America talks about “moderate Islam” and “radical Islam”. Ok, so what is “moderate Islam”? A “moderate” opposition? A “moderate” Islam? A “moderate” state?

The “moderate Islam” which America demands is an Islam that is devoid of soul, an Islam of just praying and fasting, an Islam of rites and rituals only. The Islam that America demands is an Islam that is devoid of Jihad, devoid of fighting, devoid of resistance. The Islam that America demands is an Islam that does not recognize Jihad, that denies the verses of Jihad, considering it exclusively only to the time of the Prophet (SAW).

The “moderate Islam” that America demands is one that begs acceptance and normalization from the International Community while accepting humiliation and obedience. The “moderate Islam” that America demands is an Islam that separates religion from politics; rather, it seperates religion from society.

The “moderate Islam” that America is satisfied with is an Islam that watches the war on Yemen without saying a word or denouncing! The “moderate Islam” that America demands is an Islam that watches the crimes of the Houses of al-Saud and al-Khalifah without denouncing or rejecting them. The “moderate Islam” that America demands is one that watches the crimes of israel without even issuing a piece of paper that denounces an operation, an act of rape, or a demolition there, and whatnot. The “moderate Islam” that America demands is an Islam that tells you not to support the oppressed in Pakistan, Syria, Palestine, Nigeria, Yemen, and so on.

The “moderate Islam” that America demands is one that does not believe in the Islamic Ummah, that does not believe in the necessity of us supporting each other, and the necessity of protecting the Islamic Republic of Iran, which is an Islamic State.

The “moderate Islam” that America demands is an Islam that differentiates between the Arabs and non-Arabs; an Islam that differentiates betweens Kuwaiti, Bahraini, Iraqi, Indian, Iranian and Turk; an Islam that doesn’t believe in “Indeed the noblest of you in the sight of Allah is the most Godwary among you” (49:13).

It is an Islam that believes in Sykes-Picot and not in the Quran!

This is the Islam that America demands, which Imam Khomeini described thirty years ago as “American Islam”.

As far as America’s opinion about “radical Islam” is concerned, it is an Islam that America does not want; that is, the Islam that the Yazid of our time does not want. What Islam is this? In America, it is called “radical Islam”.

Yes! I say again! The “radical Islam” that America rejects is the “radical Islam” against the oppression and tyranny of America. The Islam that America rejects—the Islam which calls for crying, tears, rituals, mowkibs, and the Arbaeen walk—the same Islam that calls to pick up a weapon to sacrifice souls and to stand against the enemies (of Islam).

Today, the Islam that America fights with and rejects is the Islam which believes that the religion is a religion of governance, a religion of authority; it believes in Jihad and resistance, a religion that guides society. As Shaheed Sayyid Baqir al-Sadr described it: “Islam guides life”.

The genuine Islam that America rejects is the one that refuses to beg for Western laws, Western culture, and Western theories.

Today as I mention, America is playing a spiteful role and a dangerous conspiracy in misrepresenting Islam. They made ISIS, then ISIS kills. Anything now in the literature of ISIS, for example “Jihad” of ISIS is now rejected by us, the Islamic State is now rejected by us; that’s how America has made it for us. “Jihad” now means shouting “Allahu Akbar” and slaughtering. Fighting for the sake of Allah means saying “Muhammad (SAW) is the Messenger of Allah,” then ripping his stomach open.

This is what our understanding of Islam has become today. Any slogan that is presented by ISIS, America promotes it as if it is from Islam. As a result, some people—they could be naïve or they could have wicked intentions— they refuse EVERYTHING that ISIS says. What, then, did our religion become? It became the religion of mercy and pity only; neither fierce, confrontation, nor harshness. Who said that our religion doesn’t have harshness? “And let them find severity in you, and know that Allah is with the Godwary.” (9:123) Yes, against the disbelievers. “And those with him are firm with the disbelievers…” (48:29) If we are good, let there be no severity between us “merciful among themselves” (48:29). In reality, the harshness (severity) is between us and our compassion is for the faithless.

With an American-ISIS plan, the tool is ISIS. ISIS is a means, an evil tool. In all these years that have passed, Al-Qaeda, al-Nusra Front, and ISIS are just practicing aggressiveness, killing, and have changed the slogan of “Allahu Akbar” to represent slaughtering. The phrase “Allahu Akbar” now means something else, and so do other phrases such as “Jihad”. If you see a long beard it means something else.

They portrayed the Wahhabis, Takfiris, and ISIS in such a way that many of us did not know how to treat this situation. As a result, the term “ISIS militias” was repeated on the TV — and we kept parroting “ISIS militias” — what did it become later? “The Popular Mobilization Militia”, “Hezbollah Militias”, “Houthi Militias”.

In the beginning ISIS was an apparent goal, then it became a tool (of the Americans). For many of us now, and in the Arab and Islamic world — Inshallah it doesn’t exist in Iraq — “Jihad” refers exclusively to ISIS; it falsely includes Hezbollah and the Popular Mobilization Units, and the media is presenting and showing them as “militias” (like ISIS). The result, therefore, is that many people in the world today reject the Popular Mobilization Units, reject Hezbollah, and reject the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The reason for this is ISIS: an evil American conspiracy to misrepresent Islam!

-Sayyid Hashim Al-Haidari