MIDDLE EAST ISLAMISM IN THE EUROPEAN ARENA By Reuven Paz* An important new development has been the extension of Middle Eastern movements and ideologies to other parts of the world, especially Europe. This article evaluates how these groups and their ideas are extending the reach of Middle East politics to other parts of the world. This has been particularly true of the “jihad movement,” generally associated with Usama Bin Ladin but involving many other forces and doctrines. This change is also having a feedback into Middle Eastern issues which must now be taken into account in analyzing the region. The development of new forms of Islamist Muslims to make them a factor in the region’s movements and ideologies, often called the political issues. These Middle Eastern activities jihadist movement, has brought Middle Eastern range from the development of radical Islamist doctrines and political groupings to other parts websites--now based in such countries as Italy, of the world, notably Europe. This factor was the United Kingdom, Germany, Denmark, both made more visible and intensified by the Sweden, and Poland (1)--to the development of September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on entire political parties and intended “second America and subsequent events. Wide-ranging fronts” in fighting Middle Eastern conflicts. investigations uncovered a large infrastructure Equally, there is a question of how Muslim of radical Islamist terrorist cells, groups identity in Europe will relate to Middle Eastern supporting violence, and sympathizers for these issues. There are many factors involved in this viewpoints. process. A Muslim intelligentsia has slowly For many decades, of course, Western ideas emerged to call for recognition of the Muslim and organizations have been transferred to the presence, triggering debates in European public Middle East, but now this process has become a opinion. Coordination among Muslims in two-way street. Those who study the Middle Europe is perhaps encouraged by the East must now also take into account events, unification of Europe itself. Religious solidarity leaders, organizations, and doctrines which also bridges ethnic and national divisions have their feet solidly planted on European soil among them. Another aspect is an Islamist while their thoughts and actions are in large tendency paralleling that in the Middle East, part aimed at Middle Eastern outcomes. Indeed, what the French scholar Olivier Roy has called as will be shown below, the growth of Islamist the phenomenon of “born-again Muslims.” movements in Europe is in part due to the There is also, of course, a more moderate conscious efforts and ideological justifications “liberal” Islam which parallels the historical of their Middle Eastern counterparts. trend of Christianity in Europe but its influence On one level, this new feature can be related on Muslim publics in Europe seems relatively to the familiar realm of exile politics. Many of weak. The biggest-selling books in Islamic these groupings are in fact created and bookstores are those dealing with Islam’s influenced by individuals or political fundamentals in accordance with Salafi trends organizations which seek to have a direct in the Arab world. influence on events in the Middle East. At the Three distinct but interrelated trends have an same time, though, there is an attempt to impact on European Muslims as they do on mobilize and shape the activities of European Middle Eastern Muslims. First, there is Middle East Review of International Affairs, Vol. 6, No. 3 (September, 2002) 67 Reuven Paz traditional Islam, which is accepted in some Albania, Kosovo, Chechnya, the Philippines, form or another by the relatively silent majority Indonesia, and Kashmir. of Muslims. Second, there is the politicized --The collapse of the Soviet bloc and doctrine of Islamic movements that seek a state discrediting of Communism and the renewal of governed by Islamic law (Shari’a). These old nationalist ideologies and conflicts. groups recruit support through political efforts --The failure of Arab nationalism to solve alongside social welfare and cultural activities. the problems of their societies or to win The most important of this trend is the Muslim victories over foreign foes. Brotherhood. Finally, there is radical Islamism --The shift of the center of gravity of which demands fulfillment of violent jihad as a Islamist activity from the Arab world to the duty, rejecting rival interpretations and making margins of the Middle East or to Europe war on governments even when their rulers are following the success of Arab governments to Muslims. counter this radical phenomenon in their homelands. THE CULTURE OF GLOBAL JIHAD --The liberal attitude of European The term Global Jihad characterizes the governments which accepted Muslim latest trend among Middle Eastern Islamist immigrants or refugees and tolerated their groups. While previously emphasis was usually religious and political activities without trying put on revolutions within specific countries to impose on them a set of demands for trying to overthrow their societies and regimes, assimilationist conformity. priority was now to be put on a direct struggle --The belief among some Islamist elements against the United States, Israel, and at times that focusing on an external enemy, which is European states. defined as the eternal fight between God and Among the important elements inspiring this the Devil, right and wrong, light and darkness-- development were: in Islamic terms between al-Haqq and al-Batil-- --The failure of revolutionary movements to would bring them victory. attain victory through staging revolutions in In many ways, this new approach can be different Arab states. called a counter-globalization in which Islam --Difficulties for both individuals and rather than Westernization is to be the dominant societies in coping with Western modernization force. The battle is to be waged by a and its values, both for Muslims living in the “brotherhood of the oppressed” (Mustadh`afin) West and those in Arab societies affected by it. against Western conspiracies and the “betrayal” --Relative ignorance on the part of many of secular-oriented Muslim societies and young Muslims regarding elements of Islam as nationalist regimes. a result of spreading secularism. This allowed One of the best definitions of Global Jihad them to accept claims that certain heretical was written by Omar Abu Omar, alias Abu ideas were actually the only proper form of Qutadah, a Palestinian living under the Islam. protection of political asylum in London since --The growing transnational links among 1993 and one of the phenomenon’s main different parts of the Muslim world, both in the ideologues. The Jihad movements are “those greater Middle East area and among groups and organizations that were established intermingled Muslims in Europe. This is partly in order to eliminate the evil (Taghutiyyah) the product of improved Western technology, heretic (Kafirah) regimes in the apostate especially communications. countries (Bilad al-Riddah), and to revive the --A series of conflicts which seemed to pit Islamic government that will gather the nation Muslims against non-Muslims in such places under the Islamic Caliphate.” (2) outside the Arab world as Afghanistan, Bosnia, In addition, Abu Omar claims true Jihad movements differ from other Islamic groups in 68 Middle East Review of International Affairs, Vol. 6, No. 3 (September, 2002) Middle East Islamism in the European Arena Muslim countries that “seek political legitimacy Muslims today. There is Haman, too. of the ‘heretic’ regimes.” They do not seek to According to the author, “The two of them are reform the existing regimes but to eliminate two poles of evil, oppression, and corruption. them. What is most important, he continues, is Therefore, no one should wonder if Haman in not armed struggle in itself but having “the our days is the United Kingdom, such as comprehensive civilizational view that comes Pharaoh is the United States.” Haman is Great from the perception of the true unity [of Allah] Britain, which was also responsible for the (Tawhid)…the unity of serving (`Ibadah) and oppression of Muslims “in Iraq, Palestine, following (Ittiba`) the Lord.” Its vision is of a Afghanistan, and the rest of the Muslim world.” future “world totally controlled by Islam.” In combating this evil, the author continues, Abu Omar suggested in 1994 a new term to “The one who represents these days the eternal illustrate these themes, the “Jihad movement of truth is Sheikh Usama bin Ladin.” future hope” (Al-Harakah al-Jihadiyyat al- The conclusion is that the end of the United Amal). He defined this as “a movement of States is very close. Indeed, “the United States Salafi worldview, perceptions, doctrines, and will not exist to see the year of 2004!” And, way.” It would be “totally cleansed from any since the last Qur’anic chapter to mention remains of the wrong Sufi doctrine; does not Pharaoh is The Dawn (Al-Fajr), the author says belong to any school or trend besides that of the that “the destruction of the United States is Qur’an and Sunnah.” He did not think the going to be the dawn of the Muslim believers.” existing movements had achieved this goal “but Western civilization might view such writings they are in the right path.” To do so, the as nonsense. Yet this kind of literature became movements “should open new arenas for the popular in Islamic circles following the Jihad outside their countries.” This required September attacks, similar to the phenomenon unity to wage the battle under a single that happened at the time of Iraq’s 1990 commander, whom all other leaders should invasion of Kuwait and the war that took place serve. the following year. A short while after the September 2001 This booklet was the start of a series of attacks in the United States, a Palestinian books, articles, religious rulings, and other Islamist scholar published a paper entitled, forms of writings published primarily in “The Great Qur’an predicts the destruction of numerous websites over the Internet.