Tuesday, April 5, 2011

The Laws of War

Excerpt from "Religion and Politics in Pakistan", by Leonard Binder: 

(much elided, but I don't think I've changed the meaning).
Pakistan 1947-48.

"...popular feeling had been whipped up by the cry that the struggle in Kashmir was a jihad....

Perhaps it was by accident, perhaps by inspiration as members of Jama'at-i-Islami claim, that Maududi came to be asked whether the fighting in Kashmir was a jihad or not; but his negative answer created a sensation.  This was in May 1948, when the Indian offensive forced Pakistani regulars into the line to save Muzaffarabad.   After some pressing, Maududi declared that for Kashmiris it might be a jihad, but so long as the governments of India and Pakistan were at peace there could be no jihad in Kashmir for Pakistanis....."




No comments:

Post a Comment