Hitler, Jihad, and Heavenly Houris

Various studies have been conducted on the type of policy and approach of the Hitler regime towards Muslims and efforts to attract them as allies during World War II. David Motadel's book provides a more comprehensive look at this policy of the Hitler regime, its successes and failures, and its consequences. Germany's inclination to instrumentalize Islam and the peoples of Muslim-majority countries in its conflicts with rival countries (France, Britain, and Russia) has a long history. The alliance and closeness with the Ottoman Empire, which gained a special place in German imperial foreign policy from the late 19th century, was also directed towards these geopolitical issues. The presence of Wilhelm II, the German Kaiser, at the tomb of Sultan Salah ad-Din al-Ayyubi in Damascus in 1898 and his declaration of 'three hundred million Muslims' as friends of Germany was a turning point in this regard. Furthermore, considering the influence and colonial presence of Germany's three rival powers in Muslim countries, Berlin was constantly tempted and attempted to provoke 'jihad' and incite Muslims in these countries, partly directing them to support the Ottoman Empire during World War I, to play a strong card against rival countries. In this context, an analytical document written by Max von Oppenheim, a senior German diplomat, titled 'On Provoking Rebellion in Islamic Areas Under Our Enemies' Control,' was used as a basis for action, and he himself was tasked with facilitating the entry of Ottoman forces into these areas under Tsarist Russian control with money and weapons and by organizing or supporting existing rebel groups in Central Asia and the Caucasus. Similar actions were to take place in Iran and Afghanistan to challenge British authority in India, and Egypt was also designated as a center for supporting Muslim rebellions in French and British colonies in Africa. During the war, a different and special approach was taken towards Muslim prisoners from the rival countries, and the first mosque in Germany was built for them. From Voltaire to Karl May! The propaganda image was also part of the German imperialist policy of 'Islamism.' Among other things, they spread the rumor in Muslim areas that Wilhelm II had converted to Islam, calling himself Haji Wilhelm Muhammad, and urged the German people to behave similarly. German agents, however, did not achieve success in inciting rebellion and insurrection in Afghanistan against the British. Wilhelm Wassmuss, a German diplomat who went to Iran for a similar action, although he succeeded in organizing an action to disrupt British oil extraction, this blow was too insignificant to have a noticeable impact on the war in favor of Germany. In areas like Sudan, German efforts also failed. Meanwhile, the Allied countries, in addition to employing thousands of Muslim soldiers in their forces, managed to incite the Arab tribes and clans under Ottoman rule to revolt against it through the cunning actions of Lawrence of Arabia and partly hollow promises. The failed approach of the German government was, of course, met with criticism and skepticism from the outset among experts in the field of Islamic countries. Critics argued that the 'jihad' incited by Germany could turn into its opposite and fuel a wave of radicalism and extremism in Islamic areas, leading to hatred and anger against non-Muslim minorities, ultimately harming Germany itself. Friedrich Rosen, who became the German Foreign Minister after World War I, famously remarked about this policy and the unfamiliarity of German officials and advisors with the Islamic world: 'In the Foreign Office, there was a strong belief in the effectiveness of Muhammad's green flag and the holy jihad. But just as Voltaire is recognized as the father of the French Revolution, we can also consider Karl May the father of our Eastern policy during this period.' Karl May, a German author, wrote several adventurous novels about Eastern countries without ever traveling there. Hitler and Heavenly Houris. The failure of the 'Islamism' policy during World War I did not prevent Germany from being tempted by such an approach in World War II, nor did the Hitler regime avoid another test in this regard. Interestingly, one of the architects of the Islamic policy of the Hitler regime was a diplomat named Werner Otto, who played a major role in the Kaiser’s jihad policy during World War I. Studies have been conducted on the Third Reich's experience in the instrumentalization of Islam, but perhaps the most comprehensive work is David Motadel's research, an Iranian-German scholar and current professor at the London School of Economics and Political Science. The book, titled 'Islam and Nazi Germany's War,' was published in English four years ago in 502 pages, and recently its German translation, 'Für Prophet und Führer. Die Islamische Welt und das Dritte Reich,' has hit the market in 656 pages. In this book, which he wrote by consulting 14 archives in 30 countries, Motadel explains the reason for Hitler's attention to Muslims during World War II and efforts to gain their support: 'World War II encompassed a large part of the Islamic world. Almost 150 million Muslims lived under French and British influence from North Africa to Southeast Asia, and the number of Muslims in the Soviet sphere reached twenty million... From 1941, especially as signs of defeat appeared on the fronts for German forces, the Hitler regime made a strong effort to gain a foothold among the Muslims in the occupied areas and to mobilize this Muslim population as allies against enemies, particularly Britain, the Soviet Union, and the Jews, an effort that was not unsuccessful in places like the Balkans, the Caucasus, and Crimea... Mobilized Muslims were deployed on all fronts, from Warsaw and Stalingrad to even the defense of Berlin.' The instrumentalization of Islam was, of course, intertwined with certain tendencies and views. Hitler personally had no belief in God or the Prophet and perhaps only worshiped himself. Nevertheless, in a speech in 1941 at a 'friendly gathering,' he stated that perhaps only the religion of Muhammad could make heaven and the afterlife attractive to him: 'The mere thought of virgin girls in paradise and a place where wine flows is much more beautiful and appealing than the soulless heaven and world promised by Christianity.' This statement by Hitler, considering that he himself did not drink alcohol and had sexual dysfunction and failure, seemed somewhat strange. However, he generally regarded Islam as a strong and action-oriented religion and described Christianity as a weak and 'feminine' ideology, inviting the Catholic Church to learn from Islam. Heinrich Himmler, Hitler's right-hand man and a powerful figure in the Nazis, also did not hide his interest in Islam. In the effort to penetrate the Islamic world during the war, Himmler, after the defeat of Hitler's forces in North Africa, did not hesitate to assign his agency the task of exploring the Quran, hoping to find a verse or phrase in this holy book of Muslims that could be used to introduce Hitler as a religious leader and even as a prophet. This effort remained unsuccessful, but in a letter sent to Himmler by officials of the Nazi German security agency, it was stated that it was not impossible for Hitler to appear in the form of Christ to kill the Antichrist, as is narrated in Muslim traditions. In Islamic traditions, it is narrated from the Prophet that 'the Antichrist will emerge among my community in forty days, then God will send Jesus son of Mary to seek him out and destroy him.' Thus, a propaganda campaign was launched, and announcements were distributed in various Muslim countries introducing Hitler as the destroyer of the Antichrist. These announcements stated: 'O Arab people! Do you recognize the servant of God? He has now appeared in the world and has drawn his spear and dagger against the Antichrist and his allies.' Practically, as the Nazi German forces advanced further into Eastern Europe and North Africa, an increasing number of Muslims fell under Nazi occupation, and theorists of Hitler's regime increasingly thought about investing openly and covertly in intensifying anti-Jewish sentiment in parts of the Islamic world, which had especially surged between the two world wars, and recruiting forces among Muslims for war. Even Amin al-Husseini, the Grand Mufti of Jerusalem, was invited to Berlin with greetings and salutations. He did not hold back in aligning with the Hitler regime, including introducing the Quran as filled with 'warnings against the deceitful and satanic character of the Jews.' His speeches and statements were broadcast to Islamic countries via radio and distributed in written form by airplane in these regions. Only circumcision is not enough! During the attack on the Soviet Union, the Germans also attempted to attract Muslims from the Caucasus and Central Asia. Before that, they had a relatively successful similar effort in Bosnia-Herzegovina. They labeled the Muslim people of this region as 'the most valuable people in Europe in terms of race' and organized forces from them into the 'Skanderbeg Division' and the 'SS Muslim East Regiment.' According to Motadel's research, these forces displayed particular brutality in the massacre of Serbs, showing no mercy to the young or old. When it was reported in a meeting to Hitler that individuals from the Muslim battalions and divisions in the Balkans even had no qualms about removing the hearts of enemy soldiers with knives, he dismissed these reports as lies and shifted the discussion to other matters. Bosnian soldiers joining the SS army were seen reading a book about Islam and Judaism. In the Caucasus and the Crimean Peninsula, which had been occupied by the Nazis, the prohibition of religious ceremonies and rituals by the Soviet government was lifted, and Muslims were allowed to establish mosques and Quranic schools. Nevertheless, the lack of familiarity of German soldiers with the rituals and beliefs of Muslims in these regions sometimes led to disasters. For instance, some Muslims were killed by the Nazis for circumcising boys, as the soldiers believed that circumcision was solely a Jewish ritual. Ultimately, the public security office of the Hitler regime had to issue directives to German forces on the fronts stating that mere circumcision is not evidence of a person's Jewishness. On the other hand, the Crimean Muslim Tatars held a special status among Hitler's forces, while the Roma Muslims of these regions were considered of inferior race. To better connect with the people in the occupied areas and simplify their control, the Nazis even established a religious training center in Dresden for the training of clerics and mullahs. Special arrangements were made for captured Muslim soldiers, from halal food to permission for Islamic slaughter, which sometimes met with surprise and protest from local residents. However, all these propaganda and approaches did not significantly warm the desired alliance between Hitler's forces and Muslims in the Middle East and North Africa. Aside from one instance of the massacre of Jews in Iraq, there was no notable uprising or rebellion among Muslims in favor of Hitler's forces, and even in North Africa, the solidarity of Muslims with the Jews persecuted by the Hitler regime became evident. A contradictory policy that yielded no results. According to Motadel, in a leaflet distributed by Hitler's forces during their advance in North Africa to Muslims present in enemy forces, it was stated: 'Why do you fight against the Germans, your brothers, who have a bond of friendship and love with you?' Or they distributed candies among these people wrapped in paper that had Arabic writing stating: 'By God's grace, Germany's victory is certain.' The distribution of papers soaked in perfume with verses from the Quran or talismans featuring the swastika and religious slogans of Muslims was another aspect of Nazi propaganda in Muslim areas. However, these propaganda efforts were not very effective, especially as they contradicted the racist behavior of German soldiers towards black prisoners, rendering them ineffective. In the final months of the war, Hitler lamented why the mobilization of Muslims in favor of German forces did not progress and yield better results. He attributed the reason to the mismanagement of the Germans, believing that Muslims were ready for a political earthquake in their regions and were waiting for German forces to prevail. The doubts and suspicions of Muslims in parts of the Middle East, the Caucasus, and North Africa regarding Hitler's true motives for boasting about alliance and closeness with them were one of the major problems. Motadel writes: 'The credibility and authenticity of Hitler's approach to an alliance with Muslims was such that Muslims did not come to realize that the Nazi regime's efforts were purely motivated by religious motives and that the instrumentalization of Muslims against Germany's enemies played a central role.' Moreover, the propaganda of the Hitler regime did not reach the people much, as the populations in Muslim areas were often illiterate and unable to read Nazi written propaganda, and many also lacked radios to listen to the broadcasts and programs that German radio transmitted in their languages for the Islamic world. The instrumentalization of Islam did not end. Other problems also existed regarding this alliance and mobilization. For instance, Muslims living in the colonies of the allies of the Hitler regime were more aggrieved by the practices and behaviors of these colonizers than they were influenced by the propaganda of their ally, the Hitler regime. Colonies of Mussolini's Italy and France under Vichy, which were considered allies of Hitler, were subject to such a situation. Despite its failure, Hitler's policy led to an unprecedented increase in the number of Muslims in Germany.