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Al Jazeera Amid anger over Israel, Harris courts Arab and Muslim voters. Will it work? Story by Ali Harb • 10h • 8 min read Washington, DC – Despite touting her unwavering support for Israel as the country wages war in Gaza and Lebanon, Democratic presidential candidate Kamala Harris is trying to garner support in Arab and Muslim communities in the United States before elections next month. In recent weeks, the US vice president and her team have held meetings with Arab and Muslim “community leaders” while receiving endorsements from Muslim individuals and groups aligned with her Democratic Party But many advocates argue that as long as Harris maintains her pledge to continue to arm Israel and refuses to distance herself from President Joe Biden’s unconditional support for the US ally, nothing will help her standing with Arab and Muslim voters. Moreover, critics have slammed the private meetings by Harris and her top national security adviser with handpicked attendees – whose identities are often not made public – as not representative of the communities her campaign says it is hoping to win over. “Such groups and faceless individuals are mere tokens for the Democratic Party, paraded by Harris’s campaign to check off a box recommended by an algorithm — a strategy she maintained campaigning on trends and memes rather than impactful policy,” Laura Albast, a Palestinian American activist in the Washington, DC, area, told Al Jazeera. She said the perception that voters would approve US-backed atrocities in Gaza and Lebanon because the person shaking Harris’s hand looked like them was “insanity”. Duration 2:25 Quality Settings Captions Fullscreen ANI Videl Meetings Harris’s push to reach out to Arab and Muslim voters comes as Israel’s military assaults on Gaza and Lebanon are escalating, heightening anger and anxiety in these communities just weeks before the November 5 elections. For months, community members have urged the vice president to break from Biden and put conditions on US military aid to Israel to pressure the country to end its onslaught on the Gaza Strip. But Harris has rebuffed those calls. In August, her campaign rejected pleas to allow a Palestinian American speaker at the Democratic National Convention in Chicago. And this week, she joined Biden on a call with Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu in which the US administration expressed “ironclad” support for Israel. Harris met with Arab and Muslim advocates in Flint, north of Detroit, Michigan – a key battleground state with sizeable Arab communities – on Sunday. Days earlier, her top national security adviser held a similar meeting virtually. Hussein Dabajeh, a Lebanese American political consultant in the Detroit area, decried the lack of transparency around such meetings. He said the Harris campaign is “afraid” to have an open dialogue with representatives of the community, so it is reverting to behind-closed-doors discussions to appear like it is listening to Arab and Muslim Americans. He stressed that the main audience for these meetings is not Arabs and Muslims but the broader electorate as the Democratic Party is trying to portray its candidate as inclusive and caring. “It’s a meeting just to check off the headline. There’s no actual substance behind it,” Dabajeh told Al Jazeera. “It’s unfortunate that the people meeting with them believe after one year of our people getting massacred that these fake meetings are still going to do it.” The Biden administration and campaign – before he dropped out of the presidential race – also held similar meetings that failed to improve his standing among Arab and Muslim Americans or quell the outrage over his support for the war on Gaza. The US provides Israel at least $3.8bn in military aid annually, and the Biden administration has authorised $14bn in further assistance to its ally to help fund the ongoing war. ‘Critical times’ One group that did attend the Flint meeting is Emgage, a Muslim American political advocacy group. “Emgage Action called on Vice President Harris to do everything in her power, should she win, to end the war and reset US policy in the region,” the group said in a statement. “Emgage Action also reiterated the organization and the Muslim community’s disappointment in the handling of the crisis that has endangered the well being of our communities at home and is now widening to a broader regional war.” Deputy Wayne County Executive Assad Turfe, who lost family members during Israel’s 2006 war in Lebanon, also attended the meeting. “I met with Vice President Harris and shared this deeply personal loss. I emphasized that we need her leadership now to help bring an end to the violence,” he wrote in a social media post. “I hope that her administration will take this call seriously and act swiftly to bring the much-needed relief and action that we all hope for.” He said he brought up the issues of displaced people in Lebanon, the need for evacuating US citizens trapped in the country and immediate humanitarian aid. “In these critical times, we may not all agree on strategy, but we must still work together and advocate to end this war and provide relief to the people of Lebanon and Gaza NOW! We must push for action that not only saves lives but restores hope and dignity to those who are suffering,” Turfe said. Harris endorsement Emgage raised many eyebrows late last month when it announced it was endorsing Harris’s bid for the White House – days into Israel’s devastating bombing campaign in Lebanon, which has already destroyed large parts of the country. The group, which almost exclusively endorses Democrats and is led by figures who have worked in Democratic administrations, argued that the endorsement is rooted in preventing the Republican candidate, former President Donald Trump, from winning. “This endorsement is not an agreement with Vice President Harris on all issues, but rather, an honest guidance to our voters regarding the difficult choice they confront at the ballot box,” it said in a statement. Emgage also praised the Biden-Harris administration for appointing Muslim Americans to federal jobs. But as the war rages in Gaza and people flee southern Lebanon amid a relentless Israeli bombardment supported by the Biden-Harris administration, some advocates see the nod of support for the vice president not only as misguided but also insulting. Suehaila Amen, a community advocate in Michigan, had a scathing message for Emgage: “I’m disgusted by the fact that none of you have any dignity or honour, that the mass slaughter of Muslims on a global scale isn’t enough for you to hold your head up high.” Michigan is home to a large Lebanese American population, tens of thousands of whom hail from Lebanon’s southern villages and towns that have been largely depopulated and decimated by the Israeli offensive Emgage and two of its representatives did not return Al Jazeera’s repeated requests for comment on the criticism of the group’s position. Amer Zahr, a Palestinian American activist and comedian, called the Emgage endorsement of Harris a “spit in the face of our community”. “Emgage has announced that, as far as they are concerned, no amount of massacred Arab children is enough to abandon the Biden-Harris administration,” Zahr told Al Jazeera. “According to Emgage, genocide is excusable in order to stay loyal to the Democratic ticket. Their statement openly and proudly states that securing federal appointments trumps repeated vetoes of ceasefire resolutions, proud declarations of Zionism and tens of thousands of Arab bodies under the rubble.” Harris’s position Separately from the Emgage endorsement, 25 Muslim imams and community figures – mostly from Georgia and the Washington, DC, area – penned a joint statement last week backing the vice president. In the endorsement – first reported by NBC News – they credited Harris for speaking out against “the devastating loss of life in Gaza and the unfolding humanitarian crisis” . But the authors avoided any mention of the vice president’s support for the Israeli offensive, which they described as a “genocide”. “When the war in Gaza began, she traveled and met with regional leaders and made clear that the US would pursue a two-state solution, and what reconstruction of Gaza would look like, she also made clear that international humanitarian law must be respected,” the statement said. Several Biden administration officials have decried the suffering in Gaza. For example, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said he sees his “own children” in the eyes of Palestinian children enduring displacement and bombardment. Still, according to recent US media reports, Blinken defied assessments by various US officials when he certified that Israel was not blocking humanitarian aid to Gaza – a decision that allowed the US to continue to transfer arms to its ally. And like Blinken, when talking about Palestinian pain, Harris uses passive voice about the atrocities in Gaza and avoids assigning responsibility to Israel. Moreover, Harris often stresses that her support for Israel is “unwavering”. She has been part of an administration that has overseen unconditional support for the brutal war on Gaza, and recently, she welcomed Israeli escalation in Lebanon. When asked recently what she would have done differently from Biden, Harris said “not a thing that comes to mind”, stressing that she has been part of the decision-making process at the White House on most important issues. The Biden-Harris administration has vetoed three proposals at the United Nations Security Council that would have called for a ceasefire in Gaza. This week, Harris described Iran – not Russia or China – as America’s “greatest adversary”, a position that further aligns her with the Netanyahu government. ‘Political agenda’ Given Harris’s record and the equally staunch support for Israel of her Republican rival, former President Donald Trump, as well as his anti-immigrant rhetoric, many Arab and Muslim voters feel frustrated with the two-party political system in the US. On Monday, the Abandon Harris campaign, a Michigan-based Muslim group that says it aims to hold the Democratic administration “accountable for the Gaza genocide”, endorsed Green Party candidate Jill Stein for president. “Our movement remains dedicated to ensuring that the American people, especially the Muslim-American community, recognize the responsibility we share in standing up against oppression and using all our power to stop genocide — wherever it may arise,” the group said in a statement. “On the precipice of the election, we endorse Jill Stein.” Stein has virtually no chance of winning the presidency, but she has seen a surge of support in Arab and Muslim communities, according to recent polls, in part due to her advocacy for Palestinian rights. Trump has also seen his numbers improve in Arab and Muslim communities, and last month, he was endorsed by the Yemeni American mayor of Hamtramck, a Muslim-majority city in southeast Michigan. As the election nears, recent campaigning has sparked debates about the representation and priorities of Arab and Muslim communities in the US, whose members share similar cultures and religious practices but are not a monolith. “We unequivocally condemn those from our community who continue to exploit the blood of Arab people for their political agenda,” the American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee said in a statement on Sunday. “This includes individuals and organizations from our community that are in lock-step with the Democratic and Republican parties, putting party over community, politics over justice, and overlooking a genocide for access.”

Salaam I have a query, I read the Lord's prayer recently. and I fail to see HOW this is haram?????? "Our Father, Who art in heaven, hallowed be Thy name; Thy kingdom come; Thy will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us this day our daily bread; and forgive us our trespasses as we forgive those who trespass against us; and lead us not into temptation, but deliver us from evil." What is haram about this ??? Its asking Allah to give us rizq, forgive us and save us from evil? how is it haram?? @A

SALAAM PLEASE READ THE ENTIRE POST AND UNTIL THE LAST FULL STOP. SUSPEND JUDGEMENT OF THE TITLE.: I BELIEVE CONSERVATIVE-LIBERTARINISM IS THE WAY IN THE MODERN WORLD. HERE'S WHY: Libertarian Islam by S. Hammad Haider | Feb 12, 2017 A commonly used epithet to describe Islam is ‘The Religion of Peace,’ but this is inaccurate and confusing. The phrase became more commonly used after 9/11 by politicians. The Quran never describes the faith in these terms. It is more accurate to describe Islam as a religion of non-aggression and justice. The Non-aggression principle (NAP) is considered to be a defining principle of libertarianism. Many libertarians today like to bend, or flat out break this principle, however, a Muslim can be a Rothbardian libertarian, like Ron Paul, who manages to encompass economic and sociological theories while using the NAP as an axiom. Libertarians who want to learn more about the NAP are blessed to have the many resources such as the Libertarian Institute, the Scott Horton Show and the Ron Paul Liberty Report. The other day I found some time to listen to one episode of the latter. Afterward, the live chat feature remains open, where many libertarians sing praises for Dr. Paul. To my surprise, in the live chat, there were many libertarians or those who call themselves libertarian, who rejected the NAP! If libertarians are wavering on the NAP, then how can a Muslim, who is supposedly in an inherently aggressive religion, adopt this principle? Again, there are many resources available to libertarians who want to better understand how Muslims can adopt libertarian ideals. Dr. Imad-ad-Dean Ahmad is a scholar and libertarian activist who ran for US Senate as the Libertarian Party candidate. He is currently the President of the Minaret Freedom Institute, a libertarian Muslim think tank. I urge those who want to know more about Islam and libertarianism to read his publications. Furthermore, the roots of Muslim libertarianism are historically much deeper. Dr. Denise Spellberg, an associate professor in the Department of History, at the University of Texas-Austin has a fascinating interview online about her book on Thomas Jefferson’s Quran. She explains that Jefferson saw a place for Muslims in his free society through the writings of John Locke: “Neither pagan nor Mahometan,” meaning Muslim, “nor Jew ought to be excluded from the rights of the commonwealth because of his religion.” It may also be a surprise to some readers that Muslims have a rich tradition of secularism. According to the International Humanist and Ethical Union, the father of secularism is the influential Muslim philosopher Ibn Rushd, also known as Averroes. In his work The Decisive Treatise he provided the justification for the separation of state and religion. Dr. Gary Adler Jr., an associate professor at Penn State University, summarized Ibn Rushd’s secularism in his book on Secularism, Catholicism and the Future of Public life: “In other words, secularism can be seen as an instrument of the Divine, ensuring that the righteous Muslim would be wise in matters affecting them on earth in the same way as the Quran ensures his correct path with respect to matters eternal.” (Secularism, Catholicism and the Future of Public life Adler; p.86). The Prophet Muhammad himself can be an example of the NAP in practice. Imam Tahir ul-Qadri, the scholar who controversially issued a 600-page fatwa against terrorism and suicide bombing, spoke to the United States Institute of Peace about the life of the Prophet. According to Qadri, the Prophet of Islam had a military career for thirteen years, and he only fought back any aggression imposed on him by the enemy. The scholar summarized five verses in the Holy Quran, Islam’s holy book, which mentions ‘self-defense,’ was revealed to the Prophet in the city of Mecca. He believes the word ‘Jihad’ to have many meanings but in a military context as a ‘defensive war’. Jihad, he maintained, is not an aggression, rather it represents self-protection according to the Quran. Ron Paul, a champion of the NAP and libertarianism, echoes this idea of defensive wars, by consistently clarifying his position of non-interventionism, not isolationism. If you have read this far you may assume that I am a typical Muslim apologist. My intention is not to be an apologist, but to offer you a line of reasoning which allows Muslims to fully adopt the NAP. That said, as a believer in the NAP, I fully condemn all forms of terrorism including that from radical Muslims. The Islamic State is led by Sunni Muslims who follow a radical interpretation of Sunnism in order to feed their aspirations. These radical interpretations are rooted in The Ridda Wars conducted after the death of Prophet Muhammad and in the writings of Sunni thinkers Ibn Taymiyah and Abdul Wahab. The Ridda Wars, or Apostasy Wars, were a bloody and influential innovation in the name of Islam, especially from a libertarian perspective. Many libertarians believe in a voluntary tax system, whereby the citizenry can hold the state accountable. Well, in 7th century Arabia, the Prophet Muhammad held a voluntary tax system, and never fought a war for taxes. This took a drastic change after his death when the Islamic empire began to spread by the sword. The beginning of this evil expansion is exemplified in the Ridda Wars, where the first caliph implemented the first statutory taxes. The caliph mandated that anyone who did not recognize his leadership, and held back taxes in opposition to this authority, was an apostate, and an enemy of the state. This began the killings for Apostasy, and taxes, which were never conducted under the leadership of Prophet Muhammad (Sunan an-Nasa’i volume 5, Book 37, Hadith 3978, Eng. Ed., Sahih Darussalam). Ibn Taymiyah and Abdul Wahab aimed to give an academic relevance to this form of terrorism against apostates. Richard Bonney was a History Professor at the University of Leicester, and he wrote the book titled Jihad: Quran to Bin Laden. In his book, he describes Ibn Taymiyah and Abdul Wahab as the inspiration for Osama bin Laden: “Ibn Taymiyah thus should be seen as a revivalist of the doctrine of jihad…His fatwa regarding the Mongols established a precedent: in spite of their claim to be Muslims, their failure to implement shariah rendered the Mongols apostates and hence the lawful object of jihad. Muslim citizens thus had the right, indeed duty, to revolt against them, to wage jihad. For Osama bin Laden, Ibn Taymiyah, along with Shaykh Muhammad Ibn ‘Abd al-Wahhab, is one of the great authorities to be cited to justify the kind of indiscriminate resort to violence which he terms jihad (Jihad: Quran to Bin Laden Bonney; p.121-2). Libertarian Islam is an oxymoron under the violent interpretations of Sunnism, but all major religions have a history of violent and peaceful interpretations. This gives an added importance to Muslims, and fellow libertarians, to use the NAP as a foundational principle. A principle of non-aggression can have the power to unite people. Libertarianism in its purest form has a profound attraction to people of all backgrounds, and I am proud to call myself an American libertarian Muslim. Like many Americans, I am a small business owner, a husband, and a father of two young girls. Yes, I do sport a full beard and my wife wears a headscarf. Yet we still attended the Republican caucuses and proudly wrote in Ron Paul as our vote for president in 2012, not only due to Dr. Paul’s unwavering NAP-based philosophy but due to our belief in wholly American ideals. Freedom of religion is an important part of our society, and if we want American libertarianism to triumph then we should trust our ideals. Scott Horton, a founder of the Libertarian Institute, summarized it best on his podcast. He described the difficulties we will face if we reject Muslims based on their faith, and do not give them a place in our society, as envisioned by John Locke and Thomas Jefferson: “The Islamic state has been saying ‘see fellow Muslims, the Westerners, the Christians, and the Jews, they hate us and they will always hate us. We have no place in the west!’ In other words, pushing for a clash of civilizations that they need because War is the health of the (Islamic) state… Instead of (the Trump administration) arguing that, oh yeah, we believe in the enlightenment and freedom of religion… Muslims absolutely have a place in our society, plenty of places in our society… instead this (immigration) policy plays into the hands of those on the other side.” Salam Ya Ali Madad

Newsweek Follow 1.1M Followers Republicans Warn of 'Massive Muslim Takeover' Story by Rachel Dobkin • 2h • 3 min read Republican lawmakers have warned of a "massive Muslim takeover" in the U.K. government, while claiming that it could also happen in the U.S., despite Muslims making up a small percentage of the population in both countries. On Wednesday, Representative Lauren Boebert, a Colorado Republican, posted a clip posted on X, formerly Twitter, of Representative Chip Roy, a Texas Republican, giving a speech on the House floor, voicing fears of Muslims gaining membership in the U.K. government. Ad "You've got a massive Muslim takeover on the United Kingdom going on right before our eyes," Roy said without giving evidence to back up his claims. "I've got some pretty strong concerns about Sharia law and whether that will be forced upon the American people." Sharia law is the legal system followed by Muslims. "I've got pretty strong concerns about people who want to see Israel's destruction. Who were happy about October 7th. Who are elected in the United Kingdom. Some might say that we've seen that here in the United States," Roy said. Roy then questioned if immigrants in the U.S. are being taught about Western civilization. "Are we teaching people about the Constitution, the Bill of Rights, the rule of law ... are we teaching them God exists?" Roy asked. "Or are we teaching an entire generation or two or three to run around complaining about what's wrong and why the entire world is against them because of their skin color, their sex, their supposed gender identity—whatever that hell category we create to make people have an excuse for not just stepping up and achieving the American dream?" Loaded: 20.91% Play Current Time 0:00 / Duration 0:57 Quality Settings Captions Fullscreen Newsweek Pro-Palestinian Democrats Get Warning Signs About Reelection Unmute 0 View on Watch Alongside the video, Boebert claimed, also without any evidence, that "the United Kingdom has radical Islamists taking political office all over the country. We're looking at it from here in America horrified, not realizing that it will be us next." She continued: "Councillors chanted 'Allahu Akbar' to celebrate their victories when they got elected. We're either going to get serious about our borders quickly or the issues the UK is seeing will be here faster than we can imagine." Newsweek reached out to Boebert and Roy's offices via email for comment on Wednesday. The U.K. held local elections last week, in which Green Party candidate Mothin Ali was elected as councillor in Leeds. Following Ali's election victory, he said, "We will not be silent. We will raise the voice of Gaza. We will raise the voice of Palestine. Allahu Akbar," according to the Yorkshire Evening Post. "Allahu Akbar" roughly translates to "God is greater" and is used by Muslims in prayer or in a declaration of faith. Ali later apologized for his comments. Ad The safety of U.S. borders, particularly the U.S.-Mexico border, has been a top concern, especially among Republicans. Since the start of the 2024 fiscal year, which began in October, there have been 1,733,496 U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP) encounters with migrants. Roy and Boebert's comments come after Liberal Democrats gained 104 council seats while Conservatives lost 474 seats in the U.K.'s recent election. Liberal Democrats now have 522 council seats while Conservatives have 515. The Labour Party gained 186 seats, giving them a total of 1,158. It is unclear how many of the newly elected U.K. officials are Muslim, but, according to England and Wales census data from 2021, 6.5 percent of the population identified as Muslim (3.9 million people). Pew Research Center estimated that Muslims made up about 1.1 percent of the U.S. population in 2017 (3.45 million). Human rights lawyer Qasim Rashid touched on the size of the Muslim populations in the U.K. and U.S. in an X post on Wednesday. "MAGA [Make America Great Again] Rep Chip Roy fear mongers over 'Muslims taking over UK & USA to enforce Shariah Law.' Muslims are 6.5% of UK population & 1.5% of US population. Also we have state/religion separation. What Roy actually means is his religion should be enforced & others should be banned," Rashid wrote. British-American journalist Medhi Hasan, editor-in-chief and CEO of the new media company Zeteo, posted: "'You've got a massive Muslim takeover of the United Kingdom,' says this massively dishonest, massively ignorant, massively bigoted GOP Rep, Chip Roy. Will he be condemned? No. Will the Dems who voted to censure Rashida Tlaib insist Roy be censured? No. Islamophobia is fine." Representative Tlaib, Michigan Democrat and lone Palestinian American in Congress, was censured, or strongly condemned, for her pro-Palestinian statements about the Israel-Hamas war.

What is the view on this statement from The Sunni-Shia Divide | Council on Foreign Relations www.cfr.org/article/sunni-shia-divide "Many Christian, Jewish, and Zoroastrian converts to Islam chose to become Shia rather than Sunni in the early centuries of the religion as a protest against the ethnic Arab empires that treated non-Arabs as second-class citizens. Their religions influenced the evolution of Shia Islam as distinct from Sunni Islam in rituals and beliefs."

Number of anti-Muslim complaints in 2023 hit record high: CAIR Story by Miranda Nazzaro • 13h • 3 min read Number of anti-Muslim complaints in 2023 hit record high: CAIR© Provided by The Hill Over 8,000 anti-Muslim complaints were recorded across the nation last year, marking the highest total in the 30 years the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) has tracked the complaints. In its report, published Tuesday, CAIR said it received 8,061 complaints of anti-Muslim incidents, surpassing the previous record in 2021, when 6,720 incidents were reported. This number is up 56 percent from 2022, which had the first ever recorded drop in complaints since CAIR started tracking complaints in 1995. CAIR received the most complaints in the final three months of the year and accounted for 44 percent of the year’s total tally, the report stated. CAIR, a leading Muslim advocacy nonprofit group, connected the late-year surge to the domestic fallout from Israel’s war with Palestinian militant group Hamas. The conflict began in October after the group’s surprise attack against southern Israel, which left about 1,200 people dead and saw 250 others taken hostage. About 100 of the hostages were returned to Israel during a weeklong cease-fire agreement in December, and another 100 are believed to still be alive in Gaza. For the past five months, Israel has embarked on a retaliatory military campaign to destroy Hamas, a U.S.-designated terrorist group that has ruled the Gaza Strip since 2007. More than 32,800 Palestinians have died in Gaza since early October, per the Gaza Health Ministry, while hundreds of thousands face depleting supplies of food, water, and medicine, according to aid groups. During the three-month surge in which the most complaints – 3,578 – were received, employment discrimination was the main source of these complaints, followed by hate crimes and incidents, and education discrimination, CAIR noted. The tensions quickly spilled beyond the Middle East in early October, and the following months have seen an increase in pro-Palestinian and pro-Israel protests across the U.S. and other parts of the West. Several of these protests took place at college campuses, with students and administration faced with handling issues of free speech and the language used by both sides. “Employers, universities and schools were among the primary actors suppressing speech by those who sought to vocally oppose Israel’s genocidal onslaught on Gaza and call attention to Palestinian human rights, particularly Muslims, Arabs and Palestinians.” The report referenced the various schools that banned Palestinian-affiliated student groups on campus following the onset of the Israel-Hamas war, along with reports of employers’ not hiring prospects due to their activism for Palestinians. Regarding the total tally of last year’s complaints, immigration and asylum cases accounted for the most recordings. CAIR argued cases can “get delayed or intentionally stalled for the fear of the individual being a ‘terrorist’ or involved in ‘terrorist activities.” CAIR laid out a series of high-profile anti-Muslim incidents, including the alleged murder of a 6-year-old Palestinian-American and attempted murder of his mother in Illinois, nearly a week after the Oct. 7 attacks. The nonprofit also pointed to the Georgia teacher accused of threatening to behead a 13-year-old Muslim student, who said she was offended by an Israeli flag in the classroom last December. CAIR noted last month’s three-month surge also saw a higher number of complaints than in the months following former President Trump’s travel ban that targeted several majority-Muslim countries, which saw nearly half, or about 1,813 complaints.

ABC News Follow Michigan Muslim, Arab leaders rebuff Biden campaign team over Israel-Gaza response 13h Muslim and Arab American leaders in Michigan canceled a meeting with President Joe Biden's campaign team amid increasing opposition to his administration's response to the Israel-Hamas war, multiple people told ABC News. "We're dumbfounded," the National Executive Director of The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee, Abed Ayoub, told ABC News. "Why does this administration still believe that we're just going to be willing to meet with them with no movement on their part on our demands? And they've been the same demands since October, and nothing's changed." Deputy Wayne County Executive Assad Turfe, who had organized the planned meeting between the campaign and the community, was the one who canceled it, a person familiar with the decision told ABC News. Pro-Palestine demonstrators gather at Freedom Plaza for a rally, Jan. 13, 2024, in Washington, D.C.© Samuel Corum/Getty Images MORE: Biden aides stress outreach to Muslim, Arab communities after backlash over Israel-Hamas response Since the Hamas attack on Israel on Oct. 7, the Biden administration has faced calls for the U.S. to support a permanent cease-fire as emphatic protests over its staunch support of Israel persist. On Tuesday, as Biden delivered a major campaign speech in Virginia on abortion rights, he was interrupted some 14 times by pro-Palestine demonstrators chanting, "Genocide Joe," and "Cease-fire now!" A demonstrator interrupts President Joe Biden during a campaign event focusing on abortion rights in Manassas, Va., Jan. 23, 2024.© Evelyn Hockstein/Reuters MORE: Biden campaign speech on abortion rights disrupted 14 times by protesters Biden campaign manager Julie Chavez Rodriguez traveled to Michigan on Friday to meet with elected officials in the Detroit-area. However, initial plans were for her to meet with 10 to 15 Muslim and Arab American leaders after her staff approached them to discuss growing discontent in their community, Ayoub said. "We are aware that she is meeting with different individuals," Ayoub said. "It's not a group setting … It's upsetting that they thought they had the right to go ahead and schedule this. They don't speak on behalf of the community." Several local leaders invited to meet with Rodriguez, including Dearborn Mayor Abdullah Hammoud, declined to do so after pushback from the community. "Our immediate demand is crystal clear: the Biden Administration must call for a permanent ceasefire to a genocide it is defending and funding with our tax dollars," Hammoud, said in a post on X, formerly Twitter. "Dearborn residents have tirelessly protested and organized in demand of a ceasefire. As their mayor, I follow their lead." Hammoud added: "I will not entertain conversations about elections while we watch a live-streamed genocide backed by our government. Khalid Turaani, co-chair of the Abandon Biden campaign in Michigan, speaks at the Islamic Center of Detroit in Detroit, Jan. 26, 2024.© Paul Sancya/AP MORE: Why Biden is 'persona non grata' for many Arab and Muslim Americans Lexis Zeidan, a Palestinian-American and Dearborn resident said she was also approached by the campaign but she rejected the invite as well. "I strongly believe that the community has mobilized effectively and strategically over the last four months that we should not be making any decisions or having any conversations without bringing our community into the fold," said Zeidan. Wayne County, home to Detroit and Dearborn, has the largest rate of Arab inhabitants of any other county in America, according to the U.S. Census Bureau. And Michigan, a state that Biden narrowly won against Trump in 2020 and is critical in the coming election, has the largest Arab population of any battleground state. Amid reports that Vice President Kamala Harris is privately pushing Biden that he needs to be more sympathetic towards Palestinians, multiple people also tell ABC News that Harris's team reached out for a February meeting in D.C. President Joe Biden speaks about his Investing in America and Bipartisan Infrastructure plans at Earth Rider Brewery in Superior, Wis., Jan. 25, 2024.© Saul Loeb/AFP via Getty Images MORE: New details on Biden's private apology to Muslim Americans for rhetoric on Palestinian civilians Huwaida Arraf, a civil rights attorney, says a senior adviser reached out to her from Harris' team but Arraf immediately declined. "We have been asking the administration to stop fueling funding enabling this genocide, and we have been stonewalled," said Arraf. "And now because we're getting close to the elections. And Biden isn't doing so well in overall polls. Now they want to talk to us." The Biden campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment. MORE: Cornel West courts Muslim and Arab-American voters in quest for presidency Leaders of the community told ABC News the outreach is too little too late and that the only thing that will appease them is a cease-fire. "Our position since day one has been clear: without a ceasefire on the table or call for a ceasefire, then we don't see a purpose of meeting," said Ayoub. Ad Visit ABC News What to know about Vermont's wealth tax Rohingya migrants speak out on never-ending nightmare as they flee through Asia Israel-Gaza live updates: UN's top court demands Israel contain deaths Sponsored Content

AL-Salamu Alaykum va Rahmutalahi va Barakatu min Qarsherskiy. I am starting to have doubts and I believe Sunni Islam is the path of Haqq more and more. One thing is that we say "Ya Ali madad,'' which literally means "O, Ali, HELP ME," and the Sunnis in my area told me that it is Shirk because you cannot rely upon Imam Ali ((رضي الله عنه).) because he is dead now and only Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) will answer your calls to prayer. I also have trouble believing the 12 imams are infallible and divine. Maybe Ali ((رضي الله عنه).) was the rightful successor but the 12 imams after Ali ((رضي الله عنه).) I don't believe are right. They brought esoteric influence into our faith and claimed to be divine. I also learned Iran used to be mostly Sunni until a past leader forcefully converted everyone to Akhbari Shi'a Islam and then after that Usulis crushed the Akhbaris and began creating Bid'a and doing Shirk with Ali ((رضي الله عنه).) as I previously mentioned. And then there are practices like Tatbir and Matan which leave me sore and injured and hurt and I ask "for what reason am I doing this? This cannot help what happened to Hussein (رضي الله عنه). in the past!" and I wish to stop doing that. Also, why do we have to use taqiyya if our faith is the truth? The prophet SAW prayed the 5 prayers during separate times except when making long journeys or when necessary such as when the Muslims were feeling lots of burden. And how can the Imams know every shred of knowledge in the universe?! That's just something I'll never understand from from my perspective, seems wack! Only Allah (سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى) knows everything. And why do we have symbols of Shirk like Evil Eye and Hand of Fatima? Its Shirk. I shouldn't have to explain why! When I ask scholars they just say "If it has Quranic verses, it isn't Shirk," but then why not just use Quranic verses alone? Why eyes and hands and symbolism of esotericism? I can go on and on about my doubts against Shi'i sect.

As-Salamu Alaykum. ***I am not trying to spark debate about whether or not tattoos are permissible. Please debate that somewhere else.*** I want to get a tattoo of my father's name. He has the most common name in the world though, named after the Prophet ((صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم)). However, it is spelled differently. I am wondering if it is OK to get his name tattooed on my body in Arabic calligraphy. The reason I am asking is because I would definitely never get a tattoo of something holy or religious. The tattoo would be for my father, not for the Prophet ((صلى الله عليه وآله وسلم)). Thank you.

The Struggle of Faith and Challenges in Modern Society - Maulana Syed Muhammad Rizvi | Shahadat of Hazrat Muslim bin Aqeel June 28th, 2023 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m0ZifVkh0gE - Verse 15 of Surah al-Ḥujarāt defines the characteristics of a mu’min (believer) as someone who believes in Allah and His Messenger without any doubt and struggles in Allah's path with their wealth and themselves. - The term "struggle" refers to jihad, which includes both minor and major jihad. - The major jihad is the spiritual struggle against desires that are contrary to Divine teachings. - The modern challenge lies in society's inclination to follow sinful desires - This challenge is not limited to adults but is also impacting children who are being exposed to various agendas - The essence of imān (faith) is to cultivate a sense of servitude (‘ubudiyyah) towards Allah. - Hazrat Muslim bin ‘Aqil's example is mentioned as a good servant of Allah who achieved this status through obedience to Allah, the Prophet, Imam Ali, Imam Hasan, and Imam Husayn. - The challenges faced by Hazrat Muslim bin ‘Aqil in Kufa, including the dwindling support and eventual abandonment by the people. - This eventually ended with Muslim bin ‘Aqil being left alone after the prayer, with no one remaining to support him.

I came across this video on youtube and I was actually impressed how well and precise it was. Very Convincing. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MfXAdiF0tM

Salam alaikum! I Have a question.soo like some years ago I was a kid (no puberty) and made LOTS of TikTok accounts,Not only,is making tiktoks about private life Haram,i made some accounts where there were bad enough tiktoks but this one account,i copied someone off,someone that had Haram stuff.I literally have all of the account names but I CANT get into them.i heard i can still get bad deeds after death if I don't delete them?What do I do?????Please answer.

Salam alaikum!I've had a weird dream and I want to know the meaning of it. The dream:It was like I had a school project about our religions and while I was making it ,I didn't know something so I went down the road and there were like homes that had different religions written on it(you go inside the home and ask something about the religion.)Ofcourse I wanted to go to the home with islam written on it because I'm a muslim.BUT the home was closed. asked the imam or the guy that was in there why it was closed and then I didn't remember what he said.i went back to my school project. Is it negative ,positive something??help please tell me what it means!!

Republicans Could Elect Muslim to Senate in Historic First for U.S. Story by Xander Landen • Yesterday 12:28 PM If elected, Dr. Mehmet Oz, Pennsylvania's Republican U.S. Senate candidate in this year's midterm elections, could make history as the first Muslim to serve in Congress' upper chamber. Republican U.S. Senate candidate Dr. Mehmet Oz speaks to supporters at a campaign rally at The Chadwick on November 4, in Wexford, Pennsylvania. If elected, Oz, would make history as the first Muslim to be elected to Congress' upper chamber.© Jeff Swensen In September, Oz told ABC News that being the first Muslim elected to the Senate would mean "pride and honor." "I think America, especially this commonwealth of Pennsylvania, was built on allowing people of very diverse backgrounds to offer their best ideas. All of us are smarter than any one of us," he said. Oz, a celebrity heart surgeon, is running against the state's Lieutenant Governor John Fetterman for the open Senate seat. Polling shows the two candidates are neck-and-neck. Oz has been able to narrow his Democratic opponent's lead in recent weeks, according to FiveThirtyEight, which currently shows Fetterman's polling average is 46.8 percent compared to Oz's 46.4 percent. During his campaign, Oz, whose parents are Turkish immigrants, hasn't discussed his religion frequently. In a May interview with the conservative outlet Real America's Voice, Oz said that he's a "secular Muslim" and also spoke against Sharia law, a religious code that is interpreted widely among Muslims. "We don't want Sharia law in America," the Senate hopeful said during the interview, according to ABC News. "I don't want any of these religious fanatics playing a role in American society and I would aggressively block them." Oz's comments about Sharia law have been criticized by some Muslims, however. Ahmet Tekelioglu, the executive director of the Council on American-Islamic Relations' chapter in Philadelphia, told Newsweek on Saturday that Oz's characterization of Sharia law is "problematic" and "definitely plays into anti-Muslim tropes." "I think that that needs to be called out and I hope that our community members who engage with Dr. Oz...will have real conversations with him about that," Tekelioglu said. "When he says 'We don't want Sharia law in America'—that's problematic. Him trying to paint people who attach to Sharia law as fanatics or people who don't self-identify as secular Muslim as fanatic, is problematic." Tekelioglu, whose organization is not making an endorsement in the race, said that he knows of community members and friends who "are very skeptical of [Oz], seeing him as a populist in the same fashion as Trump is." However, he added that there are also Muslims who believe that Oz's "affinity with Islam, or his affinity with Turkey as a Muslim-majority country will have a positive impact." Former President Donald Trump, who has endorsed Oz, campaigned in 2015 on a pledge to bar Muslims from entering the United States, and while in office, banned immigration and travelers from several majority Muslim countries. Newsweek has reached out to Oz's campaign for comment. In an interview with Al-Jazeera on Saturday, Mehmet Birtek, a 44-year-old from Alburtis, Pennsylvania, said he hopes Oz's candidacy will encourage other Muslims to join with the Republican Party. "He will make a big difference for the Muslim community, I believe, in the Republican Party – and this is the start," Birtek said. Khalid A.Y. Blankinship, the chair of the religion department at Temple University, told ABC last month that he doesn't believe Muslims "are going to be very influenced by the fact that Oz is a Muslim." "Some small number of people might be; it's conceivable," Blankinship said, who did call Oz's candidacy "a major event." "It is very significant that that has happened," he added.

I want to relocate from my city because everytime i stay here i go through hell!!!Im getting older now and i still dont have a car or a job or a house!!!! Also i want to find a decent spouse, but no of those things seems its gonna happen unless i get a job and get outta here!!!! Im working on a plan now, but its difficlut. My mom is moving out of town soon and my dad is busy and taking care of my younger siblings. Im basically gonna be on my own anyway! Any ideas on what should i do or any help?

For Converts in the West and beyond is coming out as gay to people the same as a convert telling their muslim to non muslim parents or even telling Sunnis their Shia or converts to Shia?

Those who deny the hadith of the prophet saww are called hadith rejectors . They consider normally quran sufficient alone to follow for the religion without recognizing the need to follow the sunna ie sayings or actions of the prophet saww. What the other Muslims brothers consider these hadith rejectors? A muslim, hypocrite, kafir, or mis-guided etc? (Whatever is you opinion ,the evidence of it from quran or hadith may be mentioned too for information /discussion, please). Wasalam

do Shias and muslims beive in selling soul to satan,or is this a myth? Do Islam recougnize this?

Salamunalaikum Certainly something really important I am curious about. Their are many hadith about the qualities of a believer. How do you define a true believer from all those sources? I mean their are many qualities and every person has some of them while lacks the other qualities. (Not quoting narrations assuming that we all have a rough idea about this) One very important specific question is that in Salat al Layl we ask mercy and forgiveness for atleast forty believers. So, who are the people that actually fill the criteria of a believer??? @Mahdavist @ali_fatheroforphans @Ashvazdanghe @313_Waiter @F.M @Sabrejet Rest of the people too. I hope it would be a fruitful discussion.

Could a mentally handicapped person be a Muslim period, i heard in Sunni if your Mentally handicapped or insane your prayers and Shahadah(if you take it in that state), is invalid, is that true in Shia, what is the Shia ruling on this matter?

I made a video recently on how the current content of education material plays a role in the oppression of Shi'a Muslims. I posted the video in General Islamic Discussion before, but just now realised that since it is so focused on Pakistani education, I should post it here. JazakAllah

In the name of Allah, I have made a video touching upon my country's education system and how it effectively contributes to Shi'a oppression. JazakAllah

Salaam, Citizenship Amendment Bill (CAB) was passed in Indian Parliament. This bill aims to give citizenship to persecuted minorities - Hindu, Sikh, Parsi, Buddhist and Christians of Pakistan, Afghanistan and Bangladesh. While this is, without a doubt, a noble act but the problem is that it doesn't include Muslims. Home Minister Amit Shah said that since all three are Muslim countries it is not possible that Muslims can be persecuted there. He 'forgot' Ahmadiyas and Hazaras of Pakistan, other Shias of Bangladesh, Afghanistan. Why are Indian Muslims protesting? CAB in itself is not a problem but when you combine it with NRC you will see discrimination. Assam has one of the highest influx of illegal Bangladeshi Muslim migrants. National Register of Citizens (NRC) was run in Assam, India as a pilot project. It required all Assamese to show land acquisition papers or birth certificate prior to 1971. As a result, many actually belonging to Assam didn't make it to NRC. Although it was scrapped later but ruling party is planning pan India NRC with some modifications. Now if NRC is implemented all over India than many Muslim who doesn't have required documents will be stripped of citizenship. Other communities not having documents can be citizens through CAB. It is to early to say if the bill will truly hurt Muslims. Amit Shah has repeatedly assured Indian Muslims that they shouldn't worry about CAB. I do not trust him. It all depends on what will be the requirements of NRC. PS: Narendra Modi and Amit Shah are Zaalim and hates Muslims. India is taking persecuted minorities of Pakistan so it should be the last country to condemn anything.

What do shias believe about Jesus and his 12 disciples? Are there any hadiths/narrations about Jesus or his Disciples in your 4 hadith books?

You can share who and why you choose them as your favorite.