Association of Muslim Scholars
Encyclopedia
The Association of Muslim Scholars (Arabic: هيئة علماء المسلمين Hayat Al-Ulama Al-Muslimin) is a group of religious leaders in Iraq
. It was formed on the April 14, 2003, four days after the U.S.-led invasion demolished the Ba'athist regime of Saddam Hussein, by a group of scholars who aimed to represent Sunnis in Iraq. Though not a political party, the association is considered to be politically influential. It also administers a charitable fund set up for the upkeep of religious buildings.
Prominent members include Harith Sulayman al-Dhari (Chairman), Muthanna Harith al-Dhari (Chairman's son and spokesman), Abdel-Salam al-Kubaisi, Abdel-Sattar Abdel-Jabbar
, Dr. Muhammad Bashar al-Faithi
, Ahmed Abdul Ghafour al-Samarrai, Mahdi Ibrahim, Abu Bashir al-Tarousi and Umar Raghib.
According to the association's spokesman in 2005 Muhammad al-Kubaysi, Iraq's problems can be attributed to "the presence of a foreign power that occupies this country and refuses even the mere scheduling of the withdrawal of its forces from Iraq." Members of the AMS met a senior US embassy official in January 2005 and asked for a timetable for US troop withdrawal. When this was refused, the group called for a boycott of the elections.
The AMS has been the group most critical of the occupation since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Sheikh Harith al-Dhari, the Chairman of the group, has said: "Iraq’s ordeal will not end unless the occupation ends. We must get rid of the occupation which is the cause of Iraq’s misery and pain. It acts as a cover and fuel for outsiders to meddle."
leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
called for "a full-scale war on Shiites," at least one member of the association, Abu Bashir al-Tarousi, objected, pointing out that "although sectarian war in Iraq may have been provoked and sparked by the Shia ... killing according to sectarian affiliation is not justified by Islamic law," and Muslims should not take "justice into their own hands." He also expressed concern that the attacks would cause the legitimate Iraqi resistance to lose its credibility in the eyes of the Islamic world"
The AMS has attempted to heal sectarian divisions in Iraq, for example by organising joint Sunni-Shia prayers.
school of fiqh law over the Hanafi
school, which has traditionally been dominant in Iraq.
Iraq
Iraq ; officially the Republic of Iraq is a country in Western Asia spanning most of the northwestern end of the Zagros mountain range, the eastern part of the Syrian Desert and the northern part of the Arabian Desert....
. It was formed on the April 14, 2003, four days after the U.S.-led invasion demolished the Ba'athist regime of Saddam Hussein, by a group of scholars who aimed to represent Sunnis in Iraq. Though not a political party, the association is considered to be politically influential. It also administers a charitable fund set up for the upkeep of religious buildings.
Prominent members include Harith Sulayman al-Dhari (Chairman), Muthanna Harith al-Dhari (Chairman's son and spokesman), Abdel-Salam al-Kubaisi, Abdel-Sattar Abdel-Jabbar
Abdel-Sattar Abdel-Jabbar
Sheikh Abdel-Sattar Abdel-Jabbar is one of the founding members of the joint Arab-Kurd Sunni Muslim Clerics Association....
, Dr. Muhammad Bashar al-Faithi
Muhammad Bashar al-Faithi
Muhammad Bashar al-Faithi is the spokesman for Sheik Harith Sulayman al-Dhari, the chairman of the Association of Muslim Scholars.On November 16, 2006, the interior minister of Iraq, Jawad al-Bolani, a Shi'ite, announced that Dhari was wanted on a charge of inciting violence...
, Ahmed Abdul Ghafour al-Samarrai, Mahdi Ibrahim, Abu Bashir al-Tarousi and Umar Raghib.
Anti-occupation
The AMS has not joined the newly formed government because it believes the political process to be illegitimate whilst Iraq remains under occupation. The group believes that: "True democracy is impossible under occupation.”According to the association's spokesman in 2005 Muhammad al-Kubaysi, Iraq's problems can be attributed to "the presence of a foreign power that occupies this country and refuses even the mere scheduling of the withdrawal of its forces from Iraq." Members of the AMS met a senior US embassy official in January 2005 and asked for a timetable for US troop withdrawal. When this was refused, the group called for a boycott of the elections.
The AMS has been the group most critical of the occupation since the invasion of Iraq in 2003. Sheikh Harith al-Dhari, the Chairman of the group, has said: "Iraq’s ordeal will not end unless the occupation ends. We must get rid of the occupation which is the cause of Iraq’s misery and pain. It acts as a cover and fuel for outsiders to meddle."
Rejection of terrorism
The association has been called an important force in giving the anti-occupation insurgency religious sanction in Iraq, with some of its leaders, such as Ayyash al-Kubaisi, openly endorsing the resistance as legitimate. However, they have consistently condemned all indiscriminate attacks on civilians, and have negotiated for the release of Western hostages, as well as helping to arrange aid convoys to the city of Falluja when it was under siege.Anti-sectarianism
When Al-Qaeda in IraqAl-Qaeda in Iraq
Al-Qaeda in Iraq is a popular name for the Iraqi division of the international Salafi jihadi militant organization al-Qaeda. It is recognized as a part of the greater Iraqi insurgency....
leader Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi
Abu Musab al-Zarqawi ; October 30, 1966 – June 7, 2006), born Ahmad Fadeel al-Nazal al-Khalayleh was a Jordanian militant Islamist who ran a paramilitary training camp in Afghanistan...
called for "a full-scale war on Shiites," at least one member of the association, Abu Bashir al-Tarousi, objected, pointing out that "although sectarian war in Iraq may have been provoked and sparked by the Shia ... killing according to sectarian affiliation is not justified by Islamic law," and Muslims should not take "justice into their own hands." He also expressed concern that the attacks would cause the legitimate Iraqi resistance to lose its credibility in the eyes of the Islamic world"
The AMS has attempted to heal sectarian divisions in Iraq, for example by organising joint Sunni-Shia prayers.
Religious Stances
The AMS is a group of Sunni scholars. Many of its members favor the HanbaliHanbali
The Hanbali school is one the schools of Fiqh or religious law within Sunni Islam. The jurisprudence school traces back to Imam Ahmad ibn Hanbal but was institutionalized by his students. Hanbali jurisprudence is considered very strict and conservative, especially regarding questions of dogma...
school of fiqh law over the Hanafi
Hanafi
The Hanafi school is one of the four Madhhab in jurisprudence within Sunni Islam. The Hanafi madhhab is named after the Persian scholar Abu Hanifa an-Nu‘man ibn Thābit , a Tabi‘i whose legal views were preserved primarily by his two most important disciples, Abu Yusuf and Muhammad al-Shaybani...
school, which has traditionally been dominant in Iraq.
External links
- Association of Muslim Scholars in Iraq (Official Website)
- Association of Muslim Clerics speaks for moderate Sunnis article at International Relations and Security Network (Switzerland)
- see http://arabamericans.barackobama.com/page/community/post/harrykanelopoulos/gGxqFX/commentary
- AMS warns Iraqi forces not to fight (Al-Jazeera)
- AMS critical of Iraq elections (Al-Jazeera)
- AMS: Iraq election lacked legitimacy (Al-Jazeera)
- AMS rejects writing constitution (Al-Jazeera)
- AMS rejects role in Iraqi politics (Al-Jazeera)
- Association of Muslim Scholars (Arabic only)