Following are excerpts from an interview with Ja'far Abd Al-Salam, secretary-general of the Islamic Universities Association. According to a Facebook page dedicated to him,[1] Abd Al-Salam holds a doctorate in International Law, is a former lecturer and deputy president of Al-Azhar University, at which he also served as director of the Saleh Kamel Centre of Islamic Economics (SKCIE). He is a prolific writer with many publications to his credit.
The clip aired on Hamas' Al-Aqsa TV on January 21, 2013.
Click here to view this clip on MEMRI TV.
Ja'far Abd Al-Salam: "The spirit of resistance is nurtured by the ideology of Islam. 'Allah purchased from the believers their lives and their property, in return for Paradise.' For a Muslim, life is worthless unless it is given away and spent for the sake of Allah. This culture is nurtured by Islam and by patriotism. […]
"Only great pain makes a great man. The great pain of martyrdom leads to the great reward of Paradise. Brother, this culture does not exist in the West, because Westerners value human life very much."
Interviewer: "They focus on the material at the expense of the spiritual."
Ja'far Abd Al-Salam: "Maybe you have noticed that the thing that frightens the Jews, or Zionists, most of all is being killed. We do not have this kind of fear. […]
"It is certain that Islam views [suicide operations] as sacrifice and as the most lofty form of Jihad." […]
[1]https://www.facebook.com/pages/%D8%A3%D8%AF-%D8%AC%D8%B9%D9%81%D8%B1-%D8%B9%D8%A8%D8%AF%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%B3%D9%84%D8%A7%D9%85-%D8%B9%D9%84%D9%8A/155226879027?sk=info%29
