Dr Shafi Al-Hajri, an Islamic Studies professor at Qatar University, stated on Al-Rayyan TV (Qatar) on November 25, 2022, that war is the third and last step in propagating Islam.
Dr Al-Hajri stated that individuals must first be invited to Islam or made to pay the jizya poll tax in order to be protected, but those who resist must be fought mercilessly.
Al-Hajri said, “Fighting is the third stage of spreading da’wa. First, we call people to Allah, and if they accept, then they will have the same duties and rights as we have. If they refuse [to convert to Islam] then they have to pay the jizya poll tax.”
“[They have to pay] the jizya poll tax in order to receive protection from others. The third stage is fighting them, if they refuse,” he further added.
“Fighting is against those who reject da’wa – those who refuse [to convert to] Islam, or to pay the jizya poll tax,” Al-Hajri further added.
It is pertinent to note that Jizya is a tax paid by non-Muslims as a protection tax to the Islamic dispensation ruling the territory. Hindus were humiliated by Muslim Jizya collectors in India during Islamic rule. The Hindu had to bow before the Muslim official, drop his eyes, and even allow the Muslim official to spit on him while paying Jizya.
Failure to pay the Jizya may render the vow of protection of a non-believer’s property null and invalid, leaving the Dhimmi (protected non-believer) with the options of conversion, enslavement, death, or incarceration. In today’s Muslim-majority nations, the humiliation of Dhimmi has given way to discrimination and persecution of Kafir (non-believers) in a thousand different ways. Kafirs do not have the same rights as Muslims in most Muslim-majority country.
Islamic preaching in Qatar during FIFA World Cup 2022
Notably, Qatar has been under fire for using a number of methods to convert visitors to Islam who have travelled to the Islamic nation to watch the World Cup. According to a recent report, the Katara Cultural Village Mosque in Doha, Qatar’s capital, has become a hotspot for the proselytization of non-Muslim visitors.
As per media reports, at the mosque, multilingual male and female preachers explain Islam’s religion and ‘tolerance’ to tourists. Visitors are being encouraged to watch electronic boards on Islam which are on display in more than 30 languages and positioned in such a way that it allows visitors to view them on their phones. In addition, books ‘introducing’ Islam in different languages are being distributed amongst the visitors.
Furthermore, Qatar’s Ministry of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs has erected a pavilion outside the 2022 World cup venue, where visitors are being ‘introduced’ to Islam and its teachings.
Radical preacher Zakir Naik in Qatar
How religion has grabbed the spotlight amid the football tournament can also be evidenced by the fact that the radical Islamic preacher Zakir Naik has been reportedly ‘invited’ to preach Islam to football fans.
Recently, it was reported that Zakir Naik, the Islamic Preacher from India wanted for financial fraud and other crimes, reached Qatar to preach Islam. A video from 2016 went viral where he was seen converting people to Islam in Qatar. Though the video was old, there are speculations that his preaching on the sidelines of the FIFA World Cup 2022 may be directed at conversions of visiting football fans.
After concerns were raised by India, Qatar clarified that Naik was not extended any official invitation to attend the FIFA inaugural ceremony.
