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In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Dear questioner, we would like to thank you for the great confidence you place in us, and we implore Allah Almighty to help us serve His cause and render our work for His Sake.
Scholars agree that it is an individual obligation to use all possible means to defend the homeland against invasion. This means that not only men have to fight, but also excused people, such as women and the old, must participate.
In addition, any external forces that go to Iraq to support the U.S. invasion inside Iraq are considered invaders as well. Hence, they are to be treated in the same manner as the U.S.-led forces; the invaded people must resist them by all possible means.
However, Muslim forces must never participate in fighting against Iraq. But if it happened that Muslims took part, the popular resistance forces in Iraq should try their best to avoid fighting them. If they did not manage to avoid them, there would be no blame on them.
Answering your question, Dr. Ahmad Yusuf Sulaiman, Professor of Islamic Shari`ah at the Faculty of Dar `Ulum, Cairo University, states the following:
“No one can deny that fighting the invaders is an individual obligation, so that all people in an invaded country, men, women, old people and even children, have to participate in resisting the invaders.
If international forces are sent to Iraq by U.N. resolution to maintain peace and security in the country, without extending any support to the invaders, then the popular resistance forces in Iraq must not fight them. If, on the other hand, they have gone there to support the invaders and add legality to their occupation of the land, then they are in the same position of the invaders and should be resisted by all available defense mechanisms.
Muslim forces should never take part in such invasion, and if they do, it would be a grave mistake. But the forces of popular resistance must try their best to avoid shooting the Muslim forces. However, if they could not manage anyway to avoid the Muslim forces, then there is no blame on them.”
Shedding more light on the issue, the eminent Muslim scholar, Dr. `Abdel-Fattah Idrees, Professor of Comparative Jurisprudence at Al-Azhar University, adds:
“The U.S.-led forces are no more than invaders of the Iraqi people. So the Iraqis have to resist them. Allah Almighty says: "Allah will not give the disbelievers any way (of success) against the believers." (An-Nisa': 141)
Exegetes of the Qur'an explain this verse to mean that disbelievers must never rule over the believers. So the Muslims are entitled to resist invasion by all possible means to defend themselves and their lands. This is one of the urgent cases of jihad in which fighting becomes an individual obligation on all people in the country, men, women, old people and children.
It is principally impermissible for Arab and Muslim forces to participate in such invasion. But if Arab and Muslim are forces sent by the U.N. for the sake of maintaining peace and security until a fair government is established in Iraq, then the mission of such Arab and Muslim forces should not exceed peace maintenance. It is in this case only that Arab and Muslim forces may participate. But they are not permitted to use violence against the invaded people. Otherwise they would be no more than invaders or supporters to invasion and must be resisted.
If any Arab or Muslim forces participated to maintain security of the invaders, then they are to be treated as invaders.”
Moreover, Dr. Ahmad Abu-Al-Wafa, Professor of International Law, Faculty of Law at Cairo University, concludes:
“The status quo in Iraq indicates that the main purpose of sending international forces to Iraq is to avoid daily losses in the U.S.-led forces there.
Sending international forces to Iraq has two possible interpretations:
First, they are support to occupation. In other words, the
international forces would be placed as shields for the U.S. and the British forces in Iraq. In this case, it is permissible to fight them.
Second, they are sent to evacuate U.S. and British forces from Iraq and giving the reins of power there to the Iraqis themselves. In this case they are not to be fought. Rather, the way should be paved for them to carry out the mission they are assigned with.
But if they stay for a long time with the presence of the U.S.-led forces in Iraq, then they must be fought and dismissed.”
You can also read:
Assisting the Occupation in Killing or Capturing Iraqis
Iraqis' Obligation to Resist Occupation
If you have any further questions, please don't hesitate to write back!
May Allah guide you to the straight path, and guide you to that which pleases Him, Amen.
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