After Iran’s despotic regime and its proxies have been defeated militarily and politically, the next war has already begun. That war will be fought not only with swords, but with words and speech. It against a virulent ideology masquerading as a theology: Islamism, the belief that Muslims must dominate the world and eliminate, or convert all non-Muslims.
In addition, there are also two on-going side wars. One is against Arab Palestinianism, a movement led by the Muslim Brotherhood and its offspring, Hamas, to kill Jews and destroy Israel. Its war-cry is “Globalize the Intifada;" its theme-song is “Death to Israel" its dream is martyrdom. For those who support it, it’s a raison d’etre. The second is against Hezbollah.
For Islamists, the source of their hostility is in the Quran and Islamic teaching about infidels (non-Muslims). The fundamental problem, therefore, is deciding what Islam means as a religion and a way of life, what it stands for, and who determines it. The battle is not only between Muslims and non-Muslims; it’s for the hearts and minds of those who follow Jihadism and a religious-based totalitarianism.
Countries such as Qatar and Saudi Arabia support Wahhabism and the Muslim Brotherhood which is taught in most mosques and Muslim schools. They also fund Islamist-led insurgencies through Africa, such as those in Sudan and Nigeria. Qatar protects Hamas’ leaders.
As reported by Mathilda Heller (in the JPost), Iran and Islamism ar supported and funded by a world-wide network of Muslim charities and “sleeper-cells" in Western countries that carry out terrorist acts. That’s illegal. Why haven’t governments prohibited it and enforced the law?
Although Islam is considered to be one of the three monotheistic religions, many Muslims reject any acceptance of Judaism and Christianity and refuse to acknowledge a common source of divinity, along with its ethics and values.
Sadly, most Muslim scholars who oppose ‘Radical’ Islamic regimes have remained silent. They are well-aware of the threat to their lives. As scholars dedicated to a spiritual perspective, however, they are also essential in providing a humanitarian alternative. Millions of lives are at risk. Muslims, as well, suffer disproportionately from terrorism; we all must work together to heal and make a better world. Like it, or not, therefore, they have a moral obligation to speak up in defense of the human spirit and the fulfillment of a higher consciousness as a celebration of life.
The problem is that Islamists and Muslim countries that support terrorist organizations represent an ideology and a theology that influences the identity and beliefs of most Muslims. Changing the way people think is difficult, but not impossible; it can be done in the aftermath of defeat, and a more realistic perspective, as happened after World War II. There are Muslim leaders, teachers and scholars who are opposed to what radical Islamists, such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Hamas and the Iranian Ayatollahs preach. They must be supported and protected.
Without an alternative to Islamism and Arab Palestinianism we will drown in what Hamas calls “The Al-Aqsa Flood," the Islamification of the West and the end of Western Civilization. The threat is real, and therefore, it is existential.
For those of us who seek tikkun olam, we ask, “How can I help?" We live for the answer.
Dr. Moshe Dann is an historian, writer and journalist living in Israel.