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Nonaggression Pacts in Islam

(JNS-Israel Hayom) Dr. Harold Rhode - Media reports say that countries in the Persian Gulf might be prepared to sign a nonaggression pact with Israel. Yet in the Middle East, with the possible exception of Turkey, agreements are made between leaders and only last as long as those leaders are still in power. If a leader dies or is overthrown, all bets are off. In Islam, peace as we know it in the West, meaning letting bygones be bygones, cannot exist between Muslims and non-Muslims. According to both the Koran and the Shari'a, there can, however, be a temporary agreement, modeled after the Treaty of Hudaybiyyah, a 628 CE treaty between Mohammad and the Quraysh tribe of Mecca, who Mohammad was unable to defeat. The agreement was to last 10 years, but after only two - when Mohammad had managed to rearm himself sufficiently - he reneged on the agreement, attacked his enemies, and defeated them. This is the type of non-aggression pact the Saudis and other Arab Muslim nations seem to be willing to sign with Israel. These are not peace agreements; they remain in force only as long as the leaders of these Arab countries believe it in their interest. If the Iranian regime collapsed and the new government no longer threatened the Sunni Arab regimes, would Israel and these Arab countries still share common interests? The writer served for 28 years as an advisor on the Islamic world in the Office of the U.S. Secretary of Defense.
2020-02-18 00:00:00
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