A jihadist group in control of the northern Syrian city of Raqqa has given Christians a devastating ultimatum: convert to Islam, pay the jizya tax and abide by a list of restrictions, or else risk being killed. 

In a statement posted online, the Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant (ISIS) said it would give Christians protection if they paid the tax and agreed to its conditions, adding:

If they reject, they are subject to being legitimate targets, and nothing will remain between them and ISIS other than the sword.

A street in the centre of Raqqa before the Syrian civil war Bertramz / CC BY-SA 3.0

The militants said that a group of 20 Christian leaders had agreed to the Aqed al-Thimaprotection pact. Every Christian man will have to pay a levy in gold: four dinars, worth £435 at current prices, for the wealthy, half that for those on middle-income and a quarter for the poor.

They have to abide by twelve rules, which include restrictions on practising their faith; they are not allowed to make renovations to churches or other religious buildings, display crosses or other Christian symbols outside of churches, ring church bells or pray in public. They are also barred from carrying arms and must follow other rules imposed on their daily lives.

ISIS cited the Islamic concept of dhimma, which governs non-Muslims living in conquered Islamic territory. It dates back to the early days of Islam in the seventh century but was largely abolished under the Ottomans in the mid-19th century.

The jizya is, on the face of it, a protection racket, but its significance runs deeper than that of a mafia-style extortion scheme. It is a humiliating tax or tribute that the Quran commands Christians and Jews to pay “with willing submission and while feeling themselves subdued” (Q 9:29).

It is part of a collection of rules and regulations imposed on those granted dhimmi status that are intended to mark them out as inferior to Muslims. So, while paying the jizya does guarantee a level of protection for Christians and Jews, it comes at the high price of their accepting a sub-class status in which they are not recognised as citizens and their rights are restricted.

The Aqed al-Thima is the latest move by ISIS to establish a strict Islamic state in Raqqa. It had previously issued a general set of rules for all residents, including the wearing of the veil by women and separation of the sexes, even in bread queues.

Raqqa, which fell to the opposition in March 2013, has been a site of major rebel infighting. Most of the city’s very small Christian population fled when ISIS captured the city and started attacking churches and destroying Christian symbols. The cross on top of one church was replaced by ISIS’s black flag.

ISIS is the most feared rebel group in Syria. It grew out of al-Qaeda in Iraq but has recently been disavowed by al-Qaeda leader Ayman al-Zawahiri. The al-Nusra Front, aka Jabhat al-Nusra, is now seen by al-Qaeda as its representative in Syria.

ISIS is seeking to restore the Caliphate, an Islamic state under a single ruler, the Caliph, spanning the Middle East, North Africa, Andalusia and southern Italy, the ancient Arab and Islamic lands.

About the Aqed al-Thima agreement in Raqqa, ISIS wrote on its official Twitter account, “Today in Raqqa and tomorrow in Rome.”

https://barnabasfund.org/Jihadists-to-Christians-in-Syrian-city-convert-to-Islam-pay-up-or-be-killed.html