Caucasus Jihadists Denounce Ultra-Radical "Kharijites" in Their Midst
Jihadists in the North Caucasus republics (Chechnya and its neighbors) have posted an article denouncing ultra-radical "Kharijites" in their midst. The article was issued in the name of the "Al-Ghuraba Ideological Department" and was posted on November 4, 2009, on the Hunafa website; an English translation was posted later in November on the Kavkaz Center website.
Salafi-jihadis often refer to those more radical than themselves as takfiris or Kharijites; the latter is the name of an early Muslim sect that declared other Muslims apostates on the basis of a wide variety of sins. (Most Muslims in fact consider the salafi-jihadis themselves to be takfiris and Kharijites, but they consider themselves to be orthodox Sunnis, and only use these terms for those more radical than themselves.) The JTTM recently released an in-depth report on conflict between salafi-jihadis and an ultra-radical splinter group in Jordan;[1] the polemic in the Caucasus appears to fall along rather similar lines. This may be due to the fact that the Caucasus jihadists enjoy close relations with Abu Muhammad Al-Maqdisi, the influential salafi-jihadi scholar who is leading the charge against the ultra-radicals in Jordan.[2]
The Caucasus article accuses the so-called Kharijites of holding three heterodox positions. First, they consider "all (or most) of the population of the Northern Caucasus, as well as other Muslim countries" to be polytheists, excluding from this only "a very small handful sharing their ideas." Second, they do not recognize an individual's ignorance as an impediment to declaring him an infidel, and even hold those who do recognize ignorance as an excuse and refuse to declare sweeping takfir to be infidels themselves. Third, they consider the lives and property of all infidels (which according to their definition includes most of the putatively Muslim population) to be licit to them, i.e., their lives and property are not inviolate.
The article attempts to refute the so-called Kharijites' positions by citing a variety of scholars, from Ibn Taymiyya to Abu Muhammad Al-Maqdisi. It then explicates the difference between Kharijite views and the Caucasus jihadists' own positions; the purpose of this section is primarily to defend their own takfir of the governments and security forces of the Caucasus republics and to ward off the accusation that it is Kharijite.
Finally, the article addresses the issue of proper conduct of Muslims in (undisputedly) infidel countries. It states that "Islam strictly forbids treachery, betrayal, and violation of treaties," and thus a Muslim who goes to a belligerent state for non-military purposes (e.g. for work or study) is forbidden to violate "the blood, honor, and property" of infidels. This is because the Muslim has received a guarantee of security (usually referred to as aman) from the host country, which then reciprocally obligates him to refrain from doing injury to that country and its people. One of the quotes in the article mentions Russia in particular in this regard, which is obviously the case most germane to the Caucasus jihadists. The author however states that this only applies to lands that have always been infidel, saying: "this provision prohibiting the blood and property [of infidels] does not apply to the lands of Muslims that were captured by infidels, such as the Caucasus, Tatarstan, Bashkortostan, and other lands." (An earlier quote warns against considering Russia to be like Tel Aviv; the jihadists obviously consider Israel to fall into the latter category). He also states that this provision does not apply to mujahideen who enter Russia specifically for military purposes, and indicates that there are also exceptions even for those who live inside Russia "under the contract" (e.g. with a visa and the like). For instance, they are allowed to conduct assassinations of military commanders and Christian missionaries and to sabotage infrastructure. They may not however commit "acts like some of the brothers [do], such as theft, damage to property, [and] the seizure and rape of 'concubines', which have nothing to do with either Islam or jihad."
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November 26, 2009
