[ by Charles Cameron — The second issue of the caliphate’s Dabiq magazine leads with another “end times” reference ]
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The second issue of the caliphate’s digital magazine Dabiq is now out, and once again, it contains a clear “end times” reference in the Foreword, p. 4:
As for the massacres taking place in Gaza against the Muslim men, women, and children, then the Islamic State will do everything within its means to continue striking down every apostate who stands as an obstacle on its path towards Palestine. It is not the manner of the Islamic State to throw empty, dry, and hypocritical words of condemnation and condolences like the Arab taw?gh?t do in the UN and Arab League. Rather, its actions speak louder than its words and it is only a matter of time and patience before it reaches Palestine to fight the barbaric jews and kill those of them hiding behind the gharqad trees – the trees of the jews.
The reference here is to the hadith of the gharqad tree, as found in context in the Charter of Hamas, Article 7:
thereafter. Even though the episodes were few and far between, and were not continuous in Jihad due to the obstacles placed by those in the sphere of [influence of] the Zionist entity in the face of the Mujahidin. Even though the Islamic Resistance Movement looks forward to fulfill the promise of Allah no matter how long it takes because the Prophet of Allah (saas) says:
The Last Hour would not come until the Muslims fight against the Jews and the Muslims would kill them, and until the Jews would hide themselves behind a stone or a tree and a stone or a tree would say. Muslim or Servant of Allah there is a Jew behind me; come and kill him; but the tree of Gharqad would not say it, for it is the tree of the Jews (Bukhari and Muslim).
This is a clearly apocalyptic hadith, as indicated by it’s reference to “the Last Hour” or Day of judgement.
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The Federation of American Scientists site offers a different translation, and footnotes this particular passage with the words:
The Egyptian troops who launched the assault on the Bar-Lev Line in October 1973, were equipped with “booklets of guidance” which included, inter alia, this same quotation.
Another noteworthy use of the “Gharqad tree hadith” comes from Bin Laden:
Doomsday shall not come until Muslims fight Jews. A Jew would be hiding behind a tree or a stone. The tree or the stone would say, O Muslim, O subject of God, there is a Jew behind me come and kill him. The only exception is [Gharqad] tree is a tree that belongs to Jews.
with his comment [p. 244]:
Whoever claims that there is lasting peace with the Jews is a disbeliever of what the prophet, may the peace and blessings of God upon him, said. Our conflict with the enemies of Islam will continue until Doomsday.
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The most interesting writing in English on the gharqad tree that I am aware of is to be found in Anne Marie Oliver and Paul Steinberg, The Road to Martyrs’ Square, pp 19-21.
This issue’s title and cover illustration, as you can see above, references the Flood, which is described in Suras 11 and 71 of the Qur’an, as well as in Genesis chapters 6 through 9. Apparently the caliphate’s editors have yet to read James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time.
And now to see if the rest of the magazine contains further insights.
