ISIL militants have been widely condemned by Muslims worldwide who staged several protests to express anger against the terrorist group.
DELHI – Recent news claiming that a rising number of Indian Muslim youth were joining the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIL) has been raising scholars concern, who have been urging youths not be carried away by the insurgent group’s propaganda.
“We want the Muslim youths to work for the progress of their country (India). They mustn’t ruin their future by joining a terrorist group,” Mufti Rais Ahmed, a Muslim scholar, told OnIslam.net.
“They are being asked to fight for the sake of their religion. But ISIL has nothing to do with Islam.
“We don’t know who they are and what their motive is? But what they’re doing is against the tenets of Islam.”
Like other Indian Muslim scholars, Ahmed’s concerns maximized after news that a Muslim youth from Kalyan city on the outskirts of Mumbai, who was thought to have gone to Iraq to fight with the ISIL militants, reportedly died in a bomb blast last month in Mosul.
Arif Majeed was one of the four youngsters who went missing on May 24. They were subsequently reported to have joined the ISIL.
Three others who joined ISIL with him include Fahad Sheikh, Shaheem Tanki and Aman Tandel.
Confirmation of Majeed’s death was reported to his family by Tanki who called the family from Mosul.
“It is a matter of concern that ISIL is trying to reach out to Indian youths. We don’t support ISIL savagery,” Mufti Ahmed said.
“There is no place for killing innocent people in Islam and that is what we should teach these misguided children, who have been drawn towards ISIL.”
The Maharashtra Government’s Anti-Terrorism Squad has been investigating into the disappearance of the four youths.
Indian agencies are investigating the suspected role of some people and organizations ostensibly involved in brainwashing these youths to join ISIL.
“The investigations are going on to identify those in India who have links with ISIL,” said an officer involved in investigation, who did not wish to be named.
“We are also investigating the role of some Madarsas, who could be involved in facilitating the recruitment of youths in the insurgent’s fold.”
Terrorist Group
A Muslim scholar in Kerala has also issued a fatwa against the ISIL terming it a terrorist organization.
All India Sunni Jamiatul Ulema’s general secretary Shaikh Abu Bakr Ahmad said that Muslims should not support ISIL or other extremist groups.
“The Muslims shouldn’t support any anti-Islamic and terrorist organization. The groups such as ISIL are working against Islam and they should not be supported under any circumstance. Their work is against Islamic Shari`ah,” Shaikh Abu Bakr Ahmad, told OnIslam.net.
Shari`ah is the Islamic law which governs many aspects of a Muslim’s life.
There were reports that that some Muslim youths from Kashmir have also been fighting with ISIL in Syria against Bashar-al Assad regime. But most of those fighting are from south Indian states.
“The activities of ISIL are like that of a terrorist organization and that is something Muslim youths should understand,” said Shah Mohammed, a Muslim scholar based in northern Indian state of Uttar Pradesh.
“The atrocities they are carrying out in the name of Islam are totally unacceptable. ISIL has no legitimacy in our eyes. They are killing innocent people and calling it ‘Jihad’. Their actions are against humanity and should be denounced,” he added to OnIslam.net.
Many Muslim organizations and activists have recently issued statements against the activities of ISIL, denouncing persecution, senseless killings and violence in the name of Islam.
“Indian Muslims are shocked and pained by the brutality and atrocities being perpetrated by the ISIL against Christians, Shias, Kurds, Yazidis and other minorities in the regions now under their control,” they said in a statement issued earlier.
ISIL militants have been widely condemned by Muslims worldwide who staged several protests to express anger against the terrorist group.
A few days ago, Saudi Grand Mufti Sheikh Abdul Aziz al-Sheikh condemned Al-Qaeda and the Islamic State jihadists as “enemy number one” of Islam.
Earlier in August, Dar Al-Ifta, the highest religious authority in Egypt, launched an international campaign aiming at reaching out to foreign media outlets to urge them to avoid using the term “Islamic State” to describe ISIL and replace it with Al-Qaeda Separatists in Iraq and the Levant or (QSIL).
Moreover, Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawqi Allam has condemned the militants for their atrocities and their violation of principles and teachings preached by Islam.
Nahdlatul Ulama (NU), Indonesia’s largest Islamic group has condemned ISIL, urging the government to take firmer action against the possible spread of the movement in Indonesia.
The Islamic Student Union (HMI) has also condemned Indonesian Muslims condoning and adhering to ISIL’s ideology.
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