You Cannot Mortgage the Ummah’s Honor to Washington

News:

At the White House, Trump was asked whether Türkiye would also join a military intervention against the Houthis in Yemen.

Journalist: “Do you want Türkiye to take part in the retaliatory operation in Yemen?”

Trump: “I can do that. As you know, Erdoğan is a very good friend of mine, and I can do that. I have great respect for the President of Türkiye. I think President Erdoğan will do whatever I ask of him. I have great respect for him.” (News Agencies, 13 October 2026)

Comment:

The colonial mindset of the savage West is clear evidence that, from the past to the present, it has not abandoned—and will not abandon—the arrogance of treating Muslim lands as arenas for its own profitable yet harmful calculations and geopolitical ambitions. The United States’ efforts to reshape and transform the Middle East continue through policies pursued by proxy forces. Moreover, these policies are now being implemented more openly by the countries of the region themselves. States that do not become part of this process, or are slow to act within the US orbit, are punished by states assigned the role of big brother in the region.

In this context, the arrogant Trump’s statement, “Erdoğan will do whatever I want regarding the Houthis,” is not merely a diplomatic discourtesy or a reckless remark. It is a manifestation of the entrenched arrogance and colonial mentality directed at all Muslims through the persons of their rulers. It is also an overt expression of the habit of global power centers of viewing Muslim lands and their rulers as instruments for carrying out their own strategic objectives.

The experiences of Iraq, Libya and Syria are concrete examples of this. By using the sons of Muslims, sometimes under the banner of NATO and sometimes under the rhetoric of regional security, they achieve their desired objectives at the expense of the Ummah and with the Ummah’s own strength. The conduct of the rulers who pave the way for this, turning the Ummah’s armies into servants at the command of these oppressors, is a manifestation not only of political shortsightedness but also of a master–slave relationship.

President Erdoğan’s statement following the cabinet meeting two days ago included the following words: “We condemn in the strongest possible terms the attacks carried out by the Houthis on October 10 targeting King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh. Türkiye stands with Saudi Arabia and its Saudi brothers in the face of unlawful and inhumane attacks.”

This statement takes on even greater significance when considered particularly in the context of the Mecca Defense Agreement. Under this agreement, of which Trump was the architect, and given that the desired outcome has not been achieved despite Saudi Arabia’s years of attacks in Yemen and the destruction they have caused, it is apparent that various countries, particularly Türkiye and Pakistan, are being positioned as proxies drawn into the process on behalf of the United States in line with energy security and geopolitical calculations.

Politics conducted not according to the interests of the Ummah but in line with the interests of colonial powers end in disgrace.

In a statement in 2019, Erdoğan had said: “Who brought Yemen to this state? What condition is Yemen in now? Did tens of thousands of people not die in Yemen? O Saudi Arabia, first give an account of this. Yemen is mired in poverty, destitution and destruction.”

So what has changed between then and now?

This is the point to which shameful politics conducted in the orbit of the dominant power have come, and the form they have taken. The clearest indication of this politics is that no values remain to stop them from calling right today what they called wrong yesterday, or from calling black today what they called white yesterday.

While Allah, Subhanahu wa Ta’ala, has unequivocally forbidden believers from taking disbelievers and the arrogant as allies and decision-makers, it is unacceptable for the leaders of Muslims to determine policy according to the wishes, threats or promises of Washington, London or Tel Aviv. The honor of the Ummah cannot be left to the mercy of these disbelievers and oppressors; it cannot be mortgaged to their interests. Our affairs can be shaped only in accordance with Allah’s commands, taking as their basis the interests of the Ummah and the honor and dignity of the oppressed.

For a Western, disbelieving leader to say, “He will do whatever I want,” and thereby view the ruler of a Muslim country as someone who will carry out his orders is incompatible with the honor of Islam. Everyone knows that Western pressure concerning the Houthis stems not so much from a desire to ensure peace for the people of Yemen or stability in the region as from anxiety to protect its global trade routes and the security of the usurping entity in the region.

Steps to be taken regarding the Houthis or other issues in our region must be determined not by instructions from the West, but by Muslims among themselves, within the framework of Sharia rulings and on the principles of justice, unity and mercy.

Muslims must regard the rulings of Islam as a matter of life and death and accept nothing other than those rulings. They must also understand that we have no path other than re-establishing the Khilafah (Caliphate), the system of governance that will implement these rulings.

With such a perspective and the will to act accordingly, we can free ourselves from the schemes that today’s arrogant disbelievers seek to carry out in our region, and from the domination of the powerless leaders who play supporting roles in those schemes.

This is true liberation. And that liberation may well be near.

Written for the Central Media Office of Hizb ut Tahrir by
Ahmet SAPA