Abdelhamid - Inside Jihad: Understanding and Confronting Radical Islam

This is not a book about Islam it is a book about Islamism and how to combat it. We cannot confront the problem of Islamism, however, without a general mental picture of Islam. The reader will encounter various Arabic words and Islamic concepts and must have some familiarity with them if any discussion about the topic is to make sense. That is what these next few pages undertake. They are not a substitute for a complete and detailed exposition of the religion. That role is played by the many excellent books devoted to the subject, and to which the reader is encouraged to turn. Indeed, many commonly-available encyclopedias provide an adequate coverage of Islam if a reader lacks the time or inclination to examine a complete treatise. In turn, some readers may already be knowledgeable about Islam; they may safely skip this overview. Here, I will cover only the main structural components of the religion and corresponding terms which are critical to our discussion. With these constraints in mind, let us introduce Islam.

The word Islam means submission to God, or Allah. It is a monotheistic faith that originated in the 7th century with its prophet, Muhammad. The primary text is the Quran, which Muslims believe is the literal word of God transmitted to the Prophet by the angel Gabriel. The revelation of the Quran to Muhammad is marked by Islams holiest month, Ramadan. Muhammad was born in the Arabian Peninsula, an area holy to Muslims, who call it, in Arabic, the hijaz. The region encompasses the holy cities of Mecca and Medina. These cities are visited every year by millions of Muslims as part of their obligatory pilgrimage, known as the haj.

Initially, Prophet Muhammad faced persecution for his new faith. As time passed, he was able to gather adherents and control the city of Medina, where he established his authority. From there, he fought battles against the armies of Mecca with mixed results. Eventually, by employing a strategy of constriction and direct assault, Muhammad overcame the city with little struggle. During that time, a quarrel arose between the Jews of Medina and Muhammads followers, which led to the quick destruction of the Jewish community. This destruction, in combination with further conversion and conquest, enabled Muhammad to consolidate power. By the time of his death in 632, Muhammad ruled the entire hijaz. After his death, Muslims selected a prince, or caliph, to lead an Islamic government called the Caliphate. Historians distinguish between several caliphates. They were headquartered in various cities and were the source of some internal conflict, including that between Sunni and Shia which we still see today. However, under the first caliphs and remarkably, in less than 150 years Islam had exploded across the Middle East, North Africa, and parts of Europe in what is known as the Islamic Conquest. In a short span of time, many native languages and religions disappeared; they were swallowed-up by the Arabic language and Islam.

Because he was the final prophet, chosen to reveal Gods last message, and also because of his success, most Muslims consider the Sunna or words and deeds of Muhammad to be a foundational component of Islam. These exploits of Muhammad are recorded in chronicles known as hadith, a word employed in both the singular and plural sense (although hadiths is popular among English speakers).

The Quran itself is divided into 114 chapters, called suwar (more commonly referred to in the singular, sura, and in the anglicized plural, suras), which contain a total of 6236 poetic verses, or ayat. The word of God was revealed to Muhammad not at once, but over a period of time. Therefore, earlier suras typically concern themselves with spiritual and ethical matters, while later suras are preoccupied with regulation of society, for example, marital relations, criminal punishment, and war. The Quran cannot cover every aspect of Islamic life, so many Muslims look to the