@Gregabdul, I would like to reply to some comments you made, particularly regarding our Palestinian sisters and brothers and about whites in our country. I find these comments stereotypical and offensive.

You state that, “There are Arabs living under Greater Israel who must decide if they live under Jewish rule or LEAVE.” This is how you wrote it, with the word “LEAVE” capitalized. This was so hurtful for me as a Muslim.

The Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said that the entire Shaam (the Levant, which includes Palestine) is ours. He, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said in an authentic narration: “O Allah, bless us in OUR Shaam and OUR Yemen.” By “our”, he, May Allah bless him and grant him peace, meant the Muslims.

Further, in an authentic narration, when the Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, struck a rock before the Battle of the Trench, he, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, saw a light from the rock that illuminated the palaces of Shaam. A similar light, illuminating the palaces of Shaam, was also seen by the Prophet’s, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, mother. Palaces were places from which kings ruled. Scholars have understood this to mean that political authority in Shaam, which includes Palestine, would belong to the Muslims there.

There are many other hadeeth and actions of the Sahaba (Companions), may Allah be pleased with them all, that show the special status of Shaam and its people.

Your statement that the Arabs of Palestine, most of whom are Muslims, should “live under Jewish rule or LEAVE” directly contradicts what the Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, wanted.

Further, your affirmation of a “Greater Israel” aligns precisely with the stated aims of Benjamin Netanyahu, a criminal indicted by the ICC for war crimes and mass murder.

Your statement, “There is NO Palestine,” is false and deeply hurtful to Muslims. You capitalized the word “NO.” This statement denies an entire people their identity, culture, history, and existence. Even some Zionists do not make this claim! Maps predating the creation of Israel labeled the land as Palestine. Coins minted before the creation of Israel bore the name Palestine. Even the soccer team represented the country of Palestine. The fact that Zionists from Europe seized Palestine by force and renamed it Israel does not erase this historical truth.

Further, in response to my comment on Brother Robert McCaw’s op-ed, “What Muslims Will Really Be Talking About Over Halal Turkey This Thanksgiving,” I mentioned that our family would be discussing Palestine and that we were encouraged by the stance of Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani. You replied, “NO ONE is thinking about ‘Palestine’ except you.” How can anyone say this after witnessing the immense suffering of the Palestinian people, and especially on a day called Thanksgiving?

You also wrote, “Islam is not Palestine.” Palestine was known as Shaam by Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, and Shaam is explicitly mentioned in Islam. The Prophet, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said in an authentic narration: “O son of Hawala, Allah has guaranteed me the people of Shaam.” This refers to the Muslims of Shaam, which includes the Arab Palestinians.

Other authentic hadith indicate that the people of Shaam will be specially blessed, rightly guided, and supported by Allah. We are commanded to love them. Statements suggesting that Palestinian Muslims living in this land should live under foreign rule or leave stand in opposition to the Sunnah.

Finally, I want to address racially offensive and demeaning remarks you made about white people. You wrote: “You are closet Muslims running after white ilahs. They will never accept you.”

Even more disturbing was your statement: “Stop lying on Islam so you can chase racist white money, walking around with a shaved face like a pig’s behind.” It was troubling that moderators at MuslimMatters.org allowed this kind of language to remain until I complained (Please see my complaint above.) What kind of dawah (religious propagation) is it to antagonize the majority population in our country?

The Prophet Muhammad, may Allah bless him and grant him peace, said: “There is no superiority of a white person over a Black person, nor of a Black person over a white person, except by taqwa.”

To brother Wael, on framing Ahmed Al-Ahmed’s story:

You describe this as a story about Ahmed “stepping up to stop a massacre regardless of the shooter’s nationality or religion.” I see it as a story of a courageous Muslim, Ahmed, attempting to stop a racist, anti-Semitic extremist, intent on murdering people engaged in worshiping God. To me, it is fundamentally a story about moral courage, anti-racism, and opposition to antisemitism.

It also invites reflection within our own communities, including Islamic schools, to ensure that hatred, whether against other Muslim sects or people of different faiths, is addressed early and decisively. Readers should not be faulted for engaging an article from a different analytical angle.

I raised the issue of the shooter’s nationality because you incorrectly misidentified him as Pakistani. This was a problematic mistake made by several media outlets in the immediate aftermath. Correcting this mistake mattered to me, particularly for Pakistani American readers of MuslimMatters.org, out of respect for their community and identity. Given the loss of human life involved, accuracy and careful sourcing are essential.

Thank you!

We have spent 75 years confusing the world. If you ask, non Muslims do NOT know the Shahadah is the core of Islam. I know when I converted and tried to explain to my family, they looked at each other in a pitiful way and then at me and then started talking about a certain Jew they know and love so much.

As I said, we want it to be a coincidence that the bad racist Muslims who do terrorism and do suicide trying to kill Jews, their defenders in America decided to side with the white racist GOP, even though the GOP hates Muslims (outside of Saudi money). The GOP does not even have a policy. Oh! Not whites and not white religion are ruining America. But we have Muslims for Trump or Biden Genocide. They made things WORSE.

We do have many Jew haters in our mosques. It has been nurtured for years. Often Muslims are taught that Jew hating is basic doctrine instead of the Shahadah. Pretending it is not about race is a white or imitation white thing.

67,000 Palestinians have been killed the last two years but the news these days ignores them because of the 15 Jews killed in Australia. That is about race.

I brought this up to clarify that the person who did the shooting was originally Indian, not Pakistani, as mentioned in the article. This was important for readers of the article to know

Also, brother, the first time I experienced racism was in school here in America. I couldn’t understand it. It was hurtful. This is my honest experience.

Thank you for trying to keep it polite :-)

I brought this up to clarify that the person who did the shooting was originally Indian, not Pakistani. This was important for readers of the article to know.

Also, brother, the first time I experienced racism was in school here in America. I couldn’t understand it. It was hurtful. This is my honest experience.

Thank you for trying to keep it polite :-)

I don’t really get what you’re saying. The article has nothig to do with racism, and the fact that Ahmed Al-Ahmed is Arab and the shooter is Indian is besides the point. The story is about Ahmed’s heroism in stepping up and stopping a massacre, regardless of the shooter’s nationality or religion.