Ayatolah Mesbah Yazdi: Jihad in Islam meant to defend oppressed

Speaking at his Islamic ethics course on Monday in Qom, Ayatollah Muhammad Taqi Mesbah Yazdi, a senior Shia scholar elaborated on the Islamic concept of Jihad and said, "Historically, Allah almighty prevents the absolute dominance of oppressive rulers over people; the principle of Jihad in Islam is meant to defend the oppressed and restore balance to societies; Had mankind not oppressed each other, Allah wouldn't have ordered them to carry out the act of Jihad."

"As a matter of fact, there are always those among people who practice materialistic and spiritual oppression over others, this is why Allah almighty demands people to carry out Jihad in order to defend themselves and to oppose these tyrant groups or rulers. Had Allah not permitted people to defend themselves, corruption had taken over the whole world."

Head of Imam Khomeini Research Institute further said, "When the wicked gain the upper hand in the society, they would never stop and they go on to destroy everything. Jihad is obligatory in order to prevent corruption, otherwise the whole world would be destroyed by massive corruption and there could never be a basis for human development."



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