The Amir of Jihad – the Military Department – the Army
Article 61
The War Department is in charge of all the affairs connected to the
armed forces of the Army and police, and the treaties, tasks, military
equipment and similar. They are also responsible for the military colleges,
expeditions and everything that is necessary from the Islamic culture and the
general culture necessary for the Army, as well as everything connected to war
and its preparation, and the head of this department is called the Amir of
Jihad
The war department
is one of the State’s institutions, and its head is called the Amir of Jihad,
rather than the manager of Jihad.
This is because the Messenger
used to call the leaders of the Army Umara’. Ibn Sa’d narrated that the
Messenger of Allah
said “The Amir of the people is Zayd Ibn
Haritha; if he was killed, then the Amir is Ja’far Ibn Abi Talib; and if he was
killed, the Amir is ’Abdullah Ibn Ruwahah; and if he was killed, let the
Muslims choose one man from among them and make him their Amir”. Al-Bukhari
narrated that ’Abdullah Ibn Umar (ra) said: “The Messenger of Allah
appointed Zayd Ibn Haritha as Amir in the
expedition of Mu’ta…” and al-Bukhari narrated from Salamah b. al-Akwa’: “I went on an
expedition with Zayd; he was appointed Amir over us”. Al-Bukhari and
Muslim narrated that ’Abdullah Ibn Umar (ra) said: “The Prophet
sent
an army and appointed Usamah b. Zayd as an Amir over them. So some people
defamed his leadership, so the prophet
said: ‘If you defame his leadership, you
defamed the leadership of his father before. By Allah! He is worthy of
leadership…’” The companions, may
Allah be pleased with them, used to call the Army of Mu’tah the Army of Umara’. Muslim narrated from Buraydah
who said: “The Messenger of Allah
used
to advise the person whom he appointed as Amir over an army or an expedition…”
The war department takes charge of all the issues connected to the armed
force as mentioned in the article. The task of sending spies against the
belligerent disbelievers is also the role of the war department and a special
section is created for this purpose.
The evidences for this are well known from the life of the Messenger
:
The evidences for
preparation being the words of Allah (swt) “And make ready
against them all you can of power, including steeds of war (tanks, planes,
missiles, artillery) to threaten the enemy of Allah and your enemy, and others
besides whom, you may not know, but whom Allah does know. And whatever you
shall spend in the Cause of Allah shall be repaid unto you, and you shall not
be treated unjust” (TMQ
8:60).
And what was reported by Ibn Sa’d in al-Tabaqat from Makhul “The
Prophet
used catapults against the people
of Ta’if for forty days”. And Ibn Hisham mentioned
in his Sirah “Someone I trust narrated to me that the Messenger of
Allah
was the first to use catapults in
Islam”
The evidences for training: Muslim reported from ’Uqbah Bin Amir who
said: I heard the Messenger of Allah
say while on the pulpit “And make ready
against them all you can of power – truly power is archery, truly power is
archery, truly power is archery”. Al-Bukhari reported from Salama Bin
al-Akwa’ who said “The Prophet
passed
by a group of people from Aslam competing
with each other, and so he
said: Shoot O Bani Isma’il! Your
forefathers were archers, shoot and I am with such and such tribe. He said: so
one of the two teams held back, and so the Messenger of Allah
said: What is wrong that you don’t
shoot? They said: O Messenger of Allah, we shouldn’t shoot while you are with
them? He
said: Shoot and I am with all of you”.
And Muslim reported
“Fuqayman al-lakhmi said to ’Uqbah Bin Amir: You are aiming on these two
targets, it is difficult for you. ’Uqbah said: If it wasn’t for something I
heard from the Messenger of Allah, I wouldn’t have suffered. Al-Harith said: So
I said to Ibn Shamama: What was that? He said: He
said: Whoever learns archery then leaves
it, then he is not from us, or he has committed a sin”.
And Abu Dawud
reported a narration that al-Hakim authenticated and al-Dhahabi confirmed –
with the wording from Abu Dawud – from Khalid b. Zayd who said: I used to shoot
against ’Uqbah b. ’Amir, and so he passed by me that day and said: O Khalid,
come out with us to shoot, and so I delayed. He said: O Khalid, come, I will
tell you something that the Messenger of Allah
told me, and I will say it as the Messenger of
Allah
said: “Allah puts three
into paradise for a single arrow: the one who fashioned it taking care it was
good, and the one who shoots with it, and the one who helps the shooter; do
archery and ride, and to do archery is more beloved to me than riding. Three
things that are not counted from idle pastimes: A man who trains his horse,
playing with his family, and shooting with his bow and arrow, and whoever
leaves archery deliberately after having learnt it, it is a blessing that is
left, or he said blessing that they denied”.
The evidence
regarding the necessary culturing of the Army: Allah (swt) said in the chapter
of al-Tawba: “Verily, Allah has purchased of
the believers their lives and their properties for (the price) that theirs
shall be the Paradise. They fight in Allah’s Cause, so they kill (others) and
are killed. It is a promise in truth which is binding on Him in the Taurat
(Torah) and the Injeel (Gospel) and the Quran. And who is truer to his covenant
than Allah? Then rejoice in the bargain which you have concluded. That is the
supreme success (The believers whose lives Allah has purchased are) those who
turn to Allah in repentance (from polytheism and hypocrisy, etc.), who worship
(Him), who praise (Him), who fast (or go out in Allah’s Cause), who bow down
(in prayer), who prostrate themselves (in prayer), who enjoin (on people)
al-Ma’ruf (i.e. Islamic Monotheism and all what Islam has ordained) and forbid
(people) from Al-Munkar (i.e. disbelief, polytheism of all kinds and all that
Islam has forbidden), and who observe the limits set by Allah (do all that
Allah has ordained and abstain from all kinds of sins and evil deeds which
Allah has forbidden). And give glad tidings to the believers” (TMQ 111-112). Allah
(swt) did not make it sufficient to give one’s life and money to be from those
who are given glad tidings, but rather added that they are repenters,
worshippers, fasting, praying, enjoining the good and forbidding the evil and
observing the limits set by Allah (swt), upright upon them and not
transgressing them, rather there is a safe distance to kept away from them.
Allah (swt) said “O you who believe! Endure and be more patient
(than your enemy), and guard your territory by stationing army units
permanently at the places from where the enemy can attack you, and fear Allah,
so that you may be successful” (TMQ
3:200).
Al-Bukhari and Muslim reported from Sahl Bin Sa’d al-Sa’idi that the
Messenger of Allah
said “To guard Muslims in Allah’s Cause for
one day is better than the world and whatever is on its surface, and
the place of one’s whip in Paradise is better than the world and whatever is on
its surface; and a morning’s or an evening’s journey which a slave (person)
travels in Allah's Cause is better than the world and whatever is on its
surface"
And al-Bukhari reported from ’Abd Allah b. Abi ’Awfa that the Messenger
of Allah
said “Know that paradise lies beneath the shade of swords”.
Al-Bukhari reported from ’Abd al-Rahman b. Jabir that the Messenger of Allah
said “Anyone whose both feet get covered with dust in Allah's Cause
will not be touched by the (Hell) fire”.
Al-Hakim reported a narration which he authenticated, and al-Dhahabi
confirmed his authentication, from ’Imran b. Husayn that the Messenger of Allah
said “The place of a man in the lines in the Cause of Allah is
better to Allah than sixty years of a man’s worship”.
Al-Bukhari reported from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet
said “There are one
hundred levels in Paradise that Allah has prepared for those who partake in
Jihad in the Cause of Allah, what is between every two levels is like what is
between the heaven and the Earth”.
Muslim reported
from Anas who said: “The polytheists advanced (towards
us), and the Messenger of Allah
said: Get up to enter Paradise which is equal in
width to the heavens and the Earth. ’Umayr Bin al- Humam al-Ansari said:
Messenger of Allah, Paradise equal in extent to the heavens and the Earth? He
said: Yes. ’Umayr said: Excellent, excellent! The Messenger of Allah
asked him: What
prompted you to utter these words? He said: Messenger of Allah
, nothing but the desire that I be among its residents. He
said: You are (surely) among its
residents. ’Umayr then took out dates from his bag and began to eat them. Then he
said: If I were to live until I have eaten all these dates of mine, it would be
a long life. He threw away all the dates he had with him. Then he fought the
enemies until he was killed”.
The evidence of encouragement to fight:
Allah (swt) said “Then fight (O Muhammad) in the Cause of Allah,
you are not tasked (held responsible) except for yourself, and incite the
believers (to fight along with you), it may be that Allah will restrain the
evil might of the disbelievers. And Allah is stronger in might and stronger in
punishing.” (TMQ 4:84).
And He (swt) said “O Prophet! Urge the believers to fight. If there
are twenty steadfast persons amongst you, they will overcome two hundred, and
if there be a hundred steadfast persons they, will overcome a thousand of those
who disbelieve, because they (the disbelievers) are people who do not
understand.” (TMQ 8:65).
Ibn Ishaq reported saying: “Then the Messenger of Allah
went to the people
and encouraged them saying: By the One who the soul of Muhammad is in His Hand,
a man who fights today and is killed while he is patient, considering it from
his good deeds, attacking and not retreating, then Allah will put him into
Paradise”.
Ahmad reported with an authentic chain from Abu Hurayrah who said: “So
he looked and saw me, and said: O Abu Hurayrah and so I replied: I am present,
Messenger of Allah, and so he said: Call the Ansar (supporters) to me, and no
one other than an Ansar should come to me. So I called them, and they came,
then they came around the Messenger of Allah
. He
said: Do you see the rabble of Quraysh and their
followers? Then he said tying his hands together: kill them until you meet me
at Safa”.
Muslim reported from ’Abbas b. ’Abd al-Muttalib who said, “I
witnessed the day of Hunayn with the Messenger of Allah
…The Messenger of Allah
said O ’Abbas, call
out to the people of Samura (the tree under which the companions gave the
Prophet the Bay’a of ridwan before the treaty of al-Hudaybiyah).
’Abbas (who was a man with a loud voice) called out at the top of his
voice: Where are the people of Samura? And by God, when they heard my voice,
they came back (to us) as cows come back to their calves, and said: We are
present, we are present”.
The evidences to have patience and more endurance than the enemy at the
battlefield:
Allah (swt) said, “O you who believe! When you meet (an enemy)
force, take a firm stand against them and remember the Name of Allah much (both
with tongue and mind), so that you may be successful.” (TMQ 8:45).
And He (swt) said, “O you who believe! Endure and be more patient
(than your enemy), and guard your territory by stationing army units
permanently at the places from where the enemy can attack you, and fear Allah,
so that you may be successful.” (TMQ
3:200).
And He (swt) said, “Then, verily! Your Lord for those who emigrated
after they had been put to trials, and thereafter strove hard and fought (for
the Cause of Allah) and were patient, verily, your Lord afterward is,
Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful”. (TMQ
16:110).
Muslim reported from Jabir who said “We did not give the Bay’a to
the Messenger of Allah
upon death, rather we
gave it upon not retreating”.
Al-Bukhari reported from ’Abdullah Bin Abi Awfa that the Messenger of
Allah
said “If you meet them
(on the battlefield), then have patience”.
The proof for
preparing the Army such that they are not taken by surprise:
Al-Bukhari reported
from Abu Hurayrah that the Prophet
said “Tuba (a tree in
Paradise) for the slave who took the reins of his horse in the path of Allah,
his head is dishevelled, his feet are dusty, if he is appointed in
the vanguard, he is perfectly satisfied with his post of guarding, and if he is
appointed in the rearward, he accepts his post with satisfaction; (he is so
simple and unambiguous that) if he asks for permission, he is not permitted,
and if he intercedes, his intercession is not accepted”.
Al-Tirmidhi reported a narration that he considered Hasan from Ibn
’Abbas who said: I heard the Messenger of Allah
say “Two eyes which the
hellfire will not touch: an eye that cries out of the fear of Allah, and an eye
that spends the night on guard in the path of Allah”.
Al-Hakim reported a narration he authenticated, and which al-Dhahabi
confirmed, from Ibn Umar that the Prophet
said “Should I not inform
you about a night better than the night of Qadar (a night in the last ten days
of Ramadan)? A guard who is guarding in a land where he is afraid he will not
return to his family”.
Article 62
Jihad is obligatory upon the Muslims and military training is
compulsory. Every male Muslim who has reached the age of 15 is obligated to
undertake military training in order to prepare him for Jihad. Recruitment is
an obligation of sufficiency.
The evidence for the article is from the Book and the Sunnah;
Allah (swt) says “And fight them until there is no more Fitnah (strife)
and the Deen is for Allah” (TMQ
2:193), and He (swt) said “Then fight the leaders of disbelief” (TMQ 9:12), and it is
narrated from Anas that the Messenger of Allah
said “Fight against the idol
worshippers with your wealth, hands and tongues” (reported by Ahmad and al- Nasa’i with the wording from Al-Nasa’i, and both al-
Nasa’i and al-Hakim authenticated it and
al-Dhahabi confirmed it). And Mu’adh b. Jabal said that the Prophet
said “The peak of Islam is Jihad in the path of Allah” (reported by Ahmad).
When modern warfare requires military training in order to undertake what
is required by the Shari’ah in terms of defeating the enemy and
liberating lands, then this training would be obligatory in the same manner
that Jihad is, in accordance with the
Shari’ah principle “Whatever is required to complete an obligation is
itself obligatory”. This is because the order to fight encompasses
training, since it is a general order “and fight them”, which is
an order to fight as well as an order to do whatever makes you capable of
fighting. Above and beyond that, Allah (swt) said “And make ready against
them all you can of power” (TMQ
8:60), and training and expert military experience is preparation of
power, since they are required in order to become capable of fighting.
Accordingly, training is part of the power that must be prepared in the same
way as military equipment, supplies and so on.
As for recruitment, in other words, to make people soldiers in the Army
under military preparedness on a permanent basis, which means the creation of Mujahidin
who practically undertake the Jihad
and its requirements, then this is an obligation since undertaking the Jihad is a constant obligation which
continues irrespective of whether the enemy attacks us or not. Accordingly,
recruitment is an obligation of sufficiency.
As for Jihad being an obligation
upon the Muslims and not upon the rest of the subjects of the State – this is
because the type of Jihad which has
been made obligatory in the verses regarding Jihad is the fighting against the disbelievers, and this does not
come from the disbelievers, and so therefore according to this meaning the Jihad cannot be obligatory upon the
non-Muslims. However, it is permitted for the non-Muslim subjects of the State
to fight the enemy alongside the Muslims, since Quzman who was an
idol-worshipper went out and fought the idol-worshippers alongside the
companions of the Messenger of Allah
on the day of Uhud and the Messenger of Allah
did not forbid him doing so.
With respect to it being an obligation upon the men and not women – this
is due to what is reported from Ahmad and Ibn Maja through Aaisha (ra) who
said: O Messenger of Allah
, do women have to do Jihad? He
said “Yes, they have to do
Jihad in which there is no fighting: Hajj and ’Umra”.
And as for limiting it to those fifteen and above, this is due to the
narration reported by al-Bukhari from Nafi’ who said “Ibn Umar told me
that the Messenger of Allah saw him on the day of Uhud, and he was fourteen at
the time, and did not allow him to partake, and then on the day of al-Khandaq
when I was fifteen he gave me permission to go”. Nafi’ said I met Umar
b. ’Abd al-Aziz when he was the Khalifah and mentioned this narration to
him, so he said: This is the limit between the young and adult, and he wrote to
his workers to make it obligatory upon anyone who reached the age of fifteen.
In other words, he ordered to prepare provisions for them in the army office.
Article 63
The Army has two sections: the reserve section, which is all those
Muslims who are capable of carrying arms, and the section of regular soldiers,
who get salaries from the State budget in the same manner as the civil
servants.
Its evidence is the evidence of the obligation of Jihad, since every Muslim is obligated with Jihad and its training and accordingly all of the Muslims are a
reserve army since Jihad is
obligatory upon them. As for making a section of them to be full-time regular
soldiers, its evidence is the rule “Whatever is required to complete an
obligation is itself obligatory”, since the carrying out of Jihad consistently, along with the
defence of the Islamic lands and protecting the honour of the Muslims from the
disbelievers cannot be done except with a permanent army. Therefore, it is
obligatory upon the leader to establish a permanent army.
As for setting a salary for those soldiers in the same manner as the
civil servants, with respect to the non-Muslims, this is clear since they are
not required to fight against disbelievers, but if they undertake Jihad, it is accepted from them, at
which time it is permitted to give them money as well as to give them a share
from the portion of booty which is intended to bring the hearts closer to Islam
– due to what is narrated by al-Zuhri “That the Messenger of Allah (saw)
took support from some Jews during a battle, and gave them shares” (reported by Al-Tirmidhi and it is
from the Maraseel of al-Zuhri, and Ibn Qudamah used it as an evidence in al-Mugni). Also, it is narrated that “Safwan b. Umayya accompanied the Prophet
on the day of Hunayn
and he was a disbeliever, so he was given a share of the spoils, and this was
from the portion to bring the hearts closer to Islam”, as mentioned by Ibn Qudama in al-Mugni and Ibn Hisham in his Sirah.
Al-Bukhari reported from Abu Hurayrah that the Messenger of Allah
said “O Bilal, Stand up and announce that no one enters Paradise
except for a believer, and Allah may support this Deen with an irreligious man”.
And Ibn Hisham mentioned in his Sirah that Quzman, who was an idol
worshipper, accompanied the companions of the Messenger of Allah
on the day of Uhud, and he killed seven or eight of the idol worshippers,
and so the Messenger
said “Truly Allah supports this Deen with an irreligious man”.
Al-Shawkani mentioned this in his book al-Darari al-Mode’a and Nayl al-Awtar
and it is confirmed by those who wrote the life of the Prophet
.
All of these evidences indicate the permissibility for a disbeliever to
be part of the Islamic Army and to give him money due to his presence there.
Additionally, the definition of employment is a contract upon a service for
recompense, which indicates that employment is permitted upon every service
that the employer could use from an employee, and so it includes employing
someone to be in the Army, and for partaking in fighting, since it is a
service. Accordingly, the generality of the evidence for employment upon any
service is an evidence for the permissibility of employing a disbeliever to be
in the Army and partake in fighting. However, it must be under the flag of the
Muslims and not a flag of disbelief as is clarified in the reality of the
evidences mentioned, since the disbelievers who fought with the Muslims did so
under the flag of the Muslims and not under the flag of disbelief; in other
words, they fought as soldiers as part of the Muslims’ Army. Built upon this,
it is permitted for the people of Dhimmah to fight in the Army of the
Muslims for a wage, which can occur if the Khalifah considers that their
fighting as soldiers in the Army of the Muslims bring a benefit to the Muslims
and there is no harm as a result, in which case, it is permitted to accept them
in the Army of the Muslims and to pay them. In other words, this is made
permitted for them. However, if there was harm from their entering the Islamic
Army, then this permitted issue from amongst the permitted issues would be
forbidden due to the harm, in accordance with the rule regarding harm as is
mentioned in its section in Usul.
This is with regards to the non-Muslim. With respect to the Muslim, even
though Jihad is an act of worship, it
is permitted to employ a Muslim for the military and fighting, due to the
generality of the evidence for employment. Also, employment upon the
undertaking of an act of worship whose benefit is not limited to the one who
did the act is permissible, due to the words of the Prophet
“The most
deserved of payment you took is (for the teaching of) the Book of Allah” (reported by al-Bukhari from Ibn ’Abbas).
Teaching the Quran is an act of worship, so in the same manner that it is
permitted to employ a Muslim in order to teach the Quran, or to lead the
prayer, or to make the call to prayer, which are all acts of worship, it is
likewise permitted to employ someone for the sake of Jihad and to be in the Army. Moreover, there is evidence on the
hiring of Muslims for Jihad even
though it is a duty upon them. Ahmad and Abu Dawud narrated that ’Abdullah Bin
Umar (ra) said that the Prophet
said “Al-Ghazi has his ajr and al-Ja’il has his ajr”. The Ghazi
is the one who personally goes out to battle, while the Ja’il is the one
who fights on someone else’s behalf for a wage. It is written the al-Muhit
dictionary “al-Ji’ala…is the amount given to someone doing an action…and
what is assigned to a Ghazi if he fights on your behalf for a wage.” Ajr is
used to mean both wage and reward. As for what is well known among people that ajr
always means the reward which comes from Allah (swt) to His servant for doing a
good deed and that ijarah is the reward for an action from one person to
another which includes employment – in actual fact, there is no support for this
differentiation. Rather what the language stated is that the ajr is the
reward for an action. It is mentioned in the al-Muhit dictionary
that ajr is the reward for the action, like the ijara. The
meaning of the narration is that Ghazi has his reward while the Ja’il
has his wage, since the word can have many meanings, and the indication in the
narration would specify the intended one. In this case, the word Ghazi
indicates that what is meant by ajr is reward from Allah (swt), and the
word al-ja’il indicates that ajr means wage, because each
of them is an indication that specified the intended meaning. Al-Bayhaqi
narrated on the authority of Jubayr b. Nufayr who said: “The Messenger
said, “Those of my
Ummah who fight and take wages, and
strengthen themselves against their enemy are like the mother of Moses who
breastfed her son and took her ajr” and
similar is reported by Said Bin Mansur, and the meaning of the word ajr
here is wage. Therefore, the Army has salaries in the same manner as the civil
servants.
Article 64
The Army is given banners and flags and the Head of State (the Khalifah) gives the banners to whomever
he appoints to lead the Army, whereas the flags are provided by the brigadiers.
1.Al-liwa’ (banners) and al-rayah (flag) – from the
linguistic angle, they both mean al-’alam (sign) as mentioned in the al-Muhit
dictionary. The Shari’ah gave each of them, in terms of usage, a Shari’ah meaning along the following
manner:
The white banner: written upon it La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul
Allah in black, which is given to the Amir or leader of the Army. It
is used to identify his position, and follows the position. The evidence for
attaching the banner to the Amir of the Army: “The Prophet
entered Makkah on the day of
al-Fath and his banner was white”
reported by Ibn Maja from Jabir, and on that day the Messenger
was the leader of the Army. In the
same way, the Messenger of Allah
used to attach the banners to the
leaders of the armies that he sent out, as has been mentioned in “‘Uyun
al-Athar fi Funun al-Maghazi wal-Shama’il wal-Siyar” by Imam
al-Hafiz Abi al-Fath who is known by the name Ibn Sayyid al-Nas who died in 734
AH, where he stated “...on Monday, four days before Safr of the 11 year of
Hijrah, the Messenger of Allah
ordered the people to prepare to fight against the Romans. When it was
the next day, he called Usamah Bin Zayd, and said to him go to the place your
father was killed, so prepare the horses and you are the Amir of the Army…and
so when it was Wednesday the Messenger of Allah
began to feel pain…then when it
was Thursday he gave a white banner to Usamah, then he said go out on the
expedition in the path of Allah, and fight those who disbelieved in Allah, and
so he went out with the banner tied…”
The Black Flag: written upon it La ilaha illa Allah, Muhammad Rasul
Allah in white, which is given to the heads of the divisions of the Army
(brigade, unit, etc.). The evidence is that during Khaybar in his role as the
leader of the Army, the Messenger
said, “I will give the flag,
or the flag will be taken, tomorrow, to a man who loves Allah and His
Messenger, or he said Allah and His Messenger love him, Allah will open for
him, so I give it to ’Ali and we want him, and so they said: Here is Ali, and
so the Messenger of Allah gave him the flag and Allah opened the way for him” (agreed upon from Salama b.
al-Akwa’). ’Ali (ra) at that time was considered as the head of a battalion or
brigade of the Army. Similarly in the narration from al-Harith Bin Hassan
al-Bakri, “We came to Madinah and saw the Prophet
on the pulpit, with
Bilal standing in front of him holding his sword, and there were black flags in
front of the Messenger
, so I asked ‘What are these flags?’. They said ’Amru Bin al-’Aas has
just arrived from an expedition”
reported by Ahmad in al-Musnad and elsewhere, and in the report of
Al-Tirmidhi from al-Harith Bin Hassan al-Bakri he said the wording, “I
came to Madinah, entered the Mosque and found it crowded with people, and there
were black flags swaying and Bilal was holding a sword in front of the Prophet
, I said ‘What is the matter?’ They said: ‘He
wants to send ’Amru
Bin Al-’Aas to a certain place’”. The
meaning of “black flags” is that there were many flags with the
Army, and when the Amir of the Army
was one person – and that was ’Amru Bin al-’Aas, this means that they must have
been with the heads of the brigades and units.
This is how the banners were attached to the Amir of the Army, and the flags with the rest of the Army, its
divisions, brigades and units. Accordingly, there is a single banner and many
flags for each army.
Therefore, the banners are a sign for the Amir of the Army and no one else, and the flags are signs with the
soldiers.
2.The banner is attached to the Amir
of the Army, and it is a sign for his position; in other words, it stays with
the position of the Amir. As for
during the battle, the leader of the battle, irrespective of whether it was the
Amir of the Army or another leader
who was appointed by the Amir of the
Army, is given the flag to carry it during the fighting on the battlefield, and
for this reason, it is called umm al-Harb (the mother of the war) since
it is carried by the leader of the battle in the battlefield.
For that reason for the duration for which the war takes place, each
leader of a battle has a flag, and this is an issue known at that time, and the
continuation of the flying of the flag is an evidence of the strength of the
leader of the battle. It is part of the administrative organisation that is
required according to the customs of war.
Lamenting the deaths of Zayd, Ja’far and Ibn Rawahah, the Messenger of
Allah
told the people before the
soldiers delivered the news “Zayd took the flag and was killed, so Ja’far
took the flag and was killed, and so ’Abdullah Bin Rawahah took the flag and
was killed” (reported by al-Bukhari).
In the same manner, if the war is taking place and the leader of the Army
in the battlefield is the Khalifah himself, then it is permitted for the
banner to be raised in the battlefield and not simply the flag alone. It is
reported in the Sirah of Ibn Hisham that in the major Badr battle, both
the banner and the flag were present on the battlefield. It is reported in the Sirah
“Ibn Ishaq said: and the banner was given to Mus’ab Bin ’Umayr Bin Hashim Bin
’Abd Manaf Bin ’Abd al-Dar. Ibn Hisham said: and it was white…and Ibn Ishaq
said: and there were two black flags in front of the Messenger of Allah
: one with ’Ali Bin Abi Talib which was called al-’Uqab, and the
other with some of the Ansar”.
As for during times of peace, or at the end of the battle, then the flags
are distributed in the Army with the divisions, brigades and units raising
them…as is mentioned in the narration of al-Harith Bin Hassan al-Bakri
regarding the Army of ’Amru Bin al-’Aas.
The first banner to be tied in Islam was the banner of ’Abdullah Bin
Jahsh, and a black flag with a white crescent was tied for Sa’d b. Malik. All
of this indicates that it is imperative that the Army has flags and banners,
and that the Khalifah is the one who assigns the banners to whomever he
assigns over the Army. As for the flags, it is permitted for the Khalifah
or the brigadiers to present them. The narration of Umm Salamah that the
Messenger of Allah
said “I will give the flag to a man who loves Allah and His
Messenger, and Allah and His Messenger love him, so I give it to ’Ali”
shows the permissibility of the Khalifah doing so. The permissibility of
the brigadiers presenting the flags to others can be understood from the
narration of al-Harith Bin al-Hassan al-Bakri which mentioned “there were
black flags”, since its meaning is that there were many flags with the
Army while they had a single leader, which was ’Amru Bin al-’Aas. Irrespective
of whether they were returning from or leaving for an expedition, this means
that flags were with the heads of the brigades, and there is nothing to
indicate that it was the Messenger
who appointed the flags to them. However, it is permitted for the Khalifah
to give the brigadiers the power to give the flags to the brigade heads, and
this is more appropriate for discipline, even though all of this falls under
what is permitted, or in other words mubah.
Article 65
The Khalifah is the Commander of the Army and he appoints the
Chief of General Staff, a general for each brigade, and a commander for every
division. The remaining ranks in the Army are appointed by the brigadiers and
commanders. The appointment of a person in the General Staff is according to
his level of military expertise and is carried out by the Chief of General
Staff.
The Khalifah is the general leader for all of the Muslims in this
world, in order to establish the rules of the Shari’ah and carry the
Islam to the rest of the people. The main method to carry Islam to the rest of
the world is Jihad, and so it is
imperative that he undertakes Jihad,
since the contract of the Khalifah is upon him personally, and therefore
it is not permitted for anyone else to undertake it. Accordingly, the
management of the issue of Jihad is
specific to the Khalifah and it is not permitted for anyone else to
undertake it. Even though every Muslim undertakes Jihad, the undertaking of Jihad
and the management of Jihad are two
different things. Jihad is obligatory
upon every Muslim, but the management of Jihad
is for the Khalifah alone, and not anyone else. The Khalifah can
appoint someone to carry out on his behalf what has been obligated upon him as
long as he is under his observation and supervision, while it is not permitted
to give him complete independence without his monitoring and supervision. The
monitoring that the Khalifah undertakes here is not like the type of
reporting that the assistant gives him; rather the one who he has delegated
remains directly under his orders and direct supervision. The leadership of the
Army can be given to whomever he pleases with the condition that they are under
the control of the Khalifah and his direct supervision. It is not
permitted for him to appoint someone without retaining direct supervision and
control over him, which must not be simply symbolic. This is because the
contract of the Khilafah is upon him personally and so it is obligatory
for him to manage the affairs of Jihad.
Accordingly, what is said in other non-Islamic systems that the Head of State
is the Commander and Chief of the Army, and this leadership is symbolic while
another independent commander is appointed to the Head of the Army, is
considered invalid according to the Islamic viewpoint, and is something that
the Shari’ah does not agree to. Rather, the Shari’ah obligates
that the Khalifah should be the practical Commander of the Army.
As for non-leadership positions in the technical, administrative or other
matters, the Khalifah may appoint others to act independently on his
behalf in the same manner as the governors, and it is not necessary for them to
be under his direct control or for him to supervise them. Additionally, the
Messenger
used to personally undertake the practical leadership of the Army and the
leadership during the battles, and would appoint commanders over sections of
the Army that would go out for battle expeditions without him. He
used to appoint a commander for each expedition, and sometimes would take
the precaution of appointing someone else to succeed them if they were killed,
as happened with the battle of Mu’tah. Al-Bukhari reported from ’Abd Allah b.
Umar (ra) who said: “The Messenger of Allah made Zaid Bin Haritha in
charge of the expedition to Mu’tah, and he said if Zaid is killed, then Ja’far
Bin Abi Talib should take the flag, and if Ja’far is killed, then ’Abdullah Bin
Rawahah should take it”. Therefore, the Khalifah is the one who
appoints the commander of the Army, appoints the brigadiers and gives them the
banners and appoints the leaders of the divisions. The Army which was sent to al-Sham
like the Army of Mu’tah and the Army of Usamah was a single brigade, with the
evidence being that the Prophet
had tied the banner for Usamah. The expeditions that fought in the Arabian
Peninsula and returned back to Madinah, such as the expedition of Sa’d Bin
Waqqas which he
sent towards Makkah, were all in
the form of divisions. This indicates that the brigadiers and the commanders of
the divisions are appointed by the Khalifah. It is not confirmed that
the Prophet
appointed anyone other than
leaders of the Armies and the commanders of the expeditions, which indicates
that their appointment in the battlefield was left to their leaders.
With regards to the Chief of Staff who is responsible for the technical
matters, he is similar to the Commander of the Army in terms of being appointed
by the Head of State and he can be made independent and carry out his duties
without being directly supervised by the Khalifah, although he has to be
under his command.
Article 66
The Army is a unified entity which has specific bases. However, it is
necessary that some of these bases are placed in different provinces and others
in strategic locations. Some of the bases should be permanently mobile fighting
forces. These bases are organised in numerous groups, with each group being
given a number as a name, such as the first Army, the third Army, or they can
be named after a province or district.
The Islamic Army is a single entity composed from several Armies, and
each one is given a number: so it is said: the first Army, the third Army, or
they are named according to the province or district, and it is said: the Army
of al-Sham, the Army of Misr, and the Army of San’a’ for
example.
The Islamic Army is placed in specific bases, and in each base there is a
group of soldiers, either a single Army, or division, or numerous Armies.
However, it is obligatory to place these bases in different provinces, and some
of them in military bases, and some of them in permanently mobile bases to be
strike forces. Each base is given a specific name, such as al-Habanya Base, and
each has a specific flag.
These arrangements, are either from permitted issues and therefore left
to the opinion of the Khalifah and his Ijtihad, such as naming every Army according to its province or
district, or to assign a specific number for each of them, or they could be
from the issues of “Whatever is required to complete an obligation” if
they were necessary to protect the land, such as the arrangements of the Armies
on the borders, and placing and putting the bases across various strategic
locations to protect the land and so on.
Umar bin al-Khattab (ra) used to divide the Army bases amongst the
provinces, and so soldiers were assigned for Palestine and another for Mosul[s1] ,
and another in the centre of the State, and he used to have an Army with him
prepared to fight upon the first indication.
Article 67
It is obligatory to provide the Army with the highest level of military
education and raise its intellectual level as far as possible. Every individual
in the Army should be given Islamicculture that enables him to have an
awareness of Islam, to at least a general level.
This article comes under the generality of the words of the Messenger
“Seeking knowledge is
an obligation” reported by Ibn Maja from Anas
Bin Malik, and al-Zarkashi said in al-Tadhkirah: al-Hafiz Jamal al-Deen
al-Mizzi said: the chains of this report reach the level of Hasan.
Al-Sakhawi said that it has a corroborating narration (shahid) through
Ibn Shahin with a chain whose men are all trustworthy. The word “knowledge”
encompasses every type, including military, since military expertise has become
a necessity for every army, and it is not possible to fight war and engage
battles unless it has that expertise. Therefore, it has become obligatory due
to the rule “Whatever is required to complete an obligation is itself
obligatory”.
As for the Islamic culture, it is a personal obligation for each person
to learn whatever is required for them to undertake their actions, and anything
else is an obligation of sufficiency, due to the words of the Prophet
“Whoever Allah wants
good for, He gives him understanding of the Deen” (agreed upon narration
through Mu’awiyah, and reported by Al-Tirmidhi through Ibn ’Abbas). This
applies to the Army that conquers countries to convey the call to Islam, as it
does for every Muslim, though it is more important for the Army. Regarding
raising its intellectual level, this is a kind of awareness which
is necessary to understand the Deen
and life’s affairs. Perhaps the saying of the Prophet
“Many times the one
who is informed has more awareness than the one who heard it directly” (agreed upon from the
narration of Abu Bakrah and the wording is from al-Bukhari), is an indication
of encouragement to have awareness. Also the Quran says, “For people who
contemplate” (TMQ 10:24),
and He (swt) says, “They have hearts (minds) by which they understand” (TMQ 22:46), which indicates the
status of thought.
Article 68
It is obligatory that each base should have sufficient numbers of
officers of the Ggeneral Staff who possess expert military knowledge and
experience in drawing up plans and running battles. The Army as a whole should
possess as many of these officers as possible.
Its evidence is the same as article 67, based upon the rule “Whatever
is required to complete an obligation is itself obligatory”. If military
education is not digested theoretically through learning, and practically
through continuous training and application, then it will not produce
experience which enables one to engage in battles and to draw up
plans. Therefore, providing expert military education is obligatory. Continuous
study and training is also obligatory in order that the Army continues to
prepare for Jihad and engagement at
any moment. Since the Army exists in many bases and every one of them has to be
able to engage in battle immediately, there should be an ample number of staff
in each camp according to the principle “Whatever is required to complete an
obligation is itself obligatory”.
Article 69
It is obligatory to provide the Army with weapons, supplies and
equipment, as well as all necessities and requirements, which enable it to
carry out its mission as an Islamic Army.
Its evidence is the words of Allah (swt) “Make ready, against them,
your strength to the utmost of your power, including steeds of war, to strike
terror into (the hearts of) the enemies of Allah and your enemies, and others
besides, whom you may not know, but whom Allah does know” (TMQ 8:60). So the preparation for
fighting is a duty, and this preparation should be open so as to intimidate the
enemies and the hypocrites from amongst the subjects. His (swt) saying, “to
strike terror” is the reason (Illah) for preparation. The preparation will not be complete unless the reason
for which this legislation came has been achieved, which is intimidating the
enemies and the hypocrites. Therefore, it is a duty to provide all the arms and
equipment for the Army in order that intimidation is produced and by greater
reasoning in order to ensure that the Army is capable of carrying out its
mission which is Jihad to convey the
call to Islam. When Allah (swt) addressed us regarding preparation, He (swt)
stated that the reason (Illah) for it is intimidating the known enemies,
and those who are not apparent.
Allah (swt) said “Make ready, against them, your strength to the
utmost of your power, including steeds of war, to strike terror into (the
hearts of) the enemies of Allah and your enemies, and others besides, whom you
may not know, but whom Allah does know” (TMQ 8:60). It is necessary to notice the precise accuracy of
the verse, where Allah (swt) did not order Muslims to make preparation for the
purpose of fighting, but rather for the purpose of intimidation, which is more
profound. This is because the enemy’s knowledge of the force of the Muslims
deters it from attacking them or confronting them. This is one of the greatest
styles that can be used to win wars and attain victory.
[s1]MAwsul
in Iraq?
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