In biology, the concept of “adaptation” was introduced to describe how human beings adjust to rapid environmental change. The timeline of this adaptation varies from one species to another. It is a useful concept for those interested in animal husbandry, as acclimating animals to a new reality requires training and patience. Adaptation in the natural world has different dynamics from those of humans. The phenomenon must, therefore, be considerably calibrated to go from panic over change toward an advanced stage of harmony and engagement with new realities.
In the wild, adaptation is sincere and practical. In the world of ideologies and totalizing doctrines, however, the concept takes different connotations. We could call this “insidious adaptation,” which we saw, for example, after the gradual decline of communism in the late 20th century and the rise of Western liberalism. The communist universe splintered: some resisted and wept over the ruins, while others, like the European communist parties, adapted and tried, to some degree at least, to align their ideas with Western liberal hegemony.
In our region, after the rise of developmentalism, as well as the criminalization of Muslim Brotherhood-affiliates - from both the Sahwa and Sururi wings - and controls on their funding, a few well-meaning observers heralded “the decline and demise of the Sahwa.” Anyone who understands these movements, however, understands that we are seeing “insidious adaptation.”
Yes, states and governments have done their job, tackling these groups and movements head-on. Ending them, however, will take a long time. This is a long and arduous fight. Fundamentalists rejoice when they encounter talk of their “decline” because it gives them the opportunity to hide, catch their breath, and operate underground.
In an interview published a few days ago on Al Arabiya’s website, the researcher Khalid Aloudah explained that these groups “used to operate through hierarchical structures, holding secret meetings and relying on encrypted correspondence, but today, they have adopted more ‘fluid positioning:’ individuals who are merely a digital consumer of the ideology eventually acting on it without ever becoming members.”
I agree with him: “They now rely on ‘networked influence,’ flexible membership and relations that are not built around a hierarchy but rather intellectual bonds and content. There is no longer a need for private meetings and secret gatherings, which have been replaced by encrypted channels, online forums, private broadcast groups on Telegram, for example.”
Fundamentalist movements do not need public visibility. They are not obliged to come out to open and speak in mosques or share cassette tapes as they had in the past. They have far more space to work in than they did in the 1980s and 90s. They have their outfits accordingly. The “Dawah uniform” is no longer necessary; they may dress like ordinary young people, wearing modern, clean clothing, neatly trimming beards, and perhaps even paying lip service to certain projects to divert attention from their ideological background and insidious intentions. That is the Sahwa’s modus operandi, as anyone with even a basic understanding of these movements knows.
Thus, fundamentalist groups - the Sahwa and others - are making superficial adaptations, which is a highly cunning and insidious move, I believe. I am convinced that they sound very different in private than they do in the media. Their public rhetoric is merely a mask of adaptation; they are pretending to align with development and the new era, and we must remain vigilant in the face of their intentional obfuscation.
They know that the region is gradually prioritizing development, embracing moderate Islam, and respectable religious practice. That is why they avoid publicly stating their convictions and could even say the opposite of what they truly believe to avoid drawing attention to themselves.
Every living creature adapts in response to change; that is the law of the universe. However, those who adhere to totalitarian ideologies, including Islamic fundamentalists, resist change. They do not understand that their time is up and that they live in an era that no longer belongs to them, their ideas, or their icons.
