Chapter Eleven

The Difference between Enemies and Combatants then such a war must not be engaged in at all. To avoid war or to kill non-combatants in war—the first of these is the lesser evil, while the other is the greater evil. And when the choice is between a lesser evil and a greater evil, then definitely one must choose the former and discard the latter. This is what reason demands, and so does the Islamic shariah. In the present-day context, if one is faced with an unfavourable situation in which if war is waged it is not possible to avoid the killing of non-combatants, then, along with this, and as a result of modern developments themselves, we must remember that a favourable situation has also emerged on a massive scale: and this is the availability of many new constructive possibilities. These possibilities are so many that the question of winning or losing a war has now become of only secondary importance. A group may win a war but it may fall victim to terrible devastation. Another group may lose a war but yet it may gain access to peaceful avenues, using which it can achieve great success without any conflict. This is well illustrated by modern Japanese history. Japan had to suffer a heavy defeat in the Second World War. But it did not make any military plans for its recovery. Instead, it accepted its subordinate status as a reality and began efforts for its reconstruction within a peaceful framework. This policy proved to be so successful that in just a few years, Japan’s history was transformed. Japan’s success in this regard was made possible because of modern scientific and technological developments. An opposite example is provided by Palestinian history. In 1947, the Palestinian Muslims were faced with a situation which they thought justified violent action against Israel. But what was the outcome of all of this? In 1947, the Palestinian Muslims had more than half of the land area of Palestine, including the whole of Jerusalem. But the result of choosing the path of violent action was that today the Palestinians have nothing at all. In exactly the same span of time in which the Palestinians met with enormous destruction as a result of violent action Japan became a global super-power in economic terms.