This site addresses many veiwpoints of war and peace from a Muslim perspetive.
http://www.submission.org/war.html
Here is a snippet on the section titled Islam's call for peace
Quote:
In international law, there is a set of well-established rules concerning the obligations of nations toward each other in times of war and peace. The first of these is that a country should base its relations with other countries on terms of peace so that it may exchange benefit and cooperate with others in order to promote humanity to utmost perfection. Peaceful ties like these, they say, should not be broken except in extreme urgencies that necessitate war, provided that all peaceful steps have failed in terminating the cuase of dispute.
This is what Islam has always been working for, and the relations of Moslems with others are primarily based on peace and confidence. Islam refuses the killing of people merely because they embrace a different faith, nor does it allow Moslems to fight against those who disagree with them on religious questions. It urges its followers to treat such people kindly: [60:8] GOD does not enjoin you from befriending those who do not fight you because of religion, and do not evict you from your homes. You may befriend them and be equitable towards them. GOD loves the equitable.
In another place, God says: [4:90] ........ Therefore, if they leave you alone, refrain from fighting you, and offer you peace, then GOD gives you no excuse to fight them.
We also have: [8:61] If they resort to peace, so shall you, and put your trust in GOD. He is the Hearer, the Omniscient. Instructions like these pave the way for the establishment of peace, and go in harmony with the present tendency to set down principles that call for the abolishment of war.
Islam, in fact, makes of peace a special greeting which Moslems exchange whenever they meet by saying, "Peace be unto you" (Assalamu 'Alaykum). The Moslem also utters this statement at the end of every prayer.
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It seems the Koran is a multi-faceted and somewhat contradictory as the Bible.
To characterize Islam as a violent religion would be just as false as characterizing it as a religion of peace. Individual Interpretation also comes into play, not to mention the interpretation of any writing passed down through out the ages.