Extremism needs early intervention

Dr Al Azhari’s views on tackling radicals’ grim vision have much to recommend them

Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, greets visiting Islamic scholars at Al Bateen Palace. (Rashed Al Mansoori / Crown Prince Court - Abu Dhabi)Show less

Few will disagree with the assessment of Egyptian scholar Dr Usama Sayyid Al Azhari that ISIL and related terror groups spout a misguided “grim vision”. The question, as Dr Al Azhari sought to explain in his lecture at Al Bateen Palace on Monday, is what can be done to combat this philosophy.

The scholar focused on two aspects: maintaining the idea of the nation and disseminating a scholarly understanding of Islam more widely. The first is necessary: ISIL detests nations because they offer people an allegiance that isn’t to their warped ideology.

But the second is more complicated. Dr Al Azhari pointed out that too much religious knowledge is “trapped in books and is not easily accessible to those who need it the most”. He called on scholars to combat extremist messages through social media.

While Dr Al Azhari certainly has a point about social media, there is an inherent difficulty with fighting black and white certainties with nuance, especially using social networks. It is easy for groups like ISIL to spew hate in 140 characters. It is much harder for scholars to reply with detail and nuance in the same space. That will always hand the advantage to those who detest peace and tolerance.

But there are some things that can be done. Start young, with a reform of religious education. In too many parts of the world, including this region, religious education is done by rote, with young minds forced to repeat what they hear, without any critical engagement. This makes it easier for them to engage uncritically with extremist views later.

Language is also a factor. The language of the Quran is Arabic and Muslims consider any translation to be merely a guide to its true meaning. But too often, those who teach the Quran don’t know Arabic as native speakers and are consequently unable to combat extreme interpretations of Arabic verses. Even those who do understand Arabic may be willing to take out of context what is said – sometimes, it is tempting to speak only of the forceful parts of religious texts, without emphasising the peaceful context of the faith.

And lastly there is a real role for the media, to make sure extremists are not offered the oxygen of publicity and, equally crucially, that those who can speak to young people in their own language are given a platform. While there is no one answer to ISIL’s extremism, what is certain is that exposing their bankrupt ideas will eventually lead to their demise.