伊斯蘭兩大教派必須合力打擊ISIS

There are few happy consequences of the emergence of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, which has swept across Iraq and Syria since the beginning of the year. A rare shaft of light, however, is to be found in the rapprochement between the two biggest branches of the Islamic mainstream.

“伊拉克和黎凡特伊斯蘭國”(ISIS)從今年初以來橫掃伊拉克和敘利亞的大片土地，這個組織的誕生沒有帶來什麼好結果。但我們將可以看到一線陽光，那就是伊斯蘭教兩大主流教派重新修好。

Shia and Sunni Islam have been at odds for most of the past decade. But the self-declared caliphate of terror known as Isis presents them with a common challenge. And they are beginning to put aside their differences in an effort to meet it.

過去十年的大部分時間裏，什葉派和遜尼派爭鬥不休。但自封爲“恐怖哈里發國”的ISIS讓兩個教派面臨共同的挑戰。爲應對這一挑戰，兩大教派開始擱置分歧。

The grand clerics of both schools – the Shia from Tehran, Qom and Najaf, and the Sunni from Riyadh and Cairo – have called upon their followers to take up arms against Isis. Political leaders have also declared their support for an intensified campaign. When the Iranian and Saudi foreign ministers met in New York in September, both diplomats hailed the opening of a new chapter in relations between their countries.

兩大教派的高級宗教領袖——德黑蘭、庫姆和納傑夫的什葉派領袖、以及利雅得和開羅的遜尼派領袖——都號召各自的信徒們拿起武器抗擊ISIS。政界領袖也宣佈支持加大抗擊ISIS的力度。伊朗和沙特兩國外長9月在紐約會晤，爲兩國關係翻開了新的篇章歡呼。

For better or worse, western countries are also engaged in this complex, onerous mission.

無論後果是好是壞，西方國家也參與了這項複雜而艱鉅的任務。

It is of paramount importance that all parties clearly understand the differences between Sunni and Shia traditions with respect to the war on Isis and other terrorist groups that claim to find justification in Islamic doctrine.

至關重要的一點是，就抗擊ISIS以及其他從伊斯蘭教義中爲自身行爲找理由的恐怖組織而言，各方務必認清遜尼派和什葉派在傳統上的差異。

Neither traditional Sunni nor Shia clerics would recognise Isis as their own, but the group more closely follows the model of Islamic governance suggested in the teachings of Salafism, an offshoot of the Sunni school.

傳統遜尼派和什葉派的神職人員都不會將ISIS視爲自己人，但ISIS與薩拉菲主義(Salafism)教義主張的伊斯蘭教治理模式更接近，而薩拉菲是遜尼派的一支。

Isis did not materialise out of thin air. Its emergence was facilitated by financial and military aid from Sunni countries that support them – supplied by individuals and governments alike, and initially intended to curb the influence of Shia Iran in Syria and Iraq.

ISIS並非憑空出現，它的誕生得到了遜尼派國家的資金和軍事支持——個人和政府都參與了支持——其初衷是打壓什葉派國家伊朗對敘利亞和伊拉克的影響。

The two Islamic factions differ in their ways of mobilising their followers in the campaign against Isis.

兩大教派在動員信徒參與抗擊ISIS的方式上存在差異。

In Shia tradition, this is straightforward because religious leadership is centralised. For instance, Ayatollah Khamenei in Iran and Ayatollah Sistani in Iraq can issue a fatwa urging their followers to join the fight. Hundreds of thousands of their followers would take up arms without hesitation. These leaders carry with them a huge mass of support.

按照什葉派傳統，這種動員是直接的，因爲什葉派的宗教領導權是集中的。例如，伊朗的阿亞圖拉•阿里•哈梅內伊(Ayatollah Ali Khamenei)和伊拉克的“大阿雅圖拉席斯塔尼”(Grand Ayatollah Ali al-Sistani)可以發出教令，敦促信徒參與戰鬥。他們的數十萬名信徒會毫不猶豫地拿起武器。這些領袖有着非常廣泛的支持。

But under Sunni Islam there is no central authority and no hierarchy, making the issue far more complicated. That is precisely why it is possible for a charismatic, authoritarian leader to assume control of a radical movement – albeit a limited one.

但在遜尼派中不存在中央集權，也沒有宗教學者等級制度，因此問題要複雜得多。這恰恰就是使得一個富有魅力的威權領袖有可能控制一個激進運動團體（儘管控制力有限）的原因。

This decentralisation gives the extremists latitude to develop their own reading and understanding of jihad. In the absence of central authority, preventing fundamentalist Sunni Muslims is a daunting task. So is thwarting financial or political support of extremists by this non-governmental force in the Sunni world.

這種非中央集權的特點讓極端分子能夠對聖戰做自己的解讀和理解。沒有中央宗教權威，使得遏制原教旨主義遜尼派穆斯林的任務變得極其艱鉅。阻止遜尼派世界這股非政府勢力爲極端分子提供資金和政治支持，也同樣不容易。

Major governmental Sunni players in the region, namely Saudi Arabia, Qatar and Turkey have taken contrasting approaches towards extremist groups. Qatar’s support for the Muslim Brotherhood created friction with Saudi Arabia and tensions have also appeared between Turkey and Saudi Arabia over their support for opposed currents of extremism in Syria and Egypt.

該地區的主要遜尼派國家，也就是沙特、卡塔爾和土耳其，對不同的極端主義團體採取了相互矛盾的對待方式。卡塔爾因爲支持穆斯林兄弟會(Muslim Brotherhood)與沙特產生摩擦，土耳其和沙特也因爲支持敘利亞和埃及相互對立的極端主義潮流而關係緊張。

The coalition built by America to check the advance of Isis must pay careful attention to these facts.

美國牽頭建立旨在阻止ISIS發展的聯盟，必須注意上述事實。

Sunni players in the region should be urged to cut their support for the terrorist groups. International measures should be taken to prevent sympathisers elsewhere from providing financial or material support. A co-ordinated approach was largely successful in starving al-Qaeda of support.

必須敦促該地區的遜尼派勢力停止支持恐怖主義團體。國際社會必須採取措施，防止其他地方的同情者爲這些團體提供資金或物資支持。在切斷外界對基地組織(al-Qaeda)支持的努力中，各方合作的方式就在很大程度上取得了成功。

Violent extremism that claims to act in the name of Islam has emerged as a monster that may come back and haunt Sunni states. But this threat has also created an opportunity. Shia and Sunni Muslims now face a common, grievous enemy. They must settle their differences and confront the danger together before events spiral even further out of control.

打着伊斯蘭教旗號的暴力極端主義魔鬼已經誕生，可能會回過頭來襲擾遜尼派國家。但這種威脅也創造了一個機會。什葉派和遜尼派穆斯林眼下面對一個共同的可怕敵人。兩派必須在事態進一步失控之前解決分歧、共同面對危險。

For the Sunni states to succeed in this mission, difficult as it may be, they should put their differences aside and unify against the dark forces that threaten their stability – and even their existence.

遜尼派國家要完成這項任務，就必須拋開分歧，團結起來——儘管做到這些很困難——共同反抗威脅本國穩定、乃至帶來亡國威脅的黑暗勢力。

The west – particularly the US, as the leader of this coalition – should recognise that as things stand the only unified actors in the Islamic world are the Shia. This force cannot be ignored. It should assume its proper place as the pillar of this vital campaign.

西方、尤其是領導聯盟的美國應該認識到，就眼下的情況來看，伊斯蘭世界裏唯一團結的力量就是什葉派，決不能忽視這股力量。什葉派應該在這場關鍵的戰鬥中扮演起應有的角色，充當頂樑柱。

The writer, a former Iranian diplomat, is author of ‘Iran and the United States: An Insider’s View on the Failed Past and the Road to Peace’

注：本文作者是伊朗前外交官，著有《伊朗和美國：一個局內人對失敗的過去與和平之路的看法》(Iran and the United States: An Insider’s View on the Failed Past and the Road to Peace)一書。