The Guise of the Sunni-Shiite Use of Excommunication (Takfir) in the Middle East

Akhlaq, Sayed Hassan

doi:10.1353/jsa.2015.0011

Cited by 2 publications

(1 citation statement)

References 0 publications

Supporting

Mentioning

Contrasting

Order By: Relevance

“…Rather than offering a religious explanation, Yusuf (Interview 7) emphasized his social identity, being the ‘friend’, ‘colleague’ and ‘acquaintance’ (Interview 7) of Boko Haram insurgents rather than having any doctrinal or religious affinity, even when he had built ‘mutual trust’ with militants. While previous accounts primarily focused on kafir , the phrase ‘things [getting] out of hand’ (Interview 7) suggests a transformation from kafir (non-Muslim) to the pragmatic concept of takfir , which excommunicates Muslims by ‘declaring [them] a nominal Muslim [and thus] an infidel’ (Akhlaq, 2015: 1; Zenn and Pieri, 2017: 287); this is a more controversial method of enemy construction. Without actively participating in an ‘offensive jihad’ (Eikmeier, 2007: 89) with his friends, ‘a man that is strong like me, Boko Haram will kill you.…”

Section: A ‘Kafir’ or ‘Infidel’ Discoursementioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of (counter-)terrorism on public (in)security in Nigeria: A vernacular analysis

Oyawale

2022

Security Dialogue

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

This article examines the impact of (counter-)terrorism on public (in)security in Nigeria through engaging with non-elite understandings of ongoing conflicts in the northeast. Through 41 in-depth interviews carried out during a four-month fieldwork exercise with internally displaced persons in Nigeria, the article contributes to current (counter-)terrorism research on Nigeria and Africa by examining the lived experiences of non-traditional security ‘practitioners’, thus enriching current debates about ‘deepening’ and ‘broadening’ the security concept within critical security studies. The images of security that emerge show that the public in Nigeria adopt two main discursive devices, that is, a story and an interpretative repertoire, to discursively position themselves in relation to Boko Haram, the state and societal discourses and practices. Two discourses are prominent, namely a ‘(counter-)terrorist people’ discourse and a ‘ kafir’ or ‘infidel’ discourse, which are constructed around ‘ethnic’ and ‘religious’ identities. This vernacular study of public understandings of (counter-)terrorism in Nigeria achieves three primary objectives: (i) it serves to invigorate debates around the meaning and practice of (in)security in Nigeria, (ii) it expands public (in)security debates on Africa, and (iii) it enriches vernacular research debate through foregrounding the experiences of groups and individuals who experience insecurity in their everyday lives.

show abstract

Section: A ‘Kafir’ or ‘Infidel’ Discoursementioning

confidence: 99%

The impact of (counter-)terrorism on public (in)security in Nigeria: A vernacular analysis

Oyawale

2022

Security Dialogue

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

show abstract

Under the Black Flag in Borno: experiences of foot soldiers and civilians in Boko Haram's ‘caliphate’

Pieri

Zenn

2018

J. Mod. Afr. Stud.

View full text Add to dashboard Cite

Boko Haram's operations and ideology have been the subject of increasing research in recent years. This article, in contrast, explores the culture of Boko Haram through an ethnographic analysis of the group's internal videos that were not intended for public release. The authors find that in their everyday lives Boko Haram foot soldiers are different from the image the group presents to the world in propaganda videos. While unmistakably a violent movement, in territories under the group's control that it attempted to administer, foot soldiers participated in conflict resolution with elders, explained the group's position on external alliances to villagers, engaged in recreation to pass time off the battlefield and created bonds of solidarity with other members of the group. Using insights from anthropology and the examination of ‘Jihadi Culture’, this article's insights help us understand how and why Boko Haram foot soldiers fight beyond the group's public ideology or stated goals: for many of them, it is simply a lifestyle.

show abstract

The Guise of the Sunni-Shiite Use of Excommunication (Takfir) in the Middle East

Cited by 2 publications

References 0 publications

The impact of (counter-)terrorism on public (in)security in Nigeria: A vernacular analysis

The impact of (counter-)terrorism on public (in)security in Nigeria: A vernacular analysis

Under the Black Flag in Borno: experiences of foot soldiers and civilians in Boko Haram's ‘caliphate’

Contact Info

Product

Resources

About