A CALL TO JIHAD
Critical Analysis and Role Play
By Lara Maupin, a social studies teacher at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia

Overview:
This lesson should take 15 -20 minutes and may be used to discuss the following with your students:

• the recent statement made by Saddam Hussein calling for Jihad
  
  
• the Muslim concept of Jihad
  
  
• Saddam Hussein's leadership qualities and past dealings with the United States

This lesson may be used in any social studies class.

Materials:
Students will need printed copies of the NewsHour Extra article cited below or computers with Internet access.

Correlations to National Standards

Procedure:

1. Give your students some background on the Muslim concept of Jihad.
   
   Jihad - Rather than "holy war," most Muslim sources define the word to mean "striving." To Muslims, it means to struggle to be a better person, to live a more moral life, and to create a more just society. It can also mean to defend the religion of Islam, fellow Muslims, and allies.
   
   
2. Explain that in a statement read on Iraqi state television, President Saddam Hussein has called for Iraqis to fight American "aggressors" and commit themselves to jihad. Have your students read the following NewsHour Extra story.
   
   

3. Allow your students to comment. Discuss the story using the following questions.
   
   
   · Why might Saddam Hussein have stated that the coalition forces were at war with Islam as well as his regime?
   
   · How does Saddam Hussein appeal to the Iraqis? What is he asking them to do?
   
   · Are the Iraqis, or Arabs or Muslims outside Iraq, justified in viewing the coalition forces as aggressors? Why or why not?
   
   · Based on the above definition of jihad, is this an appropriate call to action by Saddam Hussein? Why or why not?

4. If time allows, you may now examine Saddam Hussein's background, leadership qualities, and previous dealings with the United States. Can Saddam Hussein be considered a good leader, despite his deplorable acts? What are the qualities of a good leader? What relationship has he had with the U.S.? Has U.S. policy in Iraq been consistent? What light does Saddam Hussein's background shed on his call for jihad?
   
   The following descriptions are given in a PBS Frontline interview first produced in 2000 by author Said K. Aburish who worked closely with Saddam Hussein and his government. Click here to get the full text of the interview. (Click here for a handout: HTML PDF)
   
   
   Aburish describes Saddam as:
   · methodical, organized, a planner
   · a fan of Stalin
   · from a poor family
   · intelligent but uneducated
   · not a military man
   · not ideological or particularly religious - a believer in the supremacy of the nation-state
   · hardworking - capable of working an 18-hour day endlessly
   · distrusting of those outside his family
   · determined to modernize Iraq and make it a model for Arab countries -- and willing to be ruthless to carry out his plans
   · enamored with technology
   · willing to use chemical weapons if he knows he is going down
   
   Aburish gives the following timeline for Saddam Hussein's career:
   · became a gunman for the Ba'ath Party and participated in the assassination attempt on Iraq's strong man, General Kassem in 1959
   · went into exile in Cairo then returned in 1963 when the Ba'ath took power and began to organize the party and reduce the power of the military; served as Vice President
   · started a program to acquire unconventional weapons in 1974
   · removed President Ahmed Hassan Bakr and became president in 1979; then went to war with Iran
   · invaded Kuwait in 1991 because he believed the country was being used to overthrow him (their increases in oil production were driving the price of oil down and thus Iraq was losing money)
   
   Aburish claims U.S. involvement with Iraq and Saddam Hussein to have been:
   · substantial involvement in the coup against Kassem in 1963 - the CIA and the Ba'ath Party shared information and worked together after the coup to eliminate leftists and communists who threatened the Ba'ath Party's power
   · along with other Western governments, gave unconventional weapons technology to Saddam Hussein in the 1970s
   · supported Iraq's invasion of Iran in 1979 and supplied Saddam throughout the war
   · began to criticize Saddam's human rights policies after the end of the Iran-Iraq War
   · responded to Saddam's invasion of Kuwait in 1991 by defending Kuwait during the Persian Gulf War but did not support rebels who attempted to remove Saddam after the war
   · withheld support from the Kurds and others who opposed Saddam in 1995
   · supported containment and sanctions throughout the 1990s
   · bombed Iraq after Saddam asked U.N. weapons inspectors to leave in 1998 (Operation Desert Fox); led continual air strikes against Iraq in 1999

Extension Ideas:

1. Provide your students with the following quotes by Said K. Arburish (click here for quote printout HTML PDF). Ask them to select one and write a response - in class or for homework. What surprises them? What light does the quote shed on the current conflict in Iraq? Student responses should reveal an understanding of the author's claims as well as provide an analysis of those claims. Alternatively, you may wish to use the quotes as a springboard for further class discussion.
   
   
2. Have your students research the use of the term "jihad" in a variety of sources, including Arab and western news sources, Islamic organizations or sources, and non-Islamic sources. Analyze how the term is used similarly or differently.
   
   
3. Contact your local mosque or Islamic educational organization to see if an expert on Islam can come in to discuss ideas and terms such as "jihad."
   
   
   National Standards:

1. National Council for the Social Studies Thematic Strands:
   
   I. Culture
   
   II. Time, Continuity and Change
   
   VI. Power, Authority and Governance
   
   IX. Global Connections

Author Lara Maupin teaches social studies at Thomas Jefferson High School for Science and Technology in Alexandria, Virginia. She is on leave during the 2002-2003 school year. She has a Master’s Degree in Secondary Social Studies Education from George Washington University and a Bachelor’s Degree in Anthropology and Philosophy from Mount Holyoke College.

To find out more about opportunities to contribute to this site, contact Leah Clapman at extra@newshour.org.