I swear by He who created the universe from nothing, if we are happy to be humiliated and if we incline to comfort, the footsteps of the enemy will stretch from Jerusalem to Mecca and then everyone will regret on a day when regret is of no use.

And the footsteps of the enemy stretched from Jerusalem to Mecca, because the Saudi regime didn't suffice with its betrayal of the Ummah and responsibility for the loss of al-Aqsa Mosque. No, it has today made the Ummah suffer the loss of the holiest of places, by permitting the Land of the Two Sanctuaries to be overrun by the troops of the Crusaders.

The country is occupied in every sense of the world. They've been taking petrol for the last ten years at an average of 9 dollars per barrel. The barrel is sold refined in Europe for 230 dollars per barrel, while they take it from us for 9 dollars. And from these nine dollars, is deduced the costs of operation, extraction and maintenance. Nothing is left.

As for the rest: the Americans bring their old, scrapped aircraft and say, "You, Fahd! Buy these 70 planes for such-and-such price."

This wanton occupation which is not hidden anyone with perception... the armies of Crusader trinitarianism are resting on the land of Muhammad, peace be upon him, coming and going as they please without supervision under the pretext of protection and defending it which is a flimsy pretext to which the brother Ahmad Abd al-Sattar, an associate of Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman (may Allah free him), replies.

Shaykh Ahmad: The people, especially in the Arab and Islamic world look at you in the same way they looked at British and the French occupation forces.

Interviewer: How can you say that? We sent our troops to defend you!

Shaykh Ahmad: Well you know, yes we really appreciate it very much! [laughs]: you sent your troops to defend us. Nobody asked for the American troops to go there: you went there to protect your own interests, you went there to protect some corrupted regimes that work against their own people, so do not give me the excuse that you were there to protect the people. You and your policy in that area has nothing and I mean nothing to do with the people.

The crimes of the Zionist/Crusader pact were not limited to deeming lawful our most sacred places, the Two Noble Sanctuaries and Holy House. No, the matter went further than that, and the armies of unbelief and atheism invaded the Muslim countries from East to West. Here is Iraq, Kashmir and Chechnya, sanctuaries fallen victim to their treacherous armies. And thus, Jihad has become the individual duty of every Muslim, as determined by the people of knowledge among the predecessors and successors.

We have seen that the four jurists, as well as the scholars, commentators, and narrators of Hadeeth, in situations like Afghanistan and Palestine, have all ruled that Jihad becomes an individual obligation: that if the enemy enters a Muslim land by so much as a hand span, Jihad becomes a personal duty of every Muslim man and woman in that territory, and the son goes without the permission of his father, the slave without the permission of his master, and the debtor without the permission of the creditor. And if the people of that territory are incapable, or negligent, or lazy, or refrain, the individual obligation expands in a circular fashion to include the people nearest to them. And if they are also negligent or lazy or refrain. And so on, until the entire earth is included in that individual obligation, as stated by Ibn Abidin in his Hashiyah (Rad al-Muhtar ala al-Dur al-Mukhtar: Sharh Tanwir al-Absaar), Ibn Nujaym in al-Bahr al-Raiq, Ibn al-Humam in Fath al-Qadeer: Sharh al-Hidayah, and al-Kakaani in Badaai al-Sanaai. All of them stated this fundamental: that the individual obligation becomes, in this situation, like prayer and fasting - an obligation which cannot be abandoned.

So if Jihad is not now an individual obligation, when then will it be, while the destination of our Prophet's Night Journey is desecrated day and night? When will it be, while Muslim men and women are burning in Chechnya? When will it be, while in Kashmir and the Philippines, the blood continues to flow? When will it be, while football is played with the heads of our brothers in Indonesia? When will it be, while Bosnia still cries over the scattered remains of the Muslims? When will it be, while Kosovo cries out for help? When will it be, while our brothers in Afghanistan die of hunger and cold due to the embargo which the Americans impose on them?

And also among the situations in which Jihad becomes an individual obligation is when the unbelievers take a Muslim captive, as determined by the people of knowledge yesterday and today. So what about when the prisons and the dungeons of the Zionist/Crusader coalition have been filled with the scholars and Mujahideen of this Ummah, chief among them that towering mountain, the scholar and Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman, who is suffering all manner of torture and persecution in the prisons of America?

Excuse me, devout scholars: I will not forget, or pretend to forget, the enemy's invasion of the Muslims' lands, and I will ask you by Allah, what about the captives of the Muslims whom the infidel enemies - the Americans and others - have captured? What is the legal status of the Jihad to free them? And moreover, who in the Ummah, has arisen in the first place? There's our Mujahid Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman (may Allah free him) still in the prisons and jails of America. And here's our brothers Ramzi, Azmarai, al-Awhali, Abu Hajir and others. And every day, the countries of unbelief announce that they have arrested a number of the Ummah's sons. So why has Jihad still not become an individual obligation!?

The individuality of this obligation was affirmed by Shaykh Usama in the declaration of Jihad against the Americans in 1996 and stated by him in his meeting the same year with the journalist Abd al-Bari Atwan.

When I met him [Shaykh Usama] in 1996, the man was actually full of hatred towards the Americans. He was planning actually to launch a war against the Americans and the American prisoners particularly in Saudi Arabia.

And Shaykh Usama repeated his calls to hurry to Jihad in Allah's path.

The humiliation and unbelief which dominates and pervades the land of Islam can only be crushed by Jihad, the bullet, and martyrdom operations. The roots of humiliation cannot be crushed except with a hail of bullets. And the free one does not toss leadership to every tyrant and disobedient one. And without a shower of blood, shame is not wiped from the faces.

The youth came from everywhere in answer to the call to ready themselves for Jihad, and in response to the orders of Allah and His Messenger, after they became certain that the liberation of their sacred places and lifting of oppression from their Ummah will only happen through sacrificing themselves cheaply in the path of Allah, and after they realized that with effort and difficulty comes the beginnings of victory and establishment. They decided to head to the land of Afghanistan after asking prominent scholars, among them the devout scholar Shaykh Hamood bin Uqla al-Shu'aybi.

The sword is a must, and Jihad is a must. Anything less than the weapon, even if it works with some people or has an effect on them, will neither be of any use with these diehard unbelievers nor influence them. Jihad is a heavy pillar and support of this Shari'ah, and this Islamic religion was established on this strong pillar and foundation. The religion can neither be established nor can Islam gain a foothold without Jihad - period.

Among those who have declared Jihad to be an individual obligation in our time: Shaykh Hamood bin Uqla al-Shu'aybi, Shaykh Abdullah bin Jabreen, Shaykh Sulayman Abu Ghayth, and Shaykh Sulayman al-Thaniyan (may Allah protect them).

And among those in the front line who declared it an individual obligation: Shaykh Abdullah Azzam (Allah have mercy on him), Shaykh Usama bin Ladin (Allah protect him), and Shaykh Umar Abd al-Rahman (Allah free him).

They left the world and its beauty, splendor, delights and adornments behind them, although it was within their reach, and joined the caravan of the Mujahideen. Their journey took them to the land of the Islamic Emirate, Afghanistan, where the Islamic Shari'ah was applies and Allah's laws implemented, in the shade of the rule of the Islamic Emirate led by the Commander of the Believers, Mulla Muhammad Umar, and a number of the country's sincere scholars, making Afghanistan a land to migrate to and a launching pad for Jihad.

The sons of monotheism were encouraged to flock to it from everywhere, and the Islamic Emirate hastened to welcome those arriving throngs and enabled them to fulfill the obligation of preparing by opening training centers and camps and providing them with protection.

So the picture of the Taliban is clear, because they have allowed us to prepare and train, despite the international pressure, and while knowing that we are getting ready to strike the Huban (idol) of this age, the American forces and the Nato pact. So this is a clear indication of their methodology in expansion by spreading the word "There is no God other than Allah" in the world. They have stated that, but I tell you this as a proof of what they said.

And thus, the Islamic Emirate became a target of the Zionist/Crusader enemy's tyrannical embargo and barbaric bombing.

The new Crusade and its apostate helpers targeted the Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan because it was the first legitimate Islamic state to be established since the fall of the Ottoman Caliphate seventy years before, and because it ruled by Shari'ah, raised the banner of Jihad, and sheltered the emigrants in Allah's path. And the Islamic Emirate received the strikes of the Crusaders and their agents with patience and contendedness desiring Allah's pleasure and preferring the hereafter to this world.

The Commander of the Believers, Mulla Muhammad Umar Mujahid (may Allah protect him), is a legitimate leader who established a legitimate Islamic state. The Crusaders threatened him with war, destruction and removing him from power unless he handed over his brothers; the emigrant Mujahideen, but he did not budge an inch, and said something which will be written with ink of gold in the history of Islam:

"The issue of Usama in not about one person, it is about the honor of Islam."

Look, it has not happened before that Russia and America have been united in their stances - despite the presence of big differences between them - in order to fight a small state like Afghanistan. But our confidence in Allah and reliance and dependence on Him is great, and even if the entire world stands against us, we will not compromise on our principles and beliefs, nor will we deviate from this march of ours, Allah willing, because we believe in our religion and will not compromise on it, because to compromise the religion is death for the Muslim.

The real death for the Muslim is in his compromising of the religion, scorning of it, or ceasing to act according to its rules. The outward death is nothing when we compare it with religious death. If we want life, then adherence to our religion is life. And if we can't have life, then let us have death. Death is a cup from which everyone must drink, so every Muslim must reform himself, devote himself to the affairs of his religion, and strengthen his belief in his Lord, and there he will find victory and success in this world and the next.

In the shade of the Islamic Emirate, the World Islamic Front to fight the Jews and Crusaders was established, representing a major change in the strategy of the Mujahideen, who became convinced that in order to end the unipolar domination of America and its ally Israel, there must be a closing of the Mujahideen ranks and a focus on establishing a solid base for repelling Zionist/Crusader aggression.

I attended the press conference in May 1998 in Khost where Mr. Bin Ladin declared that from now onward, al-Qaida would be a member of the International Islamic Front for Jihad against the U.S. and Israel, and he said a number of other Islamic groups like the Egyptian al-Jihad have also become the members of this Front.

The World Islamic Front for Jihad against the Jews and Crusaders was the proper response to the internationalization of the war against the Mujahideen, after the battle with the Mujahideen changed from a territorial battle to a battle between the Mujahideen and the coalition of America, Israel and the traitorous rulers who help them.

Thus, it was necessary to change the method of confrontation. And the answer was the World Islamic Front for Jihad against the Jews and Crusaders.

And by the way of international media, the demands and warnings reached Western governments and peoples.

All hell breaks loose: Missiles are shot up in the air, tracer bullets, and men love to see him[Shaykh Usama]. When he walks into the room, you realize this guy is 6' 3'' or 6' 4'', he never raises his voice, he doesn't pound the table or use his fist, he is not a fiery orator, he's soft-spoken. But the words, the words he was using, were extremely powerful and frightening.

He has three principal issues: One was to remove the U.S. military presence from Saudi Arabia. The other was to end the U.S. support of Israel, particularly as it affected negatively the Palestinians, and three [the third] was at that time, an immediate halt to the bombing of Iraq.

The youth came from every land, heading for the towering peaks to rally around the standard of the Mujahideen, to stand as one to fight the Jews and Crusaders occupying their land, and to avenge their brothers whose blood was deemed lawful in Palestine, Iraq and other Muslim lands.

Our way is a right way

Among those who came were the squadrons of martyrdom-seekers whom Allah chose to participate in their awaited martyrdom operations against the Zionist/Crusader coalition and who didn't care about the fewness of those who take this path, nor their lack of capabilities, and so exchanged the easy life for an austere existence, and preferred climbing mountains to riding escalators and chose tents and trenches over villas and palaces.

We are an impervious fortress protecting the sanctuary

In the shadow of the submissiveness of the traitorous governments and impotence of the movements and organizations, the Zionist/Crusader enemy continued his tyrannical embargo and destructive bombing of the people of Iraq.

America permitted itself to impose a blockage on the Iraqi people, kill a million children from lack of medicine and nutrition, and continue the bombing of Iraqis. And Albright commented on that with impudence, when she said that their objective is worth that price and more. And America imagined that the oppressed ones have no feelings or emotions, and that they wouldn't answer it or retaliate from it.

The retaliation came at the hands of the sons of monotheism, when they blew up the largest den for American and Israeli intelligence in Africa.

America's prestige was dealt a blow, by Allah's grace, when Allah enabled young men who had been in training camps like this in Afghanistan to deal a blow to the prestige of the superpower. The important thing isn't how many were killed in the American embassy in Nairobi and in Dar al-Salam.

What is important are the powerful messages which the blast waves sent to the White House and the American people as a whole: that the people of faith shall not compromise on their religion; that they shall sacrifice themselves and their belongings for "There is no God other than Allah"; and that America shall not dream - merely dream - of security if we don't actually experience it in Palestine, the Land of the Two Sanctuaries and all of the Muslims' countries, with the permission of Allah, the Exalted. And prior to that, Allah had granted them success in Somalia, which forced the American forces to exit defeated and disgraced, in spite of themselves and caring caring about nothing else.

The battles in which the Mujahideen of al-Qaida participated, especially those in Mogadishu, had a direct impact on the collapse of the Americans' morale in Somalia and their decision to flee from it. And Operation Restore Hope turned into Operation Sowing Despair in the hearts of the Americans, who had had enticing dreams of occupying East Africa and besieging the Sudan from the south.

And at this sensitive period in time, the American elections were in full swing, elections which George W. Bush won in a doubtful manner, with the backing and support of a gang of military men, conservatives and heads of major corporations, chief among them Donald Rumsfeld, one of the American government's hawks; his deputy, Wolfowitz, known for his racist tendencies; and Dick Cheney, the actual head of the administration, who made it his priority to implement a militant, colonialist policy agenda for the Islamic world.

So he appointed a group of conservatives, adding Douglas Feith and William Lody to Wolfowitz in the Defense Department, and placing John Bolton third in the State Department after Armitage and Powell. Stephen Hadley became chief aide to National Security Advisor Condoleeza Rice, while Louis "Scooter" Libby was appointed Cheney's chief of staff. And Dick Cheney continued to abide by the interests of the economic octopus Halliburton, the corporation of which he was president and from which he continued to receive his salary.

Let me tell you about the Halliburton company I ran: I am very proud of what I did at Halliburton and the people of Halliburton are very proud of what they have accomplished, and I frankly don't feel any need to apologize for the way I have spent my time over the last 5 years as the C.E.O. and chairman of major American corporation.

The White House gang in the early days of the Bush presidency was a bunch of cocky fools motivated by Crusader hatred, an all-consuming greed, and blind faith in the power of iron and explosives, which led them to imagine that they could take over the entire world, and they pretended to forget that there is something called religion, Islam, morals, honor, and love of martyrdom. They pretended to forget all that because they neither understand nor know nor appreciate it. And thus they threw themselves, their people and their nation into a sea of fire from which they are uselessly trying to rescue themselves. This group has implicated America in a historic quandary: if it pulls out of Afghanistan and Iraq now, it will lose everything, while if it stays on, it will bleed to death.

Despite the colonialist leanings of this administration and illegitimacy of participation in the elections, some of those affiliated with knowledge, like Dr. Safar al-Hawali, encouraged the Muslims to elect Bush, as affirmed by Hawali in his open letter to the American president after the events of the Blessed Tuesday. And on the same level and behind the walls of the Pentagon, preparations were under way for the invasion of Afghanistan and Iraq. There is no better proof of that than the testimony of the head of the White House's anti-terrorism department at the time.

The President in a very intimidating way left us, me and my staff, with the clear indication that he wanted us to come back with the word that there was an Iraqi hand behind 9/11 because they had been planning to do something about Iraq from before the time they came into office.

Among the reasons for their plans to invade Afghanistan was to secure the passage of gas pipelines from the Caspian Sea to the Arabic Gulf, in addition to restoring and promoting the cultivation of narcotics, which had been prohibited and eliminated by the Islamic Emirate.

The American attack on Afghanistan had been planned for a long time. The Americans were boiling mad about a number of things. The Islamic Emirate's eradication of opening opium farming for one, its domination of strategic energy reserves, as well as the control of the proposed gas pipelines from the Caspian Sea and most of all, it's application of Shari'ah law, sheltering of the Mujahideen, and refusal to hand over or even expel Shaykh Usama. And I think, when the Emirate snubbed the American envoy Turkey al-Faisal, that was pretty much it. America had to take revenge, had to draw blood. It basically went berserk.

I personally saw one of the threat letters the Americans sent to the Emirate on late 2000 or in late 2001. It was like something a mafia might send: no heading, no greeting, no signature, no seal. Just a few lines of vague threats which they hoped would intimidate but obviously didn't had the desired effect.

As for Iraq, the new administration continued to implement its plans to destroy it by stepping up air strikes on its infrastructure and tightening the embargo against its people, to pave the way for invading and occupying it in order to gain control of the region's oil fields. And the godfather of this approach was the deputy defense secretary, Wolfowitz.

Wolfowitz had been mentioning that a lot. He felt that it would be easy and actually proposed an enclave strategy of going in and seizing the oil fields and so they are in Iraq and using that as a base for other attacks against Saddam's regime. Clearly and formally, Wolfowitz was deriving for considering any way of this idea of invading and taking over a part of the country.

The sons of monotheism continued to prepare in the blessed hills of Afghanistan, certain that the important thing is sincerity and honesty, and not how much or how many, and that the thrones of the oppressors can be crushed with only a little.

My fortress is when I am shaken

And while the sons of monotheism were continuing to prepare, a volcano of Islamic anger erupted in the Blessed Land in response to the murderer Sharon's desecration of the destination of our Prophet's (peace be upon him) Night Journey. And the Zionist/Crusader criminality didn't stop there: no, their criminality was crowned by the slaughter of innocent children in the arms of their fathers.

The events of the al-Aqsa Intifada left an open wound in the heart of every Muslim. Every Muslim, as he watched the bullets pierce the body of Muhammad al-Durra felt that those bullets were piercing the body of his own child, and that there must be a response, there must be a deterrence and there must be retaliation.

The earthshaking response and retaliation came with the Mujahideen's targeting of the American destroyer USS Cole, which had been roaming the region to protect the Zionist entity.

Allah - Exalted is He - granted your brothers victory, may He accept from them all, in Aden 9 months ago, and they dealt a blow to the heart of American prestige... this supposed god, the Hubal of the age, which has made itself a god worshipped beside Allah, legislating for the people as it pleases and playing with the blood and honor of the Muslims at will. So the striking of the Cole came as a success granted by Allah, striking not only the American military, but also the most modern piece of military equipment in the world running on the seas. And you heard how they used to describe it: that it can fend off large numbers on many fronts - land, sea, and air - but Allah the Exalted made its striking easy for two young men who believed that what Allah the Exalted has is better.

The attack caused a collapse of morale among the American government and people, including high-ranking military men, foremost among them the forces chairman Tommy Franks.

I turned off the light above my seat and tried to sleep before landing in Amman, but I couldn't. This attack on the destroyer Cole bore the fingerprints of al-Qaida who had been silent for a number of months. And it was obvious that the operation was carried out after a lot of planning.

After the crushing defeat suffered by the infidels of the Cross at Aden, the Mujahideen breathed the fragrance of jubilation and their hearts filled with certainty of the approach of their date with victory. And among those facing emigrating to Allah were the artisans of glory, the heroes of Manhattan raid, who rid themselves of the life of luxury and comfort for subsistence living in their food and drink and entire life, realizing that luxury is the enemy of Jihad and that what Allah has is better and longer lasting.

Allah is the one who chooses. Allah doesn't choose just anyone for this. The bombing of Nairobi and Dar ul-Salam were successful. May Allah accept it from the brothers.

Allah is the Greatest. Frankly, the brothers, by the grace of Allah, opened a new door to injuring the enemy. Then the Cole operation came their way. After Nairobi, they started guarding all the embassies, because they thought the next strike was going to be against embassies. But all praise is due to Allah, it came where they least expected it: in a destroyer, which they said had so many weapons and strikes at a long distance, but it all turned out to be false, by the grace of Allah. We ask Allah to make the next operation a shock for them.

Allah willing, it will fall on their heads from where they least expect it. The love of martyrdom in Allah's path is the weapon with which America and unbelief will be destroyed, with Allah's permission, because if a person wants to kill himself in the path of Allah, how can you stop him?
How can you deal with someone like that? We ask Allah to grant us success.

Let the Kuffar hear our news

While the idol-kings were rushing to secure their thrones, and for that, permitting the Zionist/Crusader coalition to take control of the countries of Islam and the Ummah's sacred places and destinies, the first sign of unity and closing of ranks began to appear from Afghanistan. And Allah blessed those good efforts made by the sincere sons of this Ummah, with the uniting of the groups al-Qaida and al-Jihad.

O young men, hasn't the time come to return

The union between al-Qaida and al-Jihad was in response to the legal obligation and genuine need. To combat the fierce Zionist/Crusader war against Islam and Muslims, it was illogical to remain divided. And I call Allah to witness that I consider this union among the best of deeds and one which I ask Allah to accept from us. And only Allah knows the blessings and boons which it brought us. It is enough that it cooled the chests of the Muslims and choked the throats of the unbelievers. And we reach out to every sincere worker to ask him to join this blessed caravan in the path of Allah.

Even as the Mujahideen were making great advances in their preparations to strike the Hubal of the age, there were incessant calls and appeals from symbols affiliated with knowledge and Da'wah which stirred up doubts and baseless arguments in the ranks of the youth of Islam. The first of those doubts was that we are powerless to confront America and those with her.

However, men, as they make their accounts, often disregard the superpower which directs the universe, and to which all matters return.

"To Allah belongs the unseen of the heavens and the earth, and to Him goes back every affair [for decision]. So worship Him, and put your trust in Him. And your Lord is not unaware of what you do." (11:123)

They overlook, as they make their human and worldly considerations, the statement of Allah, the Exalted,

"Isn't Allah enough for his servant?" (39:36) Of course!

"Isn't Allah enough for his servant?" Certainly!

"And they try to frighten you with others beside him!" Like the "superpowers."

"And they try to frighten you with others beside him! And he who Allah causes to stray no one can guide." (39:36)

"And for he who Allah guides, no one can lead astray. Isn't Allah Exalted in power, Lord of retribution? " (39:37)

Without a doubt! The people disregard this issue. And you will only hear the Muslims repeating, "How can such-and-such thing happen when America isn't happy about it? And how did such-and-such action succeed when Russia is angry?" It is as if - and Allah is high above what they think, greatly Exalted - it is as if America and Russia have become gods next to Allah, the Exalted. Why? Because Allah cannot be beaten, cannot be defeated. His power cannot be lowered. And this is what has been forgotten by the major powers and those who revolve around the major powers, to the extent that it has been forgotten by many good Muslims. Yes: Allah wanted us to prove to the Muslim Ummah that "I am the Powerful, Almighty and Proud," and that when any Muslim people, however weak, illiterate and impoverished it might be, makes Jihad and defends its religion, Allah will grant it victory.

Another group raised a baseless argument that said that the youth going out for Jihad will leave the country to the disobedient ones and wrongdoers.

And here is a problem brought up by those with an extreme attachment to means and methods, saying, "You advocate emigration. But is it right for all people to go and leave the country to the disobedient ones and the wrongdoers?" And so on.

I tell them that when the Messenger, peace be upon him, ordered emigration and it became an individual duty for his Companions, with whom Allah was pleased, no one made these baseless excuses or said, "How can we leave Mecca to Abu Jahl?" The people of today make these excuses because of their distance from the true conviction and reliance which Allah ordered. And then, when the sufficiency has been reached, when - Allah permitting - a few thousand good, healthy and disciplined young men who love Allah and His Messenger go out, we will be the first to say to the Arabs and Muslims, "The sufficiency has been reached."

Do you know the number which we want - the percentage of the Muslims which we want? We want one man from every 100,000 Muslims. Over there they're shouting and vilifying us, saying, "Usama wants to empty the country for the unbelievers, wrongdoers and idol-kings."

Oh servants of Allah, fear Allah!

We want one man out of every 100,000. What harm is there in that? How many Muslims die each day? We ask Allah to guide us all.

Another group questioned the reason behind the Mujahideen's focus on striking the Americans instead of making their main target the Jews, who killed and displaced our brothers in Palestine.

American and Israel are two sides of the same coin. So if you see that your enemy has protected his right ear and fortified it well, don't waste your time hitting the right ear: cut off the left ear and he will die. The result is the same. The Americans are spread all over the world, and they don't have a doctrine like the Jews, who want to stay in Palestine. And they are backers of the Jews. After they were hit in Khobar, CNN came and met with the comrades of those killed who were themselves involved in the incident. They were crying. The host asked the American soldier, "What's your name?"

He replied, "So-and-so son of so-and-so" Bush, son of Bush. [laughs]

The host asked, "What do you want now?"

He said, "I want to go back to my country."

So this is his wish. He has one foot here and one in his country.

Antarah was asked, "What is it that you do to make the people fear you?"

He answered, "I look in the faces of the people, and go first for the one who looks weak and cut off his head first, because it's easy. And when his blood is spilled, the strong ones get scared."

So the Americans don't have a cause, neither in Palestine nor on the Arabian Peninsula. The soldier, that is - his leaders have a cause, but as a soldier, he wavers. And their interests are spread all over the globe, so it's easy to strike them. Inasmuch as we hit them fast and raise the morale of the Muslims - you, by the grace of Allah, are the fruit of past strikes - the Muslims are honored, and they feel that Islam is strong and is able to win against these unbelievers. And just to give you the good news, there are also some strikes against the Jews coming up.

And some claimed that the Mujahideen target innocent civilians in their operations.

There is no difference in the Shari'ah between a soldier and a civilian. Rather the Shari'ah divides people into combatant and non-combatant. And the combatant is anyone who helps in the fight with his body, wealth or opinion. According to this criterion, the peoples of the West are combatant, because they have willingly elected their leaders and representatives in the parliaments, who draw up the policies which murder our children, occupy our countries, and plunder our treasures. And they are the ones who pay the taxes which fund these policies, and provide the armies which attack us with troops, backing and support. We are obliged to defend our faith, children and resources. America and the West attack our cities with 7-ton bombs, carpet bombing and chemical weapons, then they demand that we confront them with our light weapons only. That's not possible. As they bomb, they will be bombed, and as they kill, they will be killed.

The Truth, Exalted is He, says,

"The prohibited month for the prohibited month, and for all things prohibited, there is a law of retaliation. So if anyone attacks you, attack him as he attacked you." (2:194)

And the entire world knows that the American army, despite its large amount of equipment, is very weak on the ground, and that its basic tactic in combat is the bombing which destroys everything and kill the residents, to force its enemy to give up. And then they demand that we not strike them in their countries?

This misconception that is raised today about the seeking of knowledge was never raised in the time of the pious predecessors, with whom Allah was pleased. And if a person were to reflect a little, these arguments will disappear and cease to exist. I mention, just as a reminder, the day of the conquest of Mecca and those who became Muslim on that day - Abu Sufyan and those with him, Allah was pleased with them all. They embraced Islam on the day of the conquest.

When was the conquest, servants of Allah? It was on 20th of Ramadan, right? They were polytheists, sons of polytheists, grandsons of polytheists; i.e., polytheism has run in their blood for a long time, to the extent that after they became Muslim, one of them, if he swore out of excitement, would swear by Lat and Uzza and then have to renew his faith and ask forgiveness. So they became Muslim on the day of the conquest, and the Hunayn campaign was in the month of Shawwal. Got it? They became Muslim on the day of the conquest, after doing what they did. The Messenger of Allah said to them, "What do you think I will do to you?" They said, "You are a noble brother, son of a noble brother" - because today there is a sword, so the hearts know the truth. The sword helps the unbelievers to know the truth and know Islam.

OK, how many days are left in Ramadan? At most, ten. And the Hunayn campaign was in Shawwal. So they, according to the Fiqh of the people today, according to the knowledge-seekers of today, what would they have to do? Not just seek knowledge: first they must understand the fundamentals of the religion. This is a polytheist, son of a polytheist, grandson of a polytheist, great grandson of a polytheist. But the infallible one who doesn't speak according to whims didn't say, "Abu Sufyan, you and the Muslims of the conquest stay in Mecca and with you will stay Abdullah bin Masud, Abdullah bin Abbas, Umar bin al-Khattab, Ali, Abdullah bin Umar, and Zaid bin Thabit (Allah was pleased with them)," those famous scholars of the Companions.

He didn't say, "Stay here and we'll leave the Companions with you for them to educate you." This doesn't happen, because the word "There is no God other than Allah" is the spirit of the Ummah. This is an Ummah of Jihad. The purpose of knowledge is to act according to it and to wage Jihad with it. As for us learning it without acting according to it, this is a problem. Today, we are acting on knowledge by the grace of Allah. Were it not for knowledge, we wouldn't have known that Jihad is our individual duty and we wouldn't have known what Allah wants from us. So knowledge is needed for action. Knowledge is not an objective in and of itself. Knowledge is needed to show us the way to worship Allah the Exalted as He ordered.

In the midst of the flow of baseless misconceptions and flimsy arguments concerning Jihad and its people, the Mujahideen left the neglectful ones behind them, surrounded by their doubts, and continued to make their way towards their desired goal. And Shaykh Abu Abdullah personally supervised all stages of the plan, even keeping tabs on the stage which the teams of pilots had reached, through the coordinator of the attacks, Abu Ubaidah - Ramzi bin al-Shibh - and the head of logistical support, Zahir - Zakariyya al-Housawi.

And planning for September 11th did not take place behind computer monitors or radar screens, nor inside military command and control centers, but was surrounded with divine protection in an atmosphere brimming with brotherliness, sincerity, and a love for sacrificing life and belongings to help Allah's religion.

War against every aggressor
And peace for every peaceful one