Zafar Bangash
Encyclopedia
Zafar Bangash is a noted Islamic movement journalist and commentator and a leader of the Muslim
community in Toronto
, Canada
, and a strong advocate of Muslim unity.
Bangash is Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought
(ICIT), and president of the Islamic Society of York Region, a suburb of Toronto
. He is Imam
at the Islamic Society of York Region's Mosque
and community centre in Richmond Hill
, Ontario. He is a former editor of Crescent International
newsmagazine, and a Trustee and formerly assistant director of the Muslim Institute, London
, where he worked with Dr Kalim Siddiqui
(1931–1996), the founder of the Muslim Institute and Leader of the Muslim Parliament
of Great Britain
. Bangash is also co-founder of the Muslim Unity Group.
He is best known for his commentaries current affairs while editor of Crescent International. Though he stepped down as editor since joining the ICIT, he continues as a columnist and contributor to Crescent.
to address the problem of increased harassment of Muslims and racial minorities since 9-11.
He was the keynote speaker at a 2007 Marxist conference in Toronto prompting Bangash critic Tarek Fatah
of the liberal Muslim Canadian Congress
to comment "For atheists, considered worthy of the death penalty by Islamists, to team up with their ultimate opponents in attacking Canadian civic society, demonstrates the fundamental bankruptcy of these two political ideologies." Bangash justified his collaboration with secular leftists saying "The issues of justice, inequality and poverty are common themes we can work together on. They are concerns of conscience."
Bangash was the focus of controversy when his association with a planned mosque
in Newmarket, Ontario
was used as a rallying point by opponents attempting to convince the municipality to rescind zoning approval for the building. A group called "Concerned Citizens Against Terror for Citizens of Newmarket" led by Ron Banerjee of the Hindu Conference of Canada and Meir Weinstein
of the Jewish Defence League organized protests and a public meeting against the mosque's construction. Banerjee claimed that Bangash himself posed a "clear and present danger to the safety and security" of the country. The protest group was accused by one community member of not being members of the community and coming in from outside for the purpose of "stirring the pot". Mosque leaders have said that while Bangash is president of the Islamic Society of York Region to which the new mosque belongs, he is not the mosque's imam and has no direct involvement with the facility.
In June 2007, the Canadian Arab Federation
(CAF) honoured Bangash at a gala dinner for his "unwavering" support of Palestine
. CAF President Khaled Mouammar also defended Bangash, stating that "he is a man of dignity" and that "he has no blood on his hands like those Israeli war criminals who come to Canada
and are received by our politicians, like Ariel Sharon
."
On February 14, 2010, at a conference entitled "Media War on Islam," Bangash stated the "Israeli-owned" International Consultants on Targeted Security runs security at Amsterdam airport, and therefore "the Israelis are in control of security," and thus allowed Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
to board a Detroitbound plane with concealed exposives.
and has called for Islamic revolutions in other countries, stating that "Muslims must strive to overthrow the oppressive systems in their societies through Islamic revolutions, and not by participating in fraudulent elections organized by the elites operating through various political parties that actually divide the people." Tarek Fatah describes him as the "unofficial spokesperson for the Iranian regime in Canada." However, Bangash has denied being an advocate of creating an Islamic theocracy
telling the Toronto Star "I am suggesting not necessarily an Iranian-style theocracy but I am advocating that people in the Muslim world should get rid of their corrupt regimes in the same way as the people of Iran got rid of the corrupt regime of the shah, of course."
proposed the introduction of "anti-homophobia education" at a downtown Toronto school. Bangash supported the right of Muslim parents to exclude their children from classes discussing families with same-sex parents. "We don't want our children subject to that kind of thinking. It's very clear in our belief that marriage is between a man and a woman. It goes against the core beliefs of Muslims; our understanding springs directly from the Qur'an," said Bangash.
calling it "the greediest, most exploitative, most manipulative, most hypocritical and most ruthless power that the world has ever known." He has also written that "unless the US and Israel realise that their murderous policies, far from cowing the Muslims, will only intensify hatred for them, there will be peace neither in the Muslim world nor for the US and its zionist surrogate, Israel."
In an interview with on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Bangash stated that:
He told the National Post that he believes that the U.S. government knew of Osama bin Laden
's plans to launch the 9/11 attacks in advance and allowed them to occur in order to provide a pretext for attacking Afghanistan
.
or a power-sharing arrangement between Jews and Palestinians stating that Israeli Jews should "go back where they came from:the US, Canada Europe, Russia, or whoever is willing to take them in." Bangash has also stated that "Zionist thugs will have to vacate every inch of Palestine if there is to be justice (and therefore peace) in that tortured land." At the Toronto Peace & Justice Conference in March 2006, Bangash gave a speech in which he stated that "for the state of Israel, peace would mean when all the Palestinians have been put into the graveyard, six feet down.
"
On the question of suicide bombing Bangash told the Vancouver Sun that he opposes the targeting of innocent civilians. He argues that suicide bombing is an act of desperation by a people who do not have the tanks, aircraft and advanced weaponry - "it's the Israelis who have them, they are using them, and people under occupation have the right under international law to resist their occupiers." He also claimed that suicide bombers usually attack military targets.
saying their strategy was "the most stupid approach to take because you cannot convince the U.S. by attacking the U.S. You cannot force the U.S. to change its policies; you have to change your own situation in Muslim countries." He has also criticized Bin Laden's call for jihad
against the West saying "An individual cannot issue a jihad... Only highly qualified scholars respected through the Muslim world can do that, not somebody sitting on some mountain."
calling for a national referendum on Canada's continued participation in the war.
, Bangash said that the mosque was packed and that “The congregation was thrilled by the result". Following the 9-11 attacks a Mennonite
pastor, Gordon Alton, contacted the mosque. Bangash, in his words, "stretched the rules of Islam" to the limit and asked Alton to preach at the mosque. “I think never in history had that been done before,” Bangash said, “but I felt we needed to return [his] gesture.”
Peter Leibovitch, who is Jewish and a long-time friend of Bangash, has defended him against his critics saying "we live in a free society and have the right to different positions," adding that many in the Jewish community don't support decisions made by the Israeli government. "And a lot of Jews are not happy with (U.S. President) George Bush's new militarism... Zafar Bangash doesn't agree with American foreign policy nor do millions of Canadians. I didn't know it's a crime not to agree with George Bush."
Muslim
A Muslim, also spelled Moslem, is an adherent of Islam, a monotheistic, Abrahamic religion based on the Quran, which Muslims consider the verbatim word of God as revealed to prophet Muhammad. "Muslim" is the Arabic term for "submitter" .Muslims believe that God is one and incomparable...
community in Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
, and a strong advocate of Muslim unity.
Bangash is Director of the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought
Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought
The Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought is an international intellectual centre of the global Islamic movement. It consists of individual activists, journalists and academics from around the world who share a common commitment to developing the social and political ideology of Islam, and...
(ICIT), and president of the Islamic Society of York Region, a suburb of Toronto
Toronto
Toronto is the provincial capital of Ontario and the largest city in Canada. It is located in Southern Ontario on the northwestern shore of Lake Ontario. A relatively modern city, Toronto's history dates back to the late-18th century, when its land was first purchased by the British monarchy from...
. He is Imam
Imam
An imam is an Islamic leadership position, often the worship leader of a mosque and the Muslim community. Similar to spiritual leaders, the imam is the one who leads Islamic worship services. More often, the community turns to the mosque imam if they have a religious question...
at the Islamic Society of York Region's Mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
and community centre in Richmond Hill
Richmond Hill, Ontario
Richmond Hill is a town located in Southern Ontario, Canada in the central portion of York Region, Ontario. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area, being located about halfway between Toronto and Lake Simcoe...
, Ontario. He is a former editor of Crescent International
Crescent International
Crescent International is an international news magazine of the global Islamic movement that is affiliated with the Institute of Contemporary Islamic Thought. It is published in Canada, South Africa and Pakistan, and also distributed from London and Nigeria...
newsmagazine, and a Trustee and formerly assistant director of the Muslim Institute, London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
, where he worked with Dr Kalim Siddiqui
Kalim Siddiqui
Kalim Siddiqui, Ph.D. was an Indian British writer and Islamic activist.-Early life:Siddiqui was born in the village of Dondi Lohara, CP, British India on September 15, 1931...
(1931–1996), the founder of the Muslim Institute and Leader of the Muslim Parliament
Muslim Parliament
The Muslim Parliament of Great Britain is a Muslim organization founded in 1992 in London by Dr Kalim Siddiqui, Director of the Muslim Institute, based on a proposal published in July 1990 under the title The Muslim Manifesto. The Muslim Parliament consists mainly of appointees, including women and...
of Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
. Bangash is also co-founder of the Muslim Unity Group.
He is best known for his commentaries current affairs while editor of Crescent International. Though he stepped down as editor since joining the ICIT, he continues as a columnist and contributor to Crescent.
Activities
In 2007, as a spokesperson for the Muslim Unity Group in Toronto, Bangash appeared with other Muslim leaders at a Toronto press conference calling for the Ontario government and Toronto District School BoardToronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board, also known by the acronym TDSB, is the English-language public school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
to address the problem of increased harassment of Muslims and racial minorities since 9-11.
He was the keynote speaker at a 2007 Marxist conference in Toronto prompting Bangash critic Tarek Fatah
Tarek Fatah
Tarek Fatah Urdu: طارق فتح is a Canadian political activist, writer, and broadcaster. He is the author of Chasing a Mirage: The Tragic Illusion of an Islamic State published by John Wiley & Sons. In the book Fatah challenges the notion that the establishment of an Islamic state is a necessary...
of the liberal Muslim Canadian Congress
Muslim Canadian Congress
The Muslim Canadian Congress was organized to provide a voice to Muslims who support a "progressive, liberal, pluralistic, democratic, and secular society where everyone has the freedom of religion." The organization claimed to have 300 dues-paying members prior to its 2006 split.-Origins:It was...
to comment "For atheists, considered worthy of the death penalty by Islamists, to team up with their ultimate opponents in attacking Canadian civic society, demonstrates the fundamental bankruptcy of these two political ideologies." Bangash justified his collaboration with secular leftists saying "The issues of justice, inequality and poverty are common themes we can work together on. They are concerns of conscience."
Bangash was the focus of controversy when his association with a planned mosque
Mosque
A mosque is a place of worship for followers of Islam. The word is likely to have entered the English language through French , from Portuguese , from Spanish , and from Berber , ultimately originating in — . The Arabic word masjid literally means a place of prostration...
in Newmarket, Ontario
Newmarket, Ontario
Newmarket is a town in Southern Ontario located approximately 50 km north of downtown Toronto, Ontario, Canada. It is part of the Greater Toronto Area and is connected to Toronto by freeway, and is served by three interchanges along Highway 404. It is also connected to Highway 400 via Highway 9...
was used as a rallying point by opponents attempting to convince the municipality to rescind zoning approval for the building. A group called "Concerned Citizens Against Terror for Citizens of Newmarket" led by Ron Banerjee of the Hindu Conference of Canada and Meir Weinstein
Meir Weinstein
Meir Weinstein is the national director of the Canadian branch of the extremist Jewish Defense League .-Background:...
of the Jewish Defence League organized protests and a public meeting against the mosque's construction. Banerjee claimed that Bangash himself posed a "clear and present danger to the safety and security" of the country. The protest group was accused by one community member of not being members of the community and coming in from outside for the purpose of "stirring the pot". Mosque leaders have said that while Bangash is president of the Islamic Society of York Region to which the new mosque belongs, he is not the mosque's imam and has no direct involvement with the facility.
In June 2007, the Canadian Arab Federation
Canadian Arab Federation
The Canadian Arab Federation was formed in 1967 to represent the interests of Arab Canadians with respect to the formulation of public policy in Canada. It presently consists of over 40 member organizations....
(CAF) honoured Bangash at a gala dinner for his "unwavering" support of Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. CAF President Khaled Mouammar also defended Bangash, stating that "he is a man of dignity" and that "he has no blood on his hands like those Israeli war criminals who come to Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
and are received by our politicians, like Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon
Ariel Sharon is an Israeli statesman and retired general, who served as Israel’s 11th Prime Minister. He has been in a permanent vegetative state since suffering a stroke on 4 January 2006....
."
On February 14, 2010, at a conference entitled "Media War on Islam," Bangash stated the "Israeli-owned" International Consultants on Targeted Security runs security at Amsterdam airport, and therefore "the Israelis are in control of security," and thus allowed Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab
Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab , popularly referred to as the "Underwear Bomber", is a suspected terrorist who attempted to detonate plastic explosives hidden in his underwear while on board Northwest Airlines Flight 253, en route from Amsterdam to Detroit, Michigan, on December 25,...
to board a Detroitbound plane with concealed exposives.
Islamic revolution
Bangash is a staunch supporter of the 1979 Islamic revolution in IranIranian Revolution
The Iranian Revolution refers to events involving the overthrow of Iran's monarchy under Shah Mohammad Reza Pahlavi and its replacement with an Islamic republic under Ayatollah Ruhollah Khomeini, the leader of the...
and has called for Islamic revolutions in other countries, stating that "Muslims must strive to overthrow the oppressive systems in their societies through Islamic revolutions, and not by participating in fraudulent elections organized by the elites operating through various political parties that actually divide the people." Tarek Fatah describes him as the "unofficial spokesperson for the Iranian regime in Canada." However, Bangash has denied being an advocate of creating an Islamic theocracy
Theocracy
Theocracy is a form of organization in which the official policy is to be governed by immediate divine guidance or by officials who are regarded as divinely guided, or simply pursuant to the doctrine of a particular religious sect or religion....
telling the Toronto Star "I am suggesting not necessarily an Iranian-style theocracy but I am advocating that people in the Muslim world should get rid of their corrupt regimes in the same way as the people of Iran got rid of the corrupt regime of the shah, of course."
Homosexuality
In 2004, the Toronto District School BoardToronto District School Board
Toronto District School Board, also known by the acronym TDSB, is the English-language public school board for Toronto, Ontario, Canada...
proposed the introduction of "anti-homophobia education" at a downtown Toronto school. Bangash supported the right of Muslim parents to exclude their children from classes discussing families with same-sex parents. "We don't want our children subject to that kind of thinking. It's very clear in our belief that marriage is between a man and a woman. It goes against the core beliefs of Muslims; our understanding springs directly from the Qur'an," said Bangash.
United States
Bangash opposes the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
calling it "the greediest, most exploitative, most manipulative, most hypocritical and most ruthless power that the world has ever known." He has also written that "unless the US and Israel realise that their murderous policies, far from cowing the Muslims, will only intensify hatred for them, there will be peace neither in the Muslim world nor for the US and its zionist surrogate, Israel."
In an interview with on the Islamic Republic of Iran Broadcasting (IRIB), Bangash stated that:
"the imam's [Ayatollah Khomeini] designation of the U.S. as a great Satan was very precise. It emerged from a very careful study and understanding of the behaviour of the United States government and its policies down the generations...It has perpetrated over there [in Iraq] under the guise of delivering democracy and freedom when tens of thousands if not hundred of thousands of innocent people have been murdered in cold blood similar crimes are being perpetrated in Palestine by the US support of the Zionist occupiers of Palestine... It is an evil power that it needs to be dealt with and it needs to be continued and put in its place."
He told the National Post that he believes that the U.S. government knew of Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
's plans to launch the 9/11 attacks in advance and allowed them to occur in order to provide a pretext for attacking Afghanistan
War in Afghanistan (2001–present)
The War in Afghanistan began on October 7, 2001, as the armed forces of the United States of America, the United Kingdom, Australia, and the Afghan United Front launched Operation Enduring Freedom...
.
Israeli-Palestinian conflict
He rejects the notion of a two-state solutionTwo-state solution
The two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict is the consensus solution that is currently under discussion by the key parties to the conflict, most recently at the Annapolis Conference in November 2007...
or a power-sharing arrangement between Jews and Palestinians stating that Israeli Jews should "go back where they came from:the US, Canada Europe, Russia, or whoever is willing to take them in." Bangash has also stated that "Zionist thugs will have to vacate every inch of Palestine if there is to be justice (and therefore peace) in that tortured land." At the Toronto Peace & Justice Conference in March 2006, Bangash gave a speech in which he stated that "for the state of Israel, peace would mean when all the Palestinians have been put into the graveyard, six feet down.
"
On the question of suicide bombing Bangash told the Vancouver Sun that he opposes the targeting of innocent civilians. He argues that suicide bombing is an act of desperation by a people who do not have the tanks, aircraft and advanced weaponry - "it's the Israelis who have them, they are using them, and people under occupation have the right under international law to resist their occupiers." He also claimed that suicide bombers usually attack military targets.
2006 Israel-Lebanon War
Bangash was active in protests against the 2006 Israel-Lebanon war at one point eliciting cheers when he announced the number of Israeli soldiers killed by Hezbollah forces during the conflict.Criticism of Taliban and Osama bin Laden
Bangash has criticized the Taliban and Osama bin LadenOsama bin Laden
Osama bin Mohammed bin Awad bin Laden was the founder of the militant Islamist organization Al-Qaeda, the jihadist organization responsible for the September 11 attacks on the United States and numerous other mass-casualty attacks against civilian and military targets...
saying their strategy was "the most stupid approach to take because you cannot convince the U.S. by attacking the U.S. You cannot force the U.S. to change its policies; you have to change your own situation in Muslim countries." He has also criticized Bin Laden's call for jihad
Jihad
Jihad , an Islamic term, is a religious duty of Muslims. In Arabic, the word jihād translates as a noun meaning "struggle". Jihad appears 41 times in the Quran and frequently in the idiomatic expression "striving in the way of God ". A person engaged in jihad is called a mujahid; the plural is...
against the West saying "An individual cannot issue a jihad... Only highly qualified scholars respected through the Muslim world can do that, not somebody sitting on some mountain."
Canadian intervention in Afghanistan
Bangash has spoken out at rallies against Canada's role in the invasion of AfghanistanCanada's role in the invasion of Afghanistan
Canada did not have a significant role in the first few months of the invasion of Afghanistan that began on October 7, 2001, and the first contingents of regular Canadian troops arrived in Afghanistan only in January–February 2002. Canada took on a larger role starting in 2006 after the Canadian...
calling for a national referendum on Canada's continued participation in the war.
Relationship with non-Muslims
Bangash told the Toronto Star that when his Richmond Hill mosque opened, he and his congregation "went out of our way to contact the neighbours, contact the churches, Jewish groups, all kinds of people. We have invited to this centre United Church ministers to come and speak, Mennonite pastors to come and speak." In 2005, the mosque held a service in which every member of the congregation was asked to bring someone who was non-Muslim. Speaking to reporter Michael ValpyMichael Valpy
Michael Granville Valpy is an award-winning Canadian journalist and author. He writes for the Globe and Mail newspaper where he made his reputation on both political and human interest stories...
, Bangash said that the mosque was packed and that “The congregation was thrilled by the result". Following the 9-11 attacks a Mennonite
Mennonite
The Mennonites are a group of Christian Anabaptist denominations named after the Frisian Menno Simons , who, through his writings, articulated and thereby formalized the teachings of earlier Swiss founders...
pastor, Gordon Alton, contacted the mosque. Bangash, in his words, "stretched the rules of Islam" to the limit and asked Alton to preach at the mosque. “I think never in history had that been done before,” Bangash said, “but I felt we needed to return [his] gesture.”
Peter Leibovitch, who is Jewish and a long-time friend of Bangash, has defended him against his critics saying "we live in a free society and have the right to different positions," adding that many in the Jewish community don't support decisions made by the Israeli government. "And a lot of Jews are not happy with (U.S. President) George Bush's new militarism... Zafar Bangash doesn't agree with American foreign policy nor do millions of Canadians. I didn't know it's a crime not to agree with George Bush."