Rethinking Salafism

Reviewed by: Abdullah Ishtiak, Leicester, UK

Published by: New York: Oxford University Press, 2021, 307pp. ISBN: 978-0190948955.

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Raihan Ismail’s Rethinking Salafism: The Transnational Networks of Salafi ‘Ulama in Egypt, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia offers a ground-breaking exploration of the Salafi movement, challenging simplistic narratives and providing a nuanced understanding of the complexity of the movement. Through meticulous research and insightful analysis, Ismail delves into the transnational networks of Salafi scholars, revealing their shared concerns, intellectual debates, and diverse approaches to a variety of issues.

The book importantly shifts the conversation away from reductive framing centred on ‘securitization’ and instead focuses on the more salient trends within Salafi Islam. The book explores the usefulness of the quietist and activist dichotomy, which Ismail explains has generally been viewed as a binary in which, “Quietist Salafis endorse an apolitical tradition, believing that political activism is unacceptable in any form. Activist Salafis, also known as harakis, advocate peaceful political change. Subject to debate around where exactly to draw the lines between these categories, the two groups have been identified as largely representative of the non-jihadi aspect of Salafism.” However, when placed into conversation with the transnational network of scholars, Ismail explains that “clerics are influenced by local conditions, as well as external circumstances, in their interpretations of Salafism, theologically, socially, and politically.” This provides a nuanced understanding that challenges the prevailing notion of Salafism as a monolithic movement and highlights the diversity of approaches within the tradition, and how this tradition is influenced by context.