Essential Question: Does 9/11 have its origins in the Cold War?Â
Can Muslims and Jews get along? "The Medina Charter" suggests so. In this charter, Prophet Muhammad fights with Jews. So why all the tension during the 20th Century? The victors of WWI made many promises to different groups of people. The Arabs were promised territory for siding with the British (see Hussein McMahon Letters) while the Jewish Zionists were also promised territory. However, by the end of the war, Ibn Saud united Saudi Arabia and much of the Ottoman Empire was administered to the British.Â
WWI Inspiring Revolt
Homework
"Prairie Fires" outlines the ideology of the Weathered Underground a terrorist organization in the US during the 1970s.Â
Library Task
Al Qaeda's creation can be tracked to the Soviet Afghan War of 1979. During the Cold War, the Soviet Union invaded Afghanistan. Abdullah Azam who was Bin Laden's mentor, declared that Muslims from around the world needed to help their Afghan brothers and sisters. Azam also suggested, that Muslims that did not do so were not meeting fard ayn obnligation to Islam. Thus in his view, and I stress his view, Muslims were either with his interpretation of ISlam or against it. Sometimes, people interpret religious text for personal gain. Sometimes such a person gains followers to his cause. Remember Paul Hill and the Army of God and their views on killing abortion doctors? Azam's writings can be found in unit 4.
Paul Hill argued in his writing that moral and immoral force is justified under the right circumstances. The Moral Law could allow such killings to be acceptable and possibly even mandatory. In other words, if you do not kill to save the killing of an unborn, then you are guilty and not doing God’s work. Hill cites Exodus 22:2 to make his point.Â
“If a thief is caught breaking in at night and is struck a fatal blow, the defender is not guilty of bloodshed;
Charlie Wilson's War
Video Sheets Classwork
Homework for Graded Discussion
Massoud was a leader during the Soviet Afghan War. He was assassinated by Al Qaeda on September 10. He advised against committing large scale attacks on the US and paid for his opinion with his life.
Defense of Muslim Lands
Azam Analysis
A Shia terrorist group working with Hezbollah bombed the Khobar Towers in Saudi Arabia. Bin Laden would claim responsibility and issued the following statement.
The crusader army became dust when we detonated al-Khobar.
With courageous youth of Islam fearing no danger.
If (they are) threatened: The tyrants will kill you,
they reply my death is a victory.
I did not betray that king, he did betray our Qiblah.
And he permitted in the holy country the most filthy sort of humans.
I have made an oath by Allah, the Great, to fight who ever rejected the faith