by Muhammad Mohsin Iqbal
Allah, the Creator of all worlds, fashioned every living being with a nature that defines its essence. The lion hunts, the dove soothes, the bee labors, and the python strikes. Each follows the course carved by its Creator, never departing from the law of nature placed within. Yet, within creation, there are moments when living beings act against what seems to be their immediate instinct, but never against the truth of their essence. Among the creatures that mankind has feared most stands the python or dragon, a beast of destruction, devouring those around it. To liken Israel to such a dragon is not exaggeration but a reflection of its character. It seeks to harm, to devour, to swallow its neighbors, never finding satisfaction in conquest, never content in blood.
The attack upon Iran and then upon Qatar is not an isolated act of violence; it is a message writ in fire to the entire Muslim Ummah. It declares that Israel, in its nature, cannot belong to anyone, cannot be molded to peace, cannot be trusted with coexistence. It is the dragon that will never share the sky but seeks to burn all who dwell beneath it.
The Qur’an, revealed in the pure tongue of Arabic, is explicit in its warning regarding those who transgressed the covenant of Allah. “You will surely find the most intense of the people in animosity toward the believers [to be] the Jews and those who associate others with Allah” (Surah al-Ma’idah, 5:82). This was not revealed in a foreign tongue but in the mother language of the Arabs, that they may understand with clarity. And yet, how strange it is that the very custodians of that tongue seem to distance themselves from the decrees of their own Holy Book.
It pierces the heart to witness the scattered state of the Arabs. Their oil, their wealth, their palaces may shine, but their unity is dust. How can a nation, upon which Allah bestowed the Qur’an, turn away from the command of that Book? The Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him) said, “The believers, in their mutual kindness, compassion, and sympathy, are just like one body. When one of the limbs suffers, the whole body responds with wakefulness and fever” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Sahih Muslim). Yet today, while one limb burns in Gaza, another bleeds in Lebanon, and another is pierced in Syria, the rest slumber in comfort, as if severed from the body itself.
The dragon strikes Iran, the dragon strikes Qatar, and the silence of Arabia echoes louder than the cries of the oppressed. Is this silence not a betrayal of the command of Allah? He says: “And hold firmly to the rope of Allah all together and do not become divided. And remember the favor of Allah upon you—when you were enemies and He brought your hearts together and you became, by His favor, brothers” (Surah Aal-e-Imran, 3:103). What greater division than this, that while the Ummah is devoured, those with power and wealth turn their faces away?
One must ask: do they not hear? Do they not remember? The Qur’an came to them first, the verses rang in their streets, their ancestors carried the message to the corners of the earth. And yet, when the hour demands steadfastness, they falter. If the Arabs do not tremble at the wounds of their brethren, have they not lost the very heartbeat of that body?
Israel, the dragon, thrives on this disunity. It knows that a divided Ummah cannot resist. It knows that while one state pursues trade, another seeks security, and another hides behind silence, its fire can consume each in turn. The lesson of history is plain: when the wolf comes, the scattered flock falls, but when united, even the lion retreats. Why then do the Arabs not unite upon the verses of the Qur’an? Allah has already decreed: “Indeed, Allah will not change the condition of a people until they change what is in themselves” (Surah ar-Ra’d, 13:11). If they remain scattered, their fate will not change.
The attack upon Iran and Qatar is a warning. Tomorrow it may be another land, another people, until the fire reaches every doorstep. The Qur’an and the Sunnah do not leave us without guidance. The Prophet (Peace Be Upon Him) said, “The Muslim is the brother of another Muslim. He does not oppress him, nor does he abandon him, nor does he humiliate him” (Sahih Muslim). What greater humiliation than to stand aside while one’s brother is swallowed by the dragon?
This is not the time for silence, nor for diplomacy draped in fear. This is the time for the Ummah to look back into the Qur’an, to revive the commands of Allah, and to stand as one body once more. If not, the dragon shall not only burn the fields of others, but in its hunger it shall consume those who believed they were safe behind walls of gold.
Allah’s promise is true: “And never will the Jews or the Christians approve of you until you follow their religion. Say, indeed, the guidance of Allah is the [only] guidance” (Surah al-Baqarah, 2:120). Let the Arabs take heed, for the Qur’an is not merely to be recited in melody but to be lived in action. The time has come to awaken, to remember, and to unite before the fire grows beyond all control.
