Ruling on distributing publications that contain insults and abuse of the government

In these days, some publications have been found that do not serve the public interest. We have heard from you a ruling that it is forbidden to circulate such things, and I, by Allah, have not come across this ruling. I hope you will speak about this matter, O Shaykh?

We spoke about this before, we said: These publications are circulated, and they contain insults toward the government, some of which are lies and some are true. Circulating them is forbidden and is among the major sins. The one who circulates them is undoubtedly sinful, because the least of what is in them is backbiting.And Allah the Exalted said: [Al-Hujurat: 12] Imam Ahmad (may Allah have mercy on him) explicitly stated that backbiting is among the major sins. If it is added to that that it is a lie, it becomes slander. This is regarding the backbiting of ordinary people—a man in the street—so how about the backbiting of the ruler or the scholar! This becomes more severe and greater, because if the rulers are backbitten, their status is lowered in the eyes of the people, chaos ensues, and their orders become disliked by the people even if they contain good. People strive to track down their faults, and it indicates that the intent behind these publications is harm, and Allah knows best the intentions, that what was correct is not mentioned alongside these errors.
The government has many things that are correct, good, and beneficial for the Muslims, so at least if a person is fair,Meaning: Suppose a person is asked: What do you say about the government? If he is fair, he must mention the faults and the good points. This is if he is asked and compelled. But for a person to come and publish the faults of the government on a wide scale, there is no doubt that he has upon him sin that he deserves, and there is no doubt that those who assist him in publishing these publications have upon them sin that they deserve. For this reason, we warn against circulating these publications and publishing them, and we see that the one who does this has been enveloped in a major sin among the major sins, and refuge is sought in Allah. Major sins are not expiated by prayer or charity;Because when the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) said: (The five daily prayers, and Friday to Friday, and Ramadan to Ramadan, are expiations for what is between them, provided the major sins are avoided) And he said: (As long as the major sins are not committed) And this is a major sin among the major sins.

If someone wrote about your faults and published them among the people, what would you say about it: Is it backbiting or not? It is backbiting and aggression against you. Why is it backbiting and aggression against one of the people walking in the street, such that even if his status is lowered and diminished, he only harms himself, and it is not a major sin to backbite the rulers whom people must obey in other than disobedience? This is more severe. And unfortunately, some people think that this is a right, and some of them may even think it is an act of devotion to Allah. Between us and them is the Book of Allah and the Sunnah of His Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him): [Al-Hujurat: 12] And the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) was asked about backbiting?He said: (Mentioning your brother in a way he dislikes) And the Salaf (may Allah have mercy on them) it was not their custom to backbite the rulers ever. This method is contrary to the method of the Salaf. Whoever among them wanted to speak about the ruler would speak to him in his presence, so that it would not be backbiting, and so that this imam could defend himself if he was right, or retract if he was wrong. But speaking from behind the wall, and also fabricating things that are not true, which are lies, what is permissible about this? The Qur'an and the Sunnah are in our hands, praise be to Allah, and returning to them is obligatory. In any case, there are words from before.