The Daily Star: Can Hezbollah deliver Muslims from ignorance? by Arif Iqbal Khan

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Can Hezbollah deliver Muslims from ignorance? by Arif Iqbal Khan

The Lebanon conflict has raised a lot of questions about the role of Hezbollah in the Middle East and in the greater Muslim populated lands. Hezbollah's militant wing may have won the battle in Lebanon but can their methodology defeat the bigger enemy that lives within the Muslim ranks?The lack of Muslim unity and the loss of the concept of the Muslim Ummah thus became central to all the current crises in the Middle East. This could only happen due to the intellectual bankruptcy of the Muslims caused by blind faith and a simultaneous restriction on reason as a means to belief. As a result, Muslims have gone back to the "Age of Ignorance" (Jahiliya) similar to the time before the coming of Islam. The problem in Palestine and Lebanon and other places are symptoms of this fundamental issue but not the issue itself, like loss of hair in leukemia.But it is dangerous to think that the only way to resist oppression, as in Palestine, is through violent uprising before the actual problem has been properly diagnosed and medicated appropriately. On the other hand, temporary resistance victory, as in Lebanon, may inspire the Muslim youth to join overzealous militants in their utter madness to enforce their sadistic views on the innocent people and thus cause further decay of the Muslim intellect that will have ripple effect on the entire Muslim world. This will not be accepted and will cause internal destruction and worse still the Muslims will move further away from their principles in the original sources.

The methodology is just as important as the result itself and hence it must conform to the kind of challenge at hand. A political problem must be challenged politically. In the face of naked aggression, Hezbollah had no choice but to defend militarily and a splendid job they did at that. But their stated aim to "wipe out Israel" with the support of Baathist Syria and a racial Iran seems like a contradiction in their ideology. Racial divide and the politics of hate and militancy will be rejected by the people.

Hezbollah must question this methodology if they sincerely want to lead the Muslims out of their miserable status. It would seem though that Hezbollah's roots in militancy may become its single biggest impediment to pursue a different course and thereby make them an unlikely party to deliver the Muslims from the Age of Ignorance. Perhaps a new group will arise from amongst the Muslims who will adopt the correct methodology and usher in the era of Enlightenment.