Draft:Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali

Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali
File:Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali.webp
Name	Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali
Other Names	Rabi' bin Hadi Umayr al-Madkhali
Personal Details
Birth Place	Saudi Arabia
Death Date	Wednesday 9 July
Religion	Islam
Works	Bayn al-Imamayn Muslim wa al-Daraqutni

Rabi' bin Hadi al-Madkhali, was a Saudi Arabian Sunni Salafi Muslim scholar and founder of a movement titled "Madkhali movement" which believed in absolute loyalty and complete obedience to the current rulers of Arab countries and defending their positions and policies and suppressing their opponents from Islamic movements. Criticism of Islamist movements due to interference in politics, opposition to Arab Spring revolutions, opposition to Muslim Brotherhood, support for Khalifa Haftar are among his intellectual tendencies. Books Bayn al-Imamayn Muslim wa al-Daraqutni, Tahqiq Kitab al-Madkhal Ila al-Sahih, Manhaj Ahl al-Sunnah fi Naqd al-Rijal wa al-Kutub wa al-Tawa'if, Al-Ta'assub al-Dhamim wa Atharuhu and Al-Kitab wa al-Sunnah... Atharuhuma wa Makanatuhuma wa al-Darurah Ilayhima fi Iqamat al-Ta'lim fi Madarisina, are among his works.

Biography

Rabi' bin Hadi bin Muhammad Umayr al-Madkhali was born in 1932 AD, in Al-Jaradiyah village in Saudi Arabia. He is from the well-known Madkhali tribe in the Jazan region in southern Saudi Arabia.

Education

He completed his preliminary education at a scientific institute in 1961 AD, in the city of Samtah, a subsidiary of the Jazan region. He joined the Faculty of Sharia in Riyadh, the capital of Saudi Arabia. He then went to Islamic University of Medina, where after four years of study there, he graduated in 1964 AD. In 1977 AD, he received his Master's degree in the field of Hadith from King Abdulaziz University by defending his thesis, Bayn al-Imamayn Muslim wa al-Daraqutni, and in 1980 AD, he graduated with a PhD from King Abdulaziz University.

Positions

After graduation, al-Madkhali served for a while as a lecturer at Islamic University of Medina and then as a lecturer at the Hadith Faculty, teaching Hadith and its various sciences, and took charge of the headship of the Sunnah Department in graduate studies levels.

Works

• Bayn al-Imamayn, Muslim wa al-Daraqutni;
• Tahqiq Kitab al-Madkhal Ila al-Sahih;
• Manhaj Ahl al-Sunnah fi Naqd al-Rijal wa al-Kutub wa al-Tawa'if;
• Al-Ta'assub al-Dhamim wa Atharuhu;
• Al-Kitab wa al-Sunnah... Atharuhuma wa Makanatuhuma wa al-Darurah Ilayhima fi Iqamat al-Ta'lim fi Madarisina.

Intellectual Orientation

Al-Madkhali is the founder of a trend known as the Madkhali movement. This trend is a Salafi movement that emerged in the early 1990s AD in Saudi Arabia and spread to other countries. The Madkhali ideology is widespread in Salafi circles, and he has followers in Arab countries including Algeria, Libya, Yemen, and Saudi Arabia. The message and approach of this movement are based on two things: absolute loyalty to the ruling authority and complete obedience to rulers and defense of their positions and policies, whatever they may be, and continuous attack on opponents, especially opponents who are from Islamic movements.

Criticism of Islamist Movements for Interference in Politics

The Madkhali movement criticizes Islamist movements for interference in politics. One of the ideas promoted by this movement is that any expression of opinion that differs from the view of the authorities is considered a violation of Islamic laws and incitement to sedition. Based on this belief, this movement allied with coup plotters in Libya and the Egypt, and with Emirati forces against Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, the President of Yemen.

Opposition to Arab Spring Revolutions

Al-Madkhali opposed the Arab Spring revolutions that occurred in some Arab countries against ruling regimes. In an article he published on his website in February 2011 AD titled "A Word on Events, Demonstrations, and Rebellion Against Rulers", he wrote that Islam forbids rebellion against the ruler.

Opposition to the Muslim Brotherhood

He is also opposed to the Muslim Brotherhood and has explicitly called for fighting them in a fatwa. On 10 July 2016 AD, he wrote on his website: The Muslim Brotherhood is the most dangerous group for Islam since its establishment until now. They are the most lying group after the Shiites. They believe in the unity of religions, unity of existence, and Secularism. In his fatwa, which was criticized by scholars and intellectuals for inciting violence and hatred, he asked Libyan Salafis to support the religion of God and protect it from the Muslim Brotherhood and others.

Support for Khalifa Haftar

Following the chaos of the fall of the regime of Colonel Muammar Gaddafi in 2011 AD in Libya, followers of the so-called Madkhali movement spread across the country and participated in Libyan conflicts by issuing sedition-inciting fatwas, emphasizing support for the retired general, Khalifa Haftar. In January 2018 AD, the Dar al-Ifta of Libya accused a group ideologically affiliated with Al-Madkhali of destabilizing Libya and sabotaging the revolution, and in a statement announced that Madkhali Salafis, under the pretext of fighting Shirk and establishing Tawhid, engage in exhumation and destruction of shrines, as if Libya is a polytheistic country whose people worship idols. Al-Madkhali considers Khalifa Haftar a dominant ruler and a legitimate authority against whom rebellion is forbidden. On 15 February 2018 AD, Sadiq al-Ghariani, the Grand Mufti of Libya, said in his weekly program titled "Islam and Life", broadcast on the Tanasuh satellite channel, affiliated with the Dar al-Ifta of Libya, that Saudi Arabia sent Salafis to Libya who appointed Haftar as a legitimate authority. In March 2017 AD, al-Ghariani described Al-Madkhali as the commander of a military battalion that issues the order to fight Haftar. However, the leader of the Madkhali movement had accused al-Ghariani on 6 July 2016 AD of membership in the Muslim Brotherhood and following Sayyid Qutb as a source of authority. Also in April 2018 AD, the French newspaper Libération, L'Eberration, in an article titled "Amidst Libya's Chaos, Salafis Gain Power", stated that the Madkhali movement is a staunch opponent of the Muslim Brotherhood and that Madkhalis were revived and supported by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates to play this role in Libya.

Death

Finally, Rabee bin Hadi Umayr al-Madkhali died on Wednesday, 9 July 2025 AD, corresponding to 13 Muharram 1447 AH, equivalent to 18 Tir 1404 SH.

Reactions

Omar bin Rabee al-Madkhali

Omar bin Rabee al-Madkhali, son of Rabee al-Madkhali, announced the death of his father, Sheikh Rabee bin Hadi al-Madkhali, on his personal account on the "X" platform. He was one of the most prominent figures of the so-called "Madkhali Salafism" or "Jam'iyyah" current, who passed away at the age of 92 after years of controversial presence in the religious sphere of عربستان سعودی and beyond. Rabee al-Madkhali was a close student of Albani and one of the hadith professors at دانشگاه اسلامی مدینه, around whose thoughts a specific intellectual current formed. This current, which strongly emphasizes the necessity of obedience to the ruler, avoidance of partisan or revolutionary politics, and the prohibition of takfir, is considered the opposite of currents such as the Muslim Brotherhood, Qutbists, and Sururi Salafis. Al-Madkhali and his followers accused many of their opponents of being Khawarij, while in contrast, some critics accused him and his current of being "Murji'ah"; meaning neglecting the political and social aspects of religion. Al-Madkhali was considered one of Albani's senior students, but even his teacher and some top-tier Saudi scholars had condemned his extremism in declaring any inclination towards politics as fisq (immorality). However, the mutual support of Al Saud and some Arab governments for this approach caused this current, although it did not find a broad social base, to gain significant presence and influence especially in institutions such as the University of Medina, which hosts many foreign students. This institutional influence and extensive use of various media has caused the voice of the Madkhali current to be heard at the international level, especially among Salafi youth, more than its social base would warrant.

The prominent and targeted activities of the Madkhalis after October 7, 2023, once again revealed the ideological and propaganda capacities of this current. The Madkhalis, who have always emphasized the rejection of any political or military confrontation with Muslim rulers and also avoidance of entering contemporary conflict arenas, in this period also organizedly and persistently criticized حماس and the resistance current. They, by repeating rhetoric that clearly drew inspiration from the general lines of Saudi diplomacy and governments supporting normalization of relations with تل‌آویو, called Islamic resistance "illegitimate adventurism", "fasad fil-ard" (corruption on earth), and "neglecting the interests of the Ummah". This movement showed that the Madkhali project, beyond an isolated intellectual or purely academic current, has practically become a strategic reserve for governments that are politically seeking to contain resistant Islamist forces and also seek to legitimize the process of normalization of relations with the رژیم اسرائیل in the minds of the Muslim public.

Mohammad Elhamy

Mohammad Elhamy, a prominent intellectual figure in اخوان المسلمین مصر, says thus: I could not believe it due to extreme happiness... The head of the ominous sedition has died: Rabee al-Madkhali, the disgrace of the age, the stain of disgrace of this era, and the leader of a deviant sect that was very dangerous and harmful for Muslims... I ask God to punish him as he deserves, and show us a black day for his followers. I ask God to join him to the sultans and kings who led people to servitude other than God! And join them to him sooner rather than later, not far, but near... and heal the hearts of believers from his evil and theirs!.

See also

• دانشگاه اسلامی مدینه
• اهل سنت و جماعت
• عربستان سعودی
• اخوان المسلمین
• حماس
• سلفیه

References

• Al-Madkhali, a Saudi Salafi who attacked the Muslim Brotherhood and opposed the Arab Spring, Al Jazeera Media Network, Publication date: 11 April 2018 AD, Access date: 20 Tir 1404 SH.
• Death of Rabee al-Madkhali; Sheikh of Sheikh of Normalization, Dolat Din Channel, Mersad Think Tank on Bale platform., Publication date: 19 Tir 1404 SH, Access date: 21 Tir 1404 SH.
• Mohammad Elhamy, a prominent intellectual figure in the Muslim Brotherhood of Egypt, Shouba Channel on Eitaa platform, Publication date: 19 Tir 1404 SH, Access date: 21 Tir 1404 SH.