Onward Muslim Soldiers: How Jihad Still Threatens America and the West

by Robert Spencer

Book Overview

In "Onward Muslim Soldiers," the author of "Islam Unveiled" reveals why the threat of violent jihad is growing daily, despite America's recent victory in Iraq. Spencer uncovers the cause of global violence as he goes straight to Muslim sources

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0895261006
• ISBN13: 9780895261007
• Release Date: August 2003
• Publisher: Regnery Publishing
• Length: 352 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.
• Dimensions: 1.2" x 6.3" x 9.2"

Customer Reviews

Brings up an issue we all need to face

The author says that some areas in the world are undergoing demographic changes. For example, the Netherlands may have a Muslim majority by the year 2040 (then again, it may not). Should that worry those of us who are Christians, Muslims, Jews, or Pagans? As well as those of us who are not? Well, if we're going to live together in peace, I think it all sounds really good. The newcomers probably will contribute greatly to Holland. And those Dutch who convert will make their society more diverse. But what if the Muslims are led mostly by extremists? What if we get a society led by something more like the Mafia, or the Ku Klux Klan, or the Stalinists, or the National Socialists, or the Maoists, or simply the Taliban? Then I think we have less reason to be optimistic. And the author of this book agrees. In the first part of this book, Spencer discusses Jihad now. He explains that dhimmitude is a direct challenge to the proposition that all people are created equal with unalienable rights. He points out that the Wahhabis, the majority in Saudi Arabia, are one of the most extreme of the Islamic sects, and that they routinely identify their enemies as "Jews and Christians." He gives examples of hatred taught to schoolchildren from Wahhabi texts, not just in Saudi Arabia, but right here in Muslim schools in the United States. Typical of the preaching is the claim that Wahhabi dead go to Paradise while Jewish dead go to Hell. Given the company each would have there, I suspect that if this is true, the Jews are getting the better deal. I think a very revealing comment is a quote from two eleven-year old Arab girls. They were asked which they would prefer, to have peace and full rights for all Arab people or for the two of them to die as martyrs. Interestingly, they immediately chose martyrdom: peace and justice were not important to them, even on their terms. The second part of the book deals with the history of Muslim Jihad. Here, Spencer exposes the myth that non-Muslims were treated well in Islamic lands. Some non-Muslims did indeed do well, but none had the rights of Muslims. And he also points out a very interesting statistic. Fifty years ago, Christians were 15% of the total population of the Middle East. They are now 2% of that population. And it is pressure from radical Islam that has caused this. As Spencer says, "the problem of radical Islam is not a liberal or conservative issue. It is a human rights issue." But many people on the political Left seem to apologize for radical Islam. Why? The author gives the answer: it is because radical Islam is anti-American. I think it is a big mistake for anyone who has any sympathy for liberalism to support reactionary terrorism, but it seems that many people strongly disagree with me about this. As for the author, he regards those who ally themselves with America's enemies as having chosen sides in a war we're in. I agree with him about this. Well, what is to be d

Militant Islam Exposed

In this book Robert Spencer argues that violence and terrorism are not necessarily out of place for a Muslim. The Koran, Islamic law (Sharia), the example of Muhammad and Islamic history all provide support for these sorts of activities. With a wealth of documentation, the author shows that the concept of jihad (holy war) and dhimmitude (the subjugation of non-Muslim minorities), continues to strongly influence many Muslims today.Consider the doctrine of jihad. Just what does it mean and involve? Because there is no ultimate central authority in Islam, argues Spencer, disagreement exists as to interpreting the Koran, the weight of tradition (Hadith), and the example of Muhammad. But the Koran (Sura 9:29), Islamic history and jurisprudence all hold that there are three choices for the non-Muslim in a Muslim land: conversion to Islam, dhimmitude, or death. "The goal of jihad is thus the incorporation of non-Muslims into Muslim society, either by conversion or submission."Koranic injunctions to fight are numerous, as they are in the various collections of Hadith. And Muhammad himself set the example of violent conquest. The idea of complete submission to Islam, even to the point of death, argues Spencer, "remains a vital part of Islamic theology". Thus jihad is very much concerned with the concept of holy war, and even terrorism.Hand in hand with jihad is the notion of dhimmitude. Non-Muslims in Muslim countries are considered dhimmis, or protected peoples. Such protection however often results in second-class citizenship (and worse) for the minority groups. Various social, political and religious restrictions, along with the mandatory payment of a poll-tax (jizya) effectively spells the gradual liquidation of the minority groups.Apologists for Islam often claim that these practices may have been true in the past, but are no longer so prevalent. But Spencer amply documents how both jihad and dhimmitude are alive and well in most Muslim nations today. September 11 was, to a great degree, a logical outcome of the concept of jihad. Some however argue that as the ultimate suicide bombing, Sept. 11 cannot be reconciled with Islam, since suicide is sinful in Islam. But many Muslims defend suicide bombing, arguing that it is not really suicide but martyrdom for Allah, something much praised in the Koran. They insist that the bombers simply use their bodies to kill others, not themselves. And those who are killed while fighting for Allah are promised a one-way ticket to Paradise. Interestingly, in Islam, no other action guarantees one's eternal destiny in Paradise. A good part of this book documents how radical Islam is at war against not only the West, but moderate Muslims as well. He offers detailed, referenced accounts of how militant Muslims are at work in the West, and how many Western sympathisers have been duped by their words of peace and tolerance. Yes, the Koran does speak of these ideas, but it also contains many verses devoted to violent intole

How Jihad Threatens America and the West

Thank G-d Spencer avoided Middle East Studies Departments. Spencer whose degree is in Religious Studies approaches the problem of Islam from a religious angle, and tries to examine the theology of jihad on the Muslims' own terms. His book is blessedly free of academese and it is not only well-written but a well-organized look at how jihad threatens the West. (Contrary to what reviewer Seth Franzman thinks, Nigeria is neither part of America nor the West).Daniel Pipes who is a professor of Mid East Studies (but a good guy nonetheless) writes on the book's cover, "To understand the ideological sources of the terrorist enemy, read Robert Spencer's succinct, knowledgeable, and important book, Onward Muslim Soldiers. His systematic survey of such vital topics as radical Islam's aspirations, its unlikely alliance with the far left, and the need to encourage a moderate Islamic alternative are all valuable. But Spencer's signal contribution is his focus on the 'global threat to the West' that so many Western analysts and policymakers persistently refuse to see: jihad, or sacred war for Islam. There is no more important topic for citizens to comprehend."Anyone who reads both Daniel Pipes and Robert Spencer will understand both the politics (Pipes) and the theology (Spencer) of the jihad terrorists who threaten us all.

Shattering Taboos on Jihad and Dhimmitude

Robert Spencer's meticulous research and documentation, complemented by a lucid writing style, has yielded a remarkably informative work that transitions seamlessly between classical Islamic theology, jurisprudence, and sociopolitical history, and contemporary events, especially modern manifestations of jihad war ideology.Moreover, Spencer's analyses are devoid of politically correct, ahistorical dithering. This is apparent from the opening chapter (in the first of the books three main sections), and the illustrative example of the infamous grenade and small arms attack by American sergeant Hasan Akbar, an African-American convert to Islam, which killed two of his senior officers and wounded 15 others, in northern Kuwait on March 22, 2003. After reviewing statements by designated spokespersons (an Army chaplain and a Pentagon official) dismissing (reflexively) Islamic ideology as a potential motivating factor, and the predictable defense counsel and family attempts to portray religious and/or racial discrimination against Akbar as precipitating the arrest, Spencer cites sacred texts from the Qur'an and hadith (putative deeds and utterances of Muhammad as recorded by his pious followers) prohibiting Muslims from fighting their co-religionists. The author's provocative analysis is supported by a succinct introduction to the unique Islamic institution of jihad (including jihad war), its central obligation to pious Muslims, and how jihad is linked inextricably to the corollary institution of "dhimmitude." He then makes further disquieting observations germane to contemporary jihad "campaigns" and the basic human rights of all non-Muslims living in societies whose legal codes are inspired either in full or part by the Shari'a (Islamic Holy Law). Subsequently, Spencer returns to the Akbar case, specifically, to review evidence of the funding and related ideological orientation of the mosque attended by Sergeant Akbar.Jihad was pursued century after century, because jihad, which means "to strive in the path of Allah," embodied an ideology and a jurisdiction. Both were formally conceived by Muslim jurisconsults and theologians from the 8th and 9th centuries onward, based on their interpretation of Qur'an verses and long chapters in the hadith. As Spenser notes, appropriately, the consensus on the nature of jihad from all four schools of Sunni Islamic jurisprudence (i.e., Maliki, Hanbali, Hanafi, and Shafi'i) is clear. Spencer then reviews the historical implications of the Qur'an's injunction in verse 9:29: "Fight those who believe not in Allah nor the Last Day, nor hold that forbidden which hath been forbidden by Allah and His Messenger, nor acknowledge the religion of Truth, (even if they are) of the People of The Book, until they pay the Jizya with willing submission, feel themselves subdued." For example, al-Mawardi (d. 1058), a seminal Shafi'ite jurist during the Abbasid-Baghdadian Caliphate, elucidated the regulations pertaining to the lands and i

Islamic Law is a human rights issue

This follow-up to Islam Unveiled focuses on jihad, a concept embedded deeply in Islam which makes peaceful coexistence with the West difficult. Spencer outlines the lives and thought of the twentieth century theologians who elaborated the theories of radical Islam. His wide ranging perspective shows that the war on terror is much more than a Wahabbi problem. Shiites, Egyptian Sunnis and even Sufis are part of the mix. Some of this includes very entertaining stories of a radical Muslim theologian who spent some time in American suburbia - as you can guess the radical hated it!Spencer reports how the increasing Muslim population has already changed Europe. He explores the truly weird alliance between the libertine American left and religiously strict Islamic radicals. He shows how history has been utterly distorted for political ends. He reports how Islamic extremists have embedded themselves among Islamic leaders right here in America and around the world. Most importantly, Spencer implores us to realize that we are fighting a jihad whether we like it or not, because that is what our enemies have thrust upon us. They are motivated by a desire to brutally make the world conform to their vision of truth. Onward Muslim Soldiers is important to anyone trying to make sense of history's latest turn. It is well written and quite well documented; it is both a great read and a great source book on radical islam.