Have Some Taqiyyah, M'Dear?

One of the gripes Khurrum Awan (who loudly toots his own horn here) has against Ezra Levant pertains to taquiyyah, the Islamic practice that allows the faithful to prevaricate should it serve the interests of Islam. Levant accused Awan of the "t" word, and in his Statement of Claim the "libelled" one contends that "By the use of the term 'taquiyyah,' the defendent has falsely stated by innuendo that the plaintiff believes that it is permissible to lie and to utilize deceit in order to further Islamic objectives."

So is Awan trying to say that he didn't lie to further Islamic objectives, or that there's no such beast as taqiyyah, or that a moderate, thoroughly Canadianized Muslims such as he would never, ever fib for Allah?

Probably all of the above, I think.

By way of putting taqiyyah in the proper context, here's what an expert on the subject, Raymond Ibrahim, has to say about it:

Taqiyya offers two basic uses. The better known revolves around dissembling over one's religious identity when in fear of persecution. Such has been the historical usage of taqiyya among Shi'i communities whenever and wherever their Sunni rivals have outnumbered and thus threatened them. Conversely, Sunni Muslims, far from suffering persecution have, whenever capability allowed, waged jihad against the realm of unbelief; and it is here that they have deployed taqiyya—not as dissimulation but as active deceit. In fact, deceit, which is doctrinally grounded in Islam, is often depicted as being equal—sometimes superior—to other universal military virtues, such as courage, fortitude, or self-sacrifice.

Who are you going to believe--an anti-jihad scholar of Islam, or a self-promoting sock?