When the Soviet Union intervened in 1978 to rescue and support its puppet regime in Afghanistan through the Soviet army, which later entered the arms race with the United States, entering with its full weight, the Ummah rushed from the east and the west to confront that formidable army. There was a public call for Jihad in the Path of Allah (swt) to confront the Soviet Army of atheism. The fighters were actively supported by their countries, or at least a blind eye was turned to them, from Pakistan to Saudi Arabia to Libya and to Morocco and Syria. Those fighters compelled the Soviet Army to retreat from Afghanistan and announce defeat at the hands of small numbers of Mujahidin that supported their brothers in Afghanistan against it, after nearly ten years of confrontation, during which the Soviet Union suffered immense troop and armament losses.
This example in the modern era has confirmed that if the Ummah adopts its issues as it should, it will be able to achieve victory over its enemies. If it does so it will succeed in the same as its forefathers. It was narrated that Khalid Bin Walid ﷺ sent a letter to Kisra saying,
«أسلم تسلَم، والا جئتك برجال يصرّون على الموت كما تصرون أنتم على الحياة»
“Submit to Islam and be secured, else I will bring you men who love death as much as you all love life.” Upon reading the letter, Kisra requested assistance and aid from the Emperor of China. The Emperor of China replied to him saying, “O Kisra! I cannot face a people who will tear down mountains if they set themselves on doing so.”
The people of Syria cry out until hoarse! Since the first day of the eruption of their revolution against the tyrant of Syria, they sought help from their brothers, the sons of this Ummah and asked for their assistance. However none but a few from the sons of the Ummah reached them to help because they were prevented by the world powers and their agents, the rulers of Muslims. Moreover, instead of supporting the oppressed, these countries formed an international alliance to extend crusades against the Ummah. The tyrant employed all manner of force against the sincere rebels of the people of the Sham. As a result of this crusade more than one million people have been killed, over five million have become refugees, over six million have emigrated, whilst over a million are besieged in the regions of Syria that are under siege. Moreover, there has been the disappearance of more than a hundred thousand in the prisons of the tyrant, who have been subjected to various forms of torture, as well as mental and physical abuse, in a manner that was not witnessed even during the Spanish Inquisition and from which wild jungle animals would shy from.
The people of Syria relied on their own modest capacities to fuel their revolution against the regime and the weak international coalition. With the magnitude of their losses in life and property, “they have nothing left to lose.” Yet, they have been able to continue and remain strikingly aware of their goal to overthrow the regime, replacing it with a system that pleases the inhabitants of both Heaven and Earth. Were it not for the conspiracy, from near and far, and their abandonment by their brothers, they would have overthrown the tyrant Bashar a long time ago. Indeed, their understanding has exceeded that of their Afghan Mujahideen brothers. Had any other people faced what they have faced of plots, killing and abuse… not one would remain to call for lofty goals, instead accepting the criminal international stance and its representative Nusayri regime in Damascus. However the severity in Kufr of the regime and its injustice made the people of Syria, including the resistance forces, rebel such that they see no option other than persisting to the end and so they are just like Tariq ibn Ziyad. When the enemy burned his forces’ ships and the enemy came in front of his army, with the sea behind him, Tariq had no option but to persist until the end… until victory.
The steadfastness of the people of ash-Sham in the face of the storm does not excuse the rest of the Muslims of their dignified Ummah from supporting them. Allah ta’ala said,
إِنَّ الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَهَاجَرُوا وَجَاهَدُوا بِأَمْوَالِهِمْ وَأَنْفُسِهِمْ فِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَالَّذِينَ آوَوْا وَنَصَرُوا أُولَئِكَ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَلَمْ يُهَاجِرُوا مَا لَكُمْ مِنْ وَلَايَتِهِمْ مِنْ شَيْءٍ حَتَّى يُهَاجِرُوا وَإِنِ اسْتَنْصَرُوكُمْ فِي الدِّينِ فَعَلَيْكُمُ النَّصْرُ إِلَّا عَلَى قَوْمٍ بَيْنَكُمْ وَبَيْنَهُمْ مِيثَاقٌ وَاللَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِير
“Indeed, those who have believed and emigrated and fought with their wealth and lives in the cause of Allah and those who gave shelter and aided – they are allies of one another. But those who believed and did not emigrate – for you there is no guardianship of them until they emigrate. And if they seek help from you for the Deen, then you must help, except against a people between yourselves and whom is a treaty. And Allah is Seeing of what you do.”
(Surah al-Anfaal 8:72)
It is certain that the Syrian regime is weak and exhausted and it is also certain that the victory of the people of Syria over the regime does not require much more effort. Any state in the Islamic World can extend to the revolution sufficient men and weapons, if it chooses to comply with the command of the Lord (swt) in the obligation to extend help to Muslims. Pakistan, for example, can send some of its highly trained special forces with some high-calibre weapons, such as shoulder-borne anti-aircraft guns, which would paralyze and neutralize the Russian, Turkish and US air forces from coalition forces – for air superiority is the weapon that kills civilians before the fighters – thereby upsetting the balance of the coalition forces and overthrowing the tyrant. However, it is well known to all that the regimes in the Islamic World – including the Pakistani regime under its current political and military leadership – are regimes that are agents to Western masters, forced over the necks of Muslims. They are no less criminal than the regime of the tyrant Bashar. So it is not expected that they would support the Syrian revolution. Instead it is expected that they would assume a role like that of Turkey, hosting and joining the coalition forces and sharing with Bashar, Russia, America and Iran in the slaughter of men, women and children and in the destruction that does not even spare the rocks and trees… all so as to annihilate the revolution and force the people to accept the tyrant Bashar, agent of the US.
Yes, the Islamic Ummah is one Ummah apart from all other people. Unless it acts and takes a unified stance towards its issues, it will not be able to achieve its goal. RasulAllah ﷺ said,
«الْمُسْلِمُونَ تَتَكَافَأُ دِمَاؤُهُمْ يَسْعَى بِذِمَّتِهِمْ أَدْنَاهُمْ وَيُجِيرُ عَلَيْهِمْ أَقْصَاهُمْ وَهُمْ يَدٌ عَلَى مَنْ سِوَاهُمْ يَرُدُّ مُشِدُّهُمْ عَلَى مُضْعِفِهِمْ وَمُتَسَرِّيهِمْ عَلَى قَاعِدِهِمْ لَا يُقْتَلُ مُؤْمِنٌ بِكَافِرٍ وَلَا ذُو عَهْدٍ فِي عَهْدِهِ»
“Muslims are equal in respect of blood. The lowest of them is entitled to give protection on behalf of them, and the one residing far away may give protection on behalf of them. They are like one hand over against all those who are outside the community. Those who have quick mounts should return to those who have slow mounts, and those who got out along with a detachment (should return) to those who are stationed. No believer is to be killed for a disbeliever (i.e. in Qisas), nor should one who has a covenant with the Muslims be killed while his covenant holds.”
And because regimes in the Islamic World are obstacles to support by the people and the armies for their brothers in Syria, their removal is a duty, according to the Islamic Principle ما لا يتم الواجب إلا به فهو واجب ‘Whatever leads to an Obligation, is itself an Obligation.” And the role of the Ummah in overthrowing these regimes is to urge the People of Power from the sincere ones in the armies to uproot the current agent rulers and leaders and hand the leadership of the Ummah to the advocates of the Khilafah on the Method of Prophethood from Hizb ut Tahrir. RasulAllah said,
«مَا مِنْ امْرِئٍ يَخْذُلُ امْرَأً مُسْلِمًا فِي مَوْضِعٍ تُنْتَهَكُ فِيهِ حُرْمَتُهُ وَيُنْتَقَصُ فِيهِ مِنْ عِرْضِهِ إِلَّا خَذَلَهُ اللَّهُ فِي مَوْطِنٍ يُحِبُّ فِيهِ نُصْرَتَهُ، وَمَا مِنْ امْرِئٍ يَنْصُرُ مُسْلِمًا فِي مَوْضِعٍ يُنْتَقَصُ فِيهِ مِنْ عِرْضِهِ وَيُنْتَهَكُ فِيهِ مِنْ حُرْمَتِهِ إِلَّا نَصَرَهُ اللَّهُ فِي مَوْطِنٍ يُحِبُّ نُصْرَتَهُ»
“No (Muslim) man will desert a man who is a Muslim in a place where his respect may be violated and his honour aspersed without Allah deserting him in a place here he wishes his help; and no (Muslim) man who will help a Muslim in a place where his honour may be aspersed and his respect violated without Allah helping him in a place where he wishes his help.”
The Obligation of supporting the rebelling Muslims in Syria is inseparable from the Obligation of supporting Muslims in their Deen. Moreover, it is the first priority for all those believing in the Oneness of Allah (swt). There is no compensation in crying and giving sympathy for the oppressed in Syria, or outside Syria, with the understanding of weakest of Iman. Weakest Iman is accepted only from the one who is incapable and never from the one who is capable. Undoubtedly the Muslims, including the people of Pakistan, are capable of supporting their brothers in Syria, were they are to appoint a sincere ruler and military commander, an honorable Khaleefah who rules by the Book of Allah (swt) and the Sunnah of RasulAllah ﷺ.
Bilal al-Muhajir – Pakistan