BEWEGING VAN BELGISCHE EX-
MOVEMENT OF BELGIAN FORMER MUSLIMS
STUDY OF ISLAM
The Islamic Smoke Screen:
“whoever kills one person has killed the whole of mankind”
“whoever kills one person has killed the whole of mankind”
After Quran verse 2.256, which holds that “there is no compulsion in religion”, verse 5.32 is the second most popular verse in the Quran. Or rather, the part of it that is commonly quoted. It is being referred to when jihadis commit murder in the name of Islam. Then follows the solemn declaration that Islam categorically rejects the killing of innocents. “The Quran could not be clearer on this point”, thus the Muslims.
After the jihadi Mohammed Bouyeri killed Theo van Gogh, the Dutch director of the film ‘Submission’, critical of Islam, there followed a TV interview with the Muslim philosopher Tarik Fraihi. He stated that Islam absolutely rejects the murder of innocents as the Quran proclaims that “whoever kills one person, it were as if he has killed the whole of mankind”.
Tarik referred here to Quran verse 5.32 which we quote below:
5.32. For this reason did We prescribe to the children of Israel that whoever slays a soul, unless it be for manslaughter or for mischief in the land, it is as though he slew all men; and whoever keeps it alive, it is as though he kept alive all men; and certainly Our apostles came to them with clear arguments, but even after that many of them certainly act extravagantly in the land.
As we notice, Tarik referred only to the segment in the verse that suits his purpose. What he fails to add is the following:
- the verse states a stipulation that Allah at the time gave to the Jews “the children of Israel”. The question here is if this still remains in force today, given that Allah in the Quran prescribes new stipulations and cancels old ones.
- the verse likewise explicitly sanctions killing in revenge for a killing and for fomenting chaos in the land.
For what concerns the meaning of “fomenting chaos in the land”, the following verse clarifies this:
5.33. The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His apostles and strive to make mischief in the land is only this, that they should be murdered or crucified or their hands and their feet should be cut off on opposite sides or they should be expelled from the land; this shall be as a disgrace for them in this world, and in the hereafter they shall have a grievous chastisement.
The authoritative Quran commentary of Ibn Kathir explains as follows “wage war against Allah and His apostles”: “wage war mentioned here means oppose and contradict, and it includes rejection of the faith, blocking roads, and spreading fear on the public roads.” Concretely, this means, amongst others: hindering or opposing the dissemination of Islam. See also the following link.
Conclusion: verse 5.32 is used by Tarik Fraihi to prove that Islam is opposed to the killing of innocents and the same verse is advanced by Mohammed Bouyeri to justify his murder of Theo van Gogh because of the latter’s crime of creating chaos in the land. The protests by peace-loving Muslims against the film that Theo van Gogh produced have thus given a certain legitimacy to the murder. The difference between Tarik Fraihi and Mohammed Bouyeri is that the former uses only part of the verse whereas the latter has taken the entire text to heart, and also the subsequent verse that offers additional clarification. We leave it to the reader to judge who is right.