In an article posted on numerous websites, including the patriotic Iraqi albasrah.net, on Thursday, the Islamic Army [al-Jaysh al-Islami] Iraqi Resistance organization issued a response to statements and activities of the al-Qa‘idah organization in Iraq and its leader Abu ‘Umar al-Baghdadi.

In their message of some 10 pages in length, replete with references to the Qur’an, to statements by the prophet Muhammad, and rulings by well-known classical Islamic scholars of the Hanbali fundamentalist orientation, the Islamic Army stated that it was saddening that as God’s victory approaches closer with every passing day, and as the occupation forces suffer defeats and depart Iraq in shame, Satanic currents and plots should arise and work to split up the ranks of the Mujahideen, rending the fabric of the Resistance and dissipating its strength.

The Islamic Army said that since its foundation it had followed a clear path based on the following 17 guideposts [our summary]:

1. Serious constructive work on the basis of the Qur’an, Sunnah, and program of the early Muslims [Salaf] who combined authenticity with innovation in all fields.

1. Drawing on all available forces to repel the enemies: the Americans and those with them and the pro-Iranian Shi‘i sectarians with any legitimate means that serves the interests of the battle.

1. Going all out to unite the ranks of the supporters of Truth and bind up old wounds so as to serve our goals here and in the hereafter.

1. Taking care of priorities and focusing on the goal without falling into differences over opinions.

1. Realism combined with aspirations leading to successive improvements.  “Each stage has its own appropriate methods for achieving what needs to be achieved so as to move on to the next stage.  These are features of our upright religion.  But there are some who cite texts from the Qur’an in an attempt to use them as a program for the jihad without bearing in mind this characteristic and without grasping the nature of the stages that this program passes through and the relationship of the various texts to the specific stages.”

1. Taking justice and moderation as the basis for words and deeds, neither pushing things to excess nor slighting them.

1. Combining religious propaganda [da‘wah] with jihad and not allowing either one to detract from the other.

1. Coming together on the basis of the program and Islamic legality [ash-Shar‘], not around individual persons and names.

1. Referring to scholars, experts, technicians known for honesty and uprightness in all specializations.

1. Using reasoning [ijtihad] in dealing with the situation and what is appropriate.

1. Drawing benefit from the stories of the early Muslims [Salaf] paying attention to how they dealt with conditions in their times. “As Ibn al-Qayyim said in I‘lam al-Muwaqqi‘in: ‘Legal rulings [fatwa] change with the changing times, places, customs, and conditions, and all of that is part of God’s religion.’”

1. “Distancing ourselves from hastily pronouncing someone an infidel without proof or evidence. For even if an action is infidelity [kufr] that does not mean that everyone who comes out with an infidel action is himself an infidel; not unless all the conditions for that are true and all those things that would make it inapplicable are absent.  We do not say someone is an infidel on the basis of consequences or implications of his statements.  In addition, not every infidel is supposed to be killed, and in addition some people who are not infidels might have to be killed, in accordance with what Islamic legal proofs say and as is laid out in the books of the religious authorities.  We do not call for the death of anyone who faces Makkah when he prays unless this is a proven necessity in his case as irrefutably indicated by Islamic legal proof.”

1. We draw benefits from the experiences of groups that have come before us, learning from what was positive in their experience and avoiding the negative and perfecting our practice by making use of their strong points.

1. We believe in sound morals, in particular in truthfulness, faithfulness, and avoiding immoral behaviors, the ugliest of which are lying and treachery.

1. We are insistent upon keeping our intentions pure, for this is the most important aspect of actions, “the spirit, commander, and driver of activity which becomes correct when the intention is correct, and corrupt when the intention is corrupt.  The Islamic Army stated that anyone whose jihad is aimed at achieving some earthly reward is not real mujahid [holy warrior].  They quoted Ibn Taymiyah as saying, “whoever fights [in a battle] for money is not a mujahid on God’s path.

1. Humility before God, the Almighty.

1. Preserving Islamic brotherhood and its rights, avoiding insulting or slighting language about any other Resistance group, whether large or small, unless it be by way of advice along the lines of the Qur’an and practice of the prophet Muhammad.  The Islamic Army said that mistakes occur on the field of battle and these should be dealt with by means of advice and guidance not defamation and insult. “Mistakes are a natural occurrence,” the Islamic Army statement said, “and correcting them is easy so long as they don’t pile up and become exorbitant and so long as they are not connected with something essentially related to Islamic legality such as the sanctity of the blood, money, and honor of the Muslims.

The Islamic Army’s statement indicated that al-Qa‘idah’s actions had reached a point, however, where “many people have been holding it against the Mujahideen in general and the Islamic Army in particular for remaining silent over the violations of Islamic law by some brothers in the al-Qa‘idah organization.”

The statement noted that they had been involved in fighting the enemies of God – the Americans and pro-Iranian Shi‘i sectarians – had been trying to preserve Islamic unity with all the Mujahideen, did not want the enemy to exploit differences in their ranks, and wanted to give the transgressors a chance to change their behavior.  For those reasons they had kept silence for some time.

But this approach was not effective, the Islamic Army said, adding that things have reached the point that for al-Qa‘idah the most important thing is to attack the Islamic Army in various ways.

The statement said that al-Qa‘idah:

• Insults the Islamic Army and makes false accusations against it, saying it is related to the Baath Party, which it is not.

• Makes bogus charges against the leaders of the Islamic Army.

• Threatens to kill members of the Islamic Army if they do not pledge allegiance to al-Qa‘idah or its other name [“the Islamic State of Iraq”].

• Al-Qa‘idah has actually killed a number of Mujahideen brothers, 30 of them so far, and also attacked other Resistance groups, clashing with the Brigades of the 1920 Revolution – battles with which break out from time to time until now in Abu Ghurayb.  Most recently al-Qa‘idah killed one of its field commanders, Brother Harith Zahir ad-Darri, the statement said.  Al-Qa‘idah has also killed members of the Army of the Mujahideen Resistance organization and members of the Ansar as-Sunnah Resistance group.  Al-Qa‘idah has also threatened the Islamic Front (JAMI‘).

All those Resistance groups have borne the heavy burdens of these clashes quietly in order to preserve the jihadi Resistance effort, the Islamic Army indicated, trying not to be distracted from that course and goal.

But this reticence and patience has only served to encourage al-Qa‘idah even more along this path and they have taken to killing easy targets among the Muslim population who do not go along with them, such as Imams of mosques, muezzins, and other unarmed people, including members of the Association of Muslim Scholars of Iraq.  “The Sunni population has thus become a ‘legitimate target’ for them, in particular the wealthy ones, who are told that either they must pay what al-Qa‘idah wants or they will be killed, and they strive to kill anyone who criticizes them or differs with them and exposes their errors, regarding this as a simple matter.”

The Islamic Army statement said that for al-Qa‘idah, attacks on people’s houses and taking their money have become acceptable.  Accusing people of being infidels and apostates is common practice.  Public condemnations by them are now common as can be readily seen in the sermons of Brother Abu Hamzah and Brother Abu ‘Umar, who throw accusations around in violation of the Qur’an and prophet’s practice.

Abu ‘Umar of al-Qa‘idah has gone beyond making baseless accusations against the Islamic Army, the statement said.  He has also made pronouncements that violate the practice of all the early Muslims and the views of the religious scholars.  He says that the Islamic lands are infidel lands  [diyar kufr].  He has said that fighting the armies of the Arab governments is more necessary than fighting the Crusader occupiers.  He has said that jihad is a personal and absolute individual obligation and became so when al-Andalus fell in 1492.  He has ruled that the groups of People of the Scripture [Ahl al-Kitab] who live in Iraq [i.e., religious minorities] are enemies who may be fought and killed freely.  The Islamic Army noted that no Islamic religious scholars hold such positions.  Abu ‘Umar has also listed his ban on satellite TV and the imposition of the face veil for women among his 19 fundamental principles, even though women who are so covered are subjected to particular abuse and frequently are arrested and imprisoned by Shi‘i sectarian militiamen and puppet army troops at the many checkpoints all over the country.