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Reformulating the Battle of Ideas THE BR OOKINGS PR OJECT ON U.S. RELATIONS WITH THE ISLAMIC WO R LD ANALYSIS PAPER Number 13, August 2008 REFO R MULATING THE BATTLE OF IDEAS : Understanding the Role of Islam in Counterterrorism Policy Rashad Hussain at BROOKINGS al-Husein N. Madhany ACKNOWLEDGMENTS We are grateful to Aysha Chowdhry, Stephen R. Grand, Martin S. Indyk, and Kenneth M. Pollack for their encouraging assistance throughout the entire writing and editing process. Thank you all for providing us with this opportunity and honor to publish with Brookings as you continue to provide great leadership in underwriting policy research on the Muslim World. The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at BROOKINGS III AB OUT THE AUTHO R S Rashad Hussain is a graduate of Yale Law Al-Husein N. Madhany is the Executive School and Harvard University’s Kennedy School Vice President of One Nation, a philanthropic col- of Government. Elected to Phi Beta Kappa, he laborative whose mission is to invest in ideas, peo- holds bachelor’s degrees with highest distinction in ple and organizations working to fulfill America’s philosophy and political science from the Universi- promise of liberty and justice for all. ty of North Carolina-Chapel Hill. Rashad also re- ceived an MA in Arabic and Islamic Studies from Al-Husein is also writing his dissertation at the Harvard’s Department of Near Eastern Languages University of Chicago on Muslim sectarianism and and Civilizations. violence. He is also a Senior Fellow at the Home- land Security Policy Institute in Washington, D.C. Rashad has worked extensively on Capitol Hill, both as an intern in the office of former House Democratic Leader Richard Gephardt during the summer of 2000 and as a legislative aide on the House Judiciary Committee. Rashad is currently a law clerk for Judge Damon Keith on the U.S. Court of Appeals and will join the Department of Justice as a trial attorney after his clerkship. The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at BROOKINGS V TA B LE OF CONTENTS Executive Summary.................................................................ix Introduction . .1 Reformulating the “Battle of Ideas”..................................................3 Defining the Task ............................................................3 Identifying the Audience . 5 Identifying Our Coalition of Allies . 8 Winning the Battle of Ideas – Executing the Stage One Strategy .........................9 Discrediting the Terrorist Ideology . 9 Affirming and articulating the near-unanimous Islamic views concerning jihad, terrorism, and takfir . 10 Misinterpretation of jihad to support terrorism ...................................11 Misuse of takfir to support terrorism...........................................17 Winning the Battle ..........................................................18 Conclusion ......................................................................21 The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at BROOKINGS VII EXECUTIVE SUMMA R Y s the National Commission on the September Fourth, the United States should enlist the assis- A11, 2001 Terrorist Attacks emphasized, signifi- tance of scholars of Islam and the Muslim world cant progress against terrorism cannot be achieved to determine how best to frame the mission of exclusively through the use of military force. This the global counterterrorism mission. Rather than paper argues that in order to win the “battle of framing the conflict as “pro-freedom” or “anti- ideas,” the United States government must carefully Jihadist,” these scholars should analyze the most reformulate its strategy and work with the Muslim persuasive methods for applying Islamic law to world to promote mainstream Islam over terrorist reject terrorism. ideology. The global effort to end terrorism must be more effective in utilizing its strongest ally: Islam. Fifth, the United States should incorporate the There is nothing more persuasive to Muslims than Muslim community as well as scholars of Islam and Islam. If the global coalition to stop Al-Qaeda and of the Muslim world in the policymaking process other terrorists groups is to succeed, it must con- to help craft policies that reflect a more nuanced vince potential terrorists that Islam requires them understanding of those targeted. to reject terrorism. As a part of this effort, this paper recommends the following: Sixth, the United States should promote and dis- tribute scholarship such as the North American First, rather than characterizing counterterrorism Muslims Scholars’ Fatwa against Terrorism and the efforts as “freedom and democracy versus terrorist Aal al-Bayt Institute’s anti-terrorism rulings, which ideology,” policymakers should instead frame the carefully analyze issues such as the use of force in battle of ideas as a conflict between terrorist ele- Islam and conclude that terrorism must be rejected ments in the Muslim world and Islam. unequivocally. Second, policymakers should reject the use of lan- Seventh, recognizing the benefit of strengthening guage that provides a religious legitimization of the authoritative voices of mainstream Islam, the terrorism such as “Islamic terrorism” and “Islamic United States should welcome and encourage the extremist.” They should replace such terminology further development of mainstream Muslim orga- with more specific and descriptive terms such as nizations and moderate institutions. “Al-Qaeda terrorism.” Finally, the United States should continue to pro- Third, the United States should seek to build a mote effective economic and social reforms and to broad and diverse coalition of partners, not limited work with allies in crafting fair and peaceful resolu- to those who advocate Western-style democracy, tions to conflicts in the Middle East and in other and avoid creating a dichotomy between freedom parts of the Muslim world, as these conflicts are and Islamic society. Such a coalition should incor- often the preeminent grievances fueling extremist porate those who may have political differences, so violence. long as they reject terrorism. The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at BROOKINGS IX INT R ODUCTION mplementing a more effective national security assess how traditional Islamic theological doctrine Istrategy in the coming decades will require the can be used to advance the objectives of counterter- deployment of perhaps the most potent tool for rorism, and how misunderstanding such concepts combating terrorism: Islam. Since September 11, can hinder our efforts, alienate the Muslim world, 2001, policymakers have recognized that a multi- and undermine international security. faceted approach will be necessary not just to stop the execution of terrorism, but also to prevent the Specifically, as American policymakers and some creation of terrorists. Such an approach generally of our European allies have begun to recognize, consists of a three-stage strategy: (1) working with attempting to counter what some governmental the international community to undermine re- and non-governmental officials have characterized cruitment by discrediting the terrorist platform and as “Islamic” or “jihadist” terrorism by promot- ideology; (2) gathering intelligence and disrupting ing freedom and democracy will require a careful terrorist planning and financing; and (3) stopping analysis of how Muslims understand such concepts. attacks before they are executed. This paper will ad- For example, because the vast majority of Muslims dress stage one—what the 9/11 Commission has view Islam as fundamentally opposed to terror and characterized as the “battle of ideas”—and will many Muslims associate American freedom and de- argue that winning this battle will require a more mocracy with immorality and impermissible secu- effective strategy for interacting with the Muslim larism, does it make sense to advertise our efforts world. Stage one victories are crucial, because if as anti-“Islamic terrorism,” “pro-freedom,” and terrorist recruitment and ideology are not under- “pro-democracy?” Or, might it be more effective, mined, winning stages two and three will require to focus on the notion that terrorism is antithetical the international community to overcome increas- to the teachings of Islam? Understanding such con- ingly insurmountable obstacles. cepts and addressing such questions will be criti- cal in better understanding doctrinal motivations, Although any attempt to categorize the beliefs of discrediting misinformation, building consensus 1.3 billion people would necessarily entail gross on shared beliefs, and formulating strategy more generalization, policymakers must attempt to ana- effectively. lyze how the West’s understanding of Islam can both positively and negatively influence interactions The Cold War resulted in a proliferation of scholar- with the Muslim world in the coming decades. As ship on the former Soviet Union and the Russian Western nations seek to promote reforms, we must language—fueled by substantial federal government The Saban Center for Middle East Policy at BROOKINGS 1 as well as non-governmental funding1—and schol- a sophisticated cultural, religious, or linguistic un- ars in these fields were both routinely consulted derstanding of the regions we engage. and placed in the highest echelons of government. Indeed, Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice and As the 9/11 Commission emphasized, significant Secretary of Defense Robert Gates benefited from progress against terrorism cannot be achieved exclu- such programs and entered government as trained sively though the use of military force. This paper
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