In Indonesia, ‘call to jihad’ videos by hardline cleric’s fans show threat of rising fundamentalism
- Habib Rizieq Shihab returned from self-imposed exile last month and his gatherings have sparked a Covid-19 cluster
- Moderate Muslim groups say the videos, which are based on the Muslim Islamic call to prayer, are a threat to multiculturalism
This Week in Asia has seen at least four versions of these videos being shared on social media platforms such as Twitter and Facebook, as well as the WhatsApp messaging app. Each video shows a group of men in Muslim attire, standing in rows, listening to a man singing the call to prayer.
A verse of the chant, which originally means “hurry to the prayer”, has been changed to “hayya alal jihad”, or “rise up for jihad”, which the men responded to by shouting, “God is Great”, and raising their fists in the air. In one video, five men were shown wielding swords.
The video was shared with the caption: “Calls to jihad will be heard from mosques, Islamic boarding schools, and other Muslim communities if Rizieq Shihab continues to be criminalised.”
The Twitter account was suspended on Tuesday following a request to Twitter by the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Informatics. The videos, however, are still up on Facebook.