The Complete Infidel's Guide to ISIS (39 page)

Al-Baghdadi predicted that the oppression would soon be over, and Muslims would rule everywhere:

           
Soon, by Allah’s permission, a day will come when the Muslim will walk everywhere as a master, having honor, being revered, with his head raised high and his dignity preserved. Anyone who dares to offend him will be disciplined, and any hand that reaches out to harm him will be cut off.
²³

That great day was now dawning:

           
So let the world know that we are living today in a new era. Whoever was heedless must now be alert. Whoever was sleeping must now awaken. Whoever was shocked and amazed must comprehend. The Muslims today have a loud, thundering statement, and possess heavy boots. They have a statement that will cause the world to hear and understand the meaning of terrorism, and boots that will trample the idol of nationalism, destroy the idol of democracy and uncover its deviant nature.
²⁴

(Apparently the caliph is not a big fan of democracy.)

It was therefore time for the Muslim community worldwide to “free yourself from the shackles of weakness, and stand in the face of tyranny, against the treacherous rulers—the agents of the crusaders and the atheists, and the guards of the jews [sic].”
²⁵

After the fall of the last caliphate, al-Baghdadi said, “the disbelievers were able to weaken and humiliate the Muslims, dominate them in every region, plunder their wealth and resources, and rob them of their rights”—by “attacking and occupying their lands, placing their treacherous agents in power to rule the Muslims with an iron fist, and spreading dazzling and deceptive slogans such as: civilization, peace, co-existence, freedom, democracy, secularism, baathism, nationalism, and patriotism, among other false slogans. Those rulers continue striving to enslave the Muslims, pulling them away from their religion with those slogans.”
²⁶

(Peace and
ence don’t seem to appeal to him either.)

Justifying Terrorism

Al-Baghdadi said this state of affairs presented Muslims with an unhappy choice:

           
So either the Muslim pulls away from his religion, disbelieves in Allah, and disgracefully submits to the manmade shirk (polytheistic) laws of the east and west, living despicably and disgracefully as a follower, by repeating those slogans without will and honor, or he lives persecuted, targeted, and expelled, to end up being killed, imprisoned, or terribly tortured, on the accusation of terrorism.
²⁷

According to the caliph, it’s not such a bad thing to be labeled a terrorist:

           
Because terrorism is to disbelieve in those slogans and to believe in Allah. Terrorism is to refer to Allah’s law for judgment. Terrorism is to worship Allah as He ordered you. Terrorism is to refuse humiliation, subjugation, and subordination [to the kuffar—infidels]. Terrorism is for the Muslim to live as a Muslim, honorably with might and freedom. Terrorism is to insist upon your rights and not give them up.
²⁸

He then retailed a list of supposed infidel atrocities, concluding bitterly:

           
Terrorism does not include the insulting of the Lord of Mightiness, the cursing of the religion, and the mockery of our Prophet (peace be upon him). Terrorism does not include the slaughtering of Muslims in Central Africa like sheep, while no one weeps for them and denounces their slaughter.

                
All this is not terrorism. Rather it is freedom, democracy, peace, security, and tolerance! Sufficient for us is Allah, and He is the best Disposer of affairs.
²⁹

But now Muslims could be proud again:

           
Raise your head high, for today—by Allah’s grace—you have a state and khilafah, which will return your dignity, might, rights, and leadership. It is a state where the Arab and non-Arab, the white man and black man, the easterner and westerner are all brothers. It is a khilafah that gathered the Caucasian, Indian, Chinese, Shami, Iraqi, Yemeni, Egyptian, Maghribi (North African), American, French, German, and Australian. Allah brought their hearts together, and thus, they became brothers by His grace, loving each other for the sake of Allah, standing in a single trench, defending and guarding each other, and sacrificing themselves for one another. Their blood mixed and became one, under a single flag and goal, in one pavilion, enjoying this blessing, the blessing of faithful brotherhood. If kings were to taste this blessing, they would abandon their kingdoms and fight over this grace. So all praise and thanks are due to Allah.
³⁰

Al-Baghdadi then called on Muslims to “rush” to the Islamic State, because “it is your state. Rush, because Syria is not for the Syrians, and Iraq is not for the Iraqis. The earth is Allah’s. ‘Indeed, the earth belongs to Allah. He causes to inherit it whom He wills of His servants. And the [best] outcome is for the righteous’ [Al-A’raf: 128]. The State is a state for all Muslims. The land is for the Muslims, all the Muslims. O Muslims everywhere, whoever is capable of performing hijrah (emigration) to the Islamic State, then let him do so, because hijrah to the land of Islam is obligatory.”
³¹

The caliph especially urged professionals to heed this call:

           
We make a special call to the scholars, fuqaha’ (experts in Islamic jurisprudence), and callers, especially the judges, as well as people with military, administrative, and service expertise, and
medical doctors and engineers of all different specializations and fields.
³²

The warriors of jihad should not worry about the formidable military might of the infidels, for success would come through obedience to Allah, not by means of weapons:

           
O soldiers of the Islamic State, do not be awestruck by the great numbers of your enemy, for Allah is with you. I do not fear for you the numbers of your opponents, nor do I fear your neediness and poverty, for Allah (the Exalted) has promised your Prophet (peace be upon him) that you will not be wiped out by famine, and your enemy will not himself conquer you and violate your land. Allah placed your provision under the shades of your spears. Rather, I fear for you your own sins. Accept each other and do not dispute. Come together and do not argue. Fear Allah in private and public, openly and secretly. Stay away from sins. Expel from your ranks those who openly commit sin. Be wary of pride, haughtiness, and arrogance. Do not become proud on account of gaining some victories. Humble yourselves before Allah. Do not be arrogant towards Allah’s slaves. Do not underestimate your enemy regardless of how much strength you gain and how much your numbers grow.
³³

He called upon them also to “persevere in reciting the Quran with comprehension of its meanings and practice of its teachings. This is my advice to you. If you hold to it, you will conquer Rome and own the world, if Allah wills.”
³⁴

It would be an understatement to say that the new caliph’s inaugural speech was an essentially Islamic call. It was nothing else
but
Islamic—as
was the Islamic State’s statement declaring the caliphate. The fact that both statements contained threats of the imminent conquest of non-Muslim lands only pointed up the dangers of the willful ignorance of Western authorities in insisting that the Islamic State was not Islamic: they were depriving themselves of the only means by which the outlook, motives, and goals of the Islamic State could be properly understood.

The Caliph’s Wristwatch—and the West’s Myopia

Instead of paying attention to what the caliph said and its implications, the Western media opted to focus on his wristwatch. Oliver Duggan wrote in the
Telegraph
, “His choice of accessory, which is believed to be either a Rolex, Sekonda or £3,500 Omega seamaster, has been highlighted as jarring with the content of his controversial speech.”
³⁵
The
New York Post
quoted a Muslim calling the caliph a hypocrite: “Why does the ‘Caliph’ wear a fancy watch if the possessions of this life ultimately mean nothing?”
³⁶
The UK’s
Daily Mail
chortled: “Terror warlord al-Baghdadi denounces the West—but is spotted wearing ‘£3,500 James Bond wristwatch.’”
³⁷
“‘Follow my every word and you too will have a Rolex’; Islamic State leader wears luxury watch to first-ever public address,” laughed Twitchy.
³⁸
“ISIS Leader Mocked for Wearing Expensive Wristwatch in First Public Appearance,” said Daniel Politi in Slate.
³⁹

Apparently journalists didn’t know about Islam’s doctrines regarding plunder and the spoils of war. By wearing his expensive watch, the caliph was likely signaling to Muslims worldwide that if they joined his caliphate, they, too, would share in the spoils of war and be able to plunder the infidels of their expensive goods. In this, they would be following in Muhammad’s example. But Western reporters and pundits persist in their ignorant assumption that Islam and its Prophet must somehow have the exact same attitude towards wealth as Christians and their Savior—after all, Islam and Christianity are both “religion.”

The Caliphates That Nobody Noticed

Lending weight to the Islamic State’s case to be the true caliphate that can rightfully demand the allegiance of the entire Muslim community worldwide was the fact that other Muslim groups in the modern world have tried and failed to do what the Islamic State has done.