Document check
Have Muslim public declarations condemned attacks on civilians?
Yes, in named and dated documents. They record their authors' positions, not every Muslim's.
The document
Have Muslim public declarations ever condemned attacks on civilians?
What the evidence shows
The documents exist
Yes. The Amman Message, the July 2, 2006 Topkapi Declaration and the September 19, 2014 Open Letter to al-Baghdadi contain explicit condemnations of attacks on civilians. These texts establish their authors' stated positions, not the beliefs or conduct of every Muslim.
Sources checked
Evidence assessment
Established
Applies to That named Muslim public declarations exist which condemn attacks on civilians.
The narrow proposition has direct support in the linked sources.
- Family
- Scripture and interpretation
- Scope and date
- Three named declarations dated 2004, 2006 and 2014.
- Also asked as
- Where are original Muslim statements against terrorism?
- Why don't Muslim leaders condemn terrorism?
- Is a declaration evidence of universal agreement?
Editorial search phrases, not documented quotations.
What this does not establish
- Records authors' positions, not every Muslim's.
- Not proof signatories act consistently or that violence never occurred.
- Not a count of all condemnations or a theological ruling.
- The 126-signatory list is specific to the PDF version read.
Source support
Source 1 · Primary declaration
The Amman Message, full text (November 2004 document) — The Amman Message
Locator Paragraph on noncombatants and civilians
Supports The text's stated prohibition.
Cannot establish Public-opinion prevalence; no signatory count claimed.
Source 2 · Primary declaration
The Topkapi Declaration, Istanbul, July 2, 2006 — The Amman Message
Locator Paragraph 8
Supports Explicit condemnation; date and location.
Cannot establish Views of all European or American Muslims.
Source 3 · Primary letter (PDF)
Open Letter to al-Baghdadi, dated September 19, 2014 (English PDF) — Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre
Locator Executive summary points 6–7; signatory list, PDF pp. 29–36
Supports Condemnation of killing innocents, journalists and aid workers; dated 2014.
Cannot establish Its claim to represent an overwhelming majority.
Editorial inference
The existence of these documents answers the narrow question; it does not measure belief or conduct. (Our reasoning from the sources, not source text.)
Source checked ; human review pending
Accessible primary texts contain direct condemnations. The English Amman Message rejects attacks on noncombatants, civilians and their property, children and older people. The Topkapi Declaration, dated July 2, 2006 in Istanbul, rejects terrorism and the killing of civilians in paragraph 8; it is a European Muslim civic declaration, not an American statute or a Texas institution's policy. [1][2]
The Open Letter to al-Baghdadi, dated September 19, 2014, condemns killing innocent people and separately prohibits killing journalists and aid workers. The English PDF hosted by the Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre carries a numbered signatory list ending at 126; that count belongs to the version read, not to the Muslim world. The upload folder's 2019 date is not the statement date. [3]
What the documents show
When the question is whether such statements exist, these are usable documentary examples, with source, date and authorship attached. A claim that no Muslim public declaration has ever condemned attacks on civilians cannot be sustained by ignoring them.
A declaration records a public position. It is not a survey of ordinary Muslims, a behavior study, proof that all signatories act consistently with it, or evidence that violence by people identifying as Muslim has never occurred. Conversely, an act of violence does not erase the documents. This is a small annotated source guide, not a count of all condemnations or a theological ruling.
How we checked this
Prepared from the linked sources, distinguishing the source statement, question and editorial finding. Source checking does not signify outside legal or scholarly review; this record is not individual legal advice.
- Place covered
- Three named public declarations
- Period covered
- Documents dated 2004, 2006 and 2014
Sources
- 1The Amman Message, full text (November 2004 document) — The Amman Message · retrieved 2026-10-05
- 2The Topkapi Declaration, Istanbul, July 2, 2006 — The Amman Message · retrieved 2026-10-05
- 3Open Letter to al-Baghdadi, dated September 19, 2014 (English PDF) — Royal Islamic Strategic Studies Centre · retrieved 2026-10-05