Milestones: The jihadi manifesto in 10 photos

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Jihad (fighting against unbelievers) always had a place in Islamic literature, and was also a historical reality in the early days of Islam. But Sayyid Qutb’s book, Milestones (1964), revived it to make it an obligation for all “true” Muslims. He called for violent attacks on anyone, including Muslims, who impede their goal of establishing an Islamic state. His militant book and most influential idea of a vanguard spreading mayhem, demanding for sharia, inspired terrorists around the world since the 1970s, including Al-Qaeda. (Read an analysis of the book here.) Islamism (political Islam) is now a global phenomenon as evident from the photos below of events from Afghanistan, Iraq, Syria, Libya, Yemen and Western countries like the UK!

Note on the author’s language:
Islam: Most often the author does not mean the “mainstream” faith as it is currently being practiced, but political Islam (aka Islamism) where jihadis demand the enforcement of sharia by any means possible
Jahiliyyahh: Originally meant “pre-Islamic ignorance,” however in modern radical writings it’s a code word for “modern civilization” that should be opposed and fought

The following photos show how modern jihad has been inspired to a great extent by Qutb’s revolutionary text:

Islamic vanguard: “It is necessary that there should be a vanguard which sets out with this determination and then keeps walking on the path, marching through the vast ocean of Jahiliyyahh which has encompassed the entire world.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Osama Bin Laden fought with other Afghans against the Soviets in 1987, co-founded al-Qaeda in 1988, supported the extremist Taliban faction during the Afghan civil war, then was given refuge by them. He supported the establishment of a totalitarian state ruled by sharia in 1996. He then lead al-Qaeda to become the most lethal terrorist organization launching several attacks from their training grounds in Afghanistan, including those of September 11. He was killed in a targeted American operation in 2011.

Photo: Osama Bin Laden walking with other Afghan mujahideen in 1989.

Training camps: “It is necessary that this group separate itself from the Jahili society, becoming independent and distinct from the active and organized Jahili society whose aim is to block Islam.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

The Jahili society is the “apostate,” modern society which “true” Muslims should abandon. The physical cult-like separation of young men from their home societies facilitates their indoctrination and physical training for jihad.

Photo: Al-Qaeda members in Sanaa, Yemen.

Children of jihad: “If [your parents] openly declare their alliance with the enemies of Islam, then all the filial relationships of a Muslim are cut off and he is not bound to be kind and considerate to them.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Photo: Screenshot from a propaganda video by ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) showing children in jihadi training.

Imposing Shari’ah: “[L]egislation is not limited only to legal matters, as some people assign this narrow meaning to the Shari’ah. The fact is that attitudes, the way of living, the values, criteria, habits and traditions, are all legislated and affect people.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Photo: Jordan Horner, also known as Jalaal Uddin, a convert to extreme Islam is seen here in London, in 2007. His sharia promotion activities were banned by a Judge. He was a follower of the hate Islamist preacher Anjem Choudary.
Source: Express.co.uk

No democracy: “[T]hey present Islam to the people under the names of ‘Islamic Democracy’ or ‘Islamic Socialism’, or sometimes by saying that the current economic or political or legal systems in the world need not be changed except a little to be acceptable Islamically. The purpose of all this rationalization is to appease people’s desires!” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

No borders or nations: “The fatherland is that place where the Islamic faith, the Islamic way of life, and the Shari’ah of Allah is dominant; only this meaning of ‘fatherland’ is worthy of the human being. Similarly, ‘nationality’ means belief and a way of life, and only this relationship is worthy of man’s dignity.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Islamism is a transborder movement that does not recognize nations as it is based on a Western idea (nationalism).

Photo: Screenshot from a video by the Islamic State of Syria and Iraq (ISIS) showing jihadists celebrating the partial destruction of the “Sykes-Picot border” (i.e. the border between Iraq and Syria) in the Iraqi province of Nineveh.
Source: Memri

No laws of war: “The Islamic Jihad has no relationship to modern warfare, either in its causes or in the way in which it is conducted.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Jihadists claim to conform to Islamic law (sharia) on matters of warfare, down to the details of how to chop off heads. International treaties regarding unarmed civilians, concepts like “war crimes” or “crimes against humanity” are meaningless to their ideology.

Photo: Screenshot from a footage (2015) by the Islamic State in Libya minutes before 20 Egyptian Christians, and one Ghananian, were beheaded. Two months later, another video was released of the shooting and beheading of 30 Ethiopian Christians.

A battle for only Islam: “The enemies of the Believers may wish to change this struggle into an economic or political or racial struggle, so that the Believers become confused concerning the true nature of the struggle and the flame of belief in their hearts becomes extinguished. The Believers must not be deceived, and must understand that this is a trick.”― Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Sayyid Qutb was aware that “intellectuals” would try to twist their cause into a desperate pursuit of better economic opportunities or a revenge for an era of imperialism and colonization. He warned against these interpretations of their struggle.

Photo: Screenshot of a published video by jihadists of Harakat Sham al-Islam (Islamic Movement of the Levant) fighting in Syria. In the middle of the group, there is a Quran hoisted on a tripod of guns.
Source: Middle East Forum

Modernity vs. Islam: “Islam cannot accept any mixing with Jahiliyyahh, either in its concept or in the modes of living which are derived from this concept. Either Islam will remain, or Jahiliyyahh: Islam cannot accept or agree to a situation which is half-Islam and half-Jahiliyyahh.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

In the jihadi vision, this is a global conflict where there could only be one victor, either Jahiliyyahh (“modern civilization”) or Islamism.

“False” Muslims are a target too: “Any country which fights the Muslim because of his belief and prevents him from practicing his religion, and in which the Shari’ah is suspended, is Dar-ul-Harb [House of War], even though his family or his relatives or his people live in it.” ―Sayyid Qutb, Milestones

Generally, killing fellow Muslims is forbidden. But according to the jihadi ideology, these are Muslims in name only, i.e. apostates, since they do not rise up against their un-Islamic governments. He condemned the entire society. That line of thinking led a justification of killing other civlian Muslims in their home countries. Another argument is if innocent Muslims get killed in an attack on infidels, then their death is unavoidable (it’s a House of War!) and they die for a glorious goal.

Photo:The site of one of the deadliest attacks in Afghanistan (2017). A truck bomb exploded killing more than 150 people. The target was the German embassy. The fact that the majority of the victims would be Muslims is irrelevant to Islamic terrorists.
Source: CBS News

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