On the fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) that occurred in the Gulf: How do we reconcile the principle that says, "If disbelievers take Muslims as a shield, it is permissible to kill the Muslims in order to reach the disbelievers," with...

The questioner : Regarding the fitnah (trial, discord or temptation) in the Gulf, there is currently a legal principle that states, "If disbelievers take Muslims as a shield, it is permissible to kill the Muslims in order to reach the disbelievers." How do we compare this statement with your statement, "Stay in your homes," based on the fact that we are not directing our weapons at the Arabs who are currently gathered there?

The Shaykh : Because there is no jihad (struggle in the path of Allah) now; it is a fitnah (trial, discord or temptation). Based on the fact that this is a time of fitnah, and I think you are convinced with us that this is a time of fitnah, are you not convinced?

The questioner : Yes, I am completely convinced.

The Shaykh : Good. Considering what we believe, that the present time is a time of fitnah, in times of fitnah he (peace and blessings be upon him) said As for what you mentioned earlier, that is in the context of jihad. When there is jihad and an Islamic banner is raised, and you want to fight the disbelievers, and then these disbelievers take some Muslims as a shield, and these Muslims, instead of joining the mujahideen rightfully, are living with the disbelievers. It is not permissible for them in the first place to live with the disbelievers, because Islam obligates one who was a disbeliever and then embraced Islam to migrate from the land of disbelief to the land of Islam. So their remaining in the land of the disbelievers is first an Islamic error, and then allowing themselves to be a shield for the disbelievers who are fighting the Muslims is another error.

The questioner : Even if it was against their will?

The Shaykh : You forgot the first premise. Why did they not migrate?

The questioner : Yes, if they were, for example, prisoners of war and it was a second round.

The Shaykh : Good. So the first answer is that this applies in the context of jihad.

The questioner : What if we were a group that gathers on the basis of being established in jihad, and not under anyone's banner?

The Shaykh : Is this a reality or an illusion?

The questioner : May it become a reality, if Allah wills.

The Shaykh : It is a matter of "if Allah wills." If Allah wills, tomorrow the state of Islam will be established. But the issue is I mean, may Allah reward you, you must remember with us a legal and cosmic reality, which is the Sunnah (the Prophet's way) of Allah in His creation, and you will not find any change in the Sunnah of Allah. Among these divine cosmic Sunnahs is the statement of the Exalted And then, the jihad that you assumed in your last words earlier, it is not hidden from you that it requires fundamental, basic, and very strong preparations. You, or anyone else, cannot even imagine it, let alone make it a reality between one evening and the next. All these prerequisites that are necessary must become a reality! No, this is not the Sunnah of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. And I think you believe in this statement?

The questioner : I spoke on the basis of the assumption that there is preparation from a long time ago and the opportunity comes...

The Shaykh : And why do you search in hypotheticals and not address reality? Because we learned from our scholars that those who occupy themselves with hypotheticals forget themselves regarding realities, if that is the correct expression.

The questioner : Yes, that is correct. May Allah reward you with good. And what I want to reach is: if all the conditions you mentioned, O Shaykh, are met, is it permissible to fight the American disbelievers now in the Gulf, and there are among them Arab Muslims forced to be there?

The Shaykh : Look, all issues are weighed on one scale. When you assume there is jihad, you do not see anything but this fitnah. And so we are living in an illusion. I spoke more than once when this fitnah first occurred, and there are multiple tapes. In some of them, I said that it was supposed that when Iraq attacked Kuwait, the noble verse should have been applied. It was supposed that these Arab states, the state that we Muslims think should be the state that stops the rebellious state at its limit, should try to make a reconciliation between it and the one against whom rebellion was committed. If it refused, then fight. Which state is supposed to fight Iraq? We assumed it would be the best state, the one befitting to implement this legal ruling, which is Saudi Arabia. But Saudi Arabia was incapable, and so it sought help from the disbelievers. Do you understand? So here, when you imagine, let us assume there is jihad, this jihad requires leadership, right or not?

The questioner : Yes.

The Shaykh : Leadership means a head of state in a caliphate, a head of state who has been pledged allegiance to, and so on. All of these are connected to each other. In that case, these people would perform the duty that we thought Saudi Arabia would perform. But neither these people exist, nor does Saudi Arabia exist. So, unfortunately, this fitnah occurred. And now, my brother, the enthusiastic peoples cannot do anything at all!

The questioner : Except individual efforts.

The Shaykh : They cannot do anything. And then, some people are with these and some with those, and every hundred, as some say, sings to its own tail. Do you see? And the one representing you is this reality, unfortunately, the conferences that were held recently. And who attended the conferences? The elite, scholars here and there. These scholars represent these peoples. If the scholars are lost, some people are with this king, and some with this prince or president, what will be the position of the peoples? This is a fitnah that has left people bewildered, and this reality is very bitter and regrettable.

The questioner : Is there no solution now other than staying in the homes?

The Shaykh : There is no solution. And then, my brother, these are natural results, like a person who neglected his physical health, and all he has is his health, and it went backward and backward until it reached a final point. Can any doctor or any treatment return him to his original health? This is contrary to the Sunnah of Allah the Mighty and Majestic. Similarly, spiritual or moral matters, when a person continues in decline, it is difficult to return. And if it is necessary, like some patients who reach the lowest point, then by divine power, they start to recede little by little and regain their health and vitality. But this is rare, and the rare has no ruling.

The questioner : May Allah reward you with good.