Analysis of the Moharebeh Crime

Criminalizing moharebeh (war against God) in Iranian penal law is based on the 33rd verse of Maedeh Chapter. However, this verse implies both moharebeh and ifsad fi al-arz (craeting corruption on the earth), but most commentators and jurisprudents (fuqaha) believe that the mentioned verse is just about criminalizing moharebeh and one is not allowed to use it for criminalizing ifsad fi al- arz. However, in many cases, with a superficial interpretation, lawmakers have used this verse for criminalizing ifsad fi al-arz. To define moharebeh, this article criticizes such cases and analyzes the physical and mental elements of moharebeh crime.