Calls in the Muslim World to Intensify Jihad During Ramadan

During Ramadan, the printed and electronic Arab media, including the jihadist websites, published numerous articles on jihad, with a special focus on the link between jihad and Ramadan.

The main motifs of these articles were:

· The month of Ramadan is the month of attacks, conquest, and victories, with an emphasis on the fact that many of the early Muslims’ victories over their enemies, such as at the battles of Badr, Hittin, and ‘Ain Jalut, came during Ramadan.

· The importance of the commandment of jihad, particularly during Ramadan. Jihad is defined as one of the most important commandments of Islam, and its intersection with Ramadan, which is “the best month in Allah’s eyes,” is “a tremendous high point that none can attain but he to whom Allah has chosen to grant this tremendous honor of fasting and war.” Likewise, it is claimed that the commandment of jihad, which is said to be twice as important as ordinary commandments, is intensified during Ramadan, and takes first priority. One article included a point-by-point comparison of a Muslim who fasts during Ramadan and a mujahid, saying, inter alia, that “fasting is one of the means of educating the soul towards jihad.” Another article stated: “Real jihad is connected to real fasting; therefore, let us educate our children to pass the test of fasting so that they will succeed in liberating the [places] holy to us.”

· A statement by Sheikh Yousuf Al-Qaradhawi that “jihad is an Islamic moral obligation.”