1. Man is a social animal. Collective life or society is essential for his survival.
2. Forming and establishing a society is known as State.
3. A State requires a system.
4. The establishment and stabilization of this system is based on power.
5. The various types of States proposed by man are all based on the principle that some people have the right to rule over others and also draft laws for them.
6. Man-made laws are based on the requirements of governance and not on human ethics.
7. Moral laws are given by religion, which is based on worship of God or any other personality.
8. Politics is separated from religion and both remain unrelated.
9. Islam presents a system of State in which Allah is the Central Authority and only He is Sovereign. And the State is the means and medium to implement the laws of Allah.

In this context the first question is: how this State would be established? We have seen that there is no compulsion in Islam. Eiman is to ponder over the Divine facts with patience. If in the light of reason and knowledge these facts appeal to your heart and intellect then accept their verity and make them the ideal goal of your life. In this way the people believing in the facts of the Quran form one community. And when this community will become formidable it will formulate a system of State in which the facts on which its members believed with reason and knowledge will become the code of their practical life. In other words these facts will take a shape of laws and constitution. You have seen that till this stage the question of using power has not arisen.

It is obvious that in any State power is required so as to police the culprits. So this will be the first stage when this State will have need of power.

Obviously in this State non-Muslims will also reside. This State will be responsible for protecting their life, belongings, religion, places of worship and honor. Power will also be required for this act of protection. This is also possible that these people might try to rebel against the State. Again there is need of power to defend the State.

Besides, this is also possible that other States put hindrances in the formation of this new State or they try to attack and destroy it after it has been formed. Again there is need of power to defend the State. The act of defense might escalate into a full-fledged war.

So for the establishment, stability and existence of a Quranic State one has to regularly struggle and strive. And in this struggle and strive a situation might crop up when war becomes inevitable. The Quran has used the word Jihad for regular struggle and strive, and for war the word used is Qital. This shows that though Qital is also a part of Jihad but every Jihad (struggle) is not Qital (war). Those who overlook this difference they deliberately or unknowingly use the word Jihad for Qital. And since the Quran has laid too much emphasis on Jihad (or you can say that the life of a Muslim is Jihad [struggle] from cradle to the grave) therefore their propaganda is, "Look the Quran at every step instigates a Muslim to wage a Holy War against infidels."

It would be interesting to note as to when war was first allowed by the Quran. The last Messenger began his mission in Mecca and started forming the Muslim community. At that time there was no question of using force. Diin was presented through logic and reasoning. People accepted it whole-heartedly after pondering over its principles. But the Quraish opposed the mission of the last Messenger vehemently. When this opposition obtained dangerous proportion the last Messenger migrated to Medina. The atmosphere at Medina was conducive for the establishment of the Diin. But the Quraish did not allow the Messenger and his followers to live in peace at Medina also. They marched towards Medina with a large contingent of armed forces. Now the Muslims had just two options before them: one, get killed by the Quraish or to make a last effort for their survival in the battlefield. Allah approved of the later option for them. That was the first time the Muslims were allowed to participate in a war.

To those (Muslims) against whom war is made, permission is given (to fight), because they have been wronged, and Allah is indeed able to give them help; (they are) those who have been expelled from their homes in defiance of right- (for no cause) except that they say, "Only Allah is our Sustainer." (22/39-40)

And after this the Quran says:

(They are) those who, if We give them power in the land, establish Salaat (the political system of Islam) and provide to human beings the means and resources of development, enjoin the right and forbid the wrong. All their affairs would be decided in accordance with the laws of Allah. (22/41)

These verses clearly show as to when and why the Muslims were allowed to participate in a war. This principle should always be kept in mind that Islam is the biggest advocate of religious freedom in the world. It gives religious freedom to every community of the world and it is obligatory on the Muslim community to protect this freedom. Since it gives the guarantee of religious freedom to every community therefore it has the right to safeguard its own freedom.

For other religions religious freedom incorporates only worship and religious rituals. The Muslims will give this freedom to all. But for them religious freedom is something more. This is only a part of their Diin. Their Diin encompasses every aspect of human life. Therefore according to their Diin 'religious freedom' is independence of their system of State. The Muslims will stop and not allow the efforts of those who put obstructions in the formation of their system and conspire to destroy it. In the first stage the Muslims will try to solve the matter through dialogue and treaties. They will employ all peaceful methods. If these efforts fail and the oppressive forces do not mend their ways and in intoxication of power and wealth keep on violating human values then the Muslims, armed with swords, enter the battlefield where they will either win freedom for their Diin or become martyrs. For a Muslim it is thousand times preferable to die while defending the Truth than to live in a system opposed to the laws of Allah.

Only to Allah is Muslim the slave
To Pharaoh surrender he will not.

A Muslim will not be a slave to man. He will not breathe in the polluted atmosphere of a system that does not run in accordance to the laws of Allah. From a worldly point of view such a system might offer him unlimited guarantee of peace and security but he is not going to accept it. For him the definitions of peace and of disorder are entirely different. If any government by the force of its power crushes robbery, loot, violence, etc. and thereby people can live in security at their homes and they can travel in peace then that government would be considered peaceful government because there is no disorder and evil in its State. Without doubt Islam is also against disorder and evil. But it goes beyond this. According to Islam the real peace and security lies in the fact that man remains slave only to Allah and not to any human being so as to receive felicity and prosperity in this life and in the Hereafter. This system of State is called Haq (Truth). Apart from this all other systems are (Batil) in the wrong. Disorder is when Haq is made subservient to Batil or in other words the system of State is not in accordance with the Divine laws. The Quran says:

fahum an-zikrihim-mu-rizuun.

And if the Truth had followed their desires, verily there would have been disorder in the heavens and the earth and all being therein. We are saying that the Truth should not be subservient to human desires because it is for their own benefit and dignity. But their attitude is so wrong that they turn away from their own honor and respect. (23/71)

Therefore the Quran specifically says:

inna kaydash-Shaytaani kaanaza-iifaa.

Those who believe (in the laws of Allah with reason and knowledge) fight in the cause of Allah (so as to establish His system). On the contrary, those who reject (the Divine revelation) fight for the cause of ungodly authorities. So those who believe should fight the friends of Satan (without fearing their power and resources). Remember in the face of the Truth feeble indeed is the cunning of Satan. (4/76)

In the above verse difference between a Momin and a Kafir is clearly marked. Those who fight in the way of Truth so as to establish the Kingdom of Allah are Mominiin. And those who fight to establish a system other than this are Kafireen. As such when people or States create obstructions in the establishment of the system of Allah and conspire to destroy it, and all peaceful methods are exhausted to stop them, then it is permissible for the Muslims to fight against them. These were the circumstances when for the first time the Muslims were allowed to unsheathe the sword. Once again ponder over the verse that gives permission to participate in a war.

The details and exposition of this is spread at various places in the Quran.

(The fundamental principle is that) you should only fight those who aggress against you and leave you no option but to fight; do not begin hostilities. This war will be in the way of Allah i.e. for the protection of humanity from tyranny and oppression. But even in this war the limits of law must not be transgressed, for such transgression is against the laws of Allah, and Allah does not like the transgressors. (2/190)

At another place the Quran says:

faininta-haw falaa udwaana illaa alaz zaalimiin.

You should fight your enemies until you have dissipated the mischief they have caused, and created an environment where no compulsion or oppression is exercised in matters of Diin. But when you see that your enemies have given up the mischief, you should cease to fight with them (because the purpose of war is to prevent forces of oppression and lawlessness from spreading and once this purpose is achieved there is no need for further warfare). (2/193)

It has already been stated that the Quran is the biggest guarantor and advocate of religious freedom in the world. This freedom also includes the right to preach and propagate your religion with the condition that the feelings of the people belonging to other religions are not hurt and the motive is not for furthering political cause. Besides, deceitful methods of preaching should not be adopted. The Quran wants this type of freedom for its followers also.

The Islamic State will enter into treaties of peace and security with other nations. And if any nation violates these treaties then under certain circumstances war would become inevitable. Honoring of the treaties is a fundamental teaching of the Quran. According to the Quran those who violate this principle are grave offenders. It charges the Jews for violating this principle and history has proved that they always did so.

fariiqum-minhum? Bal aksaruhum laayu-minuun.

(And today those who are rejecting the Truth have always been in the habit of breaking promises). Whenever their representatives make an agreement on behalf of the entire community, it is repudiated by some of them who regard the agreement as a piece of waste paper. This is because most of them have no faith in the Divine laws. (2/100)

The Quran says that who reject the laws of Allah are also guilty of violating this principle.

So far from adhering to the terms of the treaties made with the Divine Order, they do not even respect their ties of relationship with the believers. These are the people who have transgressed beyond all limits (of social and political behavior). (9/10)

The attitude of the Muslims is in total contradiction to this. When they enter into agreement with anyone they fulfill it, Wa-muufuuna biahdihim izaa aahaduu (2/177), because the Quran orders them to honor their treaties and promises, Awfuu bil-uquu (5/1). This basic principle of honoring the treaties is frequently mentioned in the Quran:

You should always fulfill your commitments. (Since you make Allah your Guarantor therefore) every commitment should be fulfilled because every agreement will be enquired into. (17/34)

And when you enter into agreement with each other then fulfill it (because your agreement becomes a covenant with Allah). And break not your oaths after you have confirmed them; indeed you have made Allah your surety; for Allah knows all that you do. (16/91)

Wallaahu bi-maa ta –maluuna Basiir.

And those who have believed, yet not left their homes to join the Divine Order, though they had the opportunity to do so, they shall have no right of protection from you until they too leave their homes. However, if they seek aid from you in the matter of Diin it will be obligatory on you to provide it except if the aid goes against those with whom you have a treaty. Remember that Allah watches your actions. (8/72)

It is essential for the Muslims to keep their word till their opponents also honor the terms of agreement that they might have entered into.¹ But if there are logical reasons to believe that the opponents are likely to violate the treaty then the Muslims have the right to return the treaty. But they are not allowed to betray their opponents. Returning of the treaty has to be announced openly and unambiguously.

sawaaa:innal-laaha laa yuhibbul-khaaa-iniin.

(O Muslims) if you fear treachery at the hands of those with whom you have a treaty, do not break the treaty unilaterally but tell the other side that the treaty will not be binding on you any more. In this way, both the parties will be on equal ground. Remember Allah does not like the treacherous. (8/58)

Now compare this teaching with the faiths and ways of the political world. The difference is self-evident. According to an ancient lawmaker (Solon), "Treaty is a spider's web which entangles him who is weaker than it, and it is not worth a straw for one who is stronger than the web." The modern political world seems to be influenced by the Italian thinker, Machiavelli. Now read what he says in this context: "A prince being thus obliged to know well how to act as a beast must imitate the fox and the lion, for the lion cannot protect himself from traps and the fox cannot defend himself from wolves. One must, therefore, be a fox to recognize traps, and a lion to frighten wolves. Those that wish to be only lions do not understand this. Therefore, a prudent ruler ought not to keep faith when by so doing it would be against his interest and when the reasons which made him bind himself no longer exist."²

The entire edifice of West's politics and civilization is constructed on the Machiavellian philosophy.³ Consequently it does not honor treaties and agreements though it claims to be a champion of human welfare and prosperity and a surety of justice and impartiality. The leaders of this civilization are quite adept in breaking their promises. Even shame prefers to hide her face at their impudence and audacity. But these pillars of culture and civilization and of justice and fairness do not even wait for the evening to violate the treaty made in the morning. They do not hesitate in doing so because for them wrong and right are synonyms. For them treachery and betrayal do not amount to immorality. The fundamental principle of Machiavellian thought is that moral considerations are irrelevant to political affairs. Only success matters in politics. How it is achieved is immaterial. Says the prophet of Satanic politics, Machiavelli, "Means are justified by the ends achieved." His followers are following this in letter and spirit. As a result, along with themselves they have forced the rest of the world in the hell of destruction.

How were agreements and treaties treated when the last Messenger came on the stage of the world? This question will be answered a little later. Here it is suffice to say that the Islamic State will enter into treaties with non-Muslim nations and it will be obligatory on it to honor those treaties. But conflict with a treacherous nation would be imperative. This is the third reason for war. The last Messenger entered into agreements with his Arab opponents but they regularly went back on their promises.

fii kulli marratinw-wa hum laa yatt-quun.

Mark this: the worst of creatures in Allah's sight are those who will never believe in His laws. (O Messenger your opponents are similar to these creatures). You had made a treaty with them, which they have violated repeatedly without realizing or fearing as to what the results of this would be. (8/55-56)

As such war against them became imperative. Read the first two sections of the ninth chapter of the Quran. You will become acquainted with the details of the treacheries of these people.

These people were so much opposed to Islam that they even violated their age-old conventions and customs. They had a long established custom of observing four months as sacred. In those months fighting was forbidden. And every person was allowed to accomplish his duty without fear of war. During their mutual conflicts also they maintained the sacredness of these months. The Quran also continued this tradition and ordered its followers against violating the sanctity of these months. But the treachery of the enemies of Islam reached such blatant heights that they changed the sacred months when it suited them and tried to get an unfair advantage over their opponents.

Wallaahu laa yahdil-qawmal-Kaafi-riin.

Indeed the transposing (of a month in which war is forbidden) is an addition to kufr (rejecting the Divine laws). Such intercalation (amounts to violating the treaties and the international laws and) is but one more instance of their refusal to acknowledge the Truth. Their refusal of the Truth has led them astray. For they declare a month to be sacred one year, and forbidden another year, in order to agree with the number of months forbidden by Allah and make such forbidden ones lawful. The gains that accrue to them in this way seem very fair to them; but Allah does not grace with His guidance, people who refuse to acknowledge the Truth. (9/37)

This is the worst form of treachery and the Quran calls it, "Ziyaa-datun-fil-kufri, an addition to kufr- rejecting the laws of Allah."

Owing to the preaching and propagation of Islam people in other nations might also become Muslims. If any nation is violent against such new entrants to the way of Allah then it is the responsibility of the Islamic State to help and protect them. In such circumstances if efforts of peace and negotiations fail then war becomes essential.

(O Muslims) what has happened to you that you do not fight in the cause of Allah? Do you not hear the cries of the helpless and oppressed men, women and children? They are crying: "O our Sustainer! Rescue us from this town, of which the people are oppressors. Give us from Thy presence some protecting friend. Give us from Thy presence some defender." (4/75)

If oppressors and their acts of tyranny and oppression are not prevented then weak people will lose their right to live. Therefore the Quran orders to help the oppressed.

wa fasaadun-kabiir.

Remember, those who reject the Divine order and those who are oppressors are friends to one another. If you do not act against them as directed by Allah then there will be disorder, chaos and corruption in the land. (8/73)

Though these verses are in context of the people of Mecca but their order is universal. This means that from wherever an oppressed cries for help it is the duty of the soldiers of Allah to protect them irrespective of their religion, community, color, race and nation. The mission of life of these soldiers is to maintain the honor of humanity and in this process they can even lay down their lives. If no one stands up for the weak and the oppressed then this world would become a cell of beasts of prey. We are already witnessing that owing to the highhandedness of the West there is no peace and safety for the powerless in this vast land of Allah. Therefore the Quran orders to defend the weak:

Zuu-Fazlin-alal-aalami.

And did not Allah check one set of people by means of another; the earth would indeed be full of mischief and disorder (besides, there would not have been peace and justice). In this way the checking of the oppressive forces is Allah's boon to all peoples. (2/251)

In this context consider one more scenario: two people are fighting with each other on the road, a policeman sees and arrests them, take them to the court of law, the guilty is punished. Now if two nations are at war with each other who is going to police them? Which court is going to hear their case and punish the erring nation? In fact there is disorder in the entire world because there is no police and no court to stop and punish the erring nation. After the First World War the tired nations had formed the 'League of Nations" in order to fulfill this shortcoming. But the intentions of all the participants in this League were bad. The honeymoon was short lived. And the result was the Second World War. After this the 'United Nations' was formed. You need not be an astrologer to predict that this will also meet the same fate because its foundations are no different from that of the 'League of Nations'. The fact is that this problem can only be solved by the Quranic sagacity. Only the Quran has given the idea of such a forum. Europe borrowed this idea from the Quran but it ignored the spirit that produces such a forum. Only the laws of Allah develop this spirit. And in the Satanic politics of the West Allah is an object of hate. The spirit of Satan cannot produce results that the laws of Allah guarantee. It is the duty of the soldiers of Allah to become mediators in all disputes and conflicts in the world. Their decision should be in accordance with justice and fairness. And whichever party violates their just decision so as to spread disorder and mischief should be crushed. Therefore the Quran says to the Muslims:

wa yakuunar-Rasuulu alaykum Shahiidaa.

Thus We (Allah) have made you a community with a universal outlook to be equidistant from all other communities i.e. neither leaning towards any particular people nor estranged from another. Your responsibility is to keep a watch over the activities of other people of the world (to see that no nation is oppressing the other) and the responsibility of the Messenger (being the head of the State) is to keep watch over your activities. (2/143)

These are the circumstances in which the Quran allows to wage war against others. Apart from these there are two or three other circumstance that pertain to the internal management of the Islamic State. The Quran allows a person to change his religion if he looses faith in the laws of Allah. But it does not allow a person to rebel against the Divine Order while remaining a member of the Muslim community. The decisions of the system of State are law and to be law abiding is essential. If members are at liberty to follow or not to follow the law then no system can remain intact. A system can only survive if its laws are followed. There are two ways of violating the laws: one, a person believes that the laws are correct but he violates them for one reason or the other. Such a person would be considered an Accused, he will be tried in the court of law and if proved guilty would be punished. Two, a person rebels against the system. This is, according to the Quran, war against Allah and His Messenger. A grave penalty is suggested for this crime.

fiddun-yaa wa lahum fil- Aakhirati azaabun aziim.

The punishment of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger, and strive with might and main for mischief and disorder through the land is execution, or crucifixion, or the cutting off of hands and feet from opposite sides (i.e. arresting them and sending them to the prison), or exile from the land: that is their disgrace in this world, and a heavy punishment is their in the Hereafter. (5/33)

Another situation is even more serious and it produces grave results. In this a person seems to be with the Muslim community, appears to be abiding by its laws, but secretly works against it and also conspires with others for its destruction. This is known as hypocrisy.

The Quran has repeatedly warned the hypocrites to mend their ways. They should either whole-heartedly accept Islam or reject its principles openly. But if they ignore both these options and continue with their conspiracies so as to harm Islam then a war is allowed to crush them. No government can tolerate such types of elements.

Jahannam: wa bi- sal-masiir.

O Messenger, strive hard against the kafreen (who reject the Divine Law) and the hypocrites. Be strict against them (because the treacheries of the kafreen and conspiracies of the hypocrites have crossed limits of tolerance). Their ultimate destination is hell (of destruction), which is a very trying destination. (9/73)

So these are the circumstances in which the Quran has allowed the Muslims to participate in a war. However, this should be kept in mind that this permission is given till war itself lays down its burden.

hattaa taza-al-harbu awzaarahaa.