What is meant by the saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), "I am innocent of any Muslim who resides among the polytheists"?

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Question:
The Honorable Shaykh, may Allah grant you success, says: The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said, "I am innocent of any Muslim who resides among the polytheists." One of those who claim to follow the da'wah (calling to Islam) said that this hadith is weak. Then he said that even if it were authentic, it is interpreted to mean that the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) is not responsible for him if he suffers harm from the polytheists. Is this understanding correct? And is the hadith...

Answer:
Neither weakening nor figurative interpretation is correct, and it is not permissible for a Muslim to reside among the mushrikin (those who associate partners with Allah) if he is unable to manifest his religion and they prevent him from doing so. He must not reside among them; migration is obligatory from

those whom the angels take [in death] while wronging themselves - [the angels] will say

الَّذِينَ تَوَفَّاهُمُ الْمَلَائِكَةُ ظَالِمِي أَنفُسِهِمْ قَالُوا

[An-Nisa 4:97]

themselves. By what? By their residence in the land of shirk (associating partners with Allah), provided they are able to migrate. But if he is unable, Allah the Exalted said:

⁽⁹⁸⁾ Except for the oppressed among men, women and children who cannot devise a plan nor are they directed to a way - ⁽⁹⁹⁾ For those it is expected that Allah will pardon them

إِلَّا الْمُسْتَضْعَفِينَ مِنَ الرِّجَالِ وَالنِّسَاءِ وَالْوِلْدَانِ لَا يَسْتَطِيعُونَ حِيلَةً وَلَا يَهْتَدُونَ سَبِيلًا فَأُولَٰئِكَ عَسَى اللَّهُ أَن يَعْفُوَ عَنْهُمْ

[An-Nisa 4:98-99]

Source قناة «العلامة الدكتور صالح الفوزان»، [555 /641] ما المقصود بقوله ﷺ "أنا برئ من مسلم يقيم بين ظهراني المشركين" الشيخ صالح الفوزان — youtube.com

The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.

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