By Dr. Aaidh al-Qarni

Omar Ibn al-Khattab said: “we were the lowest of all people and then Allah gave us glory by Islam, and if we seek glory in anything other than that which Allah has given us, He will disgrace us!” It was with this maxim that Muslims proudly ruled three-quarters of the world for centuries. The Arab media outlets and publications affiliated to vanquished [political] trends like Pan-Arabism, Nasserism, Baathism, and Marxism have attacked Saudi Arabia for its adherence to Islam, describing us as narrow-minded. However King Faisal responded to this by saying “if adherence to Islam is conservative, then we are conservative. As Muslims, we did not enjoy any glorious history except after the rise of Islam. Before Islam we, as Arabs, worshipped idols, ate dead animals, killed one another, and severed ties of kinship. But then God sent Prophet Muhammad – peace be upon him – to us, and he revealed God’s word ‘we sent thee not, but as a Mercy for all creatures’ [Surat al-Anbiya; Verse 107]. Peace, justice, freedom, and equality, were brought to the entire world through Islam.”

 It is incumbent upon any ruler of a Muslim country to explicitly profess his [religious] identity, creed and beliefs without shame or reserve, because Muslims do not seek any other faith but Islam. If a ruler has any doubt about that, he can organize a ballot or referendum to know his people’s opinions on this issue. For instance, westerners who embrace Christianity would not accept being governed by a Muslim ruler, who has a different faith and set of beliefs than them.

Would America accept the presidency of a man who professes his belief that there is no God but Allah and that Muhammad is his Messenger? America would never accept this, and the same goes for Britain, France, Germany, and others. All these countries believe that people and their ruler should share the same faith. For example, would the Jewish State of Israel hand over its affairs to a Muslim, Christian or even Marxist leader who does not believe in Judaism? It would never agree to that.

If this is the case, why were some Arab and Muslim peoples forced to install lap-dog rulers who fought Islam in the name of Pan-Arabism, Baathism or Communism? Why not let the Arab and Muslim peoples determine the destiny of their own countries?

Iraq is the land of Islam, the cradle of several ancient civilizations, the birthplace of the Abbasid Caliphate and the homeland of many Grand Imams like Imam Abu Hanifa, Imam al-Shafe’i, Imam Ibn Hanbal and Imam al-Ghazali. If granted the choice, would the Iraqi people have accepted the rule of Saddam Hussein, the Baathist who set aside Islam – the faith of his own people – and ruled through absolute dictatorship? Of course not, but the Iraqi people were not consulted during his era!

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