Dar al-Islam: The Evolution of Muslim Territoriality and Its Implications for Conflict Resolution in the Middle East

Abstract

Conflict and conflagration are not unique to the Middle East. Rare is the region where, at some point in history, disparate peoples have not clashed and killed. Attempts to assert primacy, when unsuccessful, have often led to periods of retrenching. When successful, postures of victory are precarious, subject to the transient recuperation of the vanquished.

Unexpected Convergences: Religious Nationalism in Israel and Turkey

“…In the Dar Al Harb, Muslims may be able to practice Islam but they do not enjoy the protection of the ruler". Additionally, this protection of the Muslim rulers is extended to non-Muslim religious groups (Parvin and Sommer 1980). Even though the Caliphate represented the original community, which follows the message of the Prophet Mohammad, in reality, its power was transformed by geography and historically evolved into a secular dynasty overseeing multiple ethnic and religious groups (Hourani 1962, p. 212).…”

A genealogical inquiry into early Islamism: the discourse of Hasan al-Banna

“…Manoucher Parvin and Maurie Sommer tracked the line of theoretical and historical development of what they saw as the 'dynamic, accommodating processual notion of dar al-Islam.' 16 The dar al-Islam was theologically defined as a sort of immediate presence, expressing the domain of faith and the full realization of humanity. Against this original domain, however, early jurists of Islam had to acknowledge the existence of lands ruled by non-Muslims, which denoted the dar al-harb (the abode of war or chaos).…”

A place for the Copts: imagined territory and spatial conflict in Egypt

“…This vision has its roots in the idea of dar al-sulh (land of peace), which allowed for truce lines between Muslim and non-Muslim areas, even within dar al-Islam. 42 From this inclusive idea of dar al-Islam came the Ottoman millet system. In the moderate vision, dhimmi communities are very much a part of the traditional landscape of Islamic Egypt.…”