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Apr 04, 2014
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Pakistani Cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz Justifies Keeping Weapons in Islamabad’s Mosque

#4670 | 05:12
Source: Online Platforms

In an interview, posted on the Internet on April 4, Pakistani cleric Maulana Abdul Aziz, the prayer leader at the Red Mosque in Islamabad, talked about a wide range of issues, including the need to instill the ideology of Jihad in students, the constitution of Pakistan, and the education of women.


Following are excerpts:


Interviewer: Are the male and female students here prepared for the passion and training of Jihad?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Training is one thing, and instilling ideology and fervor is another. Our job is to instill in them the ideology and passion for Jihad, as the Quran tells us to do.


[…]


Interviewer: Many people laugh at you for fleeing the Lal Masjid Mosque in a burqa. Wasn't this utter cowardice?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: The shari'a tells us to stand up for religion, to give sacrifice, to have passion for Jihad, and to seek martyrdom, and if it is necessary, to step back.


Interviewer: Then there is an element of cowardice? Do people taunt you?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Certainly, that is their right. But Allah knows it.


[…]


Interviewer: You consider the constitution of Pakistan un-Islamic, but you accept it, so why don't you accept the law?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: We do not consider the [Pakistani] constitution to be sacred. The Quran and the Sunna are sacred to us. If there is a conflict between them and the constitution, we would prefer the Quran and the Sunna over the constitution.


Interviewer: You have established this library in the name of Osama Bin Laden. Are you trying to fight the whole world?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: When there is freedom of speech, when someone calls him a terrorist, that is their view, but it is not ours. We call Osama Bin Laden a hero of Islam, a martyr.


[…]


Just like there is a Darul Ifta for men, where we respond to queries, we have one for women too.


Interviewer: Women issue fatwas too?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Certainly. This is a Darul Ifta. Women muftis sit here. These are books of fatwas for them. They guide those who come for fatwas.


[…]


Interviewer: What is your view about women who do not wear the veil?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Many problems are caused by this. It causes fitna and leads to trials and troubles.


Interviewer: In your opinion, at what age should a girls start wearing the veil?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: In my view, they should wear it when they reach the age of nine or ten.


[…]


Interviewer: The madrassa has a modern computer room.


Are girls allowed to go to YouTube and Google?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Students are taught most of the time, but the teachers who have worked hard here for many years visit these sites, after they take things out after visiting them.


[…]


Interviewer: What do you want to achieve by becoming a mufti?


Veiled female student: Allah willing, we will return to our own areas, and shed the light of religion on those who are still deprived of it. Allah willing, we will strive to establish schools for girls there.


Interviewer: Are women allowed to wear nail polish or makeup?


Veiled female student: Since [Islam] requires wetting the parts of ablution, if a part [like a nail] does not get wet, the ablution is not complete. As for the issue of makeup, a woman is required to do it for her mahram, her husband, only.


[…]


Interviewer: There are Jihad posters, Kalashnikovs, and that real pistol there [on the wall] of the room of the teacher?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: That is not a real pistol. It is a model. Since our Islam has the principle of Jihad, we think that there should be real weapons in the homes…


Interviewer: Should women know how to use firearms? The female companions of the Prophet Muhammad knew how to use weapons. Do the students and teachers of Jamia Hafsa know how?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: The female students don't know how, but we have been training a group of our special teachers for some time.


Interviewer: Do you have legal weapons?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Yes, a few. We have one pistol and a few heavy weapons which are legal.


Interviewer: Do you have Kalashnikovs too?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: Yes, a few.


[…]


Interviewer: How many bank accounts do you have in the country and abroad, and how much money do you have in them?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: I have only one bank account in Dubai, with maybe 5,000 or 6,000, and that too belongs to the madrassa. I have no personal bank account.


[…]


Interviewer: How many years have you been married?


Wife Maulana Abdul Aziz: We got married on August 16, 1985.


Interviewer: Do you remember your anniversary?


Wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz: There is no concept of anniversaries in Islam. Life has always been blissful.


Interviewer: How much does your family spend each month?


Wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz: It comes to 7,000-8,000 [rupees] monthly. We buy things for a month.


Interviewer: Should women be allowed to drive?


Wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz: I have driven. If it were not permissible, how could I have done this?


Interviewer: Should women be allowed to become air hostesses then?


Maulana Abdul Aziz: There should be air hostesses, but they should serve women only. Serving someone who is not mahram and cleaning their vomit and their bathrooms is beyond one's wisdom and cognizance, and Islamic law does not want this.


[…]


Interviewer: If Maulana asks for permission to marry a second wife, how would you respond?


Wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz: I give him my permission.


Interviewer: But would you feel hurt?


Wife of Maulana Abdul Aziz: It is only natural to feel hurt. But that does not allow us to declare unlawful something deemed permissible by shari'a.


[…]

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