SHAFAQNA | by Mohammad Saeid Taheri Moosavi*: Anfal includes all the assets of the Islamic State that are not privately owned and are entrusted to the Islamic State, such as natural resources, mountains, seas, rivers, mines, deserts, forests, and everything that nature has provided to man to help the government institution manages them in order to create wealth and with the aim of providing public services. Other examples of Anfal include legacies without heirs, and properties whose owners are unknown or have been abandoned, as well as part of the spoils of war.
According to the first verse of Surah Al-Anfal: “They ask you, [O’ Muhammad], about the bounties [of war]. Say, “The [decision concerning] bounties is for Allah (SWT) and the Messenger.” So fear Allah (SWT) and amend that which is between you and obey Allah (SWT) and GOd’s Messenger, if you should be believers.”, these properties belong to God and the Messenger of God, and after them they are given to other infallibles (AS), and in the absence or lack of direct access to them, they will be at the disposal and under the management of a righteous Islamic government, in order to be used in the way of God and the spread of Islam and growth and the development of Islamic society.
From this point of view, the Islamic State cannot be considered the owner of these properties during the time of absence, but the Islamic State is the only administrator of them. Article 45 of the Constitution of the Islamic Republic of Iran refers to Anfal and its examples are also stated: “Anfal and Public wealth and property, such as uncultivated or abandoned land, mineral deposits, seas, lakes, rivers and other public water-ways, mountains, valleys, forests, marshlands, natural forests, unenclosed pastures, legacies without heirs, property of undetermined ownership, and public property recovered from usurpers, shall be at the disposal of the Islamic government for it to utilize in accordance with the public interest. Law will specify detailed procedures for the utilization of each of the foregoing items.”
According to other laws, the government uses these resources while maintaining the integrity of some of them (forests, mountains, rivers, etc.), and others are left to individuals to exploit and share its profits and interests among the members of the Islamic Ummah (nation). This must be done with justice and fairness and in accordance with the written and approved laws so that they are not violated and all members of society can benefit from their interests.
International law refers to the “absolute sovereignty of the people over natural resources” and is considered one of the examples of human rights that is governed in most countries of the world under the auspices of the central government. For example, according to the first UN General Assembly resolution on the subject, adopted on 12 February 1952: “Under-developed countries have the right to freely use their natural resources, to which they owe their lives, so that they can put themselves in a better position to further implement their economic development programs in line with their national interests and to encourage the development of the global economy.”
*Dr. Mohammad Saeid Taheri Moosavi is a specialist in Public Law and Political Sciences. This article is written for Shafaqna French and translated by Fatemeh Aghaei for Shafaqna English.
The Right of the People Under Protection of Islam: Commentary on Imam Sajjad’s (AS) Treaties of Right (Part 51)