What Makes a Suicide Bomber?
By Rafiq Ebrahim Valjee
Glen Ellyn, IL
The world is no longer an abode of peace. A wave of violence is sweeping across, killing tens of thousands of people and destroying property and infrastructure throughout the world. Whenever you switch on your TV or have a glance at a newspaper you will see disturbing and unpleasant images of vast devastation, of dead bodies with blood all over them, of those who are spared, shedding tears of shock and grief with hands raised towards Heaven.
At times you also see young people with their heads and faces covered with scarves on which Qur’anic verses are imprinted. Only their eyes and noses are visible, and they proudly proclaim that they are ready to give their lives for the sake of Islam, to wage jehad against kafir.
Who are these suicide bombers? Why are they so strongly motivated to cause devastation, knowing that their own bodies would be blown to pieces? Why do they perform acts of terrorism and what is their ultimate purpose?
These are the baffling questions that crop up in the minds of all who are fighting this evil. No convincing answers to these questions have been furnished so far. It is believed that Islamic militants are on the rampage and are out to destroy and kill, and that Islam permits them to do so! The real causes for the attacks have not been fully understood. Military action is the only solution, people think. As such, billions of dollars are being spent and precious lives are being sacrificed to cope with the present wave of terrorism. Though they are using military strategies, the attacks so far have not been satisfactorily checked. Resourceful and developed countries like the USA in the post-9/11 period have however managed to ward off future attacks on their land by taking effective security measures. Iraq, Afghanistan, Pakistan, India and some other countries fall an easy prey, because of lack of stringent security measures and planning.
Military force is supposed to be the solution, but as we have seen in the recent times, it is not so. To eliminate or reduce this evil, we will have to understand the psyche of these master minds that instigate young people to do the acts.
It is said that if two or more people have the same goal in mind and if they form an alliance and persistently work on achieving the goal, they form a master mind and such a master mind can achieve any reasonable goal. The terrorists have already formed a master mind and their goal is to eliminate all unbelievers. They consider every one who does not adhere to their norms and ways and extremist views as unbelievers, whether they are Christians, Jews, Hindus, or Muslims or others who belong to any other faith. To eliminate all these people is an unrealistic goal, as such it can never be fulfilled by any group of people, so their mastermind will remain unfruitful; but they will go on causing explosions and devastations, for their thoughts are insane and they are often religious maniacs. Though the present day terrorists, mostly so-called Muslims, adhere to the tenets of Islam, they misinterpret the sayings of the Prophet and the verses of the Quran; they misguide and confuse people.
To their disciples and other youths with nascent minds, these terrorists quote Verse 5 of Surah 9:"When sacred months are over slay the idolaters wherever you find them. Arrest them, besiege them, and lie in ambush everywhere for them…"
This instigates widespread killings. This verse was revealed in the early seventh century to target the Quraish Arabs who were brutal, fierce idol worshippers and who continuously harassed the new Muslim community under Prophet Muhammad. These people were after the blood of the Prophet and would never hesitate to torture and kill any person who followed the teachings of the Prophet. The Muslim community lived in constant fear till the time the Prophet with a band of his followers migrated to Medina from Mecca, and gaining strength, was ready for taking on the non-believers.
Those who believe in one God, may they be Christians, Jews or followers of any other religion, cannot be termed as unbelievers. The present attacks, as such, do not conform to the teachings of Islam. If you try to probe into the mind of the suicide bombers you can come to the conclusion that they mainly fall in three categories.
First, those who believe that kafirs are grabbing their lands and resources, maligning Islam and killing Muslims everywhere in the world.
Secondly, those who are paid a large amount for the sustenance of their families after they are blown off, and thirdly, those who take revenge for their people who get killed in attacks against them.
The masterminds behind these bombers often put on the garb of religious scholars and have a large following, increasing in thousands every day. With their rhetoric, sermons against the West and wrongly interpreted Qur’anic verses, they brainwash their followers and turn them into suicide bombers. Their attacks are sneaky and cowardly and so it is difficult to check them even if a lot of security measures are taken.
All efforts are being made by the West and their allies, especially Pakistan to fight these groups of terrorists, but the results are not very satisfactory. To eliminate or drastically reduce such attacks, we have to recognize the causes.
There are two ways by which we can do so. First, the West, particularly the USA, must bring some change in their foreign policies towards Middle East and other Islamic countries, making it clear that they do have consideration and fairness for Muslims. The preachers should refrain from preaching against Islam and Prophet Muhammad. The media, while using their freedom of speech, should realize that Muslims are very sensitive about their religion and so it should not be made a target. Secondly, all right thinking Muslim Mullahs must issue a joint fatwa condemning suicide bombings and clearly mentioning that such people who blow themselves up, while killing common people, are bound for Hell, not Paradise where good things abound. This fatwa would be more convincing and forceful if it includes the following verses:
Surah 3, Verse 199: "And there are certainly, among the people of the Scripture, those who believe in God and that which has been revealed to you, and in that which has been revealed to them, humbling themselves before God. They do not sell the verses of God for a little price. For them is a reward with their Lord. Surely, God is swift in account."
Surah 2, Verse 62: "Verily, those who believe and those who are Jews and Christians and Sabians, whoever believes in God and the Last Day and does righteous deeds shall have their reward with their Lord. On them shall be no fear, nor shall they grieve."
This sermon must be widely propagated, through electronic and print media, particularly through Radio which is heard in almost all homes, especially in terror- inflicted areas. Fliers in Urdu, Arabic and other regional languages should be distributed or air-dropped in such places.
This way we may see some relief and once again experience a breath of peace in this terror-ridden world.
