The Shaykh’s remarks on the ruling regarding meat imported from lands of disbelief, such as Bulgaria and others.

The Shaykh : These muftis, my brother, especially those in Western countries—we have said, unfortunately, that some muftis in some Islamic countries have issued rulings to facilitate matters in the name of the Shari'ah. Therefore, it is even more likely that these people would sign blank documents stating that this does not contradict Islamic Shari'ah. "O Muslims in our lands, do not rise up, do not move; this is the mufti's certificate, and this is the certificate of the mufti's agent or his deputy, and so on." We say that it is not permissible, from an Islamic standpoint, for someone to simply come to us and say, "First, I am the mufti's agent." And even if we assume we have proofs like those usually exchanged between countries to prove that so-and-so is the ambassador from America, so-and-so is the ambassador from Russia, so-and-so is from France, and so on—without a doubt, these proofs are not easily established. If we assume we have such proofs, the final question is: You, O Muslim entrusted with these slaughters, do you know the justice of this person whom you have certainly established as the mufti's agent there? Has it been established for you that he is just, that his testimony is accepted, and that this testimony is not merely a type of trade to facilitate things so that the Bulgarian state can export these slaughters to Islamic countries? Therefore, these claims, my brother, we have heard of this news before. Perhaps our brothers heard that they sent a special committee there to supervise the method of slaughter. Have you heard of this or not?

Another questioner : We saw one of those who went.

The Shaykh : Yes, this is one who saw, among those who went to observe the slaughter there, that it is being done according to the Islamic method. I say, by Allah, Muslims today are either ignorant...

The questioner : They are putting up a recording saying "In the name of Allah, Allah is the Greatest..." This is not Bulgaria; this is another region.

The Shaykh : The important thing is that we had a noble Shaykh in Damascus, and the truth is, I say he was a noble Shaykh,The Shaykh : Bahjat al-Bitar. But may Allah forgive us and him; he had connections with the rulers. And we had a man of the revolution, what was his name, who was in the square?

The questioner : Yasser.

The Shaykh : No, I don't remember who was in the square? You don't remember one who was in the square in Sham? The important thing is, it was international policy, or let us say Soviet policy. It appears there was contact between Russia and Syria that if you sent some of your scholars to see that there is no religious pressure with us, as is rumored among us. In short, the Syrian state at that time—this was in the era they call the National Rule after the departure of France—if you sent them, choose...The Shaykh : Bahjat, may Allah have mercy on him, and his name was in my mind...

Another questioner : Al-Habnaki.

The Shaykh : No, Al-Habnaki is a scholar; that other one is not a scholar. Yes.

The questioner: The Hafiz.

The Shaykh : No, that one is from the righteous revolutionaries, meaning of the type of Abu Sayyih al-Harsh and his like. Glory be to Allah, because we do not circulate names, they almost completely left memory. The important thing is they sent a delegation including these two, and the delegation returned to say, "Enough for you, the news is incorrect. We entered the mosques and found them full of worshippers, and so on." And this means it has been perhaps thirty or forty years, and the complaint is still ongoing, despite some opening up as you hear and facilitation. To this day, there is pressure on Muslims in their mosques. What can you say about thirty years ago? They say, "We saw the preacher, and he goes up on the pulpit and preaches on Friday exactly as he wishes." I say this is a play.

Another questioner : Where, meaning?

The Shaykh : In Russia, in Russia.

The questioner : In Moscow, there is no mosque.

The Shaykh : You are talking about reality, and we are telling you now about the play that was acted out before these two guests so they would return and report what they saw. They are truthful in what they saw, but they were not aware that what they saw was a play. That is, they brought the intelligence and put them in the mosque and tasked one of the Shaykhs to actually preach, and so on. So now, if we assume that any Islamic government sends a delegation to supervise Islamic slaughter, they slaughter once, twice, three times, turn their backs from here, return, and slaughter however they please. So where is the trust that is established in people's hearts that, by Allah, these Shaykhs are saying this is slaughtered according to the Islamic method, knowing that I, since two years ago—do you remember with me?—the same mufti, the Minister of Awqaf here, announced that it was established with them, he announced that it was established with us that this meat is not slaughtered according to the Islamic method. The same minister announced it.

The questioner : What is the position here?

The Shaykh : The position is that we must refrain, without a doubt. Even I, finally, after the incident you referred to, and it became known to everyone that the Bulgarians are killing Muslims and slaughtering them like sheep, and finally forced them to emigrate. So two nights ago, one of them asked me, "What is the ruling on Bulgarian meat?" I exploded with anger, although I always and forever control my nerves. I said to him, "My brother, we have not finished with the problem of Bulgarian meat. We have been asking for ten years, 'What is the ruling on Bulgarian meat?' Have you not heard that these people slaughter Muslims and kill them like sheep?" He said, "Yes." I said to him, "If they were slaughtering according to Islamic slaughter, we must boycott them, we must boycott them."

The questioner : ...

The Shaykh : And indeed, that is the case, may Allah be our helper.

The questioner:...

The Shaykh : Yes, this is complete. Well done.