Jihad and Counter-jihad in Germany

Historically, jihad was long encouraged by the West, a perspective which has not gained sufficient recognition in scholarly literature. Berlin played an important role in this ever since the times of Kaiser Wilhelm II till the end of Hitler’s Third Reich. The Germans, playing the game of big-power politics against primarily the British Empire, actively fanned jihad among the Muslims worldwide. Later, the USA did the same to encourage Afghan mujahideen fighters to fight back the Soviet invasion of their country in December 1979. Hence the term ‘directed jihad’, suggesting that the history of jihad in the twentieth century shows much active Western support behind the phenomenon. Paradoxically, this—at least partial—creation of the West is now turning against the latter.