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THE MOSLEM WORLD: THEORETICAL AND PHILOSOPHICAL PROBLEMS
2016.09.005. G. MIRSKY. PHENOMENON OF ISIS // Zapad-Vostok-Rossiya. Yearbook. IMEMO RAS, Moscow, 2015. -P. 106-110. (Abstract.)
Keywords: Islam, Islamism, ISIS, "Islamic State" Caliphate, extremism, terrorism, radicalism, jihad, fundamentalism, "Salafis", the Koran, the Sunnis, the Shiites, the West, the Arab East, Wahhabism, Osama bin Laden, Barack Obama T. Erdogan.
G. Mirsky,
Dr. Sc.(History), chief research associate, IMEMO RAS
The world has faced with the danger of a global scale, writes G. Mirsky. This is an extreme radical Islamism or transnational jihadism and the actual implementation of this danger - the organization "Islamic State" (ISIS). Its symbol is the Caliphate, proclaimed after the invasion of ISIS militants into Iraq from Syria and attracting Islamic radicals like a magnet. Ideas of radical Islamists are popular among Muslim youth. People from more than 80 countries have rushed to the territory of Iraq controlled by ISIS. Thousands of Europeans have accepted Islam, they go to fight in the Arab East.
The author defines the distinction between Islam and Islamism. Islam is a religion and lifestyle, the basis of an entire civilization, the element of identity of hundreds of millions of
people, generating solidarity of the global Muslim community. Islamism is a political movement, based on a radical ideology, the essence of which - fundamentalizm, i.e. the belief that all the troubles of the Muslim world are going from oblivion of the foundations of "pure, righteous, true Islam of the ancestors", from attempts to absorb alien values and a secular order of society, unacceptable to Muslims. A cohort of Islamists practitioners, fighters against "Western aggressors and corrupting influence of the pernicious West" has grown under the theoretical cover of the fundamentalists ideas (in Arabic -"Salafi" from the word "Salaf" i.e. ancestors.). The scientist reveals the failure of the theory of "the war of Islam against Christianity" because Islamists believe Western society is not Christian, but godless, immoral and depraved.
G. Mirsky writes that erroneous and unsound is the opinion about the radicals, extremists and, ultimately, terrorists, as if they were destitute and desperate people from poor countries. In fact they almost always come from wealthy families who have received a good education. Thus, about 40% of the volunteers who came from Arab countries to fight in the ranks of the "Islamic state", are the young people of Tunisia, where the population is not starving and best educated in the Arab world. The hopes were not realized, that successful economic development would prevent the spread of extremism and terrorism. Those are mistaken who believe it would be pointless to "go in terror", if people get a good job and decent living conditions. Higher education does not become a barrier to assimilation of extremist ideas.
It should be borne in mind that Islamist ideology is based on the universally recognized basic values of Islam that attracts Muslims from different countries into the ranks of the "Islamic state", for example. So, all Muslims agree that only their community is special, genuine (in the Koran says: "You are the best of communities, created for the human race") and it must dominate the world, but in reality, the Americans - infidels -
manage all actually. Consequently, there is great injustice and the followers of bin Laden's fight for its elimination. The struggle against the secular model of society imposed by the West follows directly from the Sharia too, not allowing categorically the actual (not formal) equality of women with men and the existence of areas of life beyond the control of religion in general.
The roots of radical Islam, the author points out - in some of the basic organic regulations of Islam, but distorted and adapted to the needs of violence and terror. "Al-Qaeda" was born on this ideological basis, as an organization of Arab volunteers who came to Afghanistan to fight against the Soviet forces, which were introduced in the country in late 1979, in order to assist the revolutionary government. The war was waged under the slogan "Jihad", "holy war against infidels", and "Al Qaeda" has received substantial support from the United States and Pakistan. After the end of the Afghan war, Osama bin Laden set up several subsidiary groups, one of them helped the Sunnis in Iraq in 2003, lost power as a result of American intervention. Her first name was "al-Qaida in Iraq", the second was the "Islamic state in Iraq", the third - ISIL (Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant), the fourth -just "Islamic State", ISIS, i.e. Caliphate.
Most supporters of jihad, "holy war", belong to the Wahhabi direction of Sunni Islam. This sect is extremely intolerant, pursues Shiites with extreme hatred. The Sunnis of Iraq believe that the Sunnis of Syria are their fellow believers, but the Shia of Iraq -strangers to them, even if they are not enemies, underlines the scientist. The center of gravity in Iraq and Syria has moved from the state level to the local community, often even at the level of the sect. People already feel like their ancestors, Mosul Sunni or Alawite from Aleppo. The difference is that the powerful imperial power was over all of them in the past, prevented wars between their communities. It is impossible to understand today, why the excesses of extremist "of Islamic state" do not cause much indignation among the Sunni population of Iraq and Syria, without awareness of the importance of the Sunni-Shiite conflict.
The purpose of the Sunni Islamist-jihadists is to establish their authority in key countries of the Islamic world - Saudi Arabia (the birthplace of the Prophet), Pakistan, Iraq, Syria, Palestine, Turkey, Egypt, Algeria. If the power of militant and intolerant Islamists is established there, it will be Caliphate for many Muslim radicals. All this will be resolved in Iraq. But the war in Iraq can not be won without a victory in Syria. In fact, this is an extensive war. There are several wars in Syria: the first - between the Assad regime and the opposition, developed into a confrontation between the Sunni majority and the Alawite minority; the second - between the moderate pro-Western opposition and radical jihadists; the third -between radicals themselves ("Nusra Front" against ISIS); the fourth -between the Kurdish militia and ISIS); and the fifth, regional -between the U.S., Saudi Arabia and the Sunni states on the one hand, and Iran and the Lebanese Shiites - on the other. Turkey is playing a double game. President Erdogan puts pressure on Obama, so that he remembers a common goal - the overthrow of Assad during the fight against ISIS, but the U.S. president legitimately fears that this will bring victory of jihadists. All fighting forces do not trust each other. The well-known formula of "my enemy's enemy - my friend" does not work in this region. ISIS extremists are the main threat to the West nowadays. Their arrival in Syria has proven advantageous for Assad, as it is paradoxical. They not only scare the population, making the president a "lesser evil", even to those Sunnis who hate him, but do not allow the West to provide significant assistance to the opposition. Barack Obama can not send anti-aircraft and anti-tank missiles to the rebels - they need the most, and that is because the weapons fall into the hands of jihadists. Barack Obama can not help to take power in Damascus those who are faithful to the precepts of bin Laden, i.e. kill Americans wherever they are caught, G. Mirsky concludes. But he can not look like a defender of the Shiites, so as not to alienate the Sunnis, ruling in 20 Arab countries out of 21 (the Shiites are in the majority in only four of the 57 Muslim countries).
The author of the abstract - V. Schensnovich
