The Shaykh’s remarks on his fatwa for the people of Palestine to emigrate.

The Shaykh : Regarding the second point you mentioned about leaving, we do not say "leaving"; we say "emigration" (hijrah). Any Muslim who is oppressed in a country ruled by a disbeliever, where he has no freedom, even over his own life, and is exposed, from one moment to the next, to having his blood shed for a direct or indirect reason, must emigrate. There is a tape on this specific matter, and in that tape we said that emigrating from Palestine to another country where a Muslim feels safe for himself, his creed, his religion, and his honor is not less significant than the emigration of the Prophet (peace be upon him) from Makkah to al-Madinah. Is there any doubt about this?

The questioner: No.

The Shaykh : Now, I say that whoever emigrates from Palestine with this intention has a good example in the Prophet (peace be upon him) and is applying some of the texts from the Book and the Sunnah that encourage Muslims to emigrate. Earlier, when the discussion of jihad took place, we said that jihad, like emigration, continues until the Day of Resurrection. Now, look at the current situation. The reason is the lack of purification (tasfiyah); there is no purification now. We distinguish between jihad and emigration, and we are preoccupied with all our efforts, all our strength, and all our power with what? Jihad. And we are unable to perform jihad. We are all agreed in this session that jihad is an individual obligation (fard 'ayn), especially for the neighbors here in Palestine, but we are unable to do anything. Jihad and emigration continue until the Day of Resurrection. Look at the state of Muslims today regarding purification: jihad, jihad, jihad, and then stay in your place. No jihad. Why? Because we are unable to do it. So, what is the position of Muslims regarding emigration? It has become forgotten. If this topic is raised, it is considered as if one has left Islam. For example, when I reminded the Muslims there, those who truly want to respond to the rulings of the Shari'ah, that a Muslim must emigrate—not just leave and abandon the country as an easy prey for the Jews—but emigrate with himself and his children to an Islamic country. Even though I know that Islamic countries today are not as they were before, but on the principle of "some evil is less than some," why do Muslims today, especially and generally, distinguish between jihad, caring for it in thought but unable to perform it in action, and distinguish on the other hand between jihad and emigration, so that they do not preoccupied with emigration at all in thought, even though it is easy for them in action? This relates to purification. Where is this purification?

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : May Allah guide you. This is the answer...

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : Be patient. May Allah guide you. This is the answer.

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : Listen, my brother. May Allah guide you. It is as if someone were told, "Do not eat carrion; carrion is forbidden," and he says, "I am going to die." We would tell him, "Necessities permit the prohibited." This is a solution for general prohibited things in Islam. But when I say, "Pray standing," does it occur to you that I am addressing someone who is unable to do so with the same statement? Unfortunately, this is your current state. Where does this come from, my brother? It comes from intellectual haste, without a person using his mind to at least question the statement he is hearing. You should question it: perhaps this statement does not include those who are unable. Glory be to Allah, , but the one who is able is the one upon whom all the rulings of the Shari'ah are established. So, if we say that it is obligatory to emigrate from countries occupied by disbelievers to Islamic countries that are not occupied by disbelievers, where a Muslim can preserve his Islam to a much greater extent than in countries where Muslims are ruled by disbelievers, then I am saying, my brother, there is no need for such a question, because all the rulings of the Shari'ah are interconnected. He, the Exalted, said: , . There is no need to ask, "But I cannot pray standing." My brother, the answer will come: "Pray sitting," and so on. So, my discussion, pay attention, my discussion now relates not to purification, but to education. As for purification, the Islamic preachers today have erased the word "emigration" from their minds and replaced it with "jihad," doubled, even though they are unable to perform it in action. Glory be to Allah, even though jihad and emigration are paired in books of jurisprudence and books of creed. Jihad and emigration continue until the Day of Resurrection. If someone like me now reminds the oppressed Muslims in Palestine that they must follow the example of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him), who emigrated from Makkah, which is more virtuous than Bayt al-Maqdis, let alone Palestine in general, and that they should emigrate from it—oh, zealots! Allah ordered the Palestinians to hand over the land to the Jews. This is the interpretation (ta'wil). I was told recently, on Friday, that some committed youth said, "Let's go back to the committed youth. By Allah, this statement by the Shaykh makes his blood lawful. Is there really a reason for that? Because there is no awareness. We say there is purification, there is purification, but it is relative purification in some matters. And Brother Abu Saleh earlier felt it in his heart, but I did not say this earlier that the issue does not allow for expansion in purification. Therefore, he limited his speech to what? To creed. Creed includes many aspects. Many of those who claim to be Salafis deny mass-transmitted (mutawatir) hadiths that have no relation to creed in the sense of having no relation to the divine essence, attributes, or names, and so on, but they have a relation to what concerns the knowledge of the unseen. Many people deny the descent of 'Isa (peace be upon him) in the last times, the emergence of a person with very strange characteristics, who is the Dajjal, or the people of Ya'juj and Ma'juj. All of these are part of the creed, and they are denied by many who say, "We are Salafis; we believe in the Book and the Sunnah." Therefore, the scope of purification is not limited to what concerns the creed, and especially the divine essence. It includes everything that comes in the Book and the Sunnah authentically. The scope of purification in the science of hadith today, my brothers, we said earlier to Abu Saleh: How many Muslims are in Algeria? 25. How many scholars at least? They need a thousand scholars. I am saying now: How many is the Muslim world counted in?

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : A billion. A thousand million. Good, good. How many scholars are there in hadith? How many scholars in tafsir? How many scholars in fiqh? They should be in this world to fulfill the duty of purification and education. No one thinks about this question because it is a very serious matter. And for this reason, we say, and I return to say: We do not say "leaving" Palestine, because "leaving" is broader than "emigration." Do you understand? I think this is clear. In the language of scholars, every emigration is a leaving, but not every leaving is an emigration. So I do not say "leaving," but I say "emigration." And I know for certain that if there is a person who responds to such jurisprudence derived from the Book of Allah and the hadith of the Messenger of Allah, and its essence, as we said, is that jihad and emigration continue until the Day of Resurrection, who will respond to the Shaykh's statement, which he has uniquely issued today, just as he uniquely issued the statement at that time that Saudi Arabia seeking the help of the enemies of Muslims, the Americans, is not permissible in the Shari'ah? And fatwas were issued against this fatwa. Naturally, no one responded to Al-Albani; rather, they responded to those who cooperated with the Americans and the Jews together. And now, who will respond? Perhaps one, two, three, or four, and the Palestinians will remain in their land. Why? Because their minds are not purified from foreign ideas in Islam. They know jihad, jihad, but they do not know emigration. Why? Because the scholars, especially them, do not preoccupied with the second word along with the first: jihad and emigration continue until the Day of Resurrection. Jihad is not possible, emigration is possible. The possible is abandoned in thought and action, and the impossible is practiced in thought and abandoned in action.

The questioner : ... The goal of emigration is to preserve the religion, is that not so?

The Shaykh : It is so...

The questioner : Now, I mean, the conditions in Islamic and Arab countries.

The Shaykh : My brother, the answer has already been given. May Allah bless you...

The questioner : I mean, the same conditions that are inside Palestine.

The Shaykh : No. May Allah guide you. May Allah guide you. May Allah forgive you...

The questioner: Amen.

The Shaykh : And you are not the first to be deceived by the moon. Why don't I ask you a question: Are the conditions in all Islamic countries, excluding Palestine, equal?

The questioner: No.

The Shaykh : So, glory to Allah, Islamic countries differ, and Islamic countries do not differ from the country of Palestine. How can you say such a thing?

The questioner : It is not a big deal, and it is not possible.

The Shaykh : Do you see now how you patched up your words? You say, "I meant," so why is your wording not in line with your intention?

The questioner : ... .

The Shaykh : Yes, after I ask you a question and you answer it.