Cliff May of the Foundation for Defense of Democracies has an interesting column in the Washington Times today about Sayyid Imam al-Sharif, aka Dr. Fadl. “Dr. Fadl” was an original ideological supporter of Al Qaeda who has since become critical of the terrorist organization. He has just written a book with some sharp attacks on Ayman al-Zawahiri, the man we are pretty sure heads Al Qaeda.
Here are some interesting quotes from the article, which is linked in full below:
Now Dr. Fadl has returned fire with a new book: “Exposing the Exoneration.” In it, he comes to a conclusion that would not make him popular at Hollywood parties. “Every drop of blood that was shed or is being shed in Afghanistan and Iraq is the responsibility of bin Laden and [al] Zawahri and their followers,” he writes. “Was it not al Qaeda that lit the fuse of sectarian civil war in Iraq, through [the actions of al Qaeda in Iraq commander] Abu Musab al-Zarqawi, who killed the Shi’ites en masse? … Can the mentality that caused the loss of an Islamic state that existed in reality, in the Taliban’s Afghanistan – can this mentality be expected to establish an Islamic state in Iraq – in reality, and not on the Internet? And have the Islamic peoples become guinea pigs upon whom bin Laden and al-Zawahri try out their pastime and sport of killing en masse?”Dr. Fadl also faults the attacks of Sept. 11, 2001. “Ramming America has become the shortest road to fame and leadership among the Arabs and Muslims,” he observes. “[T]o cross the ocean to go to your enemy in its own home and destroy one of its buildings, and [in retaliation] it destroys the Taliban state – and then you claim to be a mujahid – only an idiot would do such a thing.”
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The number of Muslims whose death and dispossession al Qaeda has caused in a number of years, in Kenya, Afghanistan, Iraq, Saudi Arabia, Algeria, Pakistan, and elsewhere, is far greater than the number killed or dispossessed by Israel in Palestine and neighboring countries in 60 years. So all the talk of al Qaeda defending Muslims is a tall tale.”
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Finally, Dr. Fadl provides what may be a key insight into how we should fight this war. He says that whenever infidels defeat Muslims, there can be only one explanation: Allah has allowed that as a punishment for the Muslims’ sins. Worth remembering the next time someone tells you that winning battles gets us nowhere, that it only makes martyrs of the militants.
Terror Trends Bulletin 