, with equal rights. Nevertheless, the Palestinian refugee problem had been created. It was to be kept alive artificially by the Arab and Palestinian leadership till the present day, while the comparable Jewish refugee problem was resolved by the nascent state of Israel.

At war’s end, Egypt had control of the Gaza Strip and Jordan annexed the West Bank. Neither saw fit to establish a Palestinian state in the territory they were to control for 19 years.

While UNGA Resolution 181 expressed the will of the international community for the establishment of a Jewish state, Israel still had to meet all the requirements of UN membership to be accepted into the organization. After Security Council approval, Israel took its seat as the 59th member of the United Nations on 11 May 1949.

The Relevance of Resolution 181

The General Assembly resolution had three primary elements that retain their relevance till today:

• Resolution 181 constituted recognition by the international community that the Jewish people deserve their own state, a Jewish state, in their historical homeland.

• The resolution called for the establishment of two states for two peoples – Jewish and Arab – between the Mediterranean and the Jordan River, each fulfilling the national aspirations of its respective populations. That formula remains Israel’s position with regards to peace negotiations. However, the Arabs of the British mandate territory refused to accept a state because it meant compromising. Today the Palestinians continue to refuse to compromise to achieve a state. Then as now, a Palestinian state will not be established without the willingness to compromise and negotiate.

• The refusal by the Arab population of the mandate territory to accept resolution 181 demonstrated that they were not interested in establishing their own state if it meant allowing the existence of a Jewish state. This opposition to acknowledging the right of a Jewish state to exist in the Middle East lies at the core of the conflict. Even today, the Palestinian leadership rejects calls to recognize Israel as the Jewish state, a refusal that will prevent any resolution to the conflict.

If the Palestinians had chosen the path of compromise in 1947, the suffering on both sides could have been prevented. It is not too late to return to direct negotiations, which can bring about a better future for the two peoples.

Modern reconstruction of the event

For the first time in Israel’s history, the day on which the UN General Assembly passed the resolution in favor of the establishment of the Jewish state will be reconstructed. Initiated by the World Zionist Organization, the reconstruction event will take place on November 29, 2011 in the plaza of the National Institutions Building – which was then the Knesset. It’s expected that thousands will take part in the mass celebrations, dancing and rejoicing to the sound of the recording of the UN resolution exactly as it happened 64 years ago.

Historical figures, including former prime ministers David Ben Gurion and Golda Meir, who were part of the original celebrations, will be played by actors and they will greet those gathered from the historic balcony, with actors portraying the then chief rabbis of Israel at their sides.

Two Citroen limousines, which carried the celebrities, as well as a British army jeep from this period were found and will be at the plaza.  A news boy will distribute newspapers, printed especially for this occasion, in the spirit of those times. In addition, street musicians and dance troupes will be present in the crowd and will lead hora dancing circles and folk dancing. Other celebrities from those days will also be circulating with photographers, who will take pictures of the crowd with authentic cameras.

If names and weight mean anything, Germany is in trouble. A Muslim gave birth in Berlin to a 13-pound (six kilogram) baby and named him Jihad.

The birth set a record in Germany for the fattest baby every born there. The proud mother, to whom many are not in a hurry to wish a mazal tov, is 40 years old and weighs 528 pounds (240 kilogram). Her name is Taghi and she described her self as a devout Muslim

The Arabic word “jihad” means “struggle” and usually is used in the context of a “holy war: against Israel in specific and the West in general.

For those fearing that the baby will be true to his name, there is a high possibility that he will not grow up to be healthy fighter. “Such a large baby is not a healthy baby,” said Dr. Joel Zonszein, professor of clinical medicine at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, quoted by ABC News.

She refused to listen to doctors’ advice to deliver the baby through a Caesarean operation, due to the bay’s weight and her gestational diabetes. The natural birth took seven hours.

“The mother was irresponsible but lucky in the way she handled her pregnancy and the delivery. A mother who has 14 children should know better,” he added.

“Jihad” will not be alone in the family, which includes nine brothers and four sisters as the Muslim population continues to threaten to become a majority in several European countries. The largest Muslim population in a European country is in Germany, with approximately 3.5 million Muslims.

A Muslim Brotherhood rally in Cairo on Friday at the Sunni world’s most prestigious center of learning turned into a call for genocide, with protesters pledging to “one day kill all Jews.”

Eldad Beck, Ynet’s Arab affairs correspondent, reported from Cairo that some 5,000 people attended the rally at al-Azhar Mosque, convened to coincide with the anniversary of the approval of the 1947 UN Partition Plan for Palestine.

The event, organizers said, was aimed at rallying Egyptians behind the “battle against Jerusalem’s Judaization.”

Speakers at the demonstration condemned “Zionist occupiers” and “treacherous Jews,” and organizers distributed maps of the Old City highlighting areas where “Zionists are aiming to change Jerusalem’s Muslim character.”

Muhammad Ahmed el- Tayeb, the imam of al-Azhar Mosque, told the crowd: “Al- Aksa Mosque is currently under an offensive by the Jews… We shall not allow the Zionists to Judaize al-Quds [Jerusalem]. We are telling Israel and Europe that we shall not allow even one stone to be moved there.”

Protesters chanted, “Tel Aviv, Tel Aviv: Judgment Day has come,” and passages from the Koran vowing that “one day we shall kill all the Jews.”

Al-Azhar Mosque is part of al-Azhar University, a millennium- old compound in central Cairo that is the world’s leading center of Arabic literature and Sunni jurisprudence.

Beck quoted an elementary school teacher outside the mosque telling him, “All Egyptian Muslims are willing to embark on jihad for the sake of Palestine.”

“Why is the US losing in Afghanistan?” he asked.

“Because the other side is willing and wants to die. We have a different mentality than that of the Americans and Jews.”

Meanwhile, late last week, Egypt’s Youm7 newsweekly reported that the Brotherhood’s spiritual leader, Yusuf al-Qaradawi, had returned to Cairo for the first time since his dramatic return in February from a half-century in exile.

The immensely popular television preacher arrived at Cairo Airport on Wednesday “to follow the incidents in Tahrir Square,” the center of anti-government protests.

Qaradawi hosts the weekly program Shari’a and Life on Al Jazeera. Exiled from Egypt in 1961, he has since resided in the Persian Gulf emirate of Qatar.

Following February’s ouster of President Hosni Mubarak, Qaradawi made a triumphant return to Tahrir, where he led at least 200,000 Egyptians in mass prayer.

The 85-year-old is hailed by supporters as an engaging and telegenic preacher, and vilified by critics for his often venomous attacks on Americans, Shi’ites and Jews.

Qaradawi has been described as the spiritual leader of Hamas, and has justified suicide bombings against Israeli civilians and against US soldiers serving in Iraq.

Marc Ginsberg – the former US ambassador to Morocco and a top Middle East adviser during Jimmy Carter’s presidency – wrote an op-ed last week highlighting what he sees as an “unholy alliance” between the Muslim Brotherhood and Egypt’s ruling military council.

“The Supreme Council of Armed Forces (SCAF) met secretly with representatives of the Muslim Brotherhood and other Islamist-oriented political movements last April to establish local political ‘action committee’ bank accounts,” he wrote on the Huffington Post website, citing a “reliable European military intelligence source.”

The payouts in question could amount to millions of dollars, Ginsberg wrote.

“The SCAF’s surreptitious political maneuvering favoring Islamists over more secular political movements is based on one simple equation,” he wrote. “The military is determined to prevent secularists from gaining a parliamentary majority which would likely impair its insatiable appetite for controlling Egypt’s national budget and its own extensive business operations.

“It is determined to prevent a civilian government from interfering with its cherished prerogatives.”

Some Americans are getting ready for a total social collapse by stocking up with survival gear in case of “Occupy the United States” or some other scenario that brings about the total collapse of American society.

The CBS outlet in St. Louis, Missouri reports that sales for survival food and other items at Uncle Sam’s Safari Outfitters’ three area stores are soaring.

“We had to order fifty cases of the meals ready to eat to keep up with the demand in the past three months,” said manager Steve Dorsey at in Webster Groves area. “That’s not normal.  Usually we sell 20 to 30 cases in a whole year,” he told WMOX.

The Arab Spring uprisings, Occupy Wall Street and some apocalyptic forecasts for the American economy have driven people to prepare for the worst.

“I’ve had people in here that are very wealthy, and they’ve spent thousands of dollars just on backpacks that they fill with survival gear, one for each person of their family,” Dorsey told the television station. “And something where they can just grab a bag and get out [of town].”

He says some customers tell him they are stocking up food, while others say they have stashed away supplies in a distant location in case everything comes apart at the seams.

Many people have formed survival groups of 20-30 people who are “going in on this together and they’re all going to go to this one spot if something like this happens,” he added.

How about guns?  The local chain of Uncle Sam’s Outfitters does not stock them, but customers want to know where they can get there hands on one.

“I think people are scared. They don’t know where this country is going,” according to Dorsey. “They think we’re on a downward spiral with just dramatic, crazy spending.  People just don’t know what’s going to happen.”