Ahmad Bader Hassoun
Encyclopedia
Ahmad Badreddin Hassoun (Ahmad Badr Al-Din Hassoun) is the Grand Mufti
Grand Mufti
The title of Grand Mufti refers to the highest official of religious law in a Sunni or Ibadi Muslim country. The Grand Mufti issues legal opinions and edicts, fatwā, on interpretations of Islamic law for private clients or to assist judges in deciding cases...
of Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
since July 2005.
Biography
The Sheikh Hassoun was born in AleppoAleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
, Syrian Arab Republic, in 1949. His father, allamah
Allamah
An Allamah , also spelled Allameh and Allama, is an honorary title carried by only the very highest scholars of Islamic thought, jurisprudence, and philosophy....
Muhammad Adeeb Hassoun was also a sheikh
Sheikh
Not to be confused with sikhSheikh — also spelled Sheik or Shaikh, or transliterated as Shaykh — is an honorific in the Arabic language that literally means "elder" and carries the meaning "leader and/or governor"...
. He has five children and ten grandchildren. Hassoun studied at the University of Islamic Studies
University of Islamic Studies
-University of Islamic Studies students suspected of ties to terrorism:The University is notable because some of the students have been accused of ties to terrorism....
, where he graduated as Doctor in Shafi'i
Shafi'i
The Shafi'i madhhab is one of the schools of fiqh, or religious law, within the Sunni branch of Islam. The Shafi'i school of fiqh is named after Imām ash-Shafi'i.-Principles:...
fiqh
Fiqh
Fiqh is Islamic jurisprudence. Fiqh is an expansion of the code of conduct expounded in the Quran, often supplemented by tradition and implemented by the rulings and interpretations of Islamic jurists....
. Dr. Hassoun took office as Great Mufti of Syria in July 2005 after the death of Ahmed Kuftaro
Ahmed Kuftaro
Ahmed Muhammad Amin Kuftaro was the Grand Mufti of Syria, the highest Sunni Muslim religious official in that nation.-Biography:...
. Dr. Hassoun is a frequent speaker in interreligious and intercultural events, and his pluralistic views on interfaith dialogue (between different religions or between different Islamic denominations) has sparked criticism from stricter visions of Islam.
Interfaith dialogue
On September 6, 2006, Dr. Hassoun met the ArmeniaArmenia
Armenia , officially the Republic of Armenia , is a landlocked mountainous country in the Caucasus region of Eurasia...
n Foreign Minister to discuss the relationship between the two nations, as well as the two religions, among other issues. In the same travel he met the Catholicos of All Armenians
On January 15, 2008, Dr. Hassoun spoke to the European Parliament
European Parliament
The European Parliament is the directly elected parliamentary institution of the European Union . Together with the Council of the European Union and the Commission, it exercises the legislative function of the EU and it has been described as one of the most powerful legislatures in the world...
on the subject of intercultural dialogue, stressing the value of culture as a unifying rather than a dividing force. Dr Hassoun was addressing a formal sitting of Parliament as the first speaker in a series of visits by eminent religious and cultural leaders in 2008, which had been designated the European Year of Intercultural Dialogue
European Year of Intercultural Dialogue
Intercultural dialogue has long been a principle supported by the European Union and its Institutions. The year 2008 was designated "European Year of Intercultural Dialogue" by the European Parliament and the Member States of the European Union...
. He made the statement "Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
, Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
, Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
and Mohamed
Muhammad
Muhammad |ligature]] at U+FDF4 ;Arabic pronunciation varies regionally; the first vowel ranges from ~~; the second and the last vowel: ~~~. There are dialects which have no stress. In Egypt, it is pronounced not in religious contexts...
came with one single religion", therefore "there is no holy war, because a war can never be holy: it is peace that is holy"; later he added that it is wrong to use religion to justify killing.
Controversy
On 19 January 2010, Hassoun sparked controversy when, speaking to a delegation of Christians and JewsJews
The Jews , also known as the Jewish people, are a nation and ethnoreligious group originating in the Israelites or Hebrews of the Ancient Near East. The Jewish ethnicity, nationality, and religion are strongly interrelated, as Judaism is the traditional faith of the Jewish nation...
from the Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution
Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution
The Center for World Religions, Diplomacy and Conflict Resolution is an arm of George Mason University's Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution . CRDC engages in practice, education, and research concerning peace-building in conflicts where religion and culture play a significant role in a...
, he allegedly commented, "If the Prophet Muhammad had asked me to deem Christians or Jews heretics, I would have deemed Muhammad himself a heretic," and, "[i]f Muhammad had ordered me to kill people, I would have told him, 'You are not a Prophet.'" In a later clarification, Hassoun stated that his initial statement had actually been, "If our Prophet Muhammad had ordered me to disbelieve in Moses
Moses
Moses was, according to the Hebrew Bible and Qur'an, a religious leader, lawgiver and prophet, to whom the authorship of the Torah is traditionally attributed...
and Jesus
Jesus
Jesus of Nazareth , commonly referred to as Jesus Christ or simply as Jesus or Christ, is the central figure of Christianity...
..."
Provoking an outcry amongst many orthodox Muslims, news of the incident reached the English-speaking world primarily after the prominent Muslim scholar
Alim
-Given name:* Amat Al Alim Alsoswa, Yemeni politician* Alim Ashirov, Soviet footballer* AFM Alim Chowdhury, Bangladeshi physician*Aleem Dar , Pakistani cricketer* Alim Karkayev, Russian footballer* Mohammed Alim Khan, last emir of the Manghit dynasty...
Shaykh Muhammad al-Ya’qoubi
Muhammad al-Ya’qoubi
Sayyid Muhammad Abul Huda al-Ya’qoubi is an Islamic scholar and murshid.-Background:Muhammad al-Ya’qoubi was born in Damascus, Syria. He is the son of Ibrahim al-Ya’qoubi a scholar and former Imam of Grand Omayyad Mosque. He is also a sayyid where his family lineage can be traced back to Islamic...
's public condemnation of the mufti. During his Friday sermon of 22 January at Masjid al-Hasan in Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, Ya’qoubi decried Hassoun's indiscretion, imputing disbelief
KUFR
KUFR is a radio station broadcasting a Christian radio format. Licensed to Salt Lake City, Utah, USA, the station serves the Salt Lake City area. The station is currently owned by Family Stations, Inc....
to his words, and demanded that the mufti resign. Yaqoubi's comments led to his immediate dismissal from the pulpit..
2011 Syrian uprising
Hassoun is considered to be a firm ally of Syrian President Bashar Assad. In response to a perceived threat of NATO intervention, Hassoun is reported to have threatened retaliation through suicide bombings in the US and EU. Hassoun cited the Arab Christian suicide bomber Jules JammalJules Jammal
Jules Yusuf Jammal was a Syrian Arab Christian military officer who martyred himself in a suicide bomb attack during the 1956 Suez Crisis against western forces.-Military Career and Death:...
as an example of a non Muslim Syrian who carried out a suicide bomb martyrdom attack on the west, and warned that Non Arab and Non muslims would assist Syria in martrydom/suicide bombing against the west. Hassoun's 22-year-old son, Sariya, was assasinated on October 2nd in an ambush in the road between Idlib
Idlib
Idlib is a city in northwestern Syria, capital of the Idlib Governorate. The city of Aleppo, which is roughly 60 km away, has an important economic presence in Idlib. The area around Idlib is very fertile, producing cotton, cereals, olives, figs, grapes, tomatoes, sesame seeds, wheat and almonds....
and Aleppo
Aleppo
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria and the capital of Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate. With an official population of 2,301,570 , expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant...
.
Threat to Activate Suicide Bombers in Europe and the United States
In a public address which aired on Syria News TV and was posted on the Internet on October 9, 2011 (as translated by MEMRI), Hassoun threatened to activiate suicide bombers in Europe and the United States if Syria is attacked, stating that "The moment the first missile hits Syria, all the sons and daughters of Lebanon and Syria will set out to become martyrdom-seekers in Europe and on Palestinian soil. I say to all of Europe and to the US: We will prepare martyrdom-seekers who are already among you, if you bomb Syria or Lebanon." He further added that "Do not think that the people who will commit martyrdom in France, Britain, or the US, will be Arabs and Muslims. They will be a new Jules JammalJules Jammal
Jules Yusuf Jammal was a Syrian Arab Christian military officer who martyred himself in a suicide bomb attack during the 1956 Suez Crisis against western forces.-Military Career and Death:...
or a new Muhammad Al-Durrah. They will all be like the righteous [of the past]."
Interview with Der Spiegel
Hassoun was interviewed by the German maganized Der SpiegelDer Spiegel
Der Spiegel is a German weekly news magazine published in Hamburg. It is one of Europe's largest publications of its kind, with a weekly circulation of more than one million.-Overview:...
on 11/08/2011, saying that some of the protestors in Syria were armed Islamist rebels backed by Saudi Arabia. He talked about religion and politics in Syria during the revolution:
"But then imams who had come from abroad, especially Saudi Arabia, stirred things up with their inflammatory speeches. The news channels stationed in the Gulf states, Al-Jazeera and Al-Arabiya, helped them by falsely claiming that the clergy was on the side of the anti-Assad protesters.", "And what has really improved in Egypt? Should we welcome the rise of Islamist parties? I believe in the strict separation of church and state."
"How many, 50 or 55? We're talking about an army of tens of thousands of men. But some of the radical Sunni imams from Saudi Arabia and the Gulf region are stirring people up, and unfortunately they are finding a few Sunni imams in my country who sympathize with them. For instance, they have pronounced a fatwa against me, because in their view I am betraying religion and am too moderate. But I'm not the only one on their hit list."
"They set their sights on my innocent son Saria, a 22-year-old student who was always friendly to everyone, who was studying International Relations and did not want to make religion his profession. So much for the kin liability you've criticized elsewhere! Oh, if only the four killers had killed me instead.",
"There are close ties between the Saudi royal family and the American White House. The Americans are often on the side of the oppressors. I am always on the side of the oppressed."
"I see myself as the grand mufti of all 23 million Syrians, not just Muslims, but also Christians and even atheists. I am a man of dialogue. Who knows, maybe an agnostic will convince me with better arguments one day, and I'll become a non-believer. And if I'm enthusiastic about the opposition's political platform, I also might change sides."