Nationalpost.com

In a bid to counter ISIS, Jordan gives orders to Clerics: Preach moderate Islam- or else

ZARQA, Jordan — Several hundred robed Muslim clerics recently packed themselves into an auditorium to hear the minister of Islamic affairs issue their new marching orders. The meeting was mandatory.

“You clerics are our ground forces against the extremists,” Hayel Dawood told them.

Then he made himself clear: Preach moderate Islam — or else.

“Once you cross the red line,” Dawood intoned, “you will not be let back in.”

Stunned by the rapid advance of the Islamic State in neighbouring Syria and Iraq, Jordan has fortified its borders and put its air force and intelligence service to work in the U.S.-led alliance against the self-declared caliphate in Syria and Iraq. To counter the low thrum of support for extremist movements on the home front, the kingdom is not only prosecuting Islamic State recruiters and cracking down on anyone waving an Islamic State banner, but it has turned its attention to the nation’s 7,000 mosques.

Jordanian authorities have begun a campaign to coax — and, when necessary, pressure — Muslim clerics to preach messages of peaceful Islam from their pulpits. The main targets are Jordan’s more than 5,000 imams, including lay clerics and those on the government dole, who give the traditional sermon that follows Friday prayers.

Abu Bakr Al-Baghdadi, the leader of the Islamic State of Iraq and Al-Sham (ISIS) was wounded in a United States-led coalition air strike, Iraqi officials said Sunday.

Both Iraqi defence and interior ministry officials released statements claiming Baghdadi had been injured in the attack on an ISIS convoy of vehicles on Friday night, without elaborating on the extent of his injuries.

There was mounting speculation that Baghdadi had in fact been killed, which, if true, would signify a major victory for the coalition in “cutting the head off the snake.” However, it is not the first time that the jihadist leader is reported to have been killed.

“I can’t absolutely confirm that Baghdadi has been killed,” said Gen, Nicholas Houghton, Britain’s Chief of the Defence Staff. “Probably it will take some days to have absolute confirmation.”

Jordan’s security apparatus has always kept a close eye on known radicals and has pursued a policy in the past of allowing even prominent Al-Qaeda-affiliated clerics to preach as long as they watched what they said. The idea: It was best to grant opposition figures a sliver of political space, to better monitor, co-opt and control them.

But with the sudden rise of the Islamic State, Jordan’s religious authorities are taking a more active stance. The Islamic affairs minister is touring the kingdom to announce new rules in a remarkable series of meetings for anyone who wants access to the Friday flock.

Specifically, Jordan is demanding that preachers refrain from any speech against King Abdullah II and the royal family, slander against leaders of neighbouring Arab states, incitement against the United States and Europe, and sectarianism and support for jihad and extremist thought.

Dawood also suggests that clerics keep sermons brief.

“Fifteen minutes is OK,” he told the crowd in Zarqa. He reminded them that the prophet Muhammad “was short and to the point — often 10 minutes, no more.”

For those who adhere to the new guidelines, there are government salaries of about $600 a month, religious workshops, travel assistance for pilgrimages to Mecca, and weekly guidance.

The ministry is providing suggested topics for Friday sermons, available for download from the government’s Facebook page. Recent suggestions included:

—Oct. 17 — “Security and Stability: the Need for Unity in a Time of Crisis.”

—Oct. 24 — “The Hijra New Year — Lessons Derived From the Prophet’s Flight From Mecca.”

—Oct. 31 — “The Beginning of the Rainy Season — Safety Measures in Preparation for Winter.”

For those who stray? Banishment from the pulpit for life.

The worst offenders, those who openly praise the Islamic State, might be hauled into the newly empowered State Security Court to face charges under the country’s enhanced anti-terrorism law.

Jordan’s soft-power press for moderate Islam, a personal project of Abdullah, has been applauded by U.S. officials for its proactive approach and its emphasis on Islam’s positive messages of charity, respect and tolerance.

Some clerics, though, bristle at being told what to preach. What some see as “moderate Islam,” others decry as “state Islam,” foisted on them by a pro-Western monarchy kowtowing to foreign powers.