Controversial Questions about Islam

Controversial Questions about Islam and Comments
has learned a lesson. This is fair because, even according to secular
laws, a government cannot pardon the captured thief along with
what he has stolen without permission of the victim.
As a matter of fact, if we look at the reaction to the September
11 incident and the punishment approved by the Security Council,
Islamic capital punishment is fully justified, because it is executed
only when the criminal is proven guilty beyond doubt, and he alone
will receive the punishment. This is to be compared to the punishment
actually carried out, which included thousands of helpless children,
women and aged men who were either killed, injured or lost their shelters
in the severe winter, based only on an accusation of few.
Allah says: {And there is life for you in legal retribution [i.e.,
capital punishment] O men of understanding, that you may become
pious.} (1)
In other words, to kill one guilty person helps save the lives of
many innocent people. Besides, it might also save the life of the
criminal, who may otherwise commit homicide carelessly, to be
killed himself afterwards, in addition to the punishment in Hell-Fire
in the Hereafter.
Indeed, killing one person proven beyond doubt to be a murderer
of an innocent person is more merciful than allowing a criminal, or a
bunch of criminals, to kill many innocent people randomly in order
to fulfill personal whims, or realize some evil interest. So Islam, by
enforcing this kind of punishment, is trying to protect the lives of
the innocent people and relieve them from the terror of being killed
by some criminals. And this is exactly what most nations do. Even
on the level of the UN, international peace cannot be maintained
without punishments severe enough to maintain or restore peace,
which should only be used after making sure the accused is guilty.
If the evil party uses killing and destructive means to spread evil,
why can’t the good party use it to combat evil and realize public
interest?
Islam forbids killing the innocent and forbids terrorizing the
(1) Holy Quraan, 2: 179.
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