In a textbook titled "Pictures from the Lives of the Companions," the students are told that following the battle of Badr (the first victory of Muslims over the disbelievers) a new chapter of the Koran descended on the Prophet that raised, in the eyes of Allah, the status of the mujahedeen (jihad warrior) and gave preference over those who sit still.
Another aspect of the Saudi education system has been the teaching of hatred of Jews and Christians. A textbook for eighth graders explains why Jews and Christians were cursed by Allah and turned into apes and pigs. Quoting Surat Al-Maida, Verse 60, the lesson explains that Jews and Christians have sinned by accepting polytheism and therefore have incurred Allah's wrath. To punish them, Allah has turned them into apes and pigs.
A schoolbook for fifth graders instructs the students:
The religions which people follow on this earth are many, but the only true religion is the religion of Islam. As for the other religions, they are false as mentioned in the Koran (the Sura of Aal Umran Verse 85): "And whoever follows a religion that is not Islam, it will not be accepted from him and in the Hereafter he will be of the losers." The religion of Islam we know from the Koran and the Hadiths about the Prophet. The whole world should convert to Islam and leave its false religions lest their fate will be hell. As mentioned in the Koran (the Sura of Al-Nihal Verse 125): "[I swear] by Him who holds Muhammad's soul in his hand that not one Jew or Christian who had heard me and did not believe in the message that I was sent with shall die without being one of those whose fate is hell."
The students are then asked to respond "yes" or "no" to the question of whether the Islamic religion is the only road to heaven and whether other religions bestow eternal damnation on their adherents.
Incitement to violence against non-Muslims also appears in textbooks. A ninth-grade schoolbook on Hadith introduces a famous narration, "The Promise of the Stone and the Tree." It tells a story about Abu Hurayra, one of the Prophet's companions who quoted the Prophet as saying: "The hour [the Day of Judgment] will not come until the Muslims fight the Jews and kill them. A Jew will [then] hide behind a rock or a tree, and the rock or tree will call upon the Muslim: 'O Muslim, O slave of Allah! there is a Jew behind me, come and kill him!' — except for the gharqad tree, for it is one of the trees of the Jews."
The Hadith is accompanied by a number of statements: 1) "It is Allah's wisdom that the struggle between Muslims and Jews shall continue until the Day of Judgment"; 2) "The Hadith brings forth the glad tidings about the ultimate victory, with Allah's help, of Muslims over Jews"; and 3)"The Jews and the Christians are the enemies of the believers. They will not be favorably disposed toward Muslims and it is necessary to be cautious [in dealing with them]." The book asks questions for class discussion: 1) "Who will be victorious in the Day of Judgment?" 2) "With what types of weapons should Muslims arm themselves against the Jews?" 3) "Name four factors leading to the victory of Muslims over their enemies."
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