Graphic By: Julie Brennan

The external Jihad is conditioned by the internal Jihad. One fighting in military combat must have cleansed his soul from evil such that he is sincerely fighting in God's command and not with a corrupted intention and soul. The external Jihad is divided into two parts: the defensive Jihad and the offensive Jihad. Both the defensive and offensive Jihad have rules and regulations which must be in place before performing.

The great classical scholar Ibn Tuffah said there are only two types of wars in Islam: just wars and unjust wars. A just war is a war which destroys the barriers to that which is beneficial and good, and an unjust war is that which acts as a barrier to that which is beneficial and good. The only time when a Muslim fights in warfare is to promote the good and eliminate the barriers which restrain the good.

The defensive Jihad is obligatory without disagreement of all Islamic scholars. When the Muslims are attacked with weapons of war by an enemy, it becomes obligatory for all in the area to resist and to fight in battle to defend themselves. If the Muslims in such an area cannot defend themselves, it becomes obligatory upon their neighbors to help them in repelling the aggressor.

The offensive Jihad is conditioned by the existence of an Islamic Caliphate. Without a Caliph, offensive Jihad is invalid and unlawful. Ibn Rushd al-Kabir stated that offensive fighting is only obligatory to the degree of keeping the borders of a Muslim state safe from hostility. Once the borders of the Muslim state become safe from hostility Jihad ceases from becoming obligatory.

Ibn Rushd al-Kabir said this in al-Muqaddimah:

"So, whenever we are placed beyond the reach of the enemy and the outlying districts of the Muslim lands are secured and the gaps in their fortifications are filled, the obligation to wage (military) jihad falls from all the rest of the Muslims."

The legal definition of military Jihad is as defined by the greatest and most important texts of Islamic jurisprudence, such as Ibn Abi Zayd al-Qayrawani in his Risalah, Ibn Rushd al-Kabir in his al-Muqaddimah, and Ibn Rushd al-Saghir in Bidiyat al-Mujtahid. That definition is, "When a Muslim fights against a non-Muslim who is without a treaty ('ahd), with the aim of making the word of God uppermost," hence a prerequisite to going into the enemy non-Muslim territory and fighting is that the non-Muslim territory currently is under no state of peace with the non-Muslim state! Permanent and temporary peace treaties are allowed in Islam, as is apparent through the very definition of military jihad given above; thus, if the non-Muslim state is in a state of peace with the Muslims, it is unlawful for an offensive incursion to incur into the non-Muslim territory.

Considering modern theories of international relations, especially Realism, I do not believe that any nation would deny itself the right to attack another nation which instigates a state of war. Islam as a way of life also affirms the right of the Muslim state to attack those nations in which exists a state of war. As the Realist doctrine states, that state survival is guaranteed best by power, principally military in character.

There are only two cases in which the offensive Jihad is obligatory upon the armies of a Muslim state: this is when the Caliph orders them to fight, in which case it is obligatory to obey the Caliph; and, to rescue Muslim prisoners of war when there is absolutely no other method which can be successful.

A Muslim state under a Caliphate has two types of countries as neighbors: those who have no type of peace agreement with the Muslims, and those who have either a temporary or permanent peace treaty with the Muslims. It is unlawful for the Muslim army to invade those nations with which it is in a state of peace. Under Islamic law, the Caliph is required to protect the borders of the Muslim state by sending armies to make sure the borders are safe. It is not required for the Caliph to send armies into the non-Muslim territory at which there is a state of war; the Caliph is, however, given this option due to the state of war that exists.

Before and during fighting, the Muslims should pray for God to guide their enemy to the truth and avert hostilities; Imam Nawawi stated, "not praying for your enemy is from jealousy." When fighting, the following people are not allowed to be killed unless they are actively fighting in battle: women, children, religious leaders, non-combatants, the blind, the mentally ill and the elderly. Bombs are disliked and shunned as weapons even if it is unlikely for civilians to be killed by them. If it is likely for civilians to be killed by these bombs, then the use of them is unlawful.

This can all be proven directly from the primary texts from the first Caliph Abu Bakr al-Siddiq (may God be pleased with him) and his advice to his military commander, which is recorded in Imam Malik's Muwattah:

"I advise you of ten things: Do not kill women or children or an aged, infirm person. Do not cut down fruit-bearing trees. Do not destroy an inhabited place. Do not slaughter [animals] except for food. Do not burn bees and do not scatter them. Do not steal from the materials captured in combat, and do not be cowardly."

Terrorism is absolutely unlawful, cursed and extremely sinful in the Islamic religion; some scholars have said that, if a Muslim says that terrorism is lawful, he has left Islam and become a non-Muslim due to the seriousness of the narrations which prohibit the killing of civilians and the use of violence outside of the framework of a just war. There are five different types of attacks in warfare, and they are discussed in Imam Khalil's Mukhtasar Khalil, a work on jurisprudence:

First is to attack the enemy from where the enemy is not on equal footing with one and is less likely to harm one. Second is to attack the enemy from where the enemy is on equal footing with one and may well harm one. Third is to attack the enemy from where it is most probable that the enemy will harm one. Fourth is to attack the enemy from where it is almost certain that the enemy will harm or kill one. Fifth is to attack the enemy using oneself as an "intelligent" bomb.

The fourth type of attacks are only permissible in exceptional circumstances when the Muslims are outnumbered. There is a major distinction between the fourth type of attacks and the fifth type of attacks: the fourth type of attacks occurs with a Muslim soldier entering into enemy territory fighting until killed, while the fifth type of attack occurs with a Muslim blowing himself up in front of the enemy. In the fourth type, the enemy kills the soldier, while, in the fifth type, the soldier kills himself. Suicide is unlawful and a major sin in Islam, and is never permitted. The vast majority of scholars believe type-five attacks, which have recently begun in the name of Islam are unlawful and a major sin because they result in suicide; when targeting civilians, there is absolute agreement that such attacks are impermissible and extremely sinful. The fifth type of attacks, in which the attacker is the direct cause of his own death have never happened in all of Muslim history until recently and directly contradicts the rules of warfare which exist in Islam.

In their fatwa or religious edict against terrorism, the council of American Muslim scholars unanimously stated:

"Islam strictly condemns religious extremism and the use of violence against innocent lives. There is no justification in Islam for extremism or terrorism. Targeting civilians' life and property through suicide bombings or any other method of attack is haram - or forbidden - and those who commit these barbaric acts are criminals, not 'martyrs.'"

The Qur'an, Islam's revealed text, states: "Whoever kills a person [unjustly]...it is as though he has killed all mankind..."

In the light of the teachings of the Qur'an and Sunnah (tradition of the Prophet Muhammad), we clearly and strongly state:

All acts of terrorism targeting civilians are haram (forbidden) in Islam.

It is haram (forbidden) for a Muslim to cooperate with any individual or group that is involved in any act of terrorism or violence.

It is the civic and religious duty of Muslims to cooperate with law enforcement authorities to protect the lives of all civilians.

Another document, signed by over 40 of the most major Muslim scholars in the entire world including the most well-known names in the Middle East, said:

"We appeal to all Muslims to exercise self-restraint in accordance with the teachings of Islam and we reject countering an act of aggression by acts not sanctioned in Islam, such as breaking treaties and breaching time-honoured agreements by attacking foreign embassies or innocent people and other targets. Such violent reactions can lead to a distortion of the just and balanced nature of our request or even to our isolation from the global dialogue."

The military Jihad is free of the disgusting blemishes of terrorism. Dr. Mostafa al-Badawi, Islamic scholar and translator, wrote, in his book Man and the Universe, summarizing the purpose of military Jihad:

"Outward conflict, the battle against the outer forces of evil, is the Smaller Jihad. These forces can cause chaos within societies and among nations. Outer chaos is triggered off by aggression, coercion, the pursuit of national interests without regard for other nations and to their detriment, imposing ideologies by force, and all kinds of overt and covert imperialism."

"That conflict sometimes escalates into open warfare is an undeniable fact of life. Islam, being realistic and practical, does not preach all-out pacifism and then set out to do the opposite. According to the Islamic perspective war is justifiable only on the condition that it be 'holy'--waged strictly for the sake of God according to His law. Therefore, it has to be necessary, unavoidable, needed to repulse aggression or defend a just cause and the justice of cause needs to be defined according to religious criteria, not national, economic, or any other."