Mufti Abu Layth Archive: society/current-events/middle-east-and-world

What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Independence for at least part of Kashmir, such as the valley, from both India and Pakistan, with buffers so Pakistan is not exposed, though he does not expect it to happen. Kashmir differs from Gaza in being a militarised zone rather than a bombarded prison, and India would not pay to relocate anyone. Mufti Abu Layth says that Kashmir, unlike Gaza, is a heavily militarised zone, that India would not pay to relocate its people, and that the ideal solution would be independence for part of Kashmir, such as the valley, with buffers kept so that Pakistan is not left vulnerable, though he expects none of it to happen.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 22:27)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/pakistan exists (29 September 2024): How scholars' rhetoric fed Pakistan's blasphemy killings, in Mufti Abu Layth's view

Watch on YouTube at 22:27 · Open the segment

Why does Mufti Abu Layth compare the Palestinian situation to facing a knife?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Why does Mufti Abu Layth compare the Palestinian situation to facing a knife?

His escrima teacher's rule was to run from a knife and fight only when running is impossible, and he applies it to an enemy that will not back down. He repeats that the UAE deal has brought nothing and that Bin Bayyah and Hamza Yusuf should not be blamed for it.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 18:30)

A more recent answer on dialogue/views-on-contemporary-scholars exists (22 February 2023): Should scholars publicly condemn a scholar said to have joined in a libation ritual?

Watch on YouTube at 18:30 · Open the segment

Should Palestinians stay and defend the holy land at the cost of their lives?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Should Palestinians stay and defend the holy land at the cost of their lives?

No, in Mufti Abu Layth's view: life comes before place, a Muslim's honour outweighs the Kaaba rebuilt seven times, and the whole earth is a place of prayer. He says the war is lost and that those who insist Palestinians stay would stop caring about them once they were safe elsewhere. Mufti Abu Layth holds that the war against Israel is lost, that the preservation of life comes before holy places since a Muslim's honour outweighs the Kaaba destroyed and rebuilt seven times, and that Muslims guilt-trip Palestinians into staying and dying.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 15:51)

Watch on YouTube at 15:51 · Open the segment

What does Mufti Abu Layth think should happen to the Palestinians in Gaza?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What does Mufti Abu Layth think should happen to the Palestinians in Gaza?

Since Israel is here to stay and a two-state solution will not happen, Mufti Abu Layth proposes relocating the Palestinians of Gaza and the blockaded areas across the Arab world with compensation, housing and education, spread out rather than in ghettos. He says Muslims guilt-trip Palestinians into staying and Arab states value them as a buffer zone. Mufti Abu Layth holds that Israel is here to stay, that a two-state solution would be ideal but will never happen, and that the Palestinians of Gaza and the blockaded areas should instead be relocated with compensation, housing and education across the Arab world rather than guilt-tripped into staying.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 7:57)

Watch on YouTube at 7:57 · Open the segment

Has the UAE's recognition of Israel brought any peace?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Has the UAE's recognition of Israel brought any peace?

No: Mufti Abu Layth says two weeks of bombardment followed the deal, so it is not a solution. He calls Israel a terrorist state at the state level, with war crimes documented by the UN and academics such as Chomsky and Finkelstein, and stresses this is not antisemitism. Mufti Abu Layth says that at a state level Israel is a terrorist state that has committed documented war crimes against Palestinians, that saying so is not antisemitism, and that the UAE's recognition deal has brought no peace and is not a solution.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 4:00)

Watch on YouTube at 4:00 · Open the segment

Are Bin Bayyah and Hamza Yusuf to blame for the UAE's deal with Israel?

Mon, 17 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Are Bin Bayyah and Hamza Yusuf to blame for the UAE's deal with Israel?

No, in Mufti Abu Layth's view: the UAE's ruler does not take direction from scholars, Bin Bayyah is said to have disliked the treaty while deferring to the ruler's decision, and Hamza Yusuf had nothing to do with it. He opens with condolences for the losses in Gaza.

Answer from 17 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Israel's war crimes, UAE ties & possible solutions? (full context) | Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:02)

A more recent answer on dialogue/views-on-contemporary-scholars exists (22 February 2023): Should scholars publicly condemn a scholar said to have joined in a libation ritual?

Watch on YouTube at 1:22 · Open the segment

What can people realistically do for Palestine, and is migration an option?

Sat, 15 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What can people realistically do for Palestine, and is migration an option?

Politics runs through every side of the crisis, and ordinary people are largely helpless beyond pressuring MPs, boycotts and dua; Mufti Abu Layth says no land is worth a genocide and that the Prophet taught migration where an assessment calls for it, or else meaningful negotiation. Mufti Abu Layth says ordinary people are largely helpless beyond pressuring members of parliament, economic boycotts and dua, that no land is worth a genocide, and that, since the Prophet taught people to migrate, an assessment that a genocide is under way calls for migration or else meaningful negotiation.

Answer from 15 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: The Palestinian Plight & Israeli Injustice | Mufti Abu Layth (at 24:49)

A more recent answer on society/islam-and-modernity exists (19 August 2022): Should all religions be free to compete without state backing?

Watch on YouTube at 27:26 · Open the segment

Is the Gaza conflict a war or a genocide, and who is egging Palestinians on?

Sat, 15 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Is the Gaza conflict a war or a genocide, and who is egging Palestinians on?

Mufti Abu Layth calls the conflict a genocide rather than a war and says urging Palestinians towards martyrdom from the comfort of one's home is armchair cowardice, driven by Arab buffer-zone interests and a religious-centre mentality. Mufti Abu Layth says the conflict is a genocide rather than a war, and that egging Palestinians on towards martyrdom from the comfort of one's home is an armchair-coward approach.

Answer from 15 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: The Palestinian Plight & Israeli Injustice | Mufti Abu Layth (at 18:19)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/palestine exists (17 May 2021): Why does Mufti Abu Layth compare the Palestinian situation to facing a knife?

Watch on YouTube at 18:19 · Open the segment

What are the layers behind the Palestinian crisis of May 2021?

Sat, 15 May 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What are the layers behind the Palestinian crisis of May 2021?

The crisis has an occupation layer, which Mufti Abu Layth calls clear oppression and a crime against humanity, and a political layer: Gulf normalisation with Israel, Netanyahu's domestic insecurity and fear politics, and Arab neighbours' interest in a Palestinian buffer zone. Mufti Abu Layth says the Palestinian crisis has an occupation layer, the illegal Israeli occupation and forced removals that are clear oppression and a crime against humanity, and a political layer involving Gulf normalisation with Israel, Netanyahu's domestic position and Arab neighbours' interest in a buffer zone.

Answer from 15 May 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: The Palestinian Plight & Israeli Injustice | Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:01)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/palestine exists (17 May 2021): Why does Mufti Abu Layth compare the Palestinian situation to facing a knife?

Watch on YouTube at 1:20 · Open the segment

What inspired Lupe Fiasco's song Words I Never Said?

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What inspired Lupe Fiasco's song Words I Never Said?

The guest says 'Words I Never Said' was his attempt, at the height of his fame, to speak truth to power about wealth disparity and militarism.

Answer from 26 April 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Lupe Fiasco | Stardom, Semiotics & Soul-searching | MindTrap#56 | Mufti Abu Layth al-Maliki MALM (at 1:48:51)

A more recent answer on fiqh/entertainment/music exists (10 March 2023): Is it haram for men to wear earrings?

Watch on YouTube at 1:48:51 · Open the segment

Why does China try to control who becomes the Dalai Lama?

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

Why does China try to control who becomes the Dalai Lama?

The guest says China's attempt to control the Dalai Lama's reincarnation shows a state using religion, something he sees in pieces in Muslim countries and elsewhere.

Answer from 26 April 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Lupe Fiasco | Stardom, Semiotics & Soul-searching | MindTrap#56 | Mufti Abu Layth al-Maliki MALM (at 52:34)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 53:12 · Open the segment

How does the Chinese state deal with religion?

Mon, 26 Apr 2021 00:00:00 +0000

How does the Chinese state deal with religion?

The guest describes Chinese paper offerings burned for the dead, a government crackdown on their modern forms, and the Anti-Spiritual Pollution Campaign as examples of the state managing religion.

Answer from 26 April 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Lupe Fiasco | Stardom, Semiotics & Soul-searching | MindTrap#56 | Mufti Abu Layth al-Maliki MALM (at 43:35)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 44:07 · Open the segment

What does the Mufti think of Fethullah Gulen?

Tue, 16 Feb 2021 00:00:00 +0000

What does the Mufti think of Fethullah Gulen?

Mufti Abu Layth says he knows little about Gulen beyond his influential network of schools with an Islamic ethos, and will read up on him.

Answer from 16 February 2021 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti #202| Q&A Unscripted & Unrestricted! 😉 | Mufti Abu Layth (at 58:48)

A more recent answer on dialogue/views-on-contemporary-scholars exists (22 February 2023): Should scholars publicly condemn a scholar said to have joined in a libation ritual?

Watch on YouTube at 59:27 · Open the segment

Can a waqf never be overturned, as the argument for the Hagia Sophia claims?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Can a waqf never be overturned, as the argument for the Hagia Sophia claims?

Mufti Abu Layth says the waqf argument fails because Abu Hanifa himself held that an endowment can be overturned, a view Hanafis abandon when it does not serve the powerful or the clergy. He calls the reconversion part of a rising right-wing fascism that includes Muslims. Mufti Abu Layth says the reconversion is part of a rising right-wing fascism that includes Muslims, and that the waqf argument fails because Abu Hanifa himself held that an endowment can be overturned, a view Hanafis abandon when it does not serve the powerful or the clergy.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 22:22)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following/hanafi-school exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 22:22 · Open the segment

If Muslims can reconvert the Hagia Sophia, can Israel or India reconvert mosques too?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

If Muslims can reconvert the Hagia Sophia, can Israel or India reconvert mosques too?

By the 'might is right' logic used to justify the reconversion, he says, Israel could turn al-Aqsa into the Temple of Solomon and India's Hindu majority could turn mosques into temples, so Muslims who celebrate cannot then complain. Leave the building be. Mufti Abu Layth says justifying the reconversion by the Muslim majority's legal power is the principle of Thrasymachus that might is right, and that by the same logic Israel could convert al-Aqsa into the Temple of Solomon and India's Hindu majority could convert mosques into temples, so Muslims cannot then complain.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 18:26)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 18:26 · Open the segment

Does Istanbul need the Hagia Sophia as a mosque?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Does Istanbul need the Hagia Sophia as a mosque?

No: the Blue Mosque, with room for at least ten thousand, is a four-minute walk away and hundreds of Istanbul mosques already call the adhan, so the emotional reaction to hearing the adhan there is misplaced. Mufti Abu Layth says there is no need for the Hagia Sophia as a mosque, since the Blue Mosque, with room for at least ten thousand, is a four-minute walk away and hundreds of Istanbul mosques already call the adhan.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 15:48)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 15:48 · Open the segment

Were the Ottomans the representatives of Islam?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Were the Ottomans the representatives of Islam?

No, he says: the Ottoman Empire was a dynasty that happened to be Muslim, practised mandatory fratricide and styled its sultans 'Caesar of Rome', and never claimed to be a symbol of Islam. The romantic image is a later invention. Mufti Abu Layth says the Ottoman Empire was a dynasty that happened to be Muslim and never claimed to be a symbol of Islam, styling its sultans 'Caesar of Rome' and practising mandatory fratricide, so Muslims who romanticise it as representing Islam are mistaken.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 13:13)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 13:13 · Open the segment

Is it wrong to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Is it wrong to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

Yes, he says: not as a matter of halal and haram, since Turkey may do what it wants with its property, but it is absolutely wrong and a great mistake, driven by the regime's bid to lead the Islamic world. Mufti Abu Layth says converting the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque is not a matter of halal and haram, since Turkey may legally do what it wants with its property, but is absolutely wrong and a great mistake, driven in his view by the regime's wish to lead the Islamic world.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 10:35)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 10:35 · Open the segment

Was it haram for Muslims to turn the Hagia Sophia into a mosque after the conquest?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Was it haram for Muslims to turn the Hagia Sophia into a mosque after the conquest?

No, he says: it was the politics of conquest in medieval times, done by Muslims and Christians alike and neither encouraged nor prohibited by Islam, but it was not a good thing. The building later became a museum, and the argument now is only that it was once a mosque. Mufti Abu Layth says the medieval conversion of churches into mosques and of mosques into cathedrals was the politics of men, neither encouraged nor prohibited by Islam, so the original conversion of the Hagia Sophia was not haram but was not a good thing.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 7:58)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 7:58 · Open the segment

Does Islam allow converting churches and other places of worship into mosques?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Does Islam allow converting churches and other places of worship into mosques?

Islam never set out to convert other religions' holy sites: Umar left Jerusalem's churches alone, and Quran 22:40 counts monasteries, churches and synagogues among places where Allah's name is glorified and which He protects. The Hagia Sophia's conversion happened, but it was not what Islam encourages. Mufti Abu Layth says Islam never set out to convert other religions' holy sites into mosques: Umar did not convert Jerusalem's churches, and Quran 22:40 counts monasteries, churches and synagogues among the places where Allah's name is glorified and which He protects.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 2:43)

A more recent answer on quran/tafsir exists (18 October 2025): Why are two of the daily prayers recited silently when 17:110 says not to be silent?

Watch on YouTube at 2:43 · Open the segment

What is the Hagia Sophia and what did Turkey decide about it?

Thu, 16 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

What is the Hagia Sophia and what did Turkey decide about it?

Turkey's courts under Erdogan ruled that the Hagia Sophia be converted back into a mosque, prompting celebration and mockery of objectors online. The building was built by Justinian I as a cathedral, once the largest in the eastern Christian world.

Answer from 16 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Why converting the Hagia Sophia to a mosque is a mistake | Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:00)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 0:00 · Open the segment

Was Sudan right to drop its alcohol and apostasy laws and end flogging?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Was Sudan right to drop its alcohol and apostasy laws and end flogging?

Mufti Abu Layth welcomes Sudan's reforms: flogging today only damages Islam's message, FGM should be outlawed, and alcohol was never prohibited for non-Muslims. Mufti Abu Layth says flogging in this day and age is nothing but damaging to Allah, His Messenger and their message.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 2:08:00)

A more recent answer on fiqh/public-law-and-governance/apostasy-and-blasphemy exists (29 September 2024): Is someone who says something wrong about the Prophet guilty of blasphemy?

Watch on YouTube at 2:08:00 · Open the segment

Isn't the Prophet clearing the Kaaba of idols a precedent for the Hagia Sophia?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Isn't the Prophet clearing the Kaaba of idols a precedent for the Hagia Sophia?

No: removing the idols from the Kaaba was about ending superstition, and cannot justify converting a museum in a secular country, which he calls a political stunt. Mufti Abu Layth says the Prophet's removal of the idols from the Kaaba, which were tied to superstition, cannot be linked to converting a museum in a secular country today.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:47:58)

A more recent answer on history/sirah exists (9 May 2023): How did the Prophet balance gentleness and strength?

Watch on YouTube at 1:47:58 · Open the segment

Can a mosque that was once a waqf never be anything else?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Can a mosque that was once a waqf never be anything else?

The waqf argument fails, he says, because Abu Hanifa held that an endowment can be overturned, a view Hanafis drop when it does not serve power. Mufti Abu Layth says Abu Hanifa himself held that a waqf is not perpetual and can be overturned.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:37:09)

A more recent answer on fiqh/madhhabs-and-following/hanafi-school exists (10 December 2022): What did Abu Hanifa say about Imam Malik?

Watch on YouTube at 1:37:09 · Open the segment

If Turkey can reconvert the Hagia Sophia, can Israel or India reconvert mosques too?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

If Turkey can reconvert the Hagia Sophia, can Israel or India reconvert mosques too?

By the 'might is right' logic behind the reconversion, Israel could reclaim al-Aqsa and India's Hindus the Babri Masjid, so Muslims who celebrate cannot then complain. Mufti Abu Layth says that if Muslims justify the reconversion by the principle that might is right, they cannot complain when, by the same logic, Israel converts al-Aqsa back into the Temple of Solomon or India's Hindu majority converts mosques into temples.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:33:19)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:33:19 · Open the segment

Does Istanbul need the Hagia Sophia as a mosque?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Does Istanbul need the Hagia Sophia as a mosque?

There is no need: the Blue Mosque, holding ten thousand, is four minutes away and hundreds of mosques in Istanbul already call the adhan. Mufti Abu Layth says there is no need for the Hagia Sophia as a mosque, since the Blue Mosque, holding at least ten thousand people, is a four-minute walk away.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:30:06)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:30:06 · Open the segment

Were the Ottomans representatives of Islam?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Were the Ottomans representatives of Islam?

The Ottoman Empire was a dynasty that happened to be Muslim, never a symbol of Islam; the romantic image is a later invention. Mufti Abu Layth says the Ottoman Empire was nothing more than a dynasty that happened to be Muslim and is not symbolic of Islam.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:27:33)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:27:33 · Open the segment

Is it wrong to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Is it wrong to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

It is not haram, since Turkey may do as it likes with its property, but it is absolutely wrong and a great mistake, done for political standing. Mufti Abu Layth says converting the Hagia Sophia into a mosque is absolutely wrong and a great mistake.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:25:00)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:25:00 · Open the segment

Was it haram for the Ottomans to turn the Hagia Sophia into a mosque?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Was it haram for the Ottomans to turn the Hagia Sophia into a mosque?

The original conversion was not haram but the politics of conquest, practised by Muslims and Christians alike, and he does not think it was good. Mufti Abu Layth says the medieval conversion of churches into mosques was not haram but the politics of the time, though he does not think it was a good thing.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:22:25)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:22:25 · Open the segment

Does Islam allow turning churches into mosques?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Does Islam allow turning churches into mosques?

Islam never set out to convert other faiths' holy sites: Umar left Jerusalem's churches alone, and Quran 22:40 names them among places where Allah's name is glorified. Mufti Abu Layth says Islam never set out to convert other faiths' holy sites into mosques.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:17:16)

A more recent answer on quran/tafsir exists (18 October 2025): Why are two of the daily prayers recited silently when 17:110 says not to be silent?

Watch on YouTube at 1:17:16 · Open the segment

What happened with the Hagia Sophia?

Tue, 14 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

What happened with the Hagia Sophia?

Turkey's courts ruled that the Hagia Sophia, originally Justinian's cathedral, be turned back into a mosque, to celebration and mockery online.

Answer from 14 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Monday Nights with Mufti Abu Layth 173 (at 1:13:29)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 1:14:09 · Open the segment

Was it right for Turkey to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

Fri, 10 Jul 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Was it right for Turkey to turn the Hagia Sophia back into a mosque?

Mufti Abu Layth would not issue a fatwa against praying in the Hagia Sophia, but says Muslims should stop being insecure and be comfortable in their skin.

Answer from 10 July 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Shaykh Omar Baloch | Cynicism, Consumerism & the Catch 22 of Riba | Mindtrap with Mufti #30 (at 2:25:24)

A more recent answer on society/current-events/middle-east-and-world exists (17 May 2021): What does Mufti Abu Layth think the solution for Kashmir is?

Watch on YouTube at 2:25:24 · Open the segment

Should social media companies be allowed to censor people as the new public square?

Fri, 26 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Should social media companies be allowed to censor people as the new public square?

The guest says Twitter suspended him at the Turkish government's instance and that corporations now controlling the virtual public square should be regulated and bound by due process; Mufti Abu Layth agrees the question is a fascinating one.

Answer from 26 June 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Prof. Edip Yuksel | Rejecting Hadith, Rashad Khalifa & Realizing '19' | MindTrap with Mufti #27 (at 2:49:10)

A more recent answer on society/blasphemy-and-free-speech exists (29 September 2024): How scholars' rhetoric fed Pakistan's blasphemy killings, in Mufti Abu Layth's view

Watch on YouTube at 2:49:10 · Open the segment

Why was Rashad Khalifa assassinated?

Fri, 26 Jun 2020 00:00:00 +0000

Why was Rashad Khalifa assassinated?

The guest says Rashad Khalifa was declared an apostate by a 1989 Madinah gathering under Ibn Baz and killed within a year by a group linked to al-Qaeda, and he lists coincidences of the number 19 around the murder, Y2K and the 9/11 attacks.

Answer from 26 June 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: quoted view (stated in order to be discussed, not necessarily held)

Recording: Prof. Edip Yuksel | Rejecting Hadith, Rashad Khalifa & Realizing '19' | MindTrap with Mufti #27 (at 1:56:52)

A more recent answer on hadith/quran-only-movement exists (18 October 2025): How should Muslims engage people with very different views of the religion?

Watch on YouTube at 1:56:52 · Open the segment

What does the Mufti think of Shaykh Ramadan al-Buti?

Tue, 03 Mar 2020 00:00:00 +0000

What does the Mufti think of Shaykh Ramadan al-Buti?

Mufti Abu Layth regards al-Buti as a great scholar of his time whose books, especially Ma'a al-Nas, he benefited from. He says it is a shame al-Buti got caught up in Syrian politics.

Answer from 3 March 2020 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Thoughts on Shaykh Ramadan Al-Bouti | Mufti Abu Layth (at 0:00)

A more recent answer on dialogue/views-on-contemporary-scholars exists (22 February 2023): Should scholars publicly condemn a scholar said to have joined in a libation ritual?

Watch on YouTube at 0:00 · Open the segment

Why is Islamophobia rising?

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 00:00:00 +0000

Why is Islamophobia rising?

Mufti Abu Layth says it is rising as a reaction to the worldwide awakening of Muslims to their faith, because people fear what they do not understand, and because of scaremongering and a few fools who misportray Islam. Mufti Abu Layth says the rise in Islamophobia is a reaction to the collective awakening of Muslims to their faith, fed by fear of what people do not understand, by scaremongering and misrepresentation, and marginally by fools who misportray Islam.

Answer from 6 April 2015 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Unanswered Questions- An interview with Mufti Abu Layth (at 44:32)

A more recent answer on society/islam-and-modernity exists (19 August 2022): Should all religions be free to compete without state backing?

Watch on YouTube at 44:32 · Open the segment

What does Mufti Abu Layth think of ISIS?

Mon, 06 Apr 2015 00:00:00 +0000

What does Mufti Abu Layth think of ISIS?

ISIS is a ruthless takfiri threat to everyone, Muslims most of all, and he signed the first British fatwa against it. He rejects collective guilt for Muslims and says Western foreign policy and the Iraq prisons helped create it. Mufti Abu Layth says ISIS is a ruthless takfiri ideology that threatens Muslims and non-Muslims alike, that holding Muslims collectively guilty for it is unfair, and that Western foreign policy, including the prisons of the war in Iraq, contributed to its creation.

Answer from 6 April 2015 · auto-transcribed, may contain errors

Kind: general teaching

Recording: Unanswered Questions- An interview with Mufti Abu Layth (at 27:36)

A more recent answer on society/extremism-crime-and-justice exists (29 September 2024): How scholars' rhetoric fed Pakistan's blasphemy killings, in Mufti Abu Layth's view

Watch on YouTube at 27:36 · Open the segment