A Texas imam is under fire after appearing to celebrate the death of U.S. Sen. Lindsey Graham, writing, “May you live an eternity in ruins.”
On July 12, hours after Graham’s death was announced, Omar Suleiman, president and co-founder of the Yaqeen Institute for Islamic Research, posted on social media.
“In other news, Lindsey Graham is dead,” Suleiman wrote. “Bye Lindsey. May you live an eternity in ruins for the ruins you helped create in Gaza. Ameen.”
His remarks sparked outrage among Republican lawmakers, with U.S. Rep. Chip Roy of Texas writing on social media, “A U.S. Senator dies—and an Imam in Texas celebrates. We are at war—and only one side understands it.”
Suleiman is no stranger to members of Congress.
In 2019, then-House Speaker Nancy Pelosi, a Democrat from California, invited him to open the U.S. House in prayer. During the prayer, Suleiman was heard saying, “We pray for peace, not war. Love, not hate.”
However, critics have pointed to Suleiman’s past comments and associations as a stark contrast to his message of love and peace.
According to a special report by the Middle East Forum, Suleiman was designated as one of the top 10 antisemitic influencers in the United States by Israel’s Ministry of Diaspora Affairs. After the designation, Suleiman posted a YouTube video sharing his father’s message congratulating him for “making the honors list.”
Suleiman has also advocated for Sharia law and defended the practice of sex slavery and concubinage, according to the Middle East Forum.
“Islam is about solving real problems; it’s not about idealism. … Society’s welfare always takes precedence over the individual’s welfare,” Suleiman said.
“What this means is, the outrage over a man having been able to be intimate with more than one woman, or more than four women, unfortunately, goes over the outrage that, … had that option not been there, [the woman] would have most likely been put in a situation of prostitution.”
He added: “This [concubinage] was to solve a real problem. … A women [sic] had rights in that situation that she would not have had in any other situation as a concubine.”
In addition, Suleiman has been accused of defending convicted terrorists, calling for a third intifada, and traveling to Turkey to support Muslim Brotherhood leaders banned from entering the United States.
Suleiman has also called Aidh al-Qarni “one of the greatest scholars and thinkers of the world.”
Al-Qarni, a Saudi cleric, has preached that “fighting the Jews and not making peace with them is a religious Islamic duty.” He also said, “The Jews and the Christians are the enemies of the Muslims and the enemies of Islam.”
“Throats must be slit and skulls must be shattered. This is the path to victory, to shahada, and to sacrifice,” al-Qarni said, according to the report.
With Suleiman’s past comments and associations under renewed scrutiny, U.S. Rep. Beth Van Duyne, R-Texas, introduced a resolution to Congress formally condemning Suleiman’s remarks about Graham’s death.
The resolution also calls on the House to support House Republicans’ efforts “in raising awareness about the dangers of Sharia law and its incompatibility with American legal principles, constitutional governance, and individual liberty.”
Sam Westrop, director of the Middle East Forum’s Islamist Watch project and senior fellow at the Texas Public Policy Foundation, told the Daily Signal that Suleiman is America’s leading Islamist voice.
“Omar Suleiman is a prominent radical American imam with millions of followers, not just in the United States, but all across the globe. [He] is a pioneer of the Texas-based modernist Salafi movement, whose influence has shaped the development of Islamism globally in recent years,” Westrop said. “While Suleiman spent many years attempting to intersperse his Islamist ideals with progressivist talking points, in recent years he has rediscovered his inner unabashed radical.”
Westrop added: “He has served as a leading apologist for Hamas’ October 7 attacks, expressed support for convicted Al-Qaeda terrorist Aafia Siddiqui, and recently appeared to delight in the death of Lindsey Graham. He is, arguably, America’s leading Islamist voice.”
Continue reading...
[ H/T The Daily Signal ]
