Nostradamus is one of the most famous authors of prophecies, as we all know. He is best known for his book Les Propheties, which consists of one unrhymed and 941 rhymed quatrains, grouped into nine sets of 100 and one of 42, called "Centuries". Experts have tried to interpret the prophecies of Nostradamus some times successfully and sometimes unsuccessfully. That no one has been able to predict the future events in advance using prophecies of Nostradamus is another story altogether. Most of the prophecies have been found to mean an event that has already occurred. Nostradamus’s prophecies do predict emergence and rule of Napolean & Hitler. The people who have painstakingly tried to interpret the writings of Nostradamus also claim that he predicted “The Event” that has changed the world today – yes, the tragic “9/11”.
One such prophecy that most of the experts treat as logical is about the emergence of a leader of immense power and influence (in or after 2000 AD) who wears a “turban” and has a “beard” and who will be “a great King of Terror” – the “Antichrist”, who will create havoc on earth and who will be the ultimate “Prince”. Well – who knows who that man is? What I will try and prove to you today is that irrespective of whether Nostradamus was right or wrong – there cannot be an iota of doubt that there is one man who indeed is slowly becoming “The” leader of the world akin to an Emperor/King of Terror/Prince (albeit without a defined kingdom) – and he is Usama Bin Laden.
There is no denying the fact that Usama (Osama) Bin Laden seems to enjoy a huge following across national and international borders. Not many – other than The Pope can claim to such devotion towards himself in the world that we live in. George Bush, Tony Blair and the gang may keep chanting about the terrorist that Usama is – but they too are aware of the fact that he is slowly gaining in popularity amongst his Arab and Moslem brethrens. What they would never acknowledge officially is the fact that he has followers around the world who would be ready to lay their lives for him and would do it willingly. Something neither Bush, nor Tony nor any of the so-called leaders of other countries can boost of. They may claim loyalty of their own countrymen – but the allegiance stops there. They can force people/leaders of some other countries to follow them – but there are no guaranties of steady support. Whereas Usama is the light under which all the disgruntled people of a particular religion stand – and mind you – they stand united. That difference alone, makes Usama much more powerful than any other leader in this world. And don’t have any misgivings on the number of followers that he has – you would be surprised.
Are we getting carried away here? Hardly so. I have been reading and researching a lot on Usama for quite some time and I, through this article, propose to prove that he indeed is larger than life figure and does qualify to be called the “first among equal”. I shall try and put my perspective to the world order, as I see it. If, what I believe is indeed true – we sure are staring down a big dark barrel, which dare I say, is quoted with red-hot blood. I am sure – by the time I have finished this article – you would be asking yourself if the time has come for the world to brace itself to another bloody war. Let me also state that this war will not be fought between the “Axis of Evil” and the “Free world”. It will be a war between the leaders/people of the “so-called” Free World and the devout followers of Islam, led in majority by a man called Usama Bin Laden.
So then, let us get some history lessons first.
Who is Usama Bin Laden?
Born in Saudi Arabia in 1957 to a wealthy Yemeni father and a Syrian mother, he had a comfortable childhood. His father made his fortune from the construction business and had close ties with the Saudi royal family. Young Bin Laden had religious leanings right from his childhood. At school and university, he was a member of the Muslim Brotherhood.
In 1977, Egypt signed a peace treaty with Israel. Many claim that this was the time when Usama bin Laden began his jihad. When the Soviets invaded Afghanistan in 1979, he went to Pakistan, where he met Afghan rebel leaders resisting the occupation. He returned to Saudi Arabia to collect money and supplies for the Afghan resistance, the Mujahideen. He made further trips to Pakistan and Afghanistan, delivering aid and arms, and eventually joining the fight against the Soviets. As a wealthy Saudi and a military commander, Bin Laden was respected for his organizational skills, his bravery and, above all, for his ability to survive. He stood out and acquired a huge following. Egyptians, Lebanese, Turks and others - numbering thousands - joined their Afghan Muslim brothers in the struggle against a Soviet ideology that spurned religion. Eventually, he built camps for Arab Mujahideen fighters inside Afghanistan. He gave the umbrella group for his camps a name: Al-Qaeda, Arabic for "The Base".
The Western Axis powers (especially United States) aided and helped Usama and Afghan leaders to defeat the Soviets. An ecstatic Usama looked for a huge welcome for himself and his Jihadi unit (which was then called “Arab Afghans”) in Saudi Arabia – his homeland. But none came. Usama then offered the Saudi King his band of Mujahideen fighters during the first Gulf War – to protect Saudi Arabia from any misadventure on the part of United States and Coalition forces. This was also rejected by the rulers – instead US was allowed to place their troops in Saudi Land to help attack Iraq. This infuriated Usama and he vowed to avenge the humiliation that he thought was brought upon Saudi Arabia by their rulers. He was later ousted from Saudi Arabia for his anti-government activities. He finally settled down to build upon his strength from Afghanistan where he became increasingly messianic and radical. He took up the task of increasing the number of Jihadis/ Mujahideens who were (till recently) trained and bred in Afganistan.
Violent struggle - Why?
As Martha Crenshaw has observed, “Terrorism can be considered a reasonable way of pursuing extreme interests in the political arena.” We can begin to examine the logic only if we understand its root, its teleology, if you will. To determine that root and identify the aim of the jihad we must first delve into its history and theology.
Since its very beginning Islam established that one of the foremost roles of the Muslim state was to carry out jihad (striving) against the unbelievers. In fact, Muslim tradition recounts how Muhammad sent letters to the kings of all foreign nations demanding their submission to the new religion and law. This early prerogative divides the world into two competing and mutually exclusive spheres. The first is the dar al-Islam (land of Islam). The corollary to this world is the dar-al-harb (land of war). The land of war is that part of the world that is not yet living under the justice of Islamic rule. It is, therefore, the duty of every Muslim to expand the former at the expense of the latter.
An additional interpretation, and one that ultimately gave rise to Al Qaeda, is found in the writings and thought of Mohamed ibn Abd al-Wahhab. Wahhab was a religious reformer from central Arabia in the early part of the eighteenth century. He deplored what he saw as the moral laxness of the faithful and their devotion to religious innovations not in keeping with the lives of the original followers of the Prophet. He labeled the prevailing reverence for Muslim saints and the mysticism of the Sufi orders as irreligious. Wahhab believed that the Islamic community had descended back into a condition of jahiliyya, the barbarism and idolatry that had typified Arabia before the coming of Mohammed. Wahhab vehemently condemned much of Muslim tradition at that moment as pagan accretions and therefore idolatrous. He advocated death for those who had slipped into and persevered in this unacceptable malaise. Wahhab eventually garnered the support of a local ruler, Mohamed ibn Sa’ud. Under their auspices the new virulent form of Islam ransacked the Arabian Peninsula, killing many Muslim pilgrims and destroying a host of sacred sites. Their alliance justified this war against fellow Muslims by liberally applying the label of jahiliyya to the unconvinced. Ottoman intervention foiled the Wahhabist alliance for some time, but by 1925 the Sa’ud family, along with their version of religious purity, had conquered what is now the kingdom of Saudi Arabia
In general the nineteenth and twentieth centuries were not kind to the Islamic world. Their former majesty was crushed and most of them fell under the sway of some foreign power. Inchoate socialism and Arab nationalism tried to solve the problem, but both courses seemed always lackluster. The abject failure of the 1967 war against Israel highlighted the prostrate nature of the Arab world and spurred many to look for different solutions.
It was Sayyid Qutb (1906-1966), an Egyptian, who revived the thought of Wahhab and offered a compelling diagnosis of the Islamic world’s problem. Qutb touted originalism. In his mind the power of the original Islamic state had been compromised because it has deviated from the path of true righteousness. God, in his displeasure, will not restore the glory of the Islamic empire until correct belief once again reigns as it did in the first century of Islam. He argued for the formation of a vanguard that would clear away the obstacles through violence. After that, correct preaching would reinvigorate the lost faithful. Qutb, like Wahhab, pronounced all societies on the world to be jahili. By doing so he established the legitimacy of jihad against all powers on the earth, to include the secular rulers of places like his homeland, Egypt. In essence, Qutb sought an Islamic society based on the model of the original umma (community or nation). To that end Qutb justified numerous means of coercion, not the least of which were violence and sedition. Qutb's message was indeed readily received. The call to a Salafi style Islam spread quickly and found resonance throughout the Muslim world. His disciples included many of the founders of Al Qaeda, including Ayman al-Zawahiri, Ali Amin Ali al-Rashidi and Subhi Muhammad Abu Sittah. Their vitriolic attitudes furthered Qutb’s cause, which gained immortal status after his execution by the Nasser (President of Egypt) government in 1966.
Fundamental to this new thought was the notion of the original Muslim state guided by a righteous ruler and devoted to the strict application of Islamic law, Sharia. Salam Faraj, one of Qutb’s most eloquent devotees, argued that the formation of a truly Islamic state was a duty for all Muslims. He, furthermore, argued that since war would be necessary for this end, war too was an obligation. But perhaps the most influential of all of Qutb’s disciplines was Ayman al-Zawahiri. Zawahiri would eventually join with Usama bin Laden in Al Qaeda, and in Zawahiri the Salafi movement found its most concrete spokesman.
This desire for a rebuilt caliphate is what separates and defines the Salafi jihad from other Islamic movements. The West often chooses to label Al Qaeda as an organization of hate, as if that hate were an end in and of itself. This is profoundly not the case. The Salafis bemoan the position of Islam and seek to redress this grievance, and in doing so have found themselves drawn into conflict with Western powers. As Zawahiri saw it there was a confluence of factors preventing the emergence of a renewed caliphate. Among these was the acquiescence of Muslim rulers to the narcotic “secular” culture and the semi-covert attempts by Western powers to prevent what should be the ascendance of the Islamic world. By viewing the Salafi objective in its proper light we can understand that Al Qaeda’s hatred of the West is actually ancillary to its primary objective. From this we may postulate that were there no ‘West,’ but still no caliphate, Al Qaeda would yet exist.
In short, the restoration of the caliphate is the source and origin of the Salafist jihad. Though individuals may pursue martyrdom, the collective goal is a material aim granted legitimacy by religious prerogative. Any discussion, which relegates the goal of Al Qaeda solely to the political sphere, will also not succeed. Al Qaeda, in keeping with Islamic tradition, recognizes no distinction between politics and religion. A religious mandate therefore translates immediately into a political goal. Any and all attempts to split the two constitute an inappropriate grafting of Western systems onto Islamic patterns of thought.
The Soviet invasion of Afghanistan gave an international flavor to the Salafi jihad. For the first time jihadis from different countries met and discussed their predicaments. This cross-polarization of ideas along with the apparent failure of targeting the ‘near enemy’ led the Salafi movement to readdress its strategy. In Afghanistan the Salafi movement coalesced around the figure of Usama bin Laden. Bin Laden had created the Mekhtab al-Khidemat (Service Bureau), an organization that aided foreign volunteers in the Afghan jihad. Possessed of substantial financial resources, bin Laden came to direct much of the wider movement and was instrumental in the formation of Al Qaeda. He, like Zawahiri, viewed the fight in Afghanistan as a transitory state, a stepping-stone for the larger jihad. Yet even at this point the jihad itself was directed primarily against the facile Muslim world or her periphery.
The withdrawal of Russian forces from Afghanistan robbed Al Qaeda, in a certain sense, of its raison d’etre. The infidel had departed and the Salafis were left again to agonize over the hurdles involved with tackling the ‘near enemy.’ Still the organization retained Afghanistan as a base and center of operations. The U.S. involvement in the 1991 Gulf War changed things. Men like Usama and Zawahiri came to see in U.S. policy a secret attempt to conquer Muslim lands. They furthermore came to attribute their failures against the ‘near enemy’ as a product of the support rendered to those governments by Western interlopers, particularly the U.S. To topple any apostate regimes became an exercise in futility so long as the U.S. was present to prop up flagging governments. By this strategic logic, the Salafi jihad abandoned the ‘near enemy’ in favor of targeting the ‘far enemy,’ i.e. the U.S. and its supporters.
Al Qaeda was quick to put their strategy to the test. The ignominious withdrawal of U.S. troops from Somalia in 1993 and the timid response to attacks like the first World Trade Center bombing seemed to validate the strategy. The 1998 bombings of U.S. embassies in Nairobi and in Dar es Salaam and the subsequent lack of response further vindicated the move to switch to the ‘far enemy.’ These efforts also earned bin Laden an international acclaim that cemented his control of the worldwide Salafi jihad. Believing firmly in the success of his new strategy bin Laden then planned his masterstroke. It would fall on New York City on September 11th, 2001. The invasion of Afghanistan left the organization wounded, but certainly not dead. The subsequent incursion of the U.S. into Iraq provided Al Qaeda with room for maneuver and, above all, opportunity. Soon after the defeat of the decrepit Iraqi military, the U.S. forces in Iraq found they faced a more sinister, nebulous opponent. Though certainly no fan of a secularist like Saddam Hussein, the Al Qaeda faithful flocked to Iraq to repel the infidel invader.
The “Warriors” of the movement
A study conducted by Dr. Marc Sageman on a sample of Salafi jihadis indicated that most members of the movement are middle or upper class young men with fairly impressive educations. Sageman, in fact, observed that over 60 percent had at least some amount of college education. This, of course, debunks the idea that terrorists are country rubes tricked into a life of murder by silver-tongued ideologues. Of importance is the knowledge that these men are not recidivist criminals nor are they brainwashed lunatics.
So how many Jihadi/Islamist groups there really are in this world? In my small research I have come across 100-plus known Jihadi and Islamist organizations around the world that perpetrate and/or are involved in terrorist type activities around the world. Phew - that is a huge number. Let me list out the names of a few here. Note that only the popular and known organizations are listed.
The Known Jihaid Groups:
Abu Hafs al-Masri Brigades, Abu Sayyaf, Abu Theeb, Aden-Abyan Islamic Army, Al-Gama'a al-Islamiyya, Al-Qaeda in Iraq, Al-Qanoon, Ansar al-Islam, Armed Islamic Group, East Turkestan Islamic Movement, Egyptian Islamic Jihad aka al jihad, Great Eastern Islamic Raiders' Front, Harakat ul-Mujahidin, Harkat-ul-Mujahideen, Hizbul Mujahideen, Hofstad NetworkI, Islamic Army in Iraq, Islamic Movement of Central Asia, Islamic Movement of Kurdistan, Islamic Movement of Uzbekistan, Islamic Resistance Movement (Iraq), Jagrata Muslim Janata Bangladesh, Jaish Ansar al-Sunna, Jaish-e-Mohammed, Jemaah IslamiyahK, (Turkish) Kurdish-Hizbullah, Kurd HamasL, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Laskar Jihad, Libyan Islamic Fighting Group, Maktab al-Khadamat, Markaz Dawa-Wal-Irshad, Mohammad's Army, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Moroccan Islamic Combatant Group, Muslim Brotherhood, Muttahida Majlis-e-Amal, Palestinian Islamic Jihad Movement, People Against Gangsterism and Drugs, Salafist Group for Preaching and Combat, Sipah-e-Sahaba Pakistan, Students Islamic Movement of India, Takfir wal-Hijra, Takfiri, The Al-Quds brigades
The Known Islamist Groups:
Abu Sayyaf, Aden-Abyan Islamic Army, Al Adl Wa Al Ihssane, Al Barakaat, Al Ghurabaa, Al Wefaq, Al-Muhajiroun, Ayman al-Zawahiri, Bahrain Centre for Human Rights, Bahrain Freedom Movement, Benevolence International Foundation, Hamas, Hezbolla, Hofstad Network, Hojjatieh, Islamic Front for the Liberation of Bahrain, Islamic Jihad, Islamic Thinkers Society, Jemaah Islamiyah, Lashkar-e-Toiba, Markaz Dawa-Wal-Irshad, Metin Kaplan, Mohammad's Army, Moro Islamic Liberation Front, Muntada al-Ansar, Nation of Islam, Students Islamic Movement of India, Takfiri Terrorists, Tanzeem-e-Islami, The Saviour Sect, Wäisi movement
Devil only knows how many more “unlisted/unofficial” groups are out there waiting to kill people.
Anyways, most of the groups listed above have known allegiance to Al-Qaeda – the parent group – led by our very own Usama. Most of the terrorist attacks we know of in Europe, Middle East, South East Asia, Russia, United States of America and a few in North-Africa and South America have been masterminded and executed by the recruits of one or more than one of the above listed organizations.
It is a matter of record that more than half a million Jihadis took training in the Al-Qaeda bases of Afghanistan. Lessons of Hatred against United States and Saudi regime and “Non-believers” in general, were preached and ingrained amongst the trainees. These highly trained militants/ jihadis have now dispersed around the world and have been spreading the message amongst the followers of Islam. They have been very successful and have increased their numbers manifolds. So much so that the Intelligence and Police forces of most of the European Countries, North America, The South East Asian Countries (like India, Pakistan, Malaysia, Indonesia etc), Russia, North African Countries are spending increasing number of hours in tracking and trapping the Terrorists, in addition to the prize catch - Usama. That is more than 2/3rd of the world worrying about a phenomenon that is lead by Usama.
Conclusion
It is thanks to the groundwork done by Usama in the initial days in Afghanistan (from 1991) that today he is the undisputed Emir of all the Jihadi/ Mujahideen/ Terrorist organizations. How we refer to them is of no consequence. What matters is that – here is a man who commands undiluted, unwavering loyalty from hordes of men/women and children, so much so that they are ready to lay their life for the cause taken up by him. The attack on the World Trade Center, Bombings in London, In Madrid, In Istanbul, Yemen, Tunisia Djerba, Morocco, Egypt, Nairobi, Bali (Indonesia), Chechnya, Uzbekistan and many and many more in Pakistan, India, Bangladesh, Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia, Iraq are just a few examples of the terror that Salafai Jihadis, led by Usama have spread around the globe. Destiny has placed Usama in a position to carry out the task of taking forward the Salafi movement. It so happens that he is increasingly being seen as the champion of the cause and hence has attained all the necessary importance being bestowed on him. He has managed to bring a whole gamut of Jihadi & Islamic outfits under one umbrella and has formed a lethal force of trans-oceanic aficionado who are ready to execute his orders without a second thought. And mind you – these people are dangerous – ruthless to say the least. They are ready for war and have been preparing for it for a long-long time now.
What makes it more dangerous this time is, that the “other” side is not bound by a common race, they don’t belong to a particular nation and neither are they some diverse group of people supporting a fanatic. These people are bound by one religion – Islam. History has proved time and again that religious conflicts have been cruel and nasty. During the Roman Era and afterwards – fight for religious supremacy have led to major bloodshed and killings. It is easier to break a loosely bound ideological group – but to break a group bound by religious beliefs is another story altogether. These Islamic Jihadis have been carrying out their attacks at will for quite sometime now – even though there are many more being apprehended around the world even as you read this article. Hard to believe those Maulvis who keep telling every one how Islam preaches peace in world and harmony amongst all religions. Frankly speaking I don’t remember the last time I heard a terrorist caught or killed who is not an Arab or a Muslim. Speaks volumes about the confusion there is amongst the very followers of Islam.
In any case – we all know that Usama enjoys a popular support amongst his Islamic Jihadis. His allusiveness coupled with his growing popularity amongst his brethrens is a matter of grave concern amongst the most powerful nations of the world. He is indeed fearsome. He is undisputedly the most wanted man in this world. He threatens the world when he wants to (via print and electronic media). In fact he decides the time he wants the world to listen to him – and we do listen when he speaks – don’t we? He challenges all the nations to nab him and irrespective of the efforts of international intelligence hounds chasing him – he communicates with his associates at his will. Only he knows what his future plans are for the world that he holds at ransom.
Not George Bush, not even Tony Blair and don’t even bother to consider Putin and Hu Jintao. There is only one man who truly is in a position to influence the course of the immediate future of this world. This man continues to enjoy the support of millions of multi-national battle-hardened group of warriors and also commands God-like loyalty from them. This man views war more as an obligation than a necessity. This man may well be deciding our fate at this very moment sitting in his safe abode. This Emperor-like, audacious, self-confessed Salafist Jihadi, Ladies and Gentlemen, is – Usama Bin Laden.
Today, he indeed is - First among Equal.
Love him or hate him – you better wake up to the reality – as you would be stupid to ignore him. And dare I say - we may choose to ignore him only at our own peril.
Think about it…
Mantosh Singh..
13th April 2006’
Note: The purpose of this article is not to influence people to form an opinion for or against Islam or Usama. I write this to present to you the world as I see it today.
