Colorado Imam Karim AbuZaid: Many Jews Will Convert When Caliphate Is Established in Jerusalem; They Denied Jesus Kingship, Conspired Against Him, and Caused His 'So-Called Crucifixion,' But Islam Wil
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Memri
a day ago
- Memri
Syria-Based Jihadi Cleric Urges Hamas To Raise 'White Flag' Of 'Holy Jihad' Against The Infidels As Taliban Did
The following report is now a complimentary offering from MEMRI's Jihad and Terrorism Threat Monitor (JTTM). For JTTM subscription information, click here. On July 22, 2025, Egyptian-born, Syria-based jihadi cleric Yahya Al-Farghali aka Abu Al-Fath published an essay titled "To Hamas: Raise the White Flag out of Mercy for the People."[1] In his essay Al-Farghali calls on Hamas to shake off "idolatrous" concepts and Western creations such as nationalism, democracy and human rights, and urges it to follow in the footsteps of the Taliban and raise a pure "white flag" of "holy jihad" for the application of Islamic shari'a law and in opposition to the infidels. Al-Farghali opens his essay by stating that at first, he was among the enthusiastic supporters of Al-Aqsa Flood, the October 7, 2023 attack on Israel by Hamas, and noted its many advantages, first and foremost the fact that it broke "the slide toward normalization" that he claims those who betrayed Palestine and the Al-Aqsa Mosque were slipping toward. However, he adds that from the first day he believed that the major flaw in the plan for that campaign was Hamas's misjudgment regarding the Islamic regimes and the extent of "their self-humiliation and collaboration" (with the enemy). Al-Farghali explains that for all of Islamic history, to the days of the Rashidun Caliphate[2] "the mujahideen who walked the straight path" would examine their sins and the transgressions they committed when the victory on the battlefield tarried. He wrote that the Quran teaches that a Muslim army is not defeated by the strength of its enemies but due to its own failures, as it is written: "Why is it when you suffered casualties [at Uḥud]—although you had made your enemy suffer twice as much [at Badr]—you protested, 'How could this be?'? Say, [O Prophet,] 'It is because of your disobedience'…" (Quran 3:165). In this context, Al-Farghali accuses Hamas of trying to adopt "international concepts, such as democracy and human rights" which, he claims, do not correspond to the Islamic religion and sometimes even contradict it, using the argument that they are compelled to do so due to the exigencies of circumstances. He contends that such behavior is forbidden to those who lead the Islamic nation because it misleads those who follow it. Moreover, he asserts that even the West and the international community sanctify such "idols" only as long as they don't harm their own economic interests or those of their "nurturer [Israel]," and when they do hurt those interests, then they (the West) "devour their idols, without any sorrow or need to justify this." He asks Hamas: "Has the time not come for you to raise the pure white flag, that bears only the Shahadah (the Islamic profession of faith),"[3] as the Taliban did in Afghanistan and then Allah granted it victory? He clarifies that he is not referring to a flag in the sense of a piece of cloth, but as the goal described in the hadith attributed to the Prophet Muhammad, which reads: "he who fights under a banner of ignorance showing anger in support of party spirit, or summoning people to party spirit, or helping party spirit, and then is killed will be killed like those of pre-Islamic times." Al-Farghali calls on Hamas to raise only one flag which is the flag "of the holy jihad" for the sake of applying shari'a law and "ousting the unbelief," because it is the infidel and not because it is imperialism or colonialism which negates the right of self-determination of the Palestinian people, or any other national or pan-Arab slogan. He urges it to take action "before it's too late," and stresses that if it really does so, then Allah will grant it victory and save it and its people. He also stresses that his words do not constitute a denial of the Muslim obligation to urgently come to the aid of their brothers in Gaza, to the best of their ability. It is notable that when Hamas perpetrated its attack against Israel, Al-Farghali called for suicide attacks against Israelis all over the world, and declared that the "quickest deterrence of the massacres committed against Gaza" would be a large-scale campaign of unrestrained martyrdom-seeking – i.e. suicide – operations so that the situation "gets out of control."[4]
Iraqi News
2 days ago
- Iraqi News
Iraq stands firm on Popular Mobilization Bill despite US pushback
Baghdad – A bill in Iraq that would further formalise the role — and perhaps, the autonomy — of a powerful coalition of pro-Iran former paramilitaries has sparked a heated debate, fanned in part by US pressure. Few details of the bill that could decide the future of the Hashd al-Shaabi, also referred as Popular Mobilization Forces or PMF, alliance have been made public. Formed in 2014 when Iraqis were urged to take up arms against the jihadists of the Islamic State group, the Hashd is a powerful force with major military and political clout. The bill aims at regulating and restructuring the alliance of a myriad of armed groups, which together have more than 200,000 fighters and employees. Not mincing words, US Secretary of State Marco Rubio has said the proposed legislation 'would institutionalise Iranian influence and armed terrorist groups undermining Iraq's sovereignty'. An Iraqi government official, speaking to AFP on condition of anonymity, said opponents of the bill say it 'seems to establish something similar to the Revolutionary Guards' in Iran — a powerful military force imbued with the Islamic republic's ideology. The aim, according to political scientist Renad Mansour, is to integrate the Hashd 'even more into the state'. 'Some argue that this is an important first step, because it's better to have them in this system than outside the system, where they could be spoilers,' said Mansour, a senior research fellow at Chatham House think tank. But others, he added, 'argue that this is a further way for the Hashd to consolidate its power', giving the alliance 'access to greater funds, greater intelligence, and other kind of equipment and technology'. The debate around the bill comes at a time of heightened regional tensions and upheavals, as the Gaza war reverberates across the Middle East. Iranian allies and proxies have been weakened in wars with Israel, which has Washington's backing. In Lebanon, Tehran-backed group Hezbollah faces a government push to disarm it by the end of the year. In recent years, the Iraqi armed factions have seen their clout grow, with some gaining seats in parliament and in government, even as several group leaders — including the Hashd's top commander — have been subjected to US sanctions. In 2022 the coalition was granted a public works enterprise, Al-Muhandis, with capital worth tens of millions of dollars. Responding to Washington's concerns, Iraqi Prime Minister Mohammed Shia al-Sudani has defended the proposed bill as 'part of the government's broader security reform agenda'. The Hashd 'is an official Iraqi military institution operating under the authority of the commander-in-chief of the Armed Forces', Sudani said. A 2016 law already affords the Hashd the status of a public body. But some factions face accusations of collecting government salaries for their fighters on the one hand, but acting entirely independently of the state on the other. Some of the factions within the Hashd are aligned with Baghdad, while others pledge their allegiance first and foremost to the Tehran-led 'Axis of Resistance'. The latter have in the past launched rockets and explosive-laden drones at US troops stationed in Iraq as part of an anti-jihadist coalition. Mansour said the Hashd was unlikely to morph into something that resembles Iran's Guards. It 'isn't a coherent institution', he said. 'It has many different groups, many different factions, many different leaders, and they're still fighting with each other.' Speaking on condition of anonymity, a source close to the armed factions told AFP that Shiite Muslim political parties seek a 'special law' that would guarantee the Hashd remains 'an independent military institution, on the same level as the interior or defence ministry'. Sunni Muslim and Kurdish politicians oppose any such move, and even among the Shiites there is no consensus, said the government official. Deputy parliament speaker Mohsen al-Mandalawi said the proposed legislation 'contributes to enhancing the combat capabilities' of the Hashd and to 'creating new formations concerned with developing this security institution', according to the official Iraq News Agency. If approved, it would pave the way for the creation of a special military academy and secure the Hashd's 'financial independence', according to a parliament report published by state media. According to the report, the Iraqi state council noted the 'bloating' of administrative structures, and opposed the creation of such an academy for the Hashd instead of using existing defence ministry facilities. But with legislative elections coming up in November, the former paramilitaries may seek to seize on the chance to gain institutional recognition. The Hashd 'needs something to reinvigorate its base', said Mansour. 'The more the Hashd is institutionalised, the more access it has to Iraq's wealthy state coffers,' he added. 'This could become another mechanism for patronage.'
Memri
2 days ago
- Memri
NJ Imam Mohammad Al-Qatanani in Paterson Friday Sermon: Life in Gaza Was Normal and Beautiful before All This, This Could Happen to Any Nation, Anywhere; Instead of Thanking Allah for Saving Them from
Imam Mohammad Al-Qatanani of the Islamic Center of Passaic County (ICPC) in Paterson, NJ said in his August 1, 2025 Friday sermon that Hitler and the Nazis committed crimes and massacres against the Jews, and that Allah relieved the Jews from that oppression and from European oppression. However, instead of showing gratitude, the Jews have inflicted oppression on the Palestinians. He added that the people of Gaza lived a 'normal, beautiful, and happy life' prior to recent events and that what happened to them could have happened to any other nation. In December 2017, Qatanani spoke at a NYC demonstration organized by Within Our Lifetime, alongside Nerdeen Kiswani, urging Palestinians to reject peace agreements with Israel and launch an Intifada. Qatanani was convicted by an Israeli military court in 1993 for supporting Hamas, did not disclose this conviction on his U.S. immigration application, and has family ties to a Hamas military leader. Despite this, he remains in the U.S. following a 2025 U.S. Court of Appeals ruling that prevented the Department of Homeland Security from revoking his green card due to missed procedural deadlines.
