All genocide is bad. A declaration of war is not.
My principled stance is genocide is bad regardless of who is perputrating or even saying it SHOULD BE perpetrated (basically what this Fatwa is saying no?)
No. There is nothing in it about killing unarmed civilians or eliminating all Jewish people. It’s a call for all Arab/Muslim nations to form a united front and declare war, which, like all wars (sans Israel’s concept of war?) has rules of engagement.
Your assumption that the word “jihad” means genocide is the problem with this conversation. “Jihad” literally means “to struggle/strive”. It’s used in several contexts and there are types of Jihad. (See the Wikipedia article on it for more)
- There is “jihad Al nafs” for example, which translates to “to struggle against one’s self”, and an obvious example of it is to quit smoking, or stop overeating, etc.
- There is “jihad Al mal” which means “struggle with money” and an example would be donating to a rightful cause
- There is “jihad Al tarbiyah” which means becoming an educator/a teacher of good morals and Islamic/scientific principles
You think I’m advocating genocide. I am not. I, however, am supportive of a war against a genocidal rogue state.
Source (in Arabic): https://www.uae71.com/posts/117288
Direct translation for the lazy bums who won’t bother:
The International Union of Muslim Scholars, through its Ijtihad and Fatwa Committee, issued a fatwa regarding the continued Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip and the violation of the truce. The fatwa called for jihad and urgent, widespread action by Muslim states and peoples, including military action.
The fatwa, shared by Ali Qaradaghi, Secretary-General of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, via his X account, affirmed “the obligation of armed jihad against the Israeli occupation for every capable Muslim,” emphasizing that “this duty extends throughout the Islamic world.”
The committee also called for “immediate military intervention” by Arab and Islamic countries to halt the aggression on Gaza and impose a comprehensive blockade on the occupying entity by land, sea, and air, including closing its waterways, straits, and airspace.
The fatwa emphasized the necessity of supporting the Palestinian resistance militarily, financially, politically, and legally, deeming it a “religious duty.” It also called for the formation of an Islamic military alliance to defend the nation and deter any aggression, asserting that the establishment of such an alliance is an urgent necessity.
In the same context, the fatwa prohibited any form of normalization with the Israeli occupation, prohibited the supply of oil and gas to it, and called for a review of the peace treaties signed with the occupier.
The committee stressed the need for financial support for the people of Gaza and the importance of urgently opening the crossings to provide humanitarian aid.
In concluding the fatwa, the committee called on Muslim communities in the United States to pressure the US administration to implement its election promises to halt the aggression and work to bring peace to the region.
Last Wednesday, Israeli Defense Minister Yisrael Katz announced the expansion of his military operations in Rafah, south of the Gaza Strip.
The death toll from the ongoing Israeli aggression on the Gaza Strip has risen to 50,523 martyrs and 114,776 wounded since October 7, 202
Edit 2: more sources for your perusal:
Hey, thanks for being frank about it. I completely understand how the words fatwa/jihad/tuqqiya get misinterpreted due to the propaganda demonising Muslims and the Middle East in general. Which Israel and their lobbyist/proponents in the west—I.e the Murdoch dynasty—have a hand in.
I hate wars. Because all wars have collateral damage; especially in this age of bullets, missiles, and high-yield explosives.
Wars are always a terrible solution, but that said, sometimes the only solutions left are the ugly ones. Israel made its choice, and no matter what anyone says, I can’t really sympathise with an entire nation of sociopathic genocidal assholes because they could have a few good apples mixed in. I don’t think the allies did that in WWII Germany and nor do I condone/condemn it. (Except the use of nuclear weapons in Japan to make a point but that’s the classical US hubris for ya)
So yeah, Israel are now the genocidal assholes and if they get treated like nazi germany then that’s on them.