Hamza Yusuf Hanson is an Islamic scholar of the Sunni tradition, and (with Zaid Shakir

Zaid Shakir

Zaid Salim Shakir is a prominent American Islamic scholar and writer who is a co-founder, , and faculty member, of Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California, United States, where he teaches courses on Arabic, Law, History, and Islamic Spirituality...

 and Hatem Bazian

Hatem Bazian

Hatem Bazian is a Palestinian-American academic at the University of California, Berkeley. He is a Senior Lecturer in the Departments of Near Eastern and Ethnic Studies, and an adjunct professor of law at Boalt Hall School of Law. He teaches courses on Islamic law and society, Islam in America,...

) co-founder of Zaytuna College in Berkeley, California

Berkeley, California

Berkeley is a city on the east shore of the San Francisco Bay in Northern California, United States. Its neighbors to the south are the cities of Oakland and Emeryville. To the north is the city of Albany and the unincorporated community of Kensington...

, United States. He is an American convert to Islam, and is one of the signatories of A Common Word Between Us and You

A Common Word Between Us and You

A Common Word between Us and You is an open letter, dated 13 October 2007, from leaders of the Muslim faith to leaders of the Christian faith. It calls for peace between Muslims and Christians and tries to work for common ground and understanding among both faiths, in line with the Qur'anic...

, an open letter by Islamic scholars to Christian

Christian

A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...

 leaders, calling for peace and understanding. He has described the 9/11 attacks as "an act of 'mass murder, pure and simple'". Condemning the attacks, he has also stated "Islam was hijacked ...