Canadian Imam implies: jihad is permissible when authorities ban spreading Islam

Abdi Hersy is an Imam at Abu Bakr Musallah in Calgary, Alberta and a prominent voice in Calgary’s Somali community.

Addressing his congregation last year, Abdi Hersy strongly condemned the Islamic State (a.k.a IS, ISIS, ISIL, the Caliphate) and argued that joining the jihad in Syria and Iraq has no valid Islamic justification nor it has been approved by any of the Muslim scholars.

Abdi Hersy thinks that the best course for Muslims in Canada is doing Dawah, meaning propagating and spreading Islam by spurring Muslims to practice Islam and by introducing Islam to unbelievers in an effort to convince them to convert to Islam.

The following are excerpts from Abdi Hersy’s lecture (the video was uploaded on YouTube on February 17, 2015):

(41:54-43:53)

“Spread the Dawah, and I tell you this word or term called jihad, jihad is not the bottom line of Islam. It is not the intention of Islam. It is a tools for the Dawah… Jihad is not the bottom line. You don’t have to do jihad. You don’t have to. Jihad is a tools for the Dawah.

“If somewhere some people decide to stop the Dawah and say: No more Dawah! You cannot talk to anybody about Islam. You cannot spread the message.

“Then you fight with those people and that is called jihad. You need that when you get that situation, not every-time.

“I can spread the Dawah in Canada. Canada is not a Muslim country, right? It’s a Christian country. What we’re doing right now? What are you doing? They came across the door to give Dawah. In Canada…

“And the government they know what we do. They do. Are they stopping us from doing this? Can we talk and speak with our neighbours about Islam?

“Is anyone rules I kill you if stand in front of City Hall tomorrow morning and you have your microphone and you have your pamphlets… to everybody to passerby. Is anybody comes to you and shoot you and kill you?

“Why do you need to do jihad against Canada? Spread the Dawah. Focus on that. That will be productive.

“That will be more productive than exploding the mall or killing bystanders or making people to hate Islam more.

“They hate Islam the most right now, because everything they hear or see about Islam is killing and blood and destruction…

(46:36- 46:53)

“Focus on the Dawah, we are at that stage, Allah Willing, when it comes to the jihad time and we see the real opportunity and a real legitimate jihad then we all join including myself. But now, hold your horses, take it easy.”

CIJnews has learned that in 2014 a young Muslim approached another Imam at Abu Bakr Musallah in Calgary and told to him about his desire to join the jihad in Syria and Iraq. The Imam stressed that it is against Islam and advised him to abandon his plan.