Growing Fundamentalism in Islam
How Moderates are Subjugated by Muslim Hardliners

https://www.humanreligions.info/islam_moderates.html

By Vexen Crabtree 2025

#extremism #fundamentalism #islam_moderates #islamic_extremism #religion

Although Islam is a stronger part of Muslim identity than it used to be, with observance of practices and the importance of religion both higher than it was even within the last few generations, only a small number support radical Islamists, and even fewer support violence₁.

1. The Majority of Western Muslims are Peaceful and Moderate

#christianity #europe #european_migration #germany #immigration #islam #islam_moderates #muslims #syria #UK #USA #xenophobia

In 2004, Cesari estimated that there were over 12 million Muslims in Europe, making up 3% of the population₂. Six years later, it had risen to about 15 million₃, although due to overall European population growth to 711 million in that year, this was now only 2% of its population. Since then the immigration rate of Muslims doubled, with 7 million arriving from 2010 to 2016₄, mostly comprised of families fleeing from Syria₅. Germany was the top destination for refugees, whereas the UK was the most popular destination for regular working migrants₅. By 2016, the total number of Muslims in Europe was 4.9%₅. Although the numbers are small, "anxiety about it has been growing"₃ amongst some non-Muslims, spurred by negative press reporting and the anti-immigrant slogans of right-wing parties.

Many Muslims observe their religion and live their lives with no intent to either support or oppose fundamentalist extremism. Most want to be integrated into their nations' overall society₆. Some critics proclaim that because mainstream Muslims fail to act against extremists, it allows extremists to prosper. But many active Christians are the same: they may well disagree with the actions of their fellows during the crusades, they neither support USA Christian fundamentalism but nor do they do anything about it and, they are also (I'm sure) disgusted by the sexual abuse of children by priests, and its cover-up by their own Churches. It is Human nature just to want to get on in life, in peace. But we rarely hear the popular press berate them for failing to stand up to horrible people in their own ranks. The opposition of the ordinary lay person is rarely recorded on the news, and rarely published. Muslims are in the same boat: extremists are always louder than the mainstream. The last census showed 1.5 million Muslims in Britain, and they make up 6% of the EU: it is clear that most of these are part of a peaceful and quite undramatic ethnic culture within the West.

After the Sep 2011 terrorist attacks on the USA:

“Some people continue to ask why Muslims did not denounce the terrorist attacks when in fact they did. In statement after statement, the attacks were condemned by such groups as the American Muslim Alliance, the American Muslim Council, the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR), the Islamic Society of North America, the Islamic Circle of North America, the Shari'a Scholars Association of North America, and many more. [And the author states in the introductory chapter that these denouncements were "instant" after the event.]
Certainly, there are Muslims who do [support terrorism and violence against civilians], but they are not in the mainstream of the tradition and do not represent Islam any more than the Ku Klux Klan represents Christianity.”
"Gods in the Global Village" by Lester R. Kurtz (2007)₇

Many Muslims do not heed the Qur'anic verses urging them to prepare for war against unbelievers (Qur'an 8:60), nor the verses telling them to increase their strength so that they can convert or subjugate those around them. Authors such as Robert Spencer argue, with excessive use of quotations from the Qur'an, that such peaceful Muslims are (fortunately) not truly following their religion, in order to cast Islam in a negative light as possible. Yet, the Christian Bible endorses slavery, female subjugation to males, deadly violence against pagans, and invects against homosexuals: thankfully most Christians also ignore it all. It is good that many in the world do not adhere to the ancient and barbaric exhortations of their holy books. Most Muslims merely want, like everyone else, to live their lives in peace, with their friends, to raise families and win stable employment.

Some moderates do indeed vocally and openly oppose extremists. Mr Manzoor witnessed two political candidates handing out leaflets outside a mosque, when two men started shouting loudly at them, telling other Muslims to ignore them as the election campaign was "against Islam". "So far, so predictable. But what happened next was not. The two men were shouted down by the others: 200 Muslims who to an outsider would have looked exactly like the two extremists".₈. News outlets frequently publish opinion pieces and shocked reports based on the views of a few extremists, which worries everyone. But rarely do those two hundred moderate folk find themselves exposed on the news.

Sometimes, the efforts of Muslim liberals actually seem unrealistic even by outsiders' standards. Mattson (2003) states that "a few American-Muslim leaders have tried to make the point that American political concepts are 'authentic' to Islam because the USA allows Muslims to practise and propagate their religion freely"₉_,₁₀. Although their motives are good, their arguments are theologically weak and unconvincing.

Such normal people are however under pressure. A sense of all-round disharmony between civil Muslims and suspicious Westerners puts them in a difficult position, which can only be made worse by incidents of anti-Muslim xenophobia and racism.

For more, see:

"Islam and the West: Pluralism, Immigration and Danger" by Vexen Crabtree (2011).

2. The Influence of the Traditionalist Islamist Radicals

#bahrain #christianity #democracy #egypt #fundamentalism #hinduism #india #indonesia #iran #iraq #islam #islamic_extremism #jordan #kuwait #montenegro #morocco #oman #pakistan #palestine #qatar #saudi_arabia #turkey #UK #wahhabi

Western analysts had predicted that as changes in Islam continued and the core of believers came to be more educated about their faith, that a strain of liberal Islam would emerge and that traditional Islamic powers would be undermined. But this is not happening. Traditionalists are more popular than ever, with greater influence, and have fully embraced modern technology, almost unopposed by liberal Muslims anywhere₁₁.

“All of the world's 1.4 billion Muslims have felt the effects of the resurgence in piety, religious education and proselytization (da'wa) that has swept Muslim countries since the 1970s [although] only a small minority support radical Islamist programs; an even smaller number support terrorist violence.”
"Religion and Modernity Worldwide"
Robert W. Heffner (2011)₁₁

In many Islamic countries, Muslims want more courteous and milder religious laws - and even democracy. The educated elites who run Muslim countries are often more liberal than the people that they manage; Fareed Zakaria gives examples of this in Bahrain, Egypt, Jordan, Kuwait, Morocco, Oman, Palestine, Qatar and Saudi Arabia: 'On virtually every political issue, the monarchs are more liberal than the societies over which they reign'₁₂. In Turkey they have been partially successful at creating a more liberal and tolerant society. But in the rest of the Muslim world, the wishes of hardliners dominate and constrain government, regardless of whether they are the majority or not. How does this happen?

The answer is in the calculated form of protest and outrage that Muslims stage. Organized extremists infiltrate (and create) grassroots movements, to intimidate and scare the government into adopting hardline stances. They are well-funded by outreach programs from Saudi Arabia, Iran and Pakistan. Through marriage and family unifications, Western and liberal communities are repeatedly infused with 'fresh' extremists from Islamic states: families and individuals that would otherwise live a naturally moderate life face angry, aggressive and increasingly threatening pseudo-officials.

The same struggle occurs in country-after-country: the radicals command a power of challenge that makes it impossible for governments to ease towards centrism. Prime Minister Arafat in 2001 could not accept the Camp David accord because it would be the trigger that Hamas needed to mobilize support and take over the government₁₂. President Mubarak's typical response to pressure from Western leaders against human rights abuses in his country, is that to try and open up will mean that Islamic fundamentalists "will take over Egypt"₁₂. Even the powerful Saudi monarchy says it is constrained by powerful radicalist movements₁₃. Well-organized extremist minorities manage to 'achieve a political influence greatly disproportionate to their numbers in society'₁₁.

Europe: The Victims of Intimidation report by Douglas Murray and Johan Verwey profiled nearly 30 Muslim-heritage Europeans. They state that those supporting reform in Muslim communities, and those critical of Islam, are being silenced and suppressed by extremists. European governments must help such individuals, says the report, otherwise, the entire project of fostering a tolerant version of Islam in Europe will never succeed.
“The report details the substantial threats and violence they have faced as a result of critical inquiry into aspects of their faith or lifestyle. Included in those under threat for expressing ideas that Islamic extremists don't approve of are two of the NSS's Secularist of the Year award winners, Maryam Namazie and Mina Ahadi.
Other people named as victims of this intimidation include politicians, journalists, writers, artists and human rights activists. Their personal stories are diverse and wide-ranging. [...] All, however, have been targeted on the pretext that they have broken Islamic rules and traditions.
Many ... have suffered physical assault and are forced to live under constant police protection as a result of their words and actions. Several tell of community and religious leaders' failure to support proponents of moderate Islam. Others warn of ineffectual government responses to coercion by extremists.”
Newsline (2008 Nov 14)₁₄
- UK; London, 2011: The Guardian (2011)₁₅ reported on Dr Usama Hasan, who for 25 years served a Leyton Mosque in Middlesex, and was vice-chairman. His preachings questioned hardline Muslim values, saying that women had a right to refuse to wear the veil if they did not want it, that they could have their hair uncovered in public, and, that the theory of evolution wasn't a completely ridiculous idea, as it is supported by mountains of evidence. It is disheartening that such things still need to be said in the 21st century, but, in his position of authority, it's good that he used his influence to do so. A minority of hardliners arose in angry protest against him. He was subject to intimidation and death threats (not the first time, either). He and his wife and children were put under security protection by the police. An organized group of 50 hardliners appeared at his Mosque and handed out leaflets against him, and, disrupted proceedings by shouting in the Mosque for his execution. The leaflets specifically quoted Muslim religious authorities saying that any Muslim who believes in evolution is an "apostate" who "must be executed". It doesn't matter that these aggressive and organized protestors were not a majority. What matters is that their tactics are successful: everyone knows that such pressure simply does not let up. Dr Usama Hasan stopped delivering lectures, and issued a statement apologizing for his own "inflammatory" statements and officially withdrew them. Now, his good work was gone, but worse, all in the community saw that not even him, one of the most influential and long-standing members of their community, could stand up to the extremists. He worries that the Mosque could fall into the hands of the hardliners and he knows he will need to take caution for the rest of his life.
In the Middle East: Strict, traditionalist and intolerant Islam has stabilized as the dominant force throughout much of the Middle East. They have the power, organization, anger and ability to rule, almost unquestioned. For many decades "in the Arab and Muslim world, Salafists, Wahabis, Ikhwan, Takfiris, and Khumeinists often persecute Muslim liberals, reformists or moderate conservatives for any attempt to criticize [...] fundamentalist interpretation of Islam"₁₆.
- Saudi Arabia Wahhabi Islam was founded by Muhammad ibn 'Abd al-Wahhab (1703-1791) in Saudi Arabia₁₇ in the mid-18th century₁₈. It's an extremist form of Islam₁₇_,₁₈_,₁₉. It calls for Muslims to return to a purer faith of the early centuries₁₈_,₂₀_,₂₁ and discard culture, philosophy and traditions₂₂_,₂₃. It is fundamentalist, focus on a direct and literal reading of the Qur'an₁₉ and rejects the juridical schools and any developed thinking on how to apply Islam in the modern world₁₈_,₂₀. "It is Wahhabism that motivated Osama Bin Laden and the Taliban"₂₀. Wahhabism is outlawed in several Muslim countries including those as different as Iraq and Montenegro₂₀. It is particularly responsible for the persecution of Sufi Islam in Saudi Arabia₂₄. It is so well-funded by Saudi Arabia that not a single Muslim population goes unpressured by its radicalizing organisations₁₈_,₁₉_,₂₅_,₂₆.
  Prince Bandar bin Sultan of the powerful Saudi monarchy says that, despite being pressured repeatedly, they cannot liberalize in order to accommodate western desires for better human rights and less funding of intolerant preachers abroad. He says if they try, they will be overthrown, and "the likely alternative to the regime is not Jeffesonian democracy but a Taliban-style theocracy"₁₂.
  Even mild and cautious progress is resisted. For example, when Al-Nabulsi pointed out that there does appear to be contradictory Qur'anic verses, preachers at Sunni Islam's primary University, Al-Azhar, called him a liar and said that such comments were apostasy and therefore, Al-Nabulsi was no longer a Muslim₂₇. That this unreasonable and unthinking response to academic commentary occurs even at a University highlights the problems facing moderates in Saudi Arabia, and elsewhere where Wahhabi's long arms reach.
Indonesia:
“Several thousand hardline Muslims protested outside [Indonesian] President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono's palace in Jakarta on April 20th [2008] demanding that he ban Ahmadiyah, an unorthodox but moderate Muslim sect founded in 19th-century India that claims around 200,000 members across Indonesia. At an earlier meeting of one of the groups involved, a leader was filmed chanting 'Kill Ahmadiyah! Kill! Kill! Kill!' Far from having these extremists arrested for inciting violence, Mr Yudhoyono was this week considering pandering to them by issuing a decree to restrict Ahmadiyah [...]. The president nodded his approval as the MUI, [an collection of hardline Muslim clerics given sanction by the government], issued fatwas against 'deviant' sects. On April 23rd Abdul Salam, a self-proclaimed prophet who leads another unorthodox group, al-Qiyadah al-Islamiah, was jailed for four years for blasphemy. [...] Suppressing al-Qiyadah al-Islamiah would be more likely to damage Indonesia's stability and unity than letting their members worship freely. The country's many Hindus, Christians and members of other faiths would surely be asking themselves: 'Are we next?''”
The Economist (2008)₂₈

3. The Influence of Near-Eastern Islam on Western Communities

#france #islam #saudi_arabia

In "When Islam and Democracy Meet" by Jocelyne Cesari (2004)₂₉, Cesari devotes a few chapters to tracing the ties between Western Muslims and the Islamic institutions of the Near East. National outreach-churches from the Muslim world have much influence both directly and indirectly, so that they affect the lives of even the (partially-)secular Muslims of Europe₃₀. Many such organisations are unpleasant and teach fundamentalist and ultra-conservative doctrine. It is difficult to learn Qur'anic Arabic in Western countries due to the lack of established institutions so all teachers who command authority and respect are foreign-trained. Western moderates are almost completely "unable to command much support in the Muslim Middle East"₃₁ and only the most enthusiastic Islamists tend to emerge as knowledgeable Islamic preachers and community leaders in the West₃₂. These people must go abroad for the best training in Islamic scripture, or, attend some of the Mosques and projects that are funded by outreach churches from Saudi Arabia and other places. The result is that the best-trained are also those who suffer from the longest and most intense exposure to extremist ideas. The situation is unstable with integrating and secularizing forces on the one hand, and the influence of powerful and Islamic institutions in the East, on the other. Manuel Valls MP warns that the lack of state funding for Muslim institutions in France leads to increased susceptibility to influence from rich and zealous churches from countries such as Saudi Arabia₃₃. Tariq Ramadan, a more comprehensive scholar of Islamic thought, writes a similar account₃₄. Both authors conclude that it is the lack of a Western center of Islam that makes it necessary for Muslims to study abroad, and Ramadan asserts strongly that an independent Western Islam must emerge in order to solve problems associated with radicalization.

4. Reversals: The Occasional Efforts of Reforming Rulers

#christianity #iran #islam #turkey

Reform and revolution in Muslim lands is possible, however, most such events turn out to be disappointing from a human rights point of view. Many mass movements have resulted in increased fundamentalism and intolerance towards non-Muslims; those revolts of the "Arab Spring" from 2010 onwards have yet to result in any liberalisation of any Muslim country, and, behind the scenes many fear that hardline Islamists are using their organisational ability to infiltrate and control some of the rebel movements₃₅, which the outside world assume to be led by moderates and liberals. Twice in history, a Muslim country has seen a secular revolt that moved it away from fundamentalism. The first was in Turkey under Mustafa Kemal ("Atatürk") from 1924, and the second in Iran in 1925 under Reza Shah along with much brutality₃₆. Neither reformer had an easy ride and in both cases it was only possible using a secularizing military force which could resist the violent reactions against the reforms. In Iran the secular regime of Shah was overthrown in 1979, whereupon the country returned to strict Islamism. Turkish reforms have stalled. The Islamic golden era from 8th-12th century saw the spread of literacy, science and mathematics, but since then, increasing Qur'an-based fundamentalism has plunged the Muslim world into a Dark Age comparable to that of historical Christianity in Europe. So far, there is no known good way to bring back a country from Islamic extremism, but, let's not forget that at the height of the medieval Christian Church's power, it also looked unlikely to ever lose its dominant position. It is too early and too difficult to tell what changes are occurring in the Muslim world.