The Virtues of Jihād: A Gift to the Servants of Allāh

In the author’s final book prior to his mysterious assassination in 1989, Dr. ʿAbdullāh Yūsuf ʿAzzām provides concise commentary on a collection of prophetic narrations authenticated by his teacher Imam Muḥammad Nāṣir ud-Dīn al-Albāní, relying both on classical texts of Islamic jurisprudence as well as his own personal experiences during the anti-Soviet jihad in Afghanistan. ＂Palestinian-born Islamist Dr. ’Abdullah ’Azzam (1941-89) played a leading role in promoting and developing the modern Islamist concept of jihad. Little known in the West despite lengthy stays in the United States, ’Azzam was responsible for internationalizing the Islamist struggle against secularism, socialism, and materialism. Though a scholar, ’Azzam took his campaign to the front lines of Afghanistan during the Afghan-Soviet war . . . In many ways the life and work of ’Abdullah ’Azzam have already made him one of the most influential figures in modern times.＂ Andrew McGregor, Journal of Conflict Studies ＂Abdullah Azzam . . . arguably did more than any other person to create the theoretical underpinnings of the contemporary Jihadist movement . . . [I]n reviving the classical doctrine of jihad, Azzam connected significant numbers of young Muslim men to paradigmatic moments of their past, which had the effect of both enhancing and directing their incentive to challenge forces seen as responsible for the decline of Muslim fortunes in the modern world.＂ John C. M. Calvert, Journal of Religion and Society ＂From the late 1970s, he began to criticize the Islamist movement’s propensity for divisions, encouraging critical thinking. His was a hybrid stance, borrowing from traditions ranging from Salafism to the Muslim Brotherhood. He was a transitional figure and, today, is a prism for understanding the entire jihadist movement’s transformation . . . from Palestine’s history and decolonization, Azzam drew an extremely skeptical attitude towards the Nation-State, the global world order, and even the Islamic world. However, it is precisely from this legacy that his peculiar transnationalism emerged. Being exiled - being a refugee - uprooted him. It is unsurprising, then, that he became the spokesman of pan-Islamism . . . Azzam introduced a crucial change in 20th century Islamist thought.＂ Thomas Hegghammer, Norwegian Defence Research Establishment