Is fighting the ruler of Iraq jihad in the path of Allah?
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Q: Many people doubt that fighting against Saddam is jihad in the path of Allah, claiming that it is for material interests such as oil and land. If the Muslims had fought the Jews, the coalition states would not have supported them. The Jews have oppressed and encroached upon the land of the Muslims, just as the ruler of Iraq, may Allah destroy him, did. Yet the right has not been restored to its rightful owners for forty years, and it is still not so today. We ask your Eminence to clarify this matter.
A: The Jews have a different situation: they encroached upon the land of Palestine, and it is obligatory for the Muslims to fight them until they are expelled from the lands of the Muslims, and until our Palestinian brothers triumph over them and establish their Islamic state on their land. There is no doubt about the obligation of this upon the Islamic states according to their capacity. However, it is not permissible to mix this with that. The fact that the Islamic states do not currently engage in direct jihad against the Jews does not permit Saddam to fight the Muslims in the Arabian Peninsula, in Kuwait, or elsewhere. It does not permit any Muslim to assist him in that. It is not permissible for the Islamic states to enable him to commit aggression and injustice. Rather, they must repel him, stop his aggression, and remove his injustice from the Muslims with whatever strength they can muster, in accordance with the saying of Allah the Exalted: [Al-Anfal: 39] and His saying, Glorified is He: [Al-Hujurat 49:9] the verse [Al-Hujurat: 9].
If a rebellious group of believers must be fought until they return to the command of Allah and turn back from their injustice, then fighting a rebellious disbelieving group like Saddam and his Ba'athist followers and others is even more deserving of being fought until they return to the truth and turn back from injustice. From what we have mentioned, it is known that the Jews have a separate matter, and fighting them is an independent obligation.
And this oppressor's aggression against Kuwait is an independent aggression that must be repelled and fought first, and they must be rid of him.
It is not permissible for the Muslims' shortcoming in jihad with the Palestinians against the Jews to be a justification for their abandonment of the jihad against the enemy of Allah, Saddam, who is more disbelieving than the Jews and Christians and more misguided than them.
He has encroached upon a safe people, then resolved to encroach upon the rest of the Gulf states. His malicious intentions are known, his evil is known, and fighting him is specific. If the resolve is sincere, and Allah guides everyone and helps them, Glorified is He, to fight Saddam and his troops, and repels them from their aggression and rescues Kuwait from their hands, then it is possible for them, if Allah wills, to fight the Jews and rescue Jerusalem from their hands. That is another jihad and another obligation. It is also obligatory for the Muslims to fight the disbelievers other than the Jews if they are able to do so, until they enter into the religion of Allah in groups, or pay the jizyah if they are among those who are subject to it, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: : [Al-Baqarah: 193] and He said, Glorified is He: [At-Tawbah: 29].
So the Muslims must fight all the disbelievers until the religion is entirely for Allah, except for those who pay the jizyah from among those subject to it. If they are unable to do that, they are not to be blamed if they fight only those who transgressed against them, and not others; because of the saying of Allah, Glorified is He: [At-Taghabun: 16].
So the Jews have transgressed against Palestine, so the Muslims must fight alongside the Palestinians against them. And Saddam's transgression against Kuwait and his gathering of armies against Saudi Arabia with a new aggression from a stubborn, oppressive, atheist who is more disbelieving than the Jews and Christians, and may Allah protect us from him, must be repelled and fought; because the communists and Ba'athists are more disbelieving than the People of the Book. May Allah protect the Muslims from the evil of them all.
A: The Jews have a different situation: they encroached upon the land of Palestine, and it is obligatory for the Muslims to fight them until they are expelled from the lands of the Muslims, and until our Palestinian brothers triumph over them and establish their Islamic state on their land. There is no doubt about the obligation of this upon the Islamic states according to their capacity. However, it is not permissible to mix this with that. The fact that the Islamic states do not currently engage in direct jihad against the Jews does not permit Saddam to fight the Muslims in the Arabian Peninsula, in Kuwait, or elsewhere. It does not permit any Muslim to assist him in that. It is not permissible for the Islamic states to enable him to commit aggression and injustice. Rather, they must repel him, stop his aggression, and remove his injustice from the Muslims with whatever strength they can muster, in accordance with the saying of Allah the Exalted:
And fight them until there is no fitnah and [until] the religion, all of it, is for Allah
وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ الدِّينُ كُلُّهُ لِلَّهِAnd if two factions among the believers should fight, then make settlement between the two. But if one of them oppresses the other, then fight against the one that oppresses until it returns to the ordinance of Allah
وَإِنْ طَائِفَتَانِ مِنَ الْمُؤْمِنِينَ اقْتَتَلُوا فَأَصْلِحُوا بَيْنَهُمَا فَإِنْ بَغَتْ إِحْدَاهُمَا عَلَى الْأُخْرَى فَقَاتِلُوا الَّتِي تَبْغِي حَتَّى تَفِيءَ إِلَى أَمْرِ اللَّهِIf a rebellious group of believers must be fought until they return to the command of Allah and turn back from their injustice, then fighting a rebellious disbelieving group like Saddam and his Ba'athist followers and others is even more deserving of being fought until they return to the truth and turn back from injustice. From what we have mentioned, it is known that the Jews have a separate matter, and fighting them is an independent obligation.
And this oppressor's aggression against Kuwait is an independent aggression that must be repelled and fought first, and they must be rid of him.
It is not permissible for the Muslims' shortcoming in jihad with the Palestinians against the Jews to be a justification for their abandonment of the jihad against the enemy of Allah, Saddam, who is more disbelieving than the Jews and Christians and more misguided than them.
He has encroached upon a safe people, then resolved to encroach upon the rest of the Gulf states. His malicious intentions are known, his evil is known, and fighting him is specific. If the resolve is sincere, and Allah guides everyone and helps them, Glorified is He, to fight Saddam and his troops, and repels them from their aggression and rescues Kuwait from their hands, then it is possible for them, if Allah wills, to fight the Jews and rescue Jerusalem from their hands. That is another jihad and another obligation. It is also obligatory for the Muslims to fight the disbelievers other than the Jews if they are able to do so, until they enter into the religion of Allah in groups, or pay the jizyah if they are among those who are subject to it, as Allah (Glorified and Exalted is He) said: :
Fight them until there is no [more] fitnah and [until] worship is [acknowledged to be] for Allah
وَقَاتِلُوهُمْ حَتَّى لا تَكُونَ فِتْنَةٌ وَيَكُونَ الدِّينُ لِلَّهِFight those who do not believe in Allah or in the Last Day and who do not consider unlawful what Allah and His Messenger have made unlawful and who do not adopt the religion of truth from those who were given the Scripture - [fight] until they give the jizyah willingly while they are humbled.
قَاتِلُوا الَّذِينَ لا يُؤْمِنُونَ بِاللَّهِ وَلا بِالْيَوْمِ الْآخِرِ وَلا يُحَرِّمُونَ مَا حَرَّمَ اللَّهُ وَرَسُولُهُ وَلا يَدِينُونَ دِينَ الْحَقِّ مِنَ الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ حَتَّى يُعْطُوا الْجِزْيَةَ عَنْ يَدٍ وَهُمْ صَاغِرُونَSo the Muslims must fight all the disbelievers until the religion is entirely for Allah, except for those who pay the jizyah from among those subject to it. If they are unable to do that, they are not to be blamed if they fight only those who transgressed against them, and not others; because of the saying of Allah, Glorified is He:
So fear Allah as much as you are able
فَاتَّقُوا اللَّهَ مَا اسْتَطَعْتُمْSo the Jews have transgressed against Palestine, so the Muslims must fight alongside the Palestinians against them. And Saddam's transgression against Kuwait and his gathering of armies against Saudi Arabia with a new aggression from a stubborn, oppressive, atheist who is more disbelieving than the Jews and Christians, and may Allah protect us from him, must be repelled and fought; because the communists and Ba'athists are more disbelieving than the People of the Book. May Allah protect the Muslims from the evil of them all.
Source
binbaz.org.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.