Wahhabism is a radical, violent, and extremely puritanical form of Islam that emerged as a significant force in the late 20th and early 21st centuries. Its adherents historically expressed animosity towards the modern world.
Origins and Core Tenets
Wahhabism arose as part of a broader movement within Islam that developed in reaction to European imperial expansion. Its proponents believed that modern imperialism was corrupting the "inherent truth (!)" of Islam and advocated for a return to a societal structure based upon the original teachings of Islamic texts.
This ideology holds its own global ambitions. It's a dark and apocalyptic jihadism blending an intolerant and anti-modern, anti-western anger .
Saudi Arabia and Global Expansion
The ruling family of Saudi Arabia deliberately fostered the growth of Wahhabism, recognising its potential to be a powerful, fundamentalist force.
In the 1920s, Abdul Aziz harnessed this movement to consolidate power. However, the Wahhabi desire to establish a caliphate across the entire Arab world proved an uncontrollable force, leading Abdul Aziz to ruthlessly suppress the warriors who had enabled his rise to power in 1929.
Despite this violent suppression, the core belief – a violent, intolerant, and backward-looking version of Islam – remained central to Saudi Arabian society.
This form of Islam has been actively disseminated worldwide. The Saudis significantly channelled funds into Europe, establishing institutions such as the Islamic Center of Geneva, which became an organisational hub for the Muslim Brotherhood.
The Muslim Brotherhood itself adheres to a fundamentalist interpretation of Islam. It has been documented that figures associated with this movement, such as Sed Ramadan, who led the Geneva project in 1961, received tens of millions of dollars in assistance, a fact known to Swiss and German intelligence agencies. Consequently, Wahhabism is allowed to be propagated in various global cities, including London, Manchester, and Bradford.
Influence on Radical Islamism
The doctrines of Wahhabism have profoundly influenced numerous radical Islamist groups. For instance, the Taliban originated from students in religious schools (Madras) in Pakistan. The majority of these Madras institutions were established over a two-decade period with funding from Saudi Arabia, as part of a concerted effort initiated by King Fisizel to propagate fundamentalism throughout the Islamic world. The teachings imparted by these Madras were remarkably consistent with Saudi Wahhabism.
The ideology has justified extreme violence. Sayed Qutb's theories, which asserted that Western liberalism corrupted Muslim minds by unleashing selfish human nature, were interpreted to mean that Western democracy itself, by encouraging politicians to claim ultimate authority, rejected the Quran's higher authority.
This interpretation posited that such leaders, and their supporters, could be legitimately killed. Osama Bin Laden, after returning from Afghanistan, viewed the deployment of American soldiers in Saudi Arabia as the West's corrupt takeover of the very heart of Islam, leading him to conclude that America was the true enemy, despite their prior alliance in Afghanistan.
The attacks on America were consequently carried out by a small group that coalesced around Bin Laden in the late 1990s, unified by an extreme interpretation of Islamism rooted in Wahhabism.
Contradictory Alliances and Consequences
Paradoxically, Wahhabism was, at times, tacitly approved and even supported by Western powers. America's agreement to obtain oil from Saudi Arabia also entailed protecting Wahhabism, a force with global ambitions distinct from those of the United States.
King Fisel strategically directed the volatile fanaticism inherent in Saudi society outwards, thereby stabilising his own country. This strategy received American approval as it aligned with the global struggle against communism.
However, this American enablement of such forces ultimately contributed to their emergence as an enemy. The spread of Wahhabism in various parts of the world, including areas where communism had already been decisively defeated, demonstrates its independent trajectory beyond Cold Waralignments.