At the Linz jihadist trial, in which three men are in the dock for the crime of anti-state association, the professor of Islamic religious education at the University of Vienna, Ednan Aslan, came to speak as an expert witness on Wednesday.
He examined a total of four of numerous sermons on Friday prayers at the Linz association. He analysed them according to whether they represented a recruitment of fighters for the Jihad in Syria, supported the “Islamic State” and were directed against the Republic of Austria.
His interpretation of the content of the sermons, which was based on the Koran: The law of God was to be enforced. All those who opposed it were enemies and were to be fought against. Anger was also a characteristic of God. It is wrong to present Islam as a religion of peace. It is an aggressive religion. Military action should be taken against its enemies and fear and terror should be spread among them.
The enemies would only hope for weaknesses in the Muslims. They themselves are responsible if they do not live the true faith. According to the expert report, the accused also condemned those leaders who were traitors and deceivers and who, for example, allowed the unveiling of women. He had addressed an urgent warning to Muslim audiences against affection for non-believers, even if they showed goodwill, as well as against Christians and Jews. Westernisation had corrupted these people through alcohol, homosexuality, sexual relations with animals and women allowed to do jobs. An explicit distancing from democracy and the secular constitutional state in Austria had not been expressed, but could be deduced. A clear direct recruitment to participate in the Jihad or a concrete call to terror could not be inferred from the lectures.