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Suicide Bombing: Muslims divided over its legitimacy in Islam

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New Delhi, Feb 19: The pre-recorded video message of Adil Ahmad Dar, the suicide bomber of Jaish-e-Mohammedn (JeM) involved in Pulwama attack, shows he was convinced that his action was right in the eyes of Allah and will find place in jannat (heaven).

Suicide Bombing: Muslims divided over its legitimacy in Islam

However, the Muslim world is divided over suicide bombing's legitimacy in Islam.

A suicide bomber chooses own death to kill enemies, and in the case of a Muslim suicide bomber, to kill non-believers.

How Jaish pieced together a sophisticated Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive DeviceHow Jaish pieced together a sophisticated Vehicle Borne Improvised Explosive Device

The handlers use suicide bombers as a weapon of psychological warfare to send a message to their enemies that "we are ready to die to kill you for a cause".

There are three important components of suicide bombing operations: a person who is willing to die; an organization to train suicide bombers; and acceptance of suicide bomber's act by his/her community.

In the Pulwama terror attack; Adil Ahmad Dar fulfilled first component, the JeM second, and radical elements in Jammu and Kashmir, Pakistan and elsewhere fulfilled the third.

Though the concept of suicide bombing dates back to 1881, it is not only a weapon of terrorists.

During the World War II, Japanese Army pilots had gone on suicide mission by colliding their explosive laden aircrafts and boats with the naval ships of the Allied forces.

The Islamist terrorism started using suicide bombings in the early 1990s when Hezbollah and other Lebanese terror organisations started using human bombs against their targets.

After that, suicide bombing has become a favourite tool for the Islamist terror organizations all over the world as they have succeeded in making those suicide bombers believe that "as per Islam, their martyrdom will secure them a place in heaven".

Since dead do not come back to tell whether they found place in paradise or not, so the only option left is to debate whether suicide bombing is as per Islam or not.

The Muslim scholars and terrorist organisations are divided over the question and have their own definition of martyrdom and suicide.

Those who support suicide bombing refuse to use word 'suicide' in their definition of Jihad. They call it martyrdom operations.

Jaish bomber released a chilling video before striking at PulwamaJaish bomber released a chilling video before striking at Pulwama

For example, Taliban say 'suicide bombing' is a false term for jihad martyrdom attacks.

Those who are against say suicide bombings are haram (forbidden) in Islam. They favour suicide attacks, which are those operations where the fighters are committed to fight till their last breath, but also have option of escape, if possible.

Their argument is that killing enemies by detonating oneself is not martyrdom.

Interestingly, the two terror organizations active in Jammu and Kashmir -- Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT) and Jaish-e-Mohammed (JeM) - are also divided over this issue.

Research suggests that while the LeT considers suicide bombings as haram and prefers suicide attacks, the JeM is okay with suicide bombings as well as suicide attacks.

Though many Muslim clerics have often issued fatwas denouncing suicide attacks as well as suicide bombings, but the way Islamist terror organizations continue to get new recruits who are ready to die in the name of Islam shows that occasional fatwas are not sufficient.

A fact is that the world will have to face Islamist terrorism. Considering this, at least Muslim scholars and clerics all over the world should find ways and means to dispel a common notion that all Muslims support terrorism, which is not a fact.

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