The Red Crescent Society: Is it permissible to give it zakah?
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Fatwa No. ( 19551 )
All praise is due to Allah alone, and peace and blessings be upon the one after whom there is no prophet. Then: The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta has reviewed what was sent to His Eminence the Grand Mufti from the questioner: the President of the Saudi Red Crescent Society, Dr. 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz al-Suwaylim , which was referred to the Committee by the General Secretariat of the Council of Senior Scholars with number (1739) and date 24 / 3 / 1418 AH. The questioner asked a question, the text of which is as follows: Your Eminity is aware that the Saudi Red Crescent Society is a charitable organization according to its basic bylaws, approved by Royal Decree No. (M \ 14) dated 12 / 4 / 1386 AH. Before that, it was called the Charitable First Aid Society, and its services were limited to the pilgrims of the House of Allah. However, its services have now extended to cover the entire Kingdom, and the number of centers under its jurisdiction has reached (152 centers). It provides first aid to patients and those injured in car accidents, or transports patients who need hospital services, or contributes to disaster relief. It also participates in relief programs.
Since there are many people of good and lovers of righteous work in our country, and they are asking about the possibility of donating some of their zakah to the Society so that they can contribute to rescuing the injured, and perhaps it falls under one of the categories of zakah mentioned in the Book of Allah the Mighty. I ask Your Eminity, given your white hands in noble initiatives, to look into the possibility of the Society's right to receive zakah funds and spend them only in first aid and rescue programs . I also look forward to the contribution of people of good and righteousness in the Society's works, which strive to realize the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic:[Al-Ma'idah 5:32] , asking the Lord the Mighty and Majestic for reward for you and to make that in the scales of your deeds.
A: It is not permissible to distribute zakah except in the eight categories mentioned by Allah the Exalted in His Noble Book, in His saying:[At-Tawbah 9:60] , and the Society is not among those categories; because the injured include the rich and those who are not Muslim, and the equipment and medicines do not fall within those categories;
because their use is general for the injured and not specific to the poor. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.
All praise is due to Allah alone, and peace and blessings be upon the one after whom there is no prophet. Then: The Permanent Committee for Scholarly Research and Ifta has reviewed what was sent to His Eminence the Grand Mufti from the questioner: the President of the Saudi Red Crescent Society, Dr. 'Abd al-Rahman ibn 'Abd al-'Aziz al-Suwaylim , which was referred to the Committee by the General Secretariat of the Council of Senior Scholars with number (1739) and date 24 / 3 / 1418 AH. The questioner asked a question, the text of which is as follows: Your Eminity is aware that the Saudi Red Crescent Society is a charitable organization according to its basic bylaws, approved by Royal Decree No. (M \ 14) dated 12 / 4 / 1386 AH. Before that, it was called the Charitable First Aid Society, and its services were limited to the pilgrims of the House of Allah. However, its services have now extended to cover the entire Kingdom, and the number of centers under its jurisdiction has reached (152 centers). It provides first aid to patients and those injured in car accidents, or transports patients who need hospital services, or contributes to disaster relief. It also participates in relief programs.
Since there are many people of good and lovers of righteous work in our country, and they are asking about the possibility of donating some of their zakah to the Society so that they can contribute to rescuing the injured, and perhaps it falls under one of the categories of zakah mentioned in the Book of Allah the Mighty. I ask Your Eminity, given your white hands in noble initiatives, to look into the possibility of the Society's right to receive zakah funds and spend them only in first aid and rescue programs . I also look forward to the contribution of people of good and righteousness in the Society's works, which strive to realize the saying of Allah the Mighty and Majestic:
And whoever saves one - it is as if he had saved mankind entirely.
وَمَنْ أَحْيَاهَا فَكَأَنَّمَا أَحْيَا النَّاسَ جَمِيعًاA: It is not permissible to distribute zakah except in the eight categories mentioned by Allah the Exalted in His Noble Book, in His saying:
Zakah expenditures are only for the poor and for the needy and for those employed to collect [zakah] and for bringing hearts together [for Islam] and for freeing captives [or slaves] and for those in debt and for the cause of Allah and for the [stranded] traveler
إِنَّمَا الصَّدَقَاتُ لِلْفُقَرَاءِ وَالْمَسَاكِينِ وَالْعَامِلِينَ عَلَيْهَا وَالْمُؤَلَّفَةِ قُلُوبُهُمْ وَفِي الرِّقَابِ وَالْغَارِمِينَ وَفِي سَبِيلِ اللَّهِ وَابْنِ السَّبِيلِbecause their use is general for the injured and not specific to the poor. And success is from Allah, and may Allah send prayers and blessings upon our Prophet Muhammad and his family and companions.
Source
www.alifta.gov.sa
The Arabic text is copied verbatim from the original source, without any edits.