How does one speak of a “Muslim World” when the supposed collective is either silent, complicit, or supine in the face of genocide? When Muslims from Gaza to Kashmir, from Sudan to Syria, are being brutalized with impunity, and the so-called leaders of Muslim-majority states are either polishing boots in Washington or mumbling their dissent into the sand? Perhaps it’s time to recite the Fatiha over the concept of a unified “Muslim World.” If nothing else, a proper funeral might finally clear the air.

The phrase “Muslim World” once conjured images of a vast, vibrant ummah stretching from Jakarta to Casablanca, a spiritual and civilizational brotherhood united by faith and a shared moral vision. Today, that term feels like a cruel joke, the geopolitical equivalent of a sticker slapped onto a broken mirror. The nations that populate this imagined collective can barely agree on the date of Eid, let alone mount a coherent response to the systematic annihilation of their brethren. If this is the “Muslim World,” then it is one in hospice care, wheezing out platitudes as realpolitik pulls the plug.

Let us be honest: most Muslim-majority governments today are client states, marionettes in a puppet theatre directed by Western powers, primarily the United States. Iran is the notable exception, though even it often walks the tightrope between pragmatism and defiance. The rest? From Riyadh to Rabat, from Islamabad to Amman, their foreign policies are either written in Washington or blessed by it. One could argue that the only difference between the State Department and the foreign ministries of many Muslim states is the choice of drapes.

Take, for instance, the case of Pakistan. Its military—the true center of power—has for decades played the role of loyal valet to American interests, occasionally barking in protest, but always fetching the slippers when the master whistles. General Asim Munir, the current Chief of Army Staff, may feel compelled to issue a tepid statement condemning Israel’s rampage in Gaza, but no one........

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