Four Islamic charities in the United Kingdom were reported for recently hosting an extremist preacher who condones sexual slavery and advocates for the killing of “blasphemers.”
We’ve reported 4 charities to the regulator after they recently hosted a preacher who condones the killing of Ahmadi Muslims, apostates and ‘blasphemers’. It should be obvious that charities shouldn’t be used as a platform for harmful extremists.https://t.co/y2qxtsDwSi
— National Secular Society (@NatSecSoc) July 29, 2024
The four charities were referred to the British government’s Charity Commission after social media posts indicated they had hosted Ibtisam Elahi Zaheer, an extremist Islamic scholar and preacher from Pakistan, during his visit to the UK last month.
The charities that hosted Zaheer include the Umm Ul Qura Foundation, which runs a mosque in Bradford and was endorsed by Zaheer himself; the Al-Hikmah Project, which runs a mosque in Keighley; Makki Masjid, a mosque in Manchester; and the Markazi Jamiat Ahl-e-Hadith UK, an umbrella Muslim organization based in Birmingham with over 45 mosques and groups affiliated with it.
All four charities are registered for "the advancement of religion,” which many organizations, such as the National Secular Society (NSS), which reported the four charities to the commission, have argued can lead to the promotion of extremist ideologies. The Charity Commission received the report and has opened "assessment cases" into the charities.
“It's galling to see tax breaks handed to mosques that host fundamentalists with divisive agendas when this clearly serves no public benefit. Outdated laws which regard the 'advancement of religion' as a charitable purpose must be reconsidered.” Megan Manson, the National Secular Society’s head of campaigns, said. "It should be obvious to all that charities shouldn't be used as a platform for harmful extremists."
There never seems to be any consequences, though.
— Rich Sanderson (Stunning and Regal) (@RichSandersen) July 27, 2024
Zaheer has been notorious for his extremist stances on many issues, such as condoning the killing of “blasphemers,” those who leave Islam, and members of the Ahmadi Muslim community. He also said sexual slavery is acceptable and has even “forgiven” an accused pedophile.
Subtitles from a YouTube video uploaded in 2012 reportedly showed Zaheer calling Ahmadi Muslims “apostates” who "don't have the right to live on Earth.” He was also heard in the video saying that "we will never grant them the right to live” if Ahmadi Muslims refer to themselves as Muslims or call their places of worship mosques.
Zaheer also said he doesn’t care what people think of him when he expresses his views, saying, “Let them consider me as an extremist or a terrorist.” He also supported the death penalty given to Asia Bibi in 2010 after being accused of blasphemy, adding that pardoning her would be "criminal negligence" and would cause inter-religious tensions.
The molvi is just quoting from holy book.
— Hawa Hawai (@HawaaaHawaiii) July 28, 2024
In a post on his Facebook account in 2021, Zaheer claimed that Islam "designed a solution" for female prisoners of war, which means "they are distributed to the soldiers in an organized manner" or "sold as slaves.”
The scholar repeated this view according to a transcript of an interview from a 2010 interview, where he said it is permitted to use Jewish women captured in Israel as "concubines.” He even compared being the "owner" of a woman to being the owner of a goat or a horse and implies that men, therefore, have the right to sell women.
A cleric arrested on suspicion of attempting to rape a boy was released after Zaheer reportedly intervened and “forgave” the cleric.
Just days after Hamas attacked Israel on October 7th, his YouTube account published a video where Zaheer is shown asking a pro-Palestine rally if they are "ready" to "make the Jews of Israel suffer,” where the crowd cheered in response.
