Fatwa of Ayatullah Ali Khamenei against insulting revered Sunni figures: Difference between revisions

A fatwa prohibiting the insulting of the most religious figures of Sunni Islam was published by Iran's Supreme Leader, Ali Khamenei, <ref>1. Hammond, Andrew. "Iran leader wins plaudits over sectarian strife fatwa". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> on 30 September 2010. The fatwa was issued following the insulting of Aisha by Yasser Al-Habib. <ref>Hammond, Andrew. "Iran leader wins plaudits over sectarian strife fatwa". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> This fatwa received various reactions from Shia and Sunni Muslims, <ref>Hammond, Andrew. "Iran leader wins plaudits over sectarian strife fatwa". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> <ref>Zain, Ali. "Insulting Mother of the Faithful, Aisha, prohibited by Ayatollah Khamenei". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> and from Arabic <ref>""فتوى لـ"خامنئي" تحرّم الإساءة لزوجات الرسول ورموز أهل السنة"". Al Arabiya. Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> and Western media. <ref>Hammond, Andrew. "Iran leader wins plaudits over sectarian strife fatwa". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> <ref>Azizi, Arash. "Iran targets 'MI6 Shiites'". Archived from the original on 2017-11-07. </ref>

The fatwa is binding only upon those performing taqlid to Ayatollah Khamenei, Twelver Shias following numerous other maraji that disagree with the ruling, are not obliged to respect it and may even act against it. <ref>http://www.alqatrah.net/en/ns123 </ref>

In August 2010, Al-Habib, a London-based Kuwaiti cleric, celebrated the anniversary of the death of Aisha in Hussainiya and said celebrating her death is necessary for Islamic victory. <ref>1. "Yasser Al-Habib, the cleric who lives in London". Archived from the original on 2018-06-19. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> The report of the celebration was published on his website and aired on Fadak Satellite Channel. <ref>"Yasser Al-Habib, the cleric who lives in London". Archived from the original on 2018-06-19. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> The online publication of Al-Habib's speech about Aisha, especially a video posted on YouTube, provoked anger among Sunni Muslims, who view Aisha as one of the most revered religious figures, and led to protests and reactions in the Muslim countries. <ref>"Yasser Al-Habib, the cleric who lives in London". Archived from the original on 2018-06-19. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> On 20 September 2010, the Kuwaiti government held a meeting and accused Al-Habib of insulting religious symbols and attempting to excite sedition in Kuwait, and cancelled his citizenship. <ref>"الكويت: إسقاط جنسية الحبيب بعد "التطاول" على عائشة". Archived from the original on 2018-03-03. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> In Saudi Arabia and Bahrain, a number of Shia clerics condemned his actions and they considered it as his abandonment from Shia beliefs. <ref>"صورة ضوئية مما سبق نشره في اليوم مشايخ ومثقفو الشيعة بالأحساء والبحرين يشجبون احتفالات الشماتة بـ "أم المؤمنين "". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref>

Several Saudi Arabian Shia clerics asked Khamenei to express his view on the incident <ref>Desk, News. "Khamenei issued a fatwa prohibiting insulting Aisha, Prophet Muhammad's (SAW) wife". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> to stem sectarian tensions in the Persian Gulf region. <ref>Desk, News. "Khamenei issued a fatwa prohibiting insulting Aisha, Prophet Muhammad's (SAW) wife". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> Khamenei said:  

Disrespecting the pure wives of the Muhammad prophet should be avoided. The Prophet's wives are all respectable; anyone who insults any of them has insulted the Muhammad Prophet. I resolutely declare this offensive. The commander of the Faithful, Ali treated her eminence Aisha in such a respectful manner. He treated a woman, who had come to fight against him, with the utmost respect because she was the Muhammad Prophet's wife; otherwise the Commander of the Faithful would not stand on a ceremony with anyone: hence, no such disrespect should ever occur.<ref>"Ayatollah Khamenei's Fatwa about Insulting ʻAisha". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref>

 

News agency Reuters described the fatwa issued by Ayatollah Ali Khamenei as receiving "widespread praise". <ref>Hammond, Andrew. "Iran leader wins plaudits over sectarian strife fatwa". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref>

Iranian parliamentarian Ali Motahari said Khamenei's stress on Islamic unity in the fatwa indicates his accurate assessment of the situation. <ref>"A practical action towards Islamic unity". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> According to Sunni clerics of Golestan Province, Khamenei showed his knowledge and prevented the sedition of enemies. <ref>"Shiites and Sunnis neutralize any conspiracy of the enemies of Islam,Supreme Leader is a sign of unity of the Islamic world". Archived from the original on 2018-06-20. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref>

This fatwa received various reactions in Arabic media, including daily newspapers Al-Anba and AlRay AlAam in Kuwait, As-Safir in Lebanon, Al Watan and Okaz in Saudi Arabia, Al-Hayat in London, the daily newspaper Al-Shorouk and radio and television broadcasters in Egypt, and some Arabic satellite television channels. Al Jazeera reviewed the fatwa and its effect on the Islamic unity, repeating it in several news broadcasts. <ref>"Ayatollah Khamenei's fatwa: Insulting the Mother of the Faithful Aisha is prohibited". Archived from the original on 2019-01-21. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, the most prominent Sunni scholar in Cairo, praised the fatwa in an interview on Al Jazeera.[1] He said the fatwa had been published at the right time and could help to control sectarian tensions. <ref>"Islamic unity in the view of the leader of the revolution and its global impacts". Archived from the original on 2018-06-20. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> Hassan Nasrallah, secretary-general of Hezbollah of Lebanon, said during a meeting with the leader of the Nahdlatul Ulama in Indonesia Said Aqil Siradj, said the fatwa disappointed those who tried to harm Islamic unity. <ref>"emphasis of Hassan Nasrallah on the need to preserve the unity of Muslims". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> Many authorities supported the fatwa, including the secretary general of the Lebanese Ummah Movement, Abdul Nasser Al-Jabri; the leader of the Muslim Brotherhood in Jordan, Hammam Saeed; <ref>"إخوان الأردن يرحبون بفتوى خامنئي". الجزیره. Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref> Maulana Syed Jalaluddin Umri;[28] Sheikh Maher Mezher, the head of the Sunni society to support the resistance in Lebanon; <ref>"إشادات لبنانية بفتوى الإمام الخامنئي حول رموز السنّة وزوجات الرسول (ص)". </ref> secretary general of the Jordanian Islamic Action Front (IAF), Hamza Mansour; ""«العمل الاسلامي" يثمن فتوى خامنئي بتحريم النيل من "أم المؤمنين"". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06.  and the Lebanese Islamic Action Front. <ref>"Insulting Symbols of Sunni Brothers Forbidden, By Imam Khamenei". Archived from the original on 2019-02-07. Retrieved 2019-02-06. </ref>

Abdel Moaty Bayoumi, professor of theology and philosophy at Cairo's Al-Azhar University, said the fatwa was incomplete because it focused only on Aisha. <ref>Osman, Ahmed Zaki. "Experts: Iran fatwa on Prophet's wife will not bridge Sunni-Shia divide". Archived from the original on 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-17. </ref> Mohamed Megahed al-Zayat, vice-director of the National Center for Middle East Studies, criticized the Iranian media for not paying much attention to the fatwa. He said it targets Arabs and could not affect Sunni Arab people, pointing to the political background of the fatwa<ref>Osman, Ahmed Zaki. "Experts: Iran fatwa on Prophet's wife will not bridge Sunni-Shia divide". Archived from the original on 2019-04-17. Retrieved 2019-04-17. </ref>. <ref>https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Fatwa_of_Ali_Khamenei_against_insulting_revered_Sunni_figures</ref>