Dr. Omar Abdul Rahman to Nida'ul Islam:
"Muslims Should Continue to Call to Allah and Struggle Relentlessly For His sake"

The imprisoned Dr. Sheikh Omar Abdul Rahman is a symbol of struggle against international tyranny. The blind Sheikh has aimed all his life to draw the Muslims' attention to the absolute necessity of monotheism towards Allah through implementing His law (Sharia) and following His Way. We shall leave the Islamic scholar to tell us himself about the most important milestones in his life.

Alhamdulillah and peace and blessing of Allah over His Messenger. Dear brothers and sisters; Peace, mercy and blessings from Allah be with you (Assalamu Alaykum Wa Rahmatullahi Wa Barakatuh).

It is evil for a person to talk about himself, his achievements or stands. Yet, a brief statement here will suffice.

When man started his life, Allah taught him how to work for struggle and guided him to the right path. I have tried to say the word of truth in Egypt and to face idols or dictatorship of a single ruler which existed, and still is, in Egypt through seminars, lectures and lessons. Al Jamaah Al Islamiah (the Islamic Group) put a great effort to let people know better their religion. I have been arrested several times for that in successive court cases: "president Sedat" case, resisting the authority case, "AL Fayoum" case... We were showered with numerous cases. Allah, however, gave us victory over the regime in those court cases.

I traveled to Europe, passing through Britain, Denmark, Sweden and many other countries. I met with sincere brothers and sisters, gave numerous lectures and talks to let Muslims be aware of their obligation to struggle for their religion and to face their enemies. We ended in America where I visited many states, talking about the duties of Muslims towards their religion, how to make Islam their first priority all the time and to struggle for the sake of Allah. No single year should pass from the life of a Muslim without living the struggle. I then went to many countries in the world, but ended with being framed with this fraudulent case and with a prison sentence. We ask Allah to let us stay firm along the truth and to benefit us with the blessings and rewards He gives his imprisoned servants. There are many rewards and blessings in being imprisoned and we ask Him to let us benefit from it.

The Sheikh's way is characterised with clarity and boldness, which made you a prime target of the enemies of Allah. Would you explain to us the main features of this way?

This way is the same way of our guided predecessors, elaborated by our Lord's Book (the Qur'an) and traditions of our Prophet. My way was not far away from that way. It is the same way of our righteous predecessors which handled Islam as a total entity, that cannot be fragmented or partitioned. It takes all the principles of Islam, all of its rules and does not disregard one aspect at the expense of another. There are some ways which addresses only the area of faith, area of the acts of worship, the area of transactions or one or other areas of Islam. These are all wrong... Allah (s.w.t) said in the last verses of the Qur'an: "Today, I have perfected for your religion for you, completed my blessings over you and I am satisfied with Islam as a way of life".

So Allah (s.w.t) Has brought down for us an integrated way of life, where no side overrides other sides. Among the sides neglected by many scholars, and those in charge of Islamic movements, is the issue of Jihad (Struggle for the sake of Allah); viz, stating the truth, enjoining good and forbidding evil. This aspect of Islam is accompanied with a lot of problems, suffering and pain. This aspect has been disregarded by many. The word of truth comes with its own liabilities. Enjoining good and, particularly, forbidding evil also has its liabilities and is therefore neglected by many. Some may even attack this aspect of Islam and blame those who practice it, although it is an essentially important and vital aspect. In fact enjoining good and forbidding evil is the dynamo and motor behind Islamic work. It is the aspect that preserves Islamic principles. These has been neglected by many.

These are some of the features you may attach to the way I follow. However, it is all the way of Islam followed by the righteous predecessors who accepted Islam as a whole and preserve the Islamic system in its entirety without partitioning and/or fragmenting.

The US administration has recently allocated a budget of 2.3 billion dollars to strike at the Jihadi movements. What, in you opinion, are the chances of success for this new crusade against the Islamic world?

Confrontation between Crusaders and Islam is an old one. In the early years of Islam there were two super Empires, the Persian and the Roman. It took only a few battles, ending with Al Qadeseya, to demolish the Persian Empire for good. The Roman Empire, however, had many strands across the centuries. When one strand is destroyed, another strand comes in another century, as illustrated in the Hadith of Allah's Messenger. The centuries are successive. The Roman Empire means the international Crusade and the international Zionism. War with the Crusades is ongoing until the Day of Judgement. The sums of money you mentioned is but a fraction of what the enemies of Islam are allocating to fight Islam. This is a ferocious and ongoing war. Whenever the Muslims hold on to their religion, they manage to defeat their enemies. But when they are fragmented and disunited, as they are now, their enemies manage to defeat them.

Let it be 2, 3, 10 or even more billion dollars allocated. They are only the declared amounts. The undeclared secret budgets are very much larger. That is only one part of the resources. The other resources are also numerous. Allah (s.w.t) Has shown us what they allocate to fight Islam: "The disbelievers spend their money to keep people away from the way of Allah. They will spend it, yet will deeply regret it and will finally be defeated. The disbelievers shall be assembled into Hell". Allah (s.w.t) also says: "Tell the disbelievers: You shall be defeated and thrown into Hell". What a miserable end! These are only few resources of many others in the past and in the future which they shall spend and shall live to regret it.

They sent missionaries to Africa and said that Africa will be Christianised in centuries or even decades. Decades and centuries have passed, however, Africa is even better, from the Islamic religion point of view, than ever before. Why? Their money has been lost, their efforts have been wasted and their missionaries have achieved very little, if at all. They manage to Christianise one, but ten new embrace Islam. They Christianise ten, and one hundred new embrace Islam.

This allocated money does not scare us at all, no matter how much they collect and how much they allocate. Let me remind you, in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries when Muslims were fragmented and powerless, when the Western British and French colonialism was in command and Islam had no power, Who preserved Islam? And Who preserved Muslims? Allah (s.w.t) says: "Today, the disbelievers gave up on your religion, so do not fear them"... Gave up... Gave up fourteen centuries ago... Gave up in the fourteenth century, gave up in the thirteenth century, the twelfth century... And so on... The disbelievers gave up on your religion, so do not fear them, fear Me. Despair is an ongoing phenomena. Despair to change or alter Islam. They have allocated huge amounts of money in the Conference on habitation in Egypt to come out with resolutions allowing adultery, abortion and homosexuality, resolutions encouraging girls to give their honour and chastity, resolutions to weaken the authority and influence of parents over children. They spent billions to hold that conference. They allocated huge budgets for those goals. That does not scare us. What really scare us is to be split from within. We cannot be defeated from without, we are not concerned from the numbers of our enemies nor by their resources. We are only concerned to be defeated from within, for some of us to be our enemies, declaring war against each other. We, the Muslims, have to hold on to our religion and be steadfast and united around our faith, our Qebla (Makka) and primarily around our Lord's Book and our Prophet's teachings.

Let us now move to the Crusades media blitz against Islam which is frequently using words like terrorism, fundamentalism and extremism. Would you define those terms from the Islamic law (Sharia) perspective?

I do not define those terms from the Sharia point of view, these are just words. What really concerns me is that they took those words: extremism, terrorism and fundamentalism to mean every committed Muslim. That is what really concerns me. The original linguistic appears in what Allah (s.w.t) says: "and prepare for them whatever you can of power and horses to terrorise the enemy of Allah and your enemy". What is important is their use of the word. Everyone who is steadfast to his religion, everyone who holds on to his religion, everyone who defends his religion became a terrorist and he is the extremist and he is the fundamentalist!

Fundamentalism is taken from the Christian use of the word. But here we find their media attacking Muslims who do not let go of their religion, who hold on to that religion, who work for that religion and who preserve that religion. The West and the so called "Islamic" governments hit hard the fundamentalist movements and extremist movements. What is the meaning of extremist movements? The Islamic movements which preserve their religion and hold the Book of their Lord and the teachings of their Prophet. These are the target of Western media and those behind it.

How did you find the claims of democracy and freedom of expression and religion in the so-called democratic and free Western world?

If I say that the central African countries have more freedom than the United States I shall not be wrong. Those words are like a hollow drum from which you here echo and high sound without any real meaning or benefit. Those are hollow words, because it is freedom for themselves but they do not allow any freedom to others. It is democracy for them to enjoy but they do not allow others to have an opinion or separate thoughts. I came running away from prison to the country of freedom, but I was imprisoned. I came running away from lack of freedom and prevention of expression, but I was shocked with what is even worse in America. Those words are only for a specific race or specific groups to enjoy, but others are denied them.

How did the human rights, which they sing day and night, reflect on you being in prison?

My situation in prison here is worse than my situation in Egypt's prison, it is worse than my situation in other prisons in many countries. In the prison of the United States there is no freedom of expression, no freedom of worship and no social freedom. I cannot practice freedom of worship, there is no Friday "Jum'ah" prayer, there is no congregation, there is no mixing with Muslims, there is no celebration of Islamic festivities and there is not a single manifestation of Islam. I am denied all of this. They justify that denial by false and baseless justifications. They are skilled in uttering lies. You find lies in their leadership, in their officers and in all their situations. They perfect the issue of lies. As far as mixing, I am in a solitary confinement since I was imprisoned in 1993 and until now. I am living alone with no one to look after me. I am the one who washes my clothes. They justify this by claiming that a blind person needs solitary imprisonment... The one who does not learn English needs solitary imprisonment! So the reasons that actually requires mixing are claimed to be the reasons for solitary confinement!! So much for moral values. I also suffer in prison from lack of any media, no radio, no tape recorder, no interpreting reader. I am denied all this. No reading, no one to read newspapers, books or anything to me. In this solitary prison I am suffering many hardships and troubles. They put above my cell strong and violent noises that disturb my comfort and wake me from my sleep. They are also tightening my visiting schedule as well as many aspects of my day-to-day living conditions.

What is really worth attention, as far as what I said about human rights, is that many human rights organisations sent to the prison administration and to the heads of prisons in the United States inquiring about what is claimed of me being denied many freedom and the many nuisances I face in prison. They sent to the prison administration requesting answers or responses. What did the human rights organisations get? They did not get any answer until now. Where are those human rights they brag about? And where are the Muslims' rights which they give?

I keep knocking at the door for a long time so that they will bring me something I need, but I find no response. I might take hours knocking at the door, while other prisoners knock few times or call the officer who rush to bring what they want, while for me I need many hours to get something I need. Racism exists in the treatment. And you still find people bragging about freedom!

What are the responsibilities of Muslims in the West towards their religion?

The responsibilities of Muslims in the west towards their religion are to unite and develop themselves financially. They must have money. Money is the element for life, the mainstay of life. A strong Muslim is better and more beloved by Allah than a weak Muslim. Muslims must get the strength of money, to have their media outlets, to have strong productivity and to unite in industrial and agricultural organisations. They have to preserve their religion, their families and not to mix in a way that will make them let go of their religion. They must remain distinguished, to have their strong Islamic entity and never lose any of these.

Is there a final word you want to give to Muslims across the pages of this magazine?

My last word is for Muslims to stop sleeping and to shake off the stupor that engulfed their heads for so long, to remember the words of their Prophet to his wife: "O Khadijah! the time for sleep is over". They have to come up as one man, to work hard for their religion, to put Islam as their highest priority and never to forget it. If a person is concerned about an issue, he/she will sleep and wake up thinking about it. Let Muslims make Islam their issue. Let their hearts burn for what happens to Muslims, let them suffer for the Muslims in Bosnia, in Afghanistan, in Turkey, in the Philippines and before that in Palestine. Their hearts must ache to help those Muslims and cry for not doing their duty towards them. Muslims should care for their brothers and sisters everywhere, they should be concerned for the imprisoned and should try to get them released, to continuously demonstrate loudly, to write to everyone and to put the case of the imprisoned like myself in their issues and writings.

Muslims have also to continue the call to Allah (s.w.t), and never tire of it, to struggle relentlessly for the sake of Allah (s.w.t) and never to stop it. Should Muslims, God forbid, stop struggling for the sake of Allah, Allah will drown them in humiliation that He shall never remove until they go back to Jihad for the sake of Allah. And may Allah (s.w.t) shower His blessings and peace over our Prophet Muhammad s.a.w, his family, companions and his followers... Ameen.

Translated by Br. Sayed Kandil