A Jihadi Seeks Guidance From Another Jihadi

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Long before Army psychiatrist Major Nidal Hasan, screaming “Allahu akbar,” opened fire upon his fellow soldiers at Fort Hood, murdering thirteen people and injuring another thirty, he showed numerous signs of being a jihadi. Nothing was done, however, because to have disciplined Hasan or acted against him in any way would have been “Islamophobic.”

The official reason for the indifference of authorities to these communications was that they were harmless. Five days after the Fort Hood shootings, ABC News reported that while Hasan “came under scrutiny by officials beginning last year for communicating with Anwar al-Awlaki,” agents had “determined that the communications were benign and contained no threat. Given the results of the review, the FBI did not have enough information to open a full-field investigation.”

In reality, Hasan’s emails to al-Awlaki show that the FBI had ample reason to keep a close eye on the Army psychiatrist. Hasan first came to FBI attention when he emailed al-Awlaki on December 17, 2008. Hasan wrote (spelling and grammar as in the original):

Assalum Alaikum Wa Rhahmutallahi Wa Barakatu [May the peace, mercy, and blessings of Allah be with you], There are many soldiers in the us armed forces that have converted to Islam while in the service. There are also many Muslims who join the armed forces for a myriad of different reasons.

Some appear to have internal conflicts and have even killed or tried to kill other us soldiers in the name of Islam i.e. Hasan Akbar, etc. Others feel that there is no conflict. Previous Fatwas seem vague and not very definitive. Can you make some general comments about Muslims in the u.s. military.

Would you consider someone like Hasan Akbar or other soldiers that have committed such acts with the goal of helping Muslims/Islam (Lets just assume this for now) fighting Jihad and if they did die would you consider them shaheeds [martyrs]. I realize that these are difficult questions but you seem to be one of the only ones that has lived in the u.s. has a good understadning of the the Qur’an and Sunna and is not afraid of being direct.

Jazaka’Allah Khair [May Allah reward you with goodness].

Asking al-Awlaki whether he considered someone like Hasan Akbar, who had murdered two of his commanding officers, to be an Islamic martyr should have been enough to get Hasan onto the FBI’s radar screen and keep him there. It did not. Notices about Hasan traveled through various bureaucracies, but nothing was done.

Meanwhile, Hasan kept writing to al-Awlaki. In one email, he noted that Hamas’s practice of “firing unguided rockets into Israel has the potential of indiscriminately killing civilians.” But after some consideration he invoked several Qur’an verses to justify the practice: “So whoever has assaulted you, then assault him in the same way that he has assaulted you” (2:194) and “the retribution for an evil act is an evil one like it, but whoever pardons and makes reconciliation — his reward is from Allah….And whoever avenges himself after having been wronged — those have not upon them any cause for blame. The cause is only against the ones who wrong the people and tyrannize upon the earth without right. Those will have a painful punishment” (42:39-42).

In a subsequent email, Hasan concluded definitively, based on these passages, that Hamas’s actions were justified: “Hamas and the Muslims hate to hurt the innocent but they have no choice if their going to have a chance to survive, flourish, and deter the Zionist enemy. The recompense for an evil is an evil. So, to claim that these rocket attacks go against the spirit of Islam is false. The blame is only against those who oppress men wrongly and insolently transgress beyond bounds through the land defying truth and justice.”

Hamas was a designated terror organization then, as it is now. This should have resulted in some action against Hasan. Instead, authorities did nothing. Al-Awlaki, meanwhile, began responding to Hasan not long after that, and Hasan continued to ask him for guidance, writing: “During my working career I have been a bus boy, a dishwasher, a cook, a cashier, a lab technician, a researcher, and entrepreneur. Allah (SWT) [Glorified and Exalted be He] lifted the veil from my eyes about 8-9 years ago and I have been striving for Jannat Firdaus [the highest level of Paradise] ever since. I hope, Inshallah [Allah willing], my endeavor will be realized. If you know someone that you feel that will be compatible and complement my endeavors to please Allah (SWT) please let me know.”

Asking a known jihad terror leader for guidance on how to reach Paradise should have been enough for the FBI at very least to question Hasan, as well as to remove him from active duty as an Army psychiatrist, when his loyalties were so clearly aligning with America’s enemies. They did not do so. Counterterror analysts scrutinizing Hasan’s messages to al-Awlaki labeled each “Not a Product of Interest.” Protecting Americans from Islamic jihad took a back seat to showing that the U.S. Army wasn’t “Islamophobic.” Thirteen people were killed as a result.