NAZI GERMANY'S EFFORT TO CO-OPT ISLAM

David Motadel, Islam and Nazi Germany's War (Cambridge, Massachusetts, & London, England: Belknap/Harvard U. Press, 2014) ("The reasons for Germany's efforts to promote an alliance with the Muslim world were closely connected to the course of the war, which reached Muslim territories in 1941-1942 and brought about a shift of German policy toward short-term planning and the mobilization of all available resources. Islam was,  in the context, seen as a political force that could be employed against the Allies.  Ideological consideration played only a marginal role. Although some Nazi ideologues, regime officials, and even members of the Nazi elite shared a positive view of Islam, it was the military situation that led to Germany's campaign for Islamic mobilization." "Overall, these attempts failed. . .  A major obstacle to German efforts to employ Islam in its policies aimed at Muslims, be they under German rule, behind the front lines, or in German military units, was their lack of authenticity. It was all too obvious that the Germans wanted to instrumentalize Muslims for their interests and and war necessities rather than for a truly religious cause. . ." Id. at 315-316.).