Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi Reacts to the Murder of Four Americans in Al-Fallujah: 'How Could You Punish an Entire People Because Four Corpses Were Mutilated?'

In his Firday sermon, broadcast live by the official Qartari TV channel on April 9, 2004, Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradhawi talked about the situation in Iraq and mentioned the murder of four Americans in Al-Falluja, whose bodies had been mutilated. Following is a translation of excerpts from his sermon:

Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi: Are the Americans the Iraqis' teachers? The Iraqis have a country that inherited cultures thousands of years old while the Americans have a culture only two hundred years old. Two hundred years will teach thousands of years!? Oh Americans, leave Iraq for its people? These Americans don't appreciate people's value; they do not know the values ruling people, the traditions ruling people. They enter homes, search people, uncover women, uncover?They do not respect the women's honor or their modesty. They don't take values into consideration and they have no shame.

It so happened that some people killed a few Americans and mutilated the corpses of four of these soldiers. The Americans went out of their minds: How could their soldiers' corpses be mutilated? They wanted to take revenge on all the people of Falluja because of those few individuals. This is the logic of the terrorists themselves! They fight the terrorists claiming that the terrorists do not distinguish between a civilian and a non-civilian and fight entire groups because of one or two individuals. They do the same. The terrorists did what they did, perhaps, because of their inability to realize their rights and their despairing of the chance to even the score with the oppressors. But you are a superpower. How come you behave like the terrorists? How could you punish an entire people because four corpses were mutilated?