Jihad, Isis hot topics among Malaysian youths, says Abim

Abim president Amidi Mohd Manan says there has been a lot of interest from Malaysian youths on the topic of jihad with Isis. – The Malaysian Insider file pic, September 17, 2014.

The topic of doing jihad with the militant group Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (Isis) has become popular of late, with Malaysian youths asking many questions about the group, says one of the country’s largest Muslim organisations.

Malaysian Islamic Youth Movement (Abim) president Amidi Abdul Manan said the group has observed greater interest in the activities of Isis and the Middle East during their events, adding that the youths were well educated, came from homes which many would deem normal, with some having tertiary education.

It defied conventional thinking that those who had gone off to take up arms in the name of religion were products of religious schools in the country, as many assumed, he added.

However, Amidi said Malaysians who had gone to join Isis had been led astray by a skewed interpretation of jihad and this was something the organisation wanted to correct at its meetings.

He said it had come across local youths who had ties with jihadist groups abroad and Abim had notified the authorities about them.

"From what we have learnt, Malaysians who wanted to join Isis are first sent to other countries to undergo basic training, including handling weapons.

"Once they have completed their training, then they are sent to wherever Isis needs their services," Amidi told The Malaysian Insider, adding that this involved a lot of clandestine activity.

He said these people did not really understand the definition of jihad which embraces a wide concept beyond the stereotype of armed struggle or holy war.

"This sort of thinking is not Malaysian in nature, it has been influenced by clerics from war-torn countries such as Palestine and Afghanistan," he said.

"In Arabic, jihad means doing things to the best of your ability, and it can be applied to politics, society and even economics," he said.

Amidi said Muslims should know the background of various teachings on jihad instead of just swallowing knowledge without thinking.

He also stressed that the teachings of Islam did not include Jihad al-Nikah or “conjugal jihad”, and that women had far more critical and distinguished roles than that.

"During times of war, women were expected to nurse the wounded, take care of food and supplies and the armoury," Amidi said.

"Their roles were not relegated to that of a prostitute or comfort woman," he said, adding that Islam did not portray women as objects to be used to satisfy lust or sexual desires.

"The Isis interpretation has led to women being used to satisfy the sexual desires of their fighters," he said.

In ancient times, however, troops at the frontline were replaced by reinforcements if the war was a long-drawn one. This was to let each batch of fighters take turns to go home to be with their wives and families, Amidi explained.

The Malaysian Insider had reported on Malaysian women who had travelled to the Middle East to offer themselves as comfort women under a controversial concept arising from a Wahhabi edict around 2013 that called for Sunni women supporters to boost fighters' morale in battling the Syrian government forces.

"Islamic youths should fully understand their own religion as Islam is a religion which advocates peace and harmony, not violence," Amidi said.

Amidi’s caution comes as many on social media praised former Kedah PAS Youth information chief Lotfi Ariffin as a “martyr” on Sunday after he died from injuries sustained while fighting in Syria.

Among those who praised his “sacrifice” was PAS central committee member Nik Abduh Nik Aziz, the son of party spiritual leader Datuk Seri Nik Abdul Aziz Nik Mat.

Lotfi's death brings to four the number of Malaysians killed in Syria. The others who have been killed were Mohammad Fadhlan Mohammad Khir, 21; Zainan Harith, 52, who was also known as Abu Turob; and factory worker Ahmad Tarmimi Maliki, 26.

The Malaysian Insider had also reported last week that a family of four, including parents and their teenage children aged 18 and 14, were fighting alongside rebels in Syria.

The father and son are engaged in battle while the mother is a cook for the fighters.

Putrajaya had said it was working with intelligence agencies and Interpol to monitor Malaysians travelling via transit points to Iraq and Syria.

Home Minister Datuk Seri Ahmad Zahid Hamidi was reported telling the New Straits Times that police were investigating the claims of Malaysian women involved in the Middle East.

"Putrajaya does not condone or endorse the actions of Isis and neither is Malaysia a hub for terrorism and militant activities," Zahid was quoted as saying.

- TMI