CORE Metadata, citation and similar papers at core.ac.uk Provided by Calhoun, Institutional Archive of the Naval Postgraduate School Calhoun: The NPS Institutional Archive Theses and Dissertations Thesis Collection 2006-06 Hizib ut-Tahrir a threat behind the legal facade? Schneider, Frank. Monterey California. Naval Postgraduate School http://hdl.handle.net/10945/2702 NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL MONTEREY, CALIFORNIA THESIS HIZB UT-TAHRIR: A THREAT BEHIND A LEGAL FAÇADE? by Frank Schneider June 2006 Thesis Advisor: Vali Nasr Second Reader: James Russell Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK REPORT DOCUMENTATION PAGE Form Approved OMB No. 0704-0188 Public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated to average 1 hour per response, including the time for reviewing instruction, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to Washington headquarters Services, Directorate for Information Operations and Reports, 1215 Jefferson Davis Highway, Suite 1204, Arlington, VA 22202-4302, and to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (0704-0188) Washington DC 20503. 1. AGENCY USE ONLY (Leave blank) 2. REPORT DATE 3. REPORT TYPE AND DATES COVERED June 2006 Master’s Thesis 4. TITLE AND SUBTITLE: Hizb ut-Tahrir: A Threat Behind A Legal Façade? 5. FUNDING NUMBERS 6. AUTHOR(S): Frank Schneider 7. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION NAME(S) AND ADDRESS(ES) 8. PERFORMING ORGANIZATION Naval Postgraduate School REPORT NUMBER Monterey, CA 93943-5000 9. SPONSORING /MONITORING AGENCY NAME(S) AND 10. SPONSORING/MONITORING ADDRESS(ES) AGENCY REPORT NUMBER N/A 11. SUPPLEMENTARY NOTES The views expressed in this thesis are those of the author and do not reflect the official policy or position of the Department of Defense or the U.S. Government. 12a. DISTRIBUTION / AVAILABILITY STATEMENT 12b. DISTRIBUTION CODE Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited 13. ABSTRACT (maximum 200 words) Hizb ut-Tahrir is a transnational Islamic fundamentalist group that operates in more than forty countries with main emphasis in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The group claims to be a political party that proceeds with non-violent means and its ideology being Islam. Its objectives are strictly political, and its main goal is to topple an existing regime to resurrect the caliphate with structures and conditions similar to the ones of early seventh-century (C.E.) Islam. The proposed Islamic state will be responsible for transforming societies in a united Ummah, and for spreading the word of Islam throughout the world. Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT) rejects the modern, secular state structures and democracy as something “man-made,’ humanly derived and “un-Islamic,” and therefore, does not participate in any secular electoral process. However, HT does not reject modern technology and its advantages. This research will focus on Hizb ut-Tahrir, its objectives, and its preferences as the group adjust its strategies according to the political environment in which it is embedded. The thesis will investigate how HT often uses a legal framework to spread its Islamist ideology and how this multifaceted phenomenon is context specific. The conclusion will address policy recommendations that reflect area- and context-related specifics with a special focus on the group’s major threat—its ideology. 14. SUBJECT TERMS 15. NUMBER OF Hizb ut-Tahrir, Hizb al-Tahrir, HT, HuT, HaT, Islamic fundamentalism, caliphate, PAGES transnational group, Islam, political Islam 105 16. PRICE CODE 17. SECURITY 18. SECURITY 19. SECURITY 20. LIMITATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF CLASSIFICATION OF THIS CLASSIFICATION OF ABSTRACT REPORT PAGE ABSTRACT Unclassified Unclassified Unclassified UL NSN 7540-01-280-5500 Standard Form 298 (Rev. 2-89) Prescribed by ANSI Std. 239-18 i THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK ii Approved for public release; distribution is unlimited HIZB UT-TAHRIR: A THREAT BEHIND A LEGAL FAÇADE? Frank Schneider Commander (jG), German Navy Military Academy, Germany, 1991 Submitted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS IN NATIONAL SECURITY AFFAIRS from the NAVAL POSTGRADUATE SCHOOL June 2006 Author: Frank Schneider Approved by: Vali Nasr Thesis Advisor James Russell Second Reader/Co-Advisor Douglas Porch Chairman, Department of National Security Affairs iii THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK iv ABSTRACT Hizb ut-Tahrir is a transnational Islamic fundamentalist group that operates in more than forty countries with main emphasis in Europe, the Middle East, and Asia. The group claims to be a political party that proceeds with non-violent means and whose ideology is Islam. Its objectives are strictly political, and its main goal is to topple an existing regime to resurrect the caliphate with structures and conditions similar to the ones of early seventh-century (C.E.) Islam. The proposed Islamic state will be responsible for transforming society in a united Ummah, and for spreading the word of Islam throughout the world. Hizb ut-Tahrir (HT) rejects the modern, secular state structures and democracy as something “man-made,’ humanly derived and “un-Islamic,” and therefore, does not participate in any secular electoral process. However, HT does not reject modern technology and its advantages. This research will focus on Hizb ut-Tahrir, its objectives, and its preferences as the group adjust its strategies according to the political environment in which it is embedded. The thesis will investigate how HT often uses a legal framework to spread its Islamist ideology and how this multifaceted phenomenon is context specific. The conclusion will address policy recommendations that reflect area- and context-related specifics with a special focus on the group’s major threat—its ideology. v THIS PAGE INTENTIONALLY LEFT BLANK vi TABLE OF CONTENTS I. INTRODUCTION........................................................................................................1 A. THE THREAT OF ISLAMIC FUNDAMENTALISM................................1 B. HIZB UT-TAHRIR AND THE RESURRECTION OF THE CALIPHATE....................................................................................................6 1. History of the Islamic Caliphate.........................................................6 2. The Vision of Hizb ut-Tahrir..............................................................7 C. ARGUMENTS AND RESEARCH STRUCTURE.....................................10 II. HISTORICAL BACKGROUND HIZB UT-TAHRIR...........................................13 A. MIDDLE EAST..............................................................................................13 1. A Complex and Demanding Political Environment .......................13 2. Last Generation Developments in the Main Emphasis Areas .......16 B. EUROPE.........................................................................................................18 1. The Open Playground........................................................................18 2. Germany .............................................................................................19 3. Great Britain ......................................................................................20 C. CENTRAL ASIA ...........................................................................................23 1. Central Asia........................................................................................23 2. South Asia...........................................................................................25 a. Presence in Bangladesh..........................................................26 b. Pakistan ...................................................................................28 III. THE WAY TO SUCCESS.........................................................................................29 A. HIZB UT-TAHRIR’S IDEOLOGY .............................................................29 B. THE CALIPHATE ........................................................................................31 1. Caliphate Structure ...........................................................................31 2. The Constitution for an Islamic State ..............................................34 C. HIZB UT-TAHRIR’S METHODOLOGY..................................................36 D. GROUP STRUCTURE AND MEMBERSHIP...........................................39 1. Party Structure...................................................................................39 2. Recruiting Structure and Membership............................................40 IV. JIHAD .........................................................................................................................45 A. HISTORICAL APPROACH TO JIHAD ....................................................45 1. The Early Centuries of Islam............................................................46 2. Muslim or Muslim? A Question of Quality ....................................51 3. Islam – A Matter of Purity?..............................................................52 4. The Pioneers of Islamic Revival........................................................53 B. HIZB UT-TAHRIR AND JIHAD.................................................................56 1. Hizb ut-Tahrir and Jihad..................................................................56