Arabian Peninsula is an expression mentioned in the hadith and its borders are clear as a region that historians and geographers define. The region is the name of the region limited by the Indian Ocean, the Persian Gulf, the Red Sea and the Tigris-Euphrates rivers. Changing these historical boundaries is out of the question. In this wide geography, Jerusalem is the third largest visiting point of Islam after Mecca and Medina, as the first Qiblah of Muslims. If non-Muslims think of encroaching on these holy places, they will be the reason for wars.2

The points that Muslims all over the world actually accepted as evidence were that only the Ottoman sultans had this right of caliphate after the Abbasid Caliphs, and no other Islamic state had such extensive power and authority… Starting with Selim I, Ottoman sultans have been the caliphs and imams of the world's Muslims until today.3

The Ottomans are the sword (power) that has protected Islamic and Islamic lands for centuries. For centuries, only they have heartsick just for Islam, only their corpses have been ensanguined for Islam, and the Muslims of the world have given the responsibility for the preservation of Islam and its center to them.4

For this reason, all Muslims have religious duties such as saving Mecca and Medina from the rebels and fighting for this, if necessary. The current conditions shows that it is time to strengthen the ties between the Muslims and the Ottoman caliphate. Whoever does something contrary to this is a reason to die from the death of Jahiliyyah, as stated in the hadith, as well as to disobey the belief of Allah and His Messenger.5

It is the biggest mistake to be deceived by the propaganda of the Europeans in these matters, because the Europeans are more hostile to the Ottoman Empire than ever to other Islamic states, as they are the standard bearers of Islam and penetrate the heart of Europe. It is the Ottoman state's political power, which gradually spread to the entire Islamic world, to make religious services and religious authority accepted, especially to spread Islam and to protect the people of Islam by fighting against disbelief and European states.6

For the caliphate issue to be properly and seriously understood and discussed again, the issue of tawhid needs to be addressed again. Because although tawhid is primarily the unity of Allah as a creed and the belief in it, the issue of caliphate is not independent of this, due to the “political unity” of Muslims.7

Since it has a very special place in terms of the unity of Muslims, the right of the caliphate of the “political power” that holds this region and these services and continues the jihad against the disbelievers has always been prominent and legitimate.8

Everyone should accept that, apart from the Ottoman sultans and the Turks, no government or nation of the Muslims has done such a service to Islam and the Ummah in recent times. Ottoman sultans and the Turks have fulfilled a responsibility that belongs to all Muslims in the world. Indeed, this is such a tremendous achievement of the Turks that its equal and similar are not seen in the history of any dominant nation of Muslims after the first period. 9

Except for the state of Saladin, who defeated the united Christian jihad (crusaders) of all of Europe. However, it was also a defense in a limited period of time, exactly 300-400 years, but the Turks had to defend Islam.10

No other nation has suffered a single wound on this holy path. No ruler has ever taken a single step towards this. Only Turks alone fulfilled this obligation on behalf of all Muslims of the world. They chose the path of constant blood and war for themselves, through which all Muslims lived in comfort and peace in their own houses. The Muslims of Arabia and India were able to read the Qur'an much more than them. “Only they are wounded for 400 years in order to protect the Qur'an”. 11

While Britain has recently tried to use the influence of the Ottoman caliphate against the dissident attempts of Indian Muslims under its rule, India and the Ottoman Empire have tried to use these problems and opportunities to develop and consolidate their political, religious and cultural relations centered on the caliphate, and to create a defense or even a building activity from there.12

Therefore, the entry of the Ottoman Empire into the World War I on the side of the Germans caused multilateral problems. The British government felt obliged to make the following statements by using all means in order to determine its own situation, not to cause the slightest religious-caliphate-oriented unrest among Indian Muslims and to gain time in its own favor.13

When the news about the declaration of the World War I was announced in India

1-Our war against the Turkish government is defensive, not offensive.

2-The Muslims of India must be assured that in this war no action will be taken by us or our allies to offend religious sentiments.

3-No attempt will be made against the holy caliphate of Islam.

4-Our war is not against the caliph of the Muslims or against Islam, but against the Turkish Ministry of War (Ottoman Military College) Ministry, which is currently under the influence of Germany.14

This is the summary of the official statement made by the British government in India on November 1, 1914, along with the declaration of war. Similar statements were also made in Egypt and Sudan. This statement, which the British government made and announced was a war trick, but it did not last long in showing its effect, at least it divided the Indian Muslims into three against England. This success of the British, or the lack of foresight of Indian Muslims to believe in the sincerity of the British, ended the Islamic caliphate that day.15  

It was 1920, when the holy areas, Al-Quds and Baghdad, where the armistice was signed, were occupied by the British.                                                                                        

If Indian Muslims leave Jihad for the caliphate because the British do not interfere in our “Prayer and Adhan”, it will mean that they will be comforted by the presence of branches at the expense of the roots and trunk of this tree.

The book titled The Khilafat and England by Seyyid Mahmud (Patna/India 1889-1961), one of the leaders of the Jurist Indian Caliphate movement and politician, is in the form of an article he wrote in 1915, as stated in its preface. The book is a dedication to the Turkish nationalists, conveying the words of Mustafa Kemal Pasha, “My friends and I will resist until the last drop of our blood for Islam.” It is expressed in a short but impressive 4-articled breakdown of official British promises, titled “Government commitments and promises Britain has not fulfilled”.17

The entry of the Ottoman Empire into the World War I against England did not only confront the Indian Muslims with a difficult situation. It also left Europeans “having difficulty in understanding what binds a Muslim Indian so closely to Istanbul” in the Ganges valley.18

The fact that the British are increasingly saying that “the claims of the caliphate of the Ottoman Sultans were never accepted by the Islamic world” not only shows their ignorance of the history of Islam, but also recalls that their very recent policies by recognizing the Ottoman Caliphs and asking Ottomans for help in solving their problems with the Muslims of India.19

Those who carried out the British policy defended the territorial integrity of the Ottoman Empire (it was not suitable for partition) from the moment they firmly understood that the discharge of the Ottoman Empire would not be under the conditions they wanted due to the Russian threat and demands.20

In this way, they both ensured the safety of the road to India and tried to raise their political influence and economic interests in the Ottoman Empire to a higher level.21

It was Britain that invaded Mesopotamia and Palestine. It was Britain that invaded Istanbul. It was Britain that bribed Sharif Hussein to rebel against the caliph. So, if Muslims hold Britain responsible for all the calamities that befell them and the harassment of the sanctity of the holy places in the Arabian Peninsula, does it need an explanation?... 22

The Eastern issue, led by Britain, is mainly the question of how to dismantle the Ottoman Empire particularly the caliphate, or when, how to discharge it. 23

In November 1922, the fact that Mehmed VI Vahideddin, the Ottoman sultan and caliph, had been forced to seek refuge with the British forces in Istanbul made it easier for Britain to do as much as Ankara.24

The second reason is related to the fact that the question of what Ankara will do about the caliphate, which started the national struggle with a caliphate and Islamist discourse; has emerged as a new center of political power against Istanbul, has not been fully answered. 26

This question will be answered before the Lausanne conference, the separation of the “caliphate from the sultanate” and the first sign of this new process. As stated by the cadre who later founded the Republic, the process of abolishing the caliphate began in the last days of 1922. 27

CONCLUSION;

After the Proclamation of the Republic, the abolition of the caliphate in 1924 actually ended the political dominance of the newly established Republic of Turkey in the Islamic geography.

The Islamic Union came to an end with the abolition of the caliphate. Now, the only political power that would prevent the colonialist west from attacking and besieging Islamic countries was eliminated. Thus, the authority to defend the rights of Muslims and to speak up was destroyed.

Today, under the pretext of Islamic terrorism, the USA's global war against terrorism has been transformed into a fortified war against Muslims, and the fear of the Islamic Caliphate has been formed at the level of hysteria. The West, which knows Islam well enough, which does not separate politics from worship, cannot turn a blind eye to the statehood of Islam. But US presidents can swear by the Bible and ask God for help.

The West's definition of freedom for the Islamic nation is, in fact, living under the control and domination of West. The Western powers, who defined Islam in line with their own ambitions, implemented many projects to control the political-administrative structure by redefining the Caliphate (Political Power) in the Islamic faith. These projects were implemented in our country with projects such as “Moderate Islam-Dialogue between religions”.

If July 15 were successful, FETO would have been appointed as the Caliph. This was the project of the West and the Zionist Gang to build a moderate Islam. It was an attempt to rebuild and control the Muslim faith with the Caliph they would appoint.

The bloodshed in Iraq, Syria, Yemen, Libya, Afghanistan, and Al-Quds in the Islamic world today is to prevent the statehood of Islam, that is, the restructuring of its political unity and power.

States declare the systems they adopt while determining their laws by stating their basic elements in their Constitutions. Administrative systems and forms of government are determined by popular vote. In 2018, the administrative-political system of our country's public administration switched from the parliamentary system to the presidential system.

The authority of the Caliphate, which was transferred to the Turkish Grand National Assembly, was transferred to the President Elect with the new system. In other words, the President of our State can also use the authority of the Caliph.  

This strategic move to be made with the declaration of the caliphate is strong enough to break and remove the military, political and economic attacks and sieges of the West (USA and EU) on Islamic countries. With this political strategic move by our country, a new world order will be formed.

The only country that will make this political move is Turkey. The center of the caliphate was Istanbul. The caliphate, which was abolished from Istanbul, should rise again from Istanbul, that is, it should be declared politically.

First, a caliph must be appointed for the establishment of Islamic Union.  May 18, 2021

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Çetin ZAMANTIOĞLU

Researcher

Reference:

1-İsmail KARA. “Hilafet Risaleleri Cumhuriyet Devri”, 5.Cilt, Elma basım, December-2005, İstanbul, p.3-21.