Syria: With Friends Like These…

It has been five years since the start of the revolution in Syria, and there is still much unsettled about the fate of the blessed land. Russia, with the full support of the Americans, continues to aid the Assad regime in recapturing liberated cities, and the people of Syria continue to suffer deteriorating humanitarian conditions. Estimates of total casualties range anywhere from 150,000 to 400,000 (the higher number is reported by the UN). While the carnage continues, many Muslim leaders have decided to appear allied with the Syrian people in their struggle against the regime. The “Friends of Syria Group” is how they have organized themselves – initiated by French President Nicolas Sarkozy – as a loose coalition consisting of Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey, and Jordan, among other Muslim and non-Muslim countries, supposedly showing solidarity with the Syrian people. Now the Syrian people are in dire need of help, but what is the reality of this “friendship,” and what is its effect?

Saudi Arabia

Saudi Arabia has been quick to position itself as a friend of the Syrian people, and a harsh critic of the Assad regime. However, actions speak louder than words. The House of Saud may be vocal in its criticism of Assad, but they have not lifted a finger in stopping him from butchering the Syrian people. Saudi has been endowed with immense military strength, including one of the strongest air forces in the Muslim world, but rather than unleashing their strength on the criminal Syrian government, they instead dedicate their resources to bring death and destruction upon the people of Yemen – the poorest country in the Arabian Gulf – just to further the interests of their master: America. Clearly, the suffering of the Syrians is not a priority for the Saudi regime.

More insidious than this is Saudi’s role in subverting the intellectual revival taking place in Syria. The people of Syria, after they courageously rose up against the butcher Assad, were absolutely clear about what kind of change they were struggling for. They had not succumbed to the empty slogans of “freedom” or “democracy,” and had strongly rejected any non-Muslim interference in their struggle; instead, they called for a return to an Islamic political system, declaring Allah (swt) as their Protector, and His Messenger (saw) as their guide.

The House of Saud – the Custodians of the Two Holy Mosques and the supposed vanguards of Islam – have done everything in their power to corrupt the purity of the Syrian resistance. They, through their providing of material support for rebel factions, have pressured the resistance to sit at the negotiation table with the Assad regime – at the behest of their American masters – and thereby abandon their ambitions for an Islamic political solution. The Saudi-backed “High Negotiations Committee,” which has been taking part in the Geneva Peace Talks, recently lost their lead spokesperson, Muhammad Alloush of Jaish Al-Islam, who resigned as a lead spokesperson after he declared that the talks left the people of Syria with no assistance or direction and were futile. The actions of Saudi Arabia are a clear betrayal to Allah (swt), to His Messenger (saw), and to the Ummah of Islam – and to betray Allah (swt) and His Messenger (saw) is a grave sin:

“O you who have believed, do not betray Allah and the Messenger or betray your trusts while you know [the consequence]” [TMQ 8:27]

Egypt

The Egyptian regime has been going through instabilities of its own, but has been consistently useless for the people of Syria. While President Morsi had made an attempt to show solidarity with the Syrians by cutting diplomatic ties with Assad’s regime, his detractors opposed this. However, once America’s man – the tyrant Al-Sisi – was installed in power, he quickly restored relations with the murderous Syrian regime.

While the Egyptian regime has partially distanced itself from Assad since then – even speaking about the removal of Assad from power – they have failed in their obligation to assist the Syrian people to live under the justice of Islam. This, however, is unsurprising, as Al-Sisi does his best to trample on the aspirations of his own Egyptian populace to live under the shade of Islam. It would be inconsistent for him to demand something for the Syrians which he so brutally deprives his own people of.

Turkey

Of all the “Friends” of Syria, Turkey is the most notable. The Turkish government was among the first to denounce Assad, and was quick to finance certain rebel factions. Turkey has also been at the forefront of advocating for Syrian refugees, housing millions within its own borders, and chiding Europe for not taking more. However, Erdogan’s role in the Syrian revolution has always been suspicious. While he talks about supporting the people of Syria, he always maintained his allegiance with the United States and NATO forces, who are belligerent in their opposition to Islam as a political force and have brutalized, plundered, and mutilated the Ummah for generations. It is difficult to trust the Turkish government who claims to be helping the Syrian people, while actively and openly working with their enemies.

The Turkish government has also been instrumental in trying to coerce the Syrian rebel groups to take part in the mockery of a peace process that is the Geneva Convention – a process that marginalizes any rebel group not funded by the enemies of Islam, and bans from the discussion table the true aspirations of the Syrian people: a return to the Islamic systems and way of life.  No political calculation or short term pragmatic maneuver will bring back peace to the Syrian people; nothing short of the downfall of the regime and its replacement by a system that holds the Creator as its Lawgiver will bring justice to Syria or to any of the Muslim lands. Turkey’s government’s refusal to accept this and their insistence on demanding the opposite makes them no friend of the Syrian people.

Furthermore, Turkey is willing to ally with the United States in order to attack the militant group that calls itself “Islamic State,” under the guise of fighting terror.  Wouldn’t it be more beneficial for the Syrian people if the Turkish military were to unleash its might on the terror inflicted by the Assad regime? After all – as noted above – the Assad regime has much more innocent blood on its hands than ISIS does. Why would Turkey further the colonial agenda in Syria by inviting the United States to work with it in further destroying the country, while conveniently ignoring the brutal dictator Bashar Al-Assad? These are not the actions of a friend.

Who is a friend to the Syrians?

It is clear that the political powers that surround the Syrian people have left them friendless. Yet no oppressed Muslim from around the world is ever truly friendless. Rasool Allah (saw) tells us:

“Fear the supplication of the oppressed, as there is no screen between his prayer and Allah.” [Al-Bukhari]

The oppressed believer will always have support from Allah, even if he does not see Allah’s Victory in his lifetime, and they will also have our support. This Ummah has not forgotten Syria, and will not forget a single oppressed Muslim on any corner of the Earth – from the ghettoes of Gaza, to the prisons of Afghanistan, to the ruins of Aleppo. Indeed, it is incumbent on the believers to stand with the people of Syria, not only in our sending money, or our persistence in Du’a for them, but we must follow these actions up with careful political analysis of the situation in Syria, and do everything in our ability to support the work toward true political change, encouraging our brave brothers and sisters who are striving to resume the Islamic way of life in the blessed land of Al-Sham.

The battle in Syria is not a regional issue; it is an attempt by our brave brothers and sisters to revive a system of life ordained by Allah (swt), which will be a beacon of light and justice for the entire world. It is for this reason the US, NATO, and Russia are brutalizing the nation. This is why they have commanded their agents in the region – the rulers of the Muslims lands – to pressure the Syrian people into compromise. They fear the true implementation of the political values of justice and egalitarianism that is taught by Islam. The Capitalist colonial powers understand that their promotion of hollow values such as “liberty” or “democracy” will be exposed for the mirage and deceptive trickery that they are once the justice of Islam is made evident to the world.

As the true friends of Syria, the sincere in this Ummah must understand the intentions of the Capitalist powers, and not fall into their traps by promoting disunity, sectarian conflict, or compromise on the Deen of Allah (swt). We must collectively organize to expose the lies spread about the blessed revolution, and demand that Muslim rulers and the armies of the Ummah behave with sincerity regarding the vital issues of the Ummah – to stand up and fight to liberate the people of Syria from the Assad regime, his colonial supporters and their tools inside Syria. Finally, we must understand that the only true solution to any injustice in the Muslim lands is the re-establishment of the Islamic Khilafah State, which ensures the dignity of all its citizens, regardless of faith, gender, class, or ethnicity.

May Allah (swt) alleviate the suffering of our brothers and sisters in Syria and elsewhere, and grant the believers victory soon.  Ameen

“And what is wrong with you that you fight not in the Cause of Allah, and for those weak, ill-treated and oppressed among men, women, and children, whose cry is: ‘Our Lord! Rescue us from this town whose people are oppressors; and raise for us from You someone who will protect us; and raise for us from You someone who will help us.’” [TMQ 4:75]