"We Must Revive What... Hassan Al-Bana Called 'the Death Industry'"

During a May 19-20, 2010 visit to Mauritania, Sheikh Al-Qaradhawi called upon Muslims to sacrifice themselves in order to achieve their rights: "We must revive what the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan Al-Bana, called 'the death industry' in his article from the 1940s. The ummah today is in need of self-sacrifice for the sake of [achieving] rights, and thus victory will be attained."[1] He added that pressure should be exerted to liberate Palestine and that "the inertia that has harmed everyone can change if the ummah finds the men who excel at dying for the sake of Allah."[2]

In a Friday sermon on the occasion of the 62nd anniversary of the Nakba, Al-Qaradhawi called for jihad in order to return Palestine to the Palestinians: "The right of the Muslims to Palestine and [other lands] will be [realized] only by force. We can only realize our rights through resistance... We must stand beside our brothers, the mujahideen. I call [on the Muslims] to set forth on jihad, and on all the factions to fight the enemy together as one. There is no room for division and disagreement; we must work together, especially since the war [now] encompasses all levels - military, political, economic, cultural, and religious."[3] Al-Qaradhawi stressed that he himself was praying to Allah to "help him fight the Zionists and cause loss of life among them, and that he be hit by a bullet that will separate his head from his body." He stressed that "the best death a Muslim can hope for is not death in bed, but as a shahid on the battlefield for the sake of Allah."...