Mozambique: Islamic extremists urge boycott of Pope’s visit – AIM report

Login

Register

http://www.clubofmozambique.com/

Mozambique: Islamic extremists urge boycott of Pope’s visit – AIM report

9:45 CAT | 05 Sep 2019

Picture: Twitter / @emorier

A letter from an Islamic extremist group calling itself Ahl Sunat Wal Jhamah has been circulating in Maputo since the weekend, urging muslims to boycott this week’s visit to Mozambique by the head of the Roman Catholic Church, Pope Francis, according to a report in the independent newssheet “Carta de Mocambique”.

There are many organisations called Ahl Sunat Wal Jhamah or similar names, some of them extremist and some not. This particular group is believed to be connected to terrorist organisations in Pakistan and Somalia. It is not clear whether it has any links to the Islamist insurgency in parts of the northern Mozambican province of Cabo Delgado.

Letter is not from the insurgents in #CaboDelgado, but from a #Mozambique student abroad, it seems. Insurgents have not broken their vow of silence yet. https://t.co/dSm73vxpRS

— Eric Morier-Genoud (@emorier) September 3, 2019

The letter describes the Pope as “an enemy of Allah” and “the leader of unbelievers”. The Pope, it says, is contributing to “the sin” of worshipping figures other than Allah, such as Jesus Christ (regarded as divine in the Christian faith, but merely as a prophet in Islam).

The letter cites a phrase from the Koran instructing muslims to “fight against the unbelievers”, declares that the Pope “is not worthy of any honour from those who prostrate themselves before Allah”, and urges Mozambican muslims to take no part in the reception for the Pope on Wednesday evening or subsequent religious ceremonies addressed by the Pope.

The head of the Islamic Council of Mozambique (CISLAMO), Sheikh Aminuddin Mohamed, told “Carta de Mocambique” that CISLAMO condemns the positions taken in the letter. “We distance ourselves from this faceless group”, he said.

He declared that muslims will take part in the ceremonies during the papal visit, and a group of young muslims has been involved in the rehearsals for these events.

Sheikh Aminudin said that islam respects other religions and is not in favour “of spreading hate among brothers”. He believed the letter “is the work of agitators”, and that the Mozambican muslim community does not agree with the claims made in the letter.

Source: AIM