Fatwa welcomed by Islamic scholars and Experts

Reactions to the Fatwa against terrorism issued by Shaykh-ul-Islam Dr Muhammad Tahir-ul-Qadri are appearing in the world media. Some views of renowned Islamic scholars and experts are given below.

Shaikh Mohammed Hisham Kabbani, an Islamic scholar at the Centre for Spirituality and Cultural Advancement, said: “This scholarship is a landmark in enabling Muslims living in the UK to be able to silence the small minority of people who think it is OK to commit violent acts in the name of Islam,” he said.

“We are happy and honoured to be working with Mr Qadri and Minhaj-ul-Quran to support the UK Muslims in countering the radical Islamist rhetoric in the world.” (Source Times online)

Many in the Maghreb welcomed the fatwa, which includes the opinions of key ancient and modern scholars, as an important step forward.

In Mauritania, Salick Ould Yerbe, the imam of a Nouadhibou mosque, told Magharebia that the fatwa "is very important and will have a good impact, God willing, on the souls of Muslims".

He said the fatwa's content had been explained by Mauritanian scholars "who have issued repeated fatwas that terrorism and violence have no place in the true religion of Islam, and that the fate of suicide bombers is hell".

Mohamed El Koury Ould Abd El Hay, a Mauritanian professor of fiqh, called the fatwa "a decisive and binding argument for those who believe in God and the Last Day. I think that its impact will be very big, especially in our Islamic world."

"There is no doubt that Sheikh Qadri and people like him ... have recognised the damage brought by terrorism to the Islamic religion and Muslims everywhere across the world", the professor added.

In Tunisia, Professor Monia Ferjani, an expert on Islamic movements, said that "finally, a Muslim scholar has come forward and condemned suicide bombing, calling it by its real name, 'terrorism', and issuing a fatwa calling it blasphemy".

"We've been desperate for such fatwas that condemn violence in all its shapes and forms," added Ferjani.

"Islam has always appealed for dialogue and rejected violence," Said Bouziri, a theology professor at the Tizi Ouzou University in Algeria, told Magharebia. "If even one life is saved as a result of that fatwa, I consider that a victory." (Source www.magharebia.com)

Muslim leaders in the Philippines welcomed the fatwa declaring that suicide bombing is not a form of jihad and goes against the principles of Islam.

Former Commission on Elections (Comelec) commissioner Mehol K. Sadain welcomed Qadri’s fatwa.

“I agree. The Qur'an prescribed rules for warfare, and the Holy Prophet exercised mercy during times of war and victory. And there has never been a practice in the time of the Prophet where children, women, the aged and other non-combatants were deliberately killed; not even in battle," said Sadain in a post on Facebook.

Al-Haji Ahmad Bayam, former chief propagandist of the Moro National Liberation Front (MNLF), also agreed.

“Suicide is purely un-Islamic as declared by Allah in the Holy Qur'an. Life and death belong to the exclusive domain of Allah. Precisely, why, there is no such thing as untimely death in Islam," said Bayam.

Baibonn Sanguid, co-convenor of the Young Moro Professionals Network (YMPN), believes Qadri must have studied the Islamic Holy Book and all the volumes of Hadith (the prophet's sayings) before arriving at his fatwa.