Sudden Jihad Syndrome

Sudden Jihad Syndrome is a term Daniel Pipes coined to describe Muslims that suddenly or unexpectedly turn against others and engage in acts of terror. Pipes has argued that due to this phenomenon all Islamists must be considered potential terrorists.

In brief, Mr. Taheriazar represents the ultimate Islamist nightmare: a seemingly well-adjusted Muslim whose religion inspires him, out of the blue, to murder non-Muslims.

Examples include:

• Mohammed Reza Taheri-azar, an American Muslim born in Tehran who ran over students at the University of North Carolina to punish the United States. Taheri-azar was the first terrorist to be explicitly called an example of Sudden Jihad Syndrome by Daniel Pipes.
• John Allen Muhammad and Lee Malvo, the so-called Washington snipers. John Allen Muhammad was a Muslim convert, but some people allege that his motivations may not have been religious. Larry Pratt of Gun Owners of America suggested that Malvo and Muhammad were examples of Sudden Jihad Syndrome.
• Ali Hassan Abu Kamal, a Palestinian school teacher who engaged in a shooting rampage on top of the Empire State Building. He killed one and wounded six before taking his own life.
• Mujtaba Rabbani Jabbar who shot up a movie theater in Baltimore.
• Rashid Baz, a Lebanese can driver living in New York City who shot at a van full of Orthodox Jews. The FBI initially did not label this act a terrorist act.