Iraq 5

Clarification from the Council of Senior Scholars regarding the incidents in Iraq
The Committee of Senior Scholars calls the children (i.e. people) of the Kingdom to support their Leadership.

Riyadh: A clarification was issued yesterday from the Council of Senior Scholars regarding the recent incidents (in Iraq) and this is the text of it:

"Clarification from the Council of Senior Scholars"

All praise is due to Allaah, the One, the Unique, the Creator of the creation, the Lord, the Self Sufficient, the Sender of the Messengers as a mercy to the human beings. And may prayers of blessing and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, the Imaam of mercy, who was sent with the guidance, and who was commanded with justice and clarifying the truth. He was the caller to mercy and kindness. And may these same prayers be upon his family and his companions, all of them.

To proceed: Verily the person in our Islamic homeland - as well as the people who love peace in every place in this world - it hurts him to see the carrying out of this war in Iraq, due to his understanding and comprehending that the wars do not leave behind them anything other than destruction, and that there is no victor in a matter of loss. So everyone in this world will be afflicted by its effects and will live its griefs in the absense of judging according to intelligence and wisdom. And verily every believer upon this earth from those who judge by their intelligence, and express their anxiety and concern about the establishment of this war, he calls upon the Islamic Ummah, and the nations, and the countries who love peace and who adhere to the fundamentals of justice, to make haste in working to stop it as a mercy to all of humanity, and due to respect for the covenants, and protecting humanity from the spread of the chaos of wars which do not leave anything other than destruction in the buidlings and structures, and death for the people. The wars make the women become widows, and the old people mourn and the children frightened. At the same time it kindles in the soul the tendancies of enmity and hatred between the countries of the world and their people.

And verily when we announce this clarification to all of the children of the Kingdom, it is so that we call them to gathering around their leadership which has exherted much effort in the way of preventing Iraq and its people from this war since its warning signs first appeared on the horizon. And they (the leaders of Saudi Arabia) are not being pacified and nor will they ever be pacified until they find and honorable way of containing the incident with attempts. We hope for their success in averting the horrors of war from the area. And what has come in the statement of the Custodian of the Two Sacred Sanctuaries (i.e. King Fahd) and his brother, the successor to the leadership (i.e. Crown Prince 'Abdullaah) - may Allaah preserve them - regarding this matter is in no need of any explanation or clarification. Likewise the position of the Kingdom in opposition to this war is clear and announced publicly to all.

And we remind ourselves and all of the children of the Ummah, to adhere to Fear of Allaah (i.e. obeying His commands and avoiding His prohibitions), and staying away from division, and differing. Rather they should stand together in one rank, acting according to the statement of Allaah, the Most High:

{And hold steadfast, all of you, by the Rope of Allaah, and do not be divided}.

And His statement:

{And do not dispute among yourselves, or you will fail and lose your strength}.

And this is a divine command that is obligatory upon everyone in all circumstances. And in the time of trials and calamities it is even more obligatory and more binding. And from this is the spreading of rumors that are targeting the matter of our religion and our tranquility and safety. And from this is the attempt of those who their souls have made it fair seeming to them, from those with weak souls, to attack the unity of our country by speech or action. It is obligatory upon the Muslim who feels protective honor in the situations of trial and major events which relate to the Ummah in general, to fear Allaah regarding his nation, and he should not be hasty. Rather he must use deliberation and gentleness, and he must refer the affairs to their proper people.

Allaah, far removed is He from imperfections and Most High is He, said:

{And when there comes to them a matter of safety or fear, they broadcast it. And if they had referred it back to the Messenger and those in authority among them, then those who could extract the truth of it amongst them would know it}.

They would emphasize the neccessity of confirming information and the obligation of seeking shelter with Allaah in both speech and action. May He preserve the safety of our Kingdom in its relgious matters and its worldly matters, and may He give its rulers firmness upon the truth, and may He protect the lands of the Muslims in general.

And it is a duty upon the rest of the people of knowledge in this Kingdom and in every place to make clear to the people the effects of the evil trials and their wicked results. And they must encourage the people to seek shelter and refuge with Allaah with supplications, and requesting from Him that He removes the harm, and pressing upon Him - Magnficent is His Majesty - to do this and supplicating for this in abundance. They should ask Him for forgiveness and expiation of sins. For indeed it is He Who said: "And when My servants ask you concerning Me, indeed I am Near. I answer the supplication of the supplicator when he calls upon Me.

Indeed this clarification is only to emphasize what the government of this land is upon and its scholars and its people, of rejecting the war. And Allaah is the One Who Assists, and He is the Most Able, the One with Power over every matter. We ask Him by the magnificence of His Qadr to extinguish this war with His Mercy, and that He covers the inhabited lands with peace. The control of every affair is in His Hand and unto Him is the final affair. May Allaah send Salaah upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon his family and companions, and may He send upon them an abundance of Salaam.

The Council of Senior Scholars
The President of the Board
'Abdul-'Azeez ibn Abdullaah ibn Muhammad Aal ash-Shaykh