Dr. Ziad FAHED
Full Professor, Notre Dame University-Louaize
President, Dialogue for Life and Reconciliation
Coordinator, Sustainable Network of Religious Leaders in Tripoli and North Lebanon
in his remarks, Imam Pallavicini mentioned different texts that have been the result of an intra-Muslim coordination or interreligious dialogue, involving theologians, institutions, and religious leaders. However, believers are much quicker to take action than religious leaders. Therefore, supporting the creation of more coalitions and incentives for the engagement of believers is a priority. The more we create spaces for cooperation between believers, the better it is to promote dialogue, as well as to counter radicalization and violent extremism.
If we take the example of Lebanon, the current mothers and fathers are the children who experienced the civil war. They were raised with an incomplete and distorted image of the other, and an incomplete image of diversity, because during the war, they had very limited possibilities to interact with the other, or to understand the other in general. The media played a very negative role in demonizing the other, to make it seem evil. These children who have become parents today are currently raising their own children with this incomplete image. It is important to liberate them, and to liberate their children, in order to work on different perspectives.
What I am saying about the Lebanese mothers and fathers of today also can be applied to many fathers and mothers all over the world. We need to create this awareness and understanding of the other, but also of the self. I think that the fathers and mothers in the West have an incomplete image not only about the other but also about their own religion sometimes. We need thus to create spaces overseas, platforms, and initiatives involving the grass-root believers, the civil society, in collaboration with the religious leaders. This daily efforts and experience of interaction and dialogue are fundament. A French expression states: “When a tree breaks down, everybody hears, but when forests are growing up, nobody hears”. Here, everywhere, I am sure that many forests are growing, although we are only hearing about failures.
Imam Yahya PALLAVICINI (Keynote Speaker)
President, Islamic Religious Community of Italy (COREIS)
Ambassador for Dialogue among Civilizations, Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO)
I agree about the gap in terms of speed, distinguishing the religious leaders from the believers, and in particular the young believers. The same gap in terms of speed distinguishes those working for peace, and those fomenting disorder. It is fast and easy to destabilize a society, an order, whereas it is much more complex and slower to build peace and cohesion, or to maintain them. We can thus talk of an asymmetric war in terms of speed, and the people seeking instability know that they have an advantage over the others who contribute to the “world of responsibilities”. We need to elaborate a science of rhythm to take this aspect into consideration.
Another point needs to be stressed, in order to build this world of responsibility, and reinforce the coalitions and movements involved in peace-building and peaceful coexistence. When we talk about a population, we must insist on the fact that the population must be organized and well-structured, to be more than just a population. It must evolve into a dynamic and efficient civil society. This is the responsibility of the grown-ups, the parents, the institutions, the European Union, and so forth. According to most theories about democracy, the soul of a nation is the civil society, not the mere population. If there is a consolidated civil society, which conveys and promotes valid and ethical values, it can then generate valid leaders who can represent it, and adequately manage civil society. This requires time and education, but it is a pre-condition for peaceful coexistence. Without a civil society, you can hardly expect a valid management of society. Civil society is both the origin and the goal of ethical politics and ethical management tout court. Civil society is necessarily plural and inclusive.
As such, the role of the Muslim and interreligious scholars is limited in scope, resources, and capabilities. They cannot solve the deficiencies of the civil society alone. Their – our – role is to humbly provide some solid references in terms of counter-narratives and adequate interpretation of religious texts, reminding them of the core values conveyed by religion. There is an interesting difference between the 2005 “Common Word” and the 2019 “Human Fraternity Document”. The “Common Word” is an Islamic initiative addressed to Christian Theologians. It is an interreligious and inter-theological discussion. While the 2019 “Human Fraternity Document” is blessed and signed by two main spiritual leaders, it is addressed to everyone and its language is more open and accessible to the entire public: a kind of vulgarization of the message.
It is true that there is a gap in terms of speed, but the question is not necessarily about speed, it is also the direction and orientation that are given, the qibla. The right orientation is towards respect, peace, knowledge, and justice, with the right required rhythm. This is part of the engagement of interreligious dialogue.
As regards interreligious dialogue, we must be careful about really engaging in and practicing it, because sometimes, the focus is more on a common engagement towards peace. Of course, this helps a lot, but it is not sufficient.
Prof. Aicha HADDOU (Keynote Speaker)
Director of Ta’aruf, Morocco Interfaith & Peacebuilding Research and Training Centre,
Rabita Mohammedia of Ulemas
I also agree with the idea of a speed gap between the religious leadership and the believers, and even with the rest of the society. Most of those who are part of the religious leadership today are unable to follow, to keep themselves updated, to be adequately trained in relation to the main transformations of today’s societies, and this is a main issue. By contrast, today’s youth is highly connected, in particular digitally, and raises very fine contemporary questions, including metaphysical ones. Most of the religious leaders are unable to answer and to meet the expectations and needs of this youth, and they lack the sufficient resources, both material and immaterial, to deal with these questions and with the youth.
Fortunately, the religious world has progressively become aware of this issue, at least in Morocco and in some European countries. This is why the training of imams has increasingly incorporated a pluri-disciplinary approach and content, in particular relating to human and social sciences. We have also invested a lot in young leadership, for instance through the creation of the “théologiens-relais (“relay-theologians”). We really need to be connected to the spirit of the times, and the state of mind of youth, in order to be able to interact with them, and answer their doubts and questions. Regarding the theological training, we cannot go ahead with trainings that is disconnected from human sciences.
Dr. Fahed also evoked the lack of a culture of alterity within certain families, and the fact that many parents are unable to transmit an opening to difference and to alterity to their children. It is actually very difficult to influence families and the values that are transmitted within the familial sphere. The channels to get into the families are very limited, apart from the local mosque, the local associations, or maybe television. So the idea is to try to directly influence the children, although it remains important to try to sensitize the parents. And for this, the school remains the most central and useful channel to educate and influence children, and transmit them the culture of alterity, but also other fundamental values of an inclusive and respectful citizenship. This does not mean that it is an easy task. The school is late, too, and the educational programs are not fully adequate respect to the contemporary challenges and the needs of the youth. Schools also often lack sufficient available resources. The priority is to invest a lot in schools and education, not only in the Muslim world, but also in Europe.
Mr. Andrin RAJ
Senior Fellow, Religion & Security Council
Director, Nordic Counter-Terrorism Network
Advisor, Ministry of Endowment and Religious Affairs, Federal Republic of Somalia
Websites and social media relating to terrorist organizations such as ISIS and al-Qaida are particularly informative about the ideas and ideologies underlying radicalization and jihadism, and thus need to be studied carefully in order to device the proper counter-narratives, especially when Quranic verses are misused to promote the extremist discourse. To examine websites and social media is also of paramount importance to better figure out the type of communication used by terrorist organizations, with a view to finding effective techniques to counter their propaganda. For instance, there is a difference between al-Qaida’s early videos and those of ISIS, as the former feature a limited number of mujahidin, while the latter are replete with fighters to show that everyone can sit in a tank, carry a weapon, or have a car. This is a sign of how ISIS has evolved into a military-style entity, and understanding this and other dynamics in the behavior of terrorist organizations can greatly help develop our own communication approach to address the threat.
Questions to the Keynote Speakers: How are you working for countering jihadist groups on the ideological ground? Are you actually looking at the content of their narratives disseminated online through videos and posts, particularly when they resort to the Quran?
Prof. Aicha HADDOU (Keynote Speaker)
Director of Ta’aruf, Morocco Interfaith & Peacebuilding Research and Training Centre,
Rabita Mohammedia of Ulemas
The specialists working at the Rabita Mouhamédia of Ulemas Murabita have actually paid much attention to the content promoted by Daesh. They accessed the movement’s websites, which is not something that anyone can do. Daesh is extraordinary powerful and professional in terms of communication. The videos produced by the organization to attract the youth are incredibly efficient and professional, including visually, not just in terms of content, and this is a main aspect to address. For instance, Daesh released a sort of add on its website, which is very well-done technologically and aesthetically. We can see a quite ugly bearded man walking in the street of a city, supposedly a city managed by Daesh. I am not criticizing the physical aspect of the man, but I insist on this point because it is probably part of the message. This man is walking together with a very handsome child, with blond hair and blue eyes. If this young boy is the ugly man’s child, it comes to mind that the man’s spouse is a very handsome woman, corresponding to the European female beauty stereotypes. The subliminal message that Daesh wants to distillate is the following: “come and join us, many handsome women are waiting for you, you can build a family with children, and live a beautiful and happy life”. Daesh has gone very far with this kind of subliminal messaging to attract people.
The content is also very important, of course. For what regards my personal experience in studying certain profiles of radicalized men, I have found most of the fundamental information regarding ISIS narratives and communication by interacting with the families. I could also get important information interacting with the young people who went to fight in Syria for motives that are not jihad but who, for various reasons, found themselves caught in jihadi networks. The amount and quality of the information I could get in this way is exceptional, and it helped me a lot to understand not only the narratives but also the strategies of Daesh.
For example, on the theological – and psychological – level, Daesh has developed a very effective strategy to attract the youth. It tries to get the youth away from their family, separating them from their relatives, and in particular from their mother. It uses the same tactic as sects. It does so very progressively, without formulating it explicitly. It is a main strategy of the organization precisely because the Prophet Muhammad fiercely banned jihad or any kind of fight in case of disagreement of the mother. The sacred texts are very clear on this condition. Beyond the mother’s agreement to go and fight, in Islam, the parents are sacred. Heaven is considered to be under the mother’s feet, meaning that access to paradise depends on our relation to our mother, on our love, devotion and obedience to her.
How thus to explain the high number of young people who joined jihad without their mother’s agreement? It is precisely because Daesh makes a great effort to make the young people think that the family’s and mother’s approval is not necessary. The organization does thorough and continuous brainwashing on this particular question, and I could notice it when I spoke to the families and to the young people who came back from Syria. The discourse of Daesh is basically the following: “Be careful, your mother will surely prevent you from going to jihad, and condemn your project. But it is precisely because you love and respect your mother that you have to join us, in order to save your mother’s soul. Your mother lives in Europe, in a corrupt country, or in Morocco, where Islam is not well practiced and applied. As a consequence, your mother does not know what is the right Islam, she is unaware of this. She risks to go to hell because she does not practice the true Islam. If you engage in jihad, not only you will access Paradise, but you will also save your mother’s soul, as well as the soul of 73 members of your family”. This is confirmed by the mothers who could speak to their sons in Syria, telling them to come back, telling them that they disapproved of their choice. The main motivation stressed by the young men was saving their mother’s soul.
As you can notice, movements such as Daesh methodologically divert the Islamic content, and it is very effectively done. They also invest a lot in communication and psychological manipulation. Many young people who left Morocco for jihadi fronts were previously living in slums. They were afraid of committing suicide because suicide is absolutely forbidden in Islam. But going to jihad appears to them as a “halal” suicide, a process of “halalization” of suicide as narrated and presented by Daesh. The organization explains that the jihadists who die in jihad go to paradise, where they have women waiting for them, and dying in jihad also enables them to save their mother and 73 relatives. Daesh founds its propaganda on Islamic texts which are instrumentalized and diverted from their true meaning.
The communication of Daesh not only plays on theological and psychological grounds. It also connects to material needs. The organization reassures the jihadists about the concrete needs of their family. It assures that it will materially take care of their family if they die fighting. I met young people who have been told by Daesh that their family would be granted 4000 dirhams if they die. These young people, even in Europe, who face identity and psychological issues and who consider that they have no future are sensitive to this argument.
There is the need to deconstruct all the narratives and communication of Daesh. Apart from the interviews and interactions with the families, we also use the internet a lot to study the narratives and communication of Daesh, and to deconstruct and counter them. But such work is more efficient if there is concrete work done on the ground as well. I would like here to pay a tribute to the mothers of jihadists, who are not recognized by the official institutions despite the extraordinary work they have been doing for peace. These women are stigmatized because their sons are or were jihadists. Nevertheless, they have done a lot to save other young people and have saved many of them. These women intervene in jails, schools, and other sensitive contexts. I met three women living in Belgium and in the Netherlands, who sent a letter to Daesh via Facebook, a bit like the Letter to Al Baghdadi, but this was sent directly to the organization. The letter said: “You will not take our children anymore. We, mothers, will be here. We have been unable to save our own children, but we will save all the others”. Three hours later, Daesh answered them. This means that those in the organization have been troubled somehow. Of course, Daesh answered by denigrating these mothers, but it reacted, and this is really interesting. These women need to be recognized and congratulated for the work they are doing daily, because they contribute to the public interest.
Imam Yahya PALLAVICINI (Keynote Speaker)
President, Islamic Religious Community of Italy (COREIS)
Ambassador for Dialogue among Civilizations, Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO)
To counter radicalism and elaborate alternative narratives, two approaches at least appear to be necessary and relevant. First, we need to implement an interdiciplinary and inter-institutional methodology. We are involved in Italy, in Europe, and at a transatlantic level in a consultation process in which the skills of all the partners interact. Everyone has his own strategies, experience, and identity, but we have a common enemy. Sharing this experience provides the theologian or the religious leader with a better awareness of how the institutions, the military, the intelligence, and the media can and should work together.
To counter radicalization and provide counter narratives, we need to spread the correct interpretations of certain verses of the Quran that are abused and de-contextualized. This has been done. However, we should be careful of not playing the game of the extremists, who are claiming a legitimacy on the interpretation of Islam, and who spread a competitivess about who is the most knowlegeable and reliable over the Quranic interpretation, trying to appear as the purest interpreters. This is why, although the consultation process I am part of is doing this work of methodic interpretation and is seeking to spread it, it is reluctant to do it in the main media. It tries to find the best moment and the best channels to do it, not to follow the provocation of extremist groups.
These views and interpretations should be disseminated directly to the communities, which have different characteristics depending on where they are located, and thus we must also adapt to the context. The imams or religious leaders can play this role, through meetings, courses, preaching, clarifying what has been the Muslim civilization for more than fourteen century, providing a methodic and holistic interpretation of the sacred texts, mobilizing theology, spirituality, jurisprudence, identifying what is extremist, radical, violent. In such a way, we can establish a clear distinction between what is moderate and right Islam, and what is wrong and extreme. It is part of what I call the strategy of isolation and differentiation. It is spreading the view that extremism is not part of any Islamic traditional honest teaching.
The second approach is to consider the aspects that are not necessarily related to theology and ideology, although they remain important aspects to acknowledge. The radicalization of the youth is not a direct result of the use or misuse of Quranic verses by extremist organizations. These verses are just used instrumentally. The true poison does not come from the misinterpretation of the Quran, but from the culture of violence, war games, all this aesthetic which actually participates in the brainwashing done by ISIS. Basically, a great part of the communication of ISIS uses videos depicting the jihadists as super powerful heros, in a Hollywood or video-game like scenario. We have to say to the youth that ISIS communication is a false emotional communication, that none will become a hero if he goes to Syria, and that no heaven or retribution is waiting for you if you kill youself or someone else. It is really essential to deconstruct the emotional communication and brainwashing.
Dr. Elie AL HINDY
Executive Director, Adyan Foundation
Associate Professor, Notre Dame University-Louaize
Although we have focused a lot on Islam, it is important to observe that radical thinking and violent extremism does not pertain to the Islamic world and the MENA region, but is present in all religions and areas. Besides, it is not only or necessarily linked with religions, but it can also affect other domains. It means that we have to consider all the facets, factors and sources of extremism and radicalism, to understand the contemporary evolutions, and be able to counter radicalism including in its religious version.
We also have to be critical regarding certain assumptions or practices of interreligious dialogue, in particular between or within monotheistic religions. It is actually easier to speak about interreligious dialogue or cooperation between the Abrahamic religions, than to incorporate religions which are not monotheistic in this dialogue and be more inclusive in terms of religious pluralism.
I also prefer to use the term “common living” or “living together” (“vivre ensemble”), rather than “tolerance”, which suggests a sort of constraint, or the term “coexistence” which supposes that we should exist one next to each other, but with limited interactions and sharing. “Living together” means sharing a same life experience in a same place, on a daily basis, and this is what creates a natural dialogue, impacts and transform the people on a personal and social level.
Proceedings of the Study Seminar
“Religion, Peace, and Security: Challenges and Prosepcts in the MENA Region”
Opening Session
A Strategic Perspective on “Religion, Peace, and Security”
First Session
Introduction
Dr. Elie Al Hindy: “Interreligious Dialogue: Three Levels of Engagement for Peace and Security”
Dr. Majeda Omar: “The Amman Message and Other Insights from Jordan”
Round-Table Discussion
Second Session
Introduction
Prof. Aicha Haddou: Preventing Extremism: The Moroccan “Experience”
Imam Yahya Pallavicini: Policies and Initiatives Against the Radical Discourse in the MENA Region
Round-Table Discussion
See also
“Religion, Peace, and Security: Challenges and Prosepcts in the MENA Region”