The Devastation Caused by War

War is an evil that always brings pain and tears to the warring parties and causes terrible losses. Religious morality requires that people resolve their disputes peacefully and in a conciliatory manner. Those who live according to religious morality refrain from such harmful attitudes as hate, revenge, and anger. Instead, they adopt a compassionate and forgiving stance. When people are distanced from religious morality, an environment conducive to internal and mutual communal conflict develops. Accordingly, the two world wars were evils brought about by irreligious ideologies. The First World War caused devastation from Europe to the Middle East and killed more than 10 million people, while the Second World War, which, like the first, had no valid justification, ended in horrific bloodshed costing 55 million deaths. The survivors witnessed levels of cruelty rarely seen in history, and millions of innocent people perished in concentration camps.

DARWINISM IS THE ROOT OF TERRORISM  Darwinism's encouragement of conflict, barbarity and war is in fact far more serious in scale than what is superficially touched on above. It is evident that Darwinist philosophy has brought humanity nothing but blood, suffering and tears. People educated in the Darwinist mindset have been brainwashed with ruthless ideas to treat one another as if they were animals and even regard killing one another as perfectly normal. Ideologies that favor violence and inflicted terrible disasters on mankind in the 20th century supported, on the basis of Darwinism, "conflict or war against those who are not of us" and even adopted this as their most important operational technique. Horrifying acts of terror in the present day show how particularly influential the false idea of "man as a fighting animal," which is inculcated by Darwinism in people's subconscious minds, is. What supposedly justifies terror and violence for these people is such dangerous slogans, based on Darwinism, as "only the strong survive," "big fish eat little fish," "war is a virtue" and "man advances by waging war." Actually, once Darwinism is done away with there will be no more philosophies of "conflict." The three Divine religions that most people in the world believe in, Islam, Christianity and Judaism, all oppose violence. As we shall be seeing in the sections that follow, all three religions wish to bring peace and harmony to the world, and oppose innocent people being killed and suffering cruelty and torture. Conflict and violence violate the morality that Allah has set out for man, and are abnormal and unwanted concepts. However, Darwinism sees and portrays conflict and violence as natural, justified and correct concepts that have to exist. For this reason, the root of the terrorism that plagues our planet is not any of the Divine religions, but in irreligion, and its expression in our times: "Darwinism" and "materialism." Since Darwinism is taught in just about all schools in almost every country in the world, as if it were a scientific fact, it is inevitable that new generations of terrorists will emerge. That is why it is a matter of the greatest urgency for young people taught that their ancestors were animals that came into being by so-called chance, that they have no responsibility toward Allah and that they can only survive by being victorious in war and conflict should be kept away from such dangerous ideas. Young people brought up in the light of such corrupt ideas can become ruthless enough to slaughter innocent children and perpetrate all kinds of actions that violate reason and good conscience. Indeed, the communist, fascist and racist terror groups that have plagued the world in the last century have all been the product of this education system. In conclusion, the solution lies in a powerful cultural campaign against Darwinism, the true root of terrorism, and teaching young people fear of Allah and to behave rationally and virtuously. The result will be societies that produce people full of peace, feeling of safety, forgiveness and compassion, as Allah reveals in the Qur'an.

However, these two world wars and the resulting devastation still have not convinced many people just how terrible a disaster war actually is. The Second World War did not end conflict and war; instead, new ones broke out all over the world, killing continued, and the political ambitions of the few killed millions of people, crippled untold thousands, destroyed entire cities, and devastated whole nations. Wars have also caused serious psychological damage to the survivors and damaged the spiritual well-being of an entire generation. Wars produced people who experience anxiety attacks, shake uncontrollably, and suffer from sheer fear just by hearing the word "bomb" or seeing a uniform. Some of them have remained schizophrenics for years because of the terror they have witnessed, and others have failed to readapt to society.

Do not corrupt the earth after it has been put right... (Surat al-A'raf: 56) The two world wars caused great destruction and killed millions of people. Humanity needed a long period of time to heal their wounds.

Those who believe that war can solve problems only have faith in military solutions. Those who plan new wars, particularly in the Middle East, must remember previous human tragedies and abandon their dangerous plans. The cost of invading Iraq reveals another dimension to such affairs.

Not a trace will remain of these painful sights once Darwinism has been intellectually eradicated and the Turkish-Islamic Union has been built. The warmth, affection, compassion and love brought with them by the moral values of the Qur'an will enfold all people, and all will, no matter what their faiths or beliefs, live together as brothers.

Thoughts on the Cost of Invading Iraq

The cost of invading Iraq became a major topic of discussion before and after the war.

Many statistical studies conducted in America about the costs of invading Iraq reveal that besides the direct costs, there are serious other implications that need to be considered. For instance, the study by Senator Joseph Biden, chairman of the U.S. Foreign Relations Committee, puts this cost at $100 billion. Biden also stated that another $50 billion would be needed to rebuild Iraq, and that the total cost would be more like $150 billion. At present, it appears that the invasion was successful and that everything has been contained within the estimated limits. However, this will not cause the tragedies experienced during the war to be forgotten and does not justify using these resources for this war instead of the American people's prosperity.

The $100 billion cost is not considered a significant amount by the hawks. However, it is three times the education budget for children aged between 0 and 12, four times the country's foreign relations budget, and able to cover the health costs of all American children without health insurance for 5 years. This is indeed a thought-provoking fact: That this amount of money is spent on an invasion that costs the lives of thousands of people instead of used to increase the living standards of all Americans. However, given that these estimated costs have been calculated based on ideal conditions, many retired military and defense experts say that the costs will spiral, considering the potential risks of the post-invasion period.

Past American wars have shown that the costs of these wars far exceeded the planned amount. For instance, the Secretary of the Treasury in Lincoln's cabinet estimated the cost of the Civil War for the North would be $240 million; in fact, the actual cost was 13 times higher ($3.2 billion). In the 1966 budget, $10 billion was earmarked for the war in Vietnam, which was expected to end in the summer of 1967. But the war continued until 1973, at a direct cost of between $110 and $150 billion.²⁶ In addition, 47,000 American soldiers died on the frontline, another 11,000 soldiers died in various circumstances, and a total of 303,000 soldiers were injured. More than 1 million Vietnamese civilians lost their lives, 225,000 Vietnamese soldiers were killed in the war, and 570,000 were injured.²⁷

These examples reveal that the cost of warfare can spiral out of control when things do not go according to plan. Therefore, all future wars and invasions must be prevented, for the human and financial losses on both sides can increase dramatically. Moreover, a democratic, peaceful, and moderate order cannot be created in the Middle East by means of war, as the American administration is intent on doing. Even if military success is achieved, it is next to impossible to create a lasting peace and order in this way. Winning a war on the battlefield is not necessarily enough to control and rule a region politically. And, what usually happens after any invasion is a very good proof of this.

The Turkish Islamic Union will be a giant step toward world peace. Thanks to this unity, various problems will be resolved peacefully, justly and quickly.

The Middle East rests on precarious balances. History proves that it is highly unlikely that foreign powers will maintain these balances justly or fairly, or achieve an order that is acceptable to the region's very diverse population. Only a power that shares the region's culture and civilizational ethos can do this. This must be a central authority that unites all Muslim nations, one that reflects and represents their will.

This authority is the Turkish Islamic Union, which will not only resolve the problems in the Middle East, but also all problems between the West and the Islamic world. Therefore, the West, especially America, must support the formation of the Turkish Islamic Union, which will unite all Muslim nations under a peace-seeking, compassionate, and constructive umbrella and cooperate with it. In this way, America will find a reliable political union with which to maintain dialogue and cooperation, a union stretching from Morocco to Indonesia.

Many American strategists and thinkers have pointed out this fact, and William Nordhaus, a renowned economist and professor at Yale University, states in the "conclusions and suggestions" section of his report, titled: "The Economic Consequences of a War with Iraq," the following:

From a political point of view, unilateral actions, particularly those taken without support from the Islamic world, risk inflaming moderates, emboldening radicals … in those countries.²⁸

Who Is Behind the Invasion?

It is an interesting question to ask why America invaded Iraq despite the clearly visible damage and negative impact that such an act would engender. Many strategists think that this invasion had been planned well before 9/11, and suspicions concerning the American administration's claim that Iraq had, and possibly intended to use, weapons of mass destruction began to be heard.

This military action is part of America's new Middle East strategy. Those who developed this strategy had decided already in 1997 that America had to hit Saddam and remove him from power. The first signs of this emerged in 1997, when a group of strategists in Washington, under the influence of the Israeli lobby, formed the Project for the New American Century (PNAC) think-tank to advocate for occupying Iraq. The foremost names of PNAC, later to become the most influential people in the George W. Bush administration, were Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld and Vice President Dick Cheney. Even if they had originally set out to create a stable world order under American leadership, they acquired the belief, assisted by the Israeli lobby, that a war in the Middle East was necessary. Had they made a comprehensive evaluation, they soon would have realized that such a belief was mistaken. If the purpose was to create stability, it is obvious that war never brings about stability and order. To the contrary, it destroys the existing order and brings about nothing but loss. It is a historic fact that stability can be achieved only by preserving peace.

AMERICAN CASUALTIES FROM MAJOR WARS

The tables above reveal the losses inflicted on America by the great wars in which she participated.

An article titled "Invading Iraq Not A New Idea For Bush Clique: 4 Years Before 9/11, Plan Was Set," published in the Philadelphia Daily News under the name William Bunch, stated the following:

But in reality, Rumsfeld, Vice President Dick Cheney, and a small band of conservative ideologues had begun making the case for an American invasion of Iraq as early as 1997— nearly four years before the Sept. 11 attacks and three years before President Bush took office.

An obscure, ominous-sounding right-wing policy group called Project for the New American Century, or PNAC—affiliated with Cheney, Rumsfeld, Rumsfeld's top deputy Paul Wolfowitz and Bush's brother Jeb—even urged then-President Clinton to invade Iraq back in January 1998.

"We urge you to ... enunciate a new strategy that would secure the interests of the U.S. and our friends and allies around the world," stated the letter to Clinton, signed by Rumsfeld, Wolfowitz, and others. "That strategy should aim, above all, at the removal of Saddam Hussein's regime from power.²⁹

But what was the reason for PNAC's members to be so persistent about bringing down Saddam? The same article continues:

While oil is a backdrop to PNAC's policy pronouncements on Iraq, it doesn't seem to be the driving force. [Ian] Lustick, [a University of Pennsylvania political science professor and Middle East expert], while a critic of the Bush policy, says oil is viewed by the war's proponents primarily as a way to pay for the costly military operation.

"I'm from Texas, and every oil man that I know is against military action in Iraq," said PNAC's Schmitt. "The oil market doesn't need disruption."

Lustick believes that a more powerful hidden motivator [for war] may be Israel. He said Bush administration hawks believe that a show of force in Iraq would somehow convince Palestinians to accept a peace plan on terms favorable to Israel.³⁰

In short, the real architects behind the invasion are Israel and its American allies. At this stage, it once again becomes apparent that America's Middle East policy is heavily influenced by Israel. Some radical zionists acting in Israel's interest exercise great influence over America's decision-making mechanisms and convince Washington to act according to Israel's Middle East strategy. Moreover, they do so while claiming that American and Israeli interests are identical, despite the fact that American interests in the Middle East are not compatible with supporting radical zionists in Israel. Just by doing so, the US manages to affront the entire Arab world. Its interests would be better served by persuading Israel to moderate its policies and make peace with the Arabs, with itself serving as a just mediator.

This same Israeli influence can be seen in the planning stage of the invasion. The Israeli lobby misdirected the strategists who would come to hold influential positions in the Bush administration so that they would see the "need" to invade Iraq. However, this has caused new tensions in the region and gradually opened the way for a military action that caused the death of many innocent Iraqi civilians.

Irrespective of how much these strategists talk about American interests, in reality they are defending Israel's interests, because it is not in America's interest to fight with the entire Middle East and to offend and alienate its people. America does not have an anti-Islamic ideology and strategy, as some circles claim. As we stated before, America was one of the greatest allies of the Balkan (e.g., Bosnian, Kosovan, and Macedonian) Muslims who were exposed, during the 1990s, to Serbian atrocities. The only American "frontline" that negatively affects the Muslim masses is in the Middle East, due to certain officials who, under the influence of the incredibly powerful Israeli lobby, take a pro-Israeli stand in foreign policy. Once these officials are freed from such manipulation and thus enabled to assess the Middle East without bias, fairer policies will be developed.

Although oil seems to be the real reason for the war against Iraq, researchers say that very different reasons lie behind the scenes.

This is the reason behind the American strategy of rearranging the Middle East, which the American administration enacted after 9/11. Israeli radicals, playing upon Israel's long-standing fear of annihilation, have long sought to rearrange the Middle East to make it a more controllable and safer region for Israel. With this goal in mind, they have exerted their influence over America and manipulated its Middle East policy for decades.

In reality, it is not in Israel's interest to be in conflict with the Islamic world either. Jews, Christians, and Muslims have the right to worship as they wish in these lands, but the policies of atheistic zionists influential in Israel oppress Muslims and worries Christians and Jews. It would be far better for the Israelis, as well as for all Middle Easterners, if Israel withdrew from the Occupied Territories and made true peace instead of being in a constant state of war with the entire Middle East. Therefore it is necessary, also for the safety of the 4.5 million Jewish citizens, to intellectually fight the atheistic zionist philosophy that seeks to perpetrate war in the Middle East as well as to incite a clash of civilizations.

Atheistic zionism, a racist, chauvinistic, and oppressive ideology, aims to force non-Jewish residents from Palestine or even to kill them. It also intensely oppresses devout Jewish people. However, the ongoing lack of knowledge and misinformation combine to prevent both Jews and Christians from realizing the truth about atheistic zionism. It is the responsibility of every person working for world peace to show radical views' danger to humanity at large. Genuinely religious Jews, along with conscientious Christians and Muslims, must unite to invite everyone to the righteous path. When people come to realize the truth about the fascist, social Darwinist, and oppressive ideology known as atheistic and radical zionism, this large obstacle to world peace will be removed, and people who now advocate violence will become defenders of peace.

The relation of the pro-war group to Israel caused serious arguments in America. Patrick Buchanan's article, "Whose War?" deals with information that appeared in the media about this subject. "Is It Good for Jews?" an article that appeared in the New York Times, discusses the benefits Israel will get from the invasion of Iraq. The two articles in the National Review called attention to the error of presenting all Jews as being pro-war.

The Turkish-Islamic Union will be the salvation, not just of Palestine, which has suffered terribly for more than half a century, but also of Israel. Israel has effectively imprisoned itself behind giant walls, but will escape the predicament into which it has fallen by way of the justice, peacefulness and loving nature of the Turkish-Islamic Union, and peace and security will come to the whole region. These lands played host to friendship and brotherhood for 400 years under Ottoman rule. Jews, Christians and Muslims lived together in brotherhood, worshiped as they pleased, settled where they wished, engaged in trade freely and lived in complete security. The only means whereby this beauty of the past can be brought back to life, in an even better form, is with the foundation of the Turkish-Islamic Union.

Palestine must be a land where Jews, Christians and Muslims can live together in peace. It is possible to re-establish the security that once prevailed in Palestine under Muslim rule.

AN INTERVIEW WITH MR. ADNAN OKTAR BY TASCA (TURKISH ARAB ASSOCIATION FOR SCIENCE, CULTURE AND THE ARTS), NOVEMBER 21st, 2008  Adnan Oktar: The Turkish-Islamic Union is an international one. But let us refer to it as "among brothers," a work among brothers. Of course we are trying to contact all the Turkic states. We are trying to reach all Islamic countries, but Christians and Jews are also entrusted to us by Allah. I feel a great affection for them, and a powerful love and urge to protect them. That is why I particularly want to see Armenia in the Turkish-Islamic Union. I particularly want Israel to be in it. I want them to see the love, concern, interest, support and help they will be given, how free they will be, and the friendly and loving manner they will be treated. Look at how the Jews have been devoted to the Prophet Moses (pbuh) for thousands of years. That is an excellent thing. Christians have been loyal to the Prophet Jesus (pbuh) for 2000 years. And that is excellent, too. But they are unaware. We are living in times resembling the period between the Prophet Jesus (pbuh) and the Prophet Muhammad (may Allah bless him and grant him peace). They may not have realized. They may not have understood the Qur'an. There are people who are inciting them against the Qur'an. But the more they have learned the more they have begun to realize. They have begun realizing the invalidity of belief in the Trinity, for example. The Jews, for instance, have better begun realizing the importance of belief in the Hereafter. It was in the Torah, but they took it out. But belief in the Hereafter can still be seen in the Torah. They have begun strengthening it under the influence of the Qur'an. The more these people are told about Islam and the Qur'an, at least they correct their polytheistic and false beliefs. That is a great success, a blessing and a beauty. In one verse Almighty Allah tells us to unite under a common word, the oneness of Allah. We are calling on people to do that, and they are our brothers. Theirs are old forms of Islam. They have been corrupted, but they are still old forms of Islam, and they are the People of the Book. For that reason, they are just as deserving of love, respect and protection as Muslims. They will therefore enjoy peace and security.