On November 7, Kuwaiti cleric Sheikh Saalim Bin Sa'd At-Taweel published a lecture on his official YouTube channel explaining the concept of jihad. Sheikh At-Taweel said that while jihad has different meanings, "jihad for the sake of Allah" means fighting infidels in order to spread Islam. He further explained that slavery is part of Islam and that Muslims should not try to deny this. In fact, he said, slavery is "one of the virtues of Islam" because it provides infidels with an opportunity to become Muslims and avoid the Hellfire. Over the past decade, Sheikh At-Taweel has visited the U.S. several times, and was guest lecturer in mosques in Worcester, Massachusetts, Modesto, California, New York, and elsewhere. In 2016, he participated in the 3rd Annual U.K. National Knowledge Conference.
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"When We Speak About Jihad For The Sake Of Allah, We Mean Fighting For The Sake Of Allah"
Saalim Bin Sa'd At-Taweel: "When we speak about Jihad for the sake of Allah, we mean fighting for the sake of Allah. The word 'Jihad' has other meanings apart from 'fighting.' 'Fighting' is only one of the meanings of the word 'Jihad,' but 'Jihad for the sake of Allah' refers to 'fighting.'
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"Indeed, [Jihad] is the pinnacle of Islam. If Islam were a camel, Jihad for the sake of Allah would be the top of its hump. The Prophet Muhammad called it the pinnacle of Islam. It is undoubtedly among the best forms of worship. It involves the sacrifice of one's soul and one's money, and great effort merits great reward.
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"Yes, there is defensive Jihad and offensive Jihad. Defensive Jihad means defending yourself. When you need to defend yourself, you do not need a fatwa. When you are attacked, you are allowed to defend yourself any way you can.
"Waging Offensive Jihad Means Attacking The Infidels In Order To Conquer Their Countries"; We Fight "In Order To Spread Islam"
"Waging offensive Jihad means attacking the infidels in order to conquer their countries and bring them into the fold of Islam.
"If they refuse to convert to Islam, they are commanded to pay the jizya poll tax, and if they refuse to pay the jizya, they are killed. This is called 'offensive Jihad.'
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"Indeed, the greatest goal of Jihad for the sake of Allah is to instate monotheism, 'until religion belongs to Allah alone,' or 'until religion belongs to Allah,' according to another verse. 'Fight them until there is no more fitna' – which means polytheism – 'until religion belongs to Allah alone,' or in other words, until people adhere to monotheism and believe in Allah alone. This is a clear and unambiguous verse in the Quran. According to the Sunna, as it appears in the two Sahih compilations, the Prophet Muhammad said: 'I was ordered to fight the people.' Why? He said: 'until they attest that there is no god but Allah and that Muhammad is His prophet, and they establish prayer, and pay the zakkat.'
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"The reason we fight is in order to spread Islam. Let's say there is someone who prevents you from spreading Islam to all the infidels, all people on Earth, who were created by Allah so that they could worship Him. You want to spread your religion both to jinns and to people.
"If somebody is preventing you from doing so, you may fight him, so that you can spread Islam.
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"We do not do this in order to take the money of [the infidels], in order to expand the Muslim lands, or in order to gain control over them... No. We fight them so that they will become Muslims.
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"One Of The Virtues Of Islam Is That The Women And Children [Of The Enemy]... Are Taken As Slaves"
"One of the virtues of Islam is that the women and children [of the enemy] are not killed. They are taken as slaves, and they are treated well. They are called upon to convert to Islam. How many Muslim ulema were white slaves, who were put to use by Allah as Islamic scholars. If they had died as infidels, they would have been condemned to eternal Hellfire. Instead, they were taken captive.
"The Prophet Muhammad took a Jewish woman and married her, and she became the Mother of the Believers. Imagine that! She had been Jewish before.
"Had she died believing in her distorted Judaism, she would have gone to Hell. Instead, she was taken captive, and she was found to be the most suitable woman for the Prophet Muhammad.
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"So this is one of the virtues of Islam, but some people are trying to shrug it off, and say: 'There is no slavery in Islam.' How can you say this? It is in the Quran."
