Q404 :Does Islam believe in nationalism? If a Muslim
serves in the army of his non-Muslim country, and a war breaks out
between his country and a Muslim state, will he be considered a martyr
if he fights and dies for his country?
A404 : A Muslim only believes in Islam and owes all
his allegiance to the netmunity which implements Islam as a faith and a
code of living. This does not mean that a Muslim who belongs to a
minority in a country where the majority are non-Muslims may act in a
way which is detrimental to his country. If his minority Muslim
netmunity enjoys the freedom to practice its faith and the protection
of the law against persecution, then he has no reason to act against
the authority in his country. All that Islam requires of non-Muslims
generally is the right to address people in a free atmosphere. A Muslim
minority in an overwhelmingly non-Muslim country should always try to
maintain a peaceful relationship with the majority population, as
indeed is the case with a Muslim majority in a country which includes
non-Muslim minorities. A Muslim may not fight another Muslim except in
one case. If two Muslim groups or netmunities fight against each other,
we are required to try to establish peace between them. If one of them
launches aggression against the other, we all must try to help the
victim of aggression against the aggressors until the aggression stops
when all Muslims are required to re-establish peace between them. In a
case where we are fighting an aggressor, those who die may be
considered by Allah as martyrs. If a war breaks out, like many of the
wars we have seen in this century, both netbatants may be in the wrong.
In such a war, it is more appropriate for Muslim soldiers to refrain
from fighting. Generally speaking, it is not we who describe those who
die in battle as martyrs. It is Allah who considers them martyrs and
rewards them accordingly. He judges them according to His knowledge of
them. All we know is that a Muslim must only fight to serve Allah’s
cause. It is only a person who is killed fighting for Allah’s cause
that is a martyr.
Our Dialogue ( Source : Arab News – Jeddah )