Tuesday, 18 January 2011

Muslim Scholars on Rape

Rape is a deplorable crime which affects all communities regardless of race and faith.

For some time now, there has been an undercurrent on the internet which claims rape of women (especially Christian/Western women) is allowed by Muslims [1]. This is not the case at all – essentially, those who propagate such outrage are either ignorant or have a desire in mischief-making.

It is high time to derail the Islamophobic mischief-makers by presenting a few facts (via Islamic scholars) which will help you to see through the Islamophobes’ hateful and insensitive plots

Do Muslims even have a word for rape? Yes!

The Arabic word ightisab (rape) refers to taking something wrongfully by force. It is now used exclusively to refer to transgression against the honor of women by force. [2]

Is rape a crime in Islam? Yes!

The renowned Saudi scholar, Sheikh Muhammad Saleh Al-Munajjid, condemns the act of rape and describes it as a CRIME which is FORBIDDEN and punishable:

This is an abhorrent crime that is forbidden in all religions and in the minds of all wise people and those who possess sound human nature. All earthly systems and laws regard this action as abhorrent and impose the strictest penalties on it.

Islam has a clear stance which states that this repugnant action is haram (forbidden) and imposes a deterrent punishment on the one who commits it [2]

So it is a myth to say Islam condones rape or allows rapists to go free? Yes!

This is confirmed by Sheikh Faraz Rabbani:

However, it is a myth to say that Islam would in any way condone rape, or allow a rapist to go free for this terrible crime against an innocent human being and against society

Is the rape victim punished for being raped? No!

Ibn `Abdul-Barr (may Allah bless his soul) said

There is no punishment for the woman if it is true that he forced her and overpowered her. (Al-Istidhkaar, 7/146). [2]

To punish the rapist, are four witnesses required? No!

Sheikh Rabbani states: The four witness requirement applies only to the prescribed hadd punishment (which in the case of a married person could be death and for the non-married, 100 lashes). [Marghinani, Hidaya] This punishment is only applied in very rare cases, as is clear, and is meant to be a social deterrent, above all.

As the classical and contemporary jurists (such as Mufti Taqi Usmani) have made clear, a rapist can be convicted on lesser evidence (including scientific evidence, such as DNA tests and medical reports) for discretionary punishments. These discretionary punishments are left up to the legal system to determine. [3]

So, the hadd punishment requires four witnesses but other discretionary punishments for the rapists do not? Correct!

Ibn `Abdul-Barr said:

The scholars are unanimously agreed that the rapist is to be subjected to the hadd punishment if there is clear evidence against him that he deserves the hadd punishment, or if he admits to that. Otherwise, he is to be punished (that is, if there is no proof that the hadd punishment for zina may be carried out against him because he does not confess and there are not four witnesses, then the judge may punish him and stipulate a punishment that will deter him and others like him)… (Al-Istidhkaar, 7/146). [2]

Can the rapist still receive hadd punishment even if he does not use a weapon? Yes!

Sheikh Mohammad Saleh al Munajjid writes: In addition, the rapist is subject to the hadd punishment for zina, even if the rape was not carried out at knifepoint or gunpoint.

What about rape at knifepoint?

Sheikh al Munajjid states: If the use of a weapon was threatened, then he is a muharib, and is to be subjected to the hadd punishment described in the verse in which Allah says (The recompense of those who wage war against Allah and His Messenger and do mischief in the land is only that they shall be killed or crucified or their hands and their feet be cut off from opposite sides, or be exiled from the land. That is their disgrace in this world, and a great torment is theirs in the Hereafter) (Al-Ma’idah 5:33).

So the judge has the choice of the four punishments mentioned in this verse and may choose whichever he thinks is most suitable to attain the objective, which is to spread peace and security in society, and ward off evildoers and aggressors. [2]

Rape statistics are relatively low in Muslim countries

NationMaster’s per capita rape statistics do not include a Muslim country in the top 30. The statistics show the US, UK, Australia, Canada, Spain and France as having more rapes per capita than any Muslim country. [4]

Islamophobes need self control

I have composed this short blog post to help counter the Islamophobic agendas on the internet. It is depressing to observe haters insensitively wading through the misery of rape victims in order to bash Muslims and Islam. I ask those who peddle and/or support such a derisory lampooning tactic to rethink their ways.

Please realise Muslims on the internet are not liable or answerable for the sins of a handful of criminals within the Islamic community – would you like it if people began lampooning you for the indiscretions of your fellow Christians, Atheists, Hindus, Jews, Sikhs etc? No, you would not as it would be UNFAIR.

Therefore, you should stop harassing us with reports of rape perpetrated by sinful Muslim men – you are simply using the rape victims’ misery as fuel to bash regular, law-abiding Muslims – many of whom are teenagers looking to use the internet for social or study purposes!
Sharia Law against terrorism:
Learn about Islam:


[1] Islamophobes have been insensitively presenting rapes in Western countries committed by Muslim immigrants to disgracefully prop up their vile and erroneous argumentation.

[2] Sheikh al Munajjid discuses the punishment for the rapists. Read more: http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/Satellite?pagename=IslamOnline-English-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1125407868541#ixzz1BLjRVJLc

[3] A question of whether four witnesses to rape is required is asked of the scholar, Sheikh Faraz Rabbani. http://qa.sunnipath.com/issue_view.asp?id=12121

[4] NationMaster’s rape per capita stats:


Anonymous said...

A man threatened to kill his cousin and harm her family after she decided to stop wearing the traditional Muslim headscarf, a court has heard.

Mohamed Al-Hakim, 29, allegedly phoned Alya Al-Safar to tell her she must die because of the ‘shame’ she had brought – leaving her too afraid to leave the house.

He had already branded her family ‘bitches and whores’ because of her decision, the court heard.

Miss Al-Safar, 21, had stopped wearing the hijab a few days before the phone call.

She said that Al-Hakim’s mother, her aunt Mardhiya Al-Musawi, ‘wasn’t happy’ that she had stopped covering her hair – a step she had been considering for more than two years.

She received his call when she was with her parents and two younger brothers at their home in Hammersmith, West London.

Al-Hakim allegedly instructed her to play the conversation over a loudspeaker so that they could all listen at about midnight on June 9.

Miss Al-Safar, who did not have her head covered in court but did swear on the Koran, told the jury that Al-Hakim had said: ‘Listen to me carefully, it has been three days and I did not sleep.

‘I have decided not to go out of the house for two weeks.

‘Listen Alya, I am warning you if by the 19th of June you are not wearing the hijab back, I am warning you I will kill you and harm you. I am giving you ten days. You brought shame to your family, you should not have done that.’ (Read more.)

Anonymous said...


You are abusing the priviledge of free speech that Yahya affords you on this blog.

How about you address some of the issues raised rather than these tiresome cut and paste marathons?

Unfortunately this is what I have come to expect from Christians who attempt to refute Muslims. They never answer questions and when the going gets tough they either cut and paste or run and hide.

It's not surprising, Islam is easily defended because it's the truth.

Christianity on the other hand......

Anonymous said...

If Islam is so easy to defend then answer this: Why would God send a child pedophile to be a prophet?

Mohammad had sex with Ashia when she was 9 and he was 53. That makes him a pedophile.

And don’t tell me I am taking it out of context or that I can’t read Arabic.

Why do you think that the Koran is the word of God? There are numerous later passages that “abrogate” earlier passages. Why would God make mistakes?

Also, considering the fact that there is more than one version of the Koran - which one is the exact word of God?

Islam is nothing more than a cult. A crazy con man named Mohammad who wanted drugs sex and rock and roll started the biggest lie in history. And all Muslims are caught up in a cult they can’t quit, change or criticize without worrying about some brainwashed Muslim thug killing them.

I dare you to use your brain. Why would God create human beings just so Muslims could kill them? Only a brain dead cult member would believe something so absurd.

Islam is a backward hell hole because of one thing. Islam.

Islam is scab on the face of the earth. Every Muslim country is a hell hole. Every place where Islam comes in contact with non-Muslims in a bloody mess.

If there is proof of the devil - IT IS ISLAM.

Yahya Snow said...


What "child paedophile" are you talking about? EVERYBODY in the past would have been guilty of "paedophilia" if we used today's Western standards to judge them - that would be UNFAIR.

In the past (including the era of Jesus) people used to marry girls at an earlier age. However, they would wait for the girl to reach a level of maturity first.

In the case of Aisha, she had reached puberty and then the marriage was consummated with her.

Geza Vermes suggests marriages at the the time of Jesus were of the same nature - men used to wait for the girl to reach puberty (3 menstrual cycles after this bilogical event they would be sent to live with their husbands)

There is no issue here. The Islamophobes make a big deal out of it as it has possibilities for disingenuous mudslinging.

Abrogation is NOT mistake making. Abrogation was carried out in the context of gradual revelation. The Quran was not revealed all at once.

Abrogation is also in the bible. Are you going to tell me these are mistakes?

Humans abrogate all the time; when you have a child and ask the child to hold your hand whilst crossing the road - you KNOW one day you will let the child cross the road without such an aid (when he she is competent) - have you made a mistake? Or have you abrogated based on the circumstances?

Point made.

As for drugs, sex and rock and roll? Be serious.

The Prophet Muhammad had an opportunity to be a king of Arabia IF he gave up Islam. He did not give up Islam.

He lived a humble life which was not materialistic. He was willing to fight and die for the religion - hardly a con man!
His life was so far away from the excess you level against. He encouraged the giving of charity.

Try reading about him rather than speaking without knowledge.

You also call Islam the devil. Islam forbids fornication, alcohol consumption and gambling. Would the devil do this? No!

Muslims are not instructed to kill people via terrorism etc..

The terrorists are not acting in accordance with Islam.

I think I managed to touch on all your points.

May Allah guide you. Ameen

And if you are a Christian check this one out:


Anonymous said...

These are the passages jihadists appeal to when they attack non-Muslims. And yet, for some strange reason, it's racist and Islamophobic for us to take note of these passages.

MOSCOW—Moscow saw its second suicide attack in less than 12 months on Monday as a terrorist assault on the Russian capital’s busiest airport left over 30 dead, officials said.

Preliminary reports suggest a bomb was detonated by a suicide bomber as passengers arrived at Domodedovo airport’s international arrivals gate at 4:40 p.m. (13:40 GMT).

Health and emergency officials said 35 people died and many dozens more were injured.

Planes from London and Brussels, as well as Greece, Ukraine and Egypt, had landed in the 30 minutes preceding the attack. A British Airways plane heading for Domodedovo returned to London when the news broke.

Law enforcement officials said the power of the blast was equal to 5 kg of TNT and that the bomb was packed with metal objects to cause maximum damage. A RIA Novosti correspondent at the scene reported floors and staircases covered in blood.

YouTube footage showed the bodies of the dead and injured lying in a smoke-filled arrivals zone.

Media reports of second suicide bomber have not been confirmed.

A visibly shaken President Dmitry Medvedev told officials in a televised meeting that, "From the preliminary information we have, it was a terrorist attack.” (Read more.)

Anonymous said...

Church Opens Arms To Mosque-less Muslims
Criticism arises for allowing Muslims to pray in church.

By Brian Cain
Friday, January 21, 2011

Members of Aldersgate United Methodist Church and the Islamic Center on Route 1 held a dialogue amid criticism of Christians allowing Muslims to use their churches as a place of worship.
In 2010, the Rev. Dr. Dennis Perry, lead pastor at Aldersgate, and church leaders agreed to allow members of the Islamic Center, which is under construction, to worship at Aldersgate. That drew criticism from inside and outside the church concerning the appropriateness of the decision.

Criticism from outside the church began when the magazine Christianity Today ran an article concerning the church’s decision. The magazine learned about the decision from a post on the Jesus Creed blog. The blog post included a sermon by Jason Micheli, a pastor at Aldersgate, which helped explain the reasoning behind allowing Muslims to worship in the church. Jason B. Hood, the author of the Christianity Today article, argued that Aldersgate appealed “to the love required of Christians as an authoritative guide for their decision-making.” Hood questioned, “Does the facilitation of false worship violate the love command?”

According to Perry, criticism from inside the church dealt with two primary concerns. The first concern questioned whether the church was surrendering the faith in an effort to be popular or politically correct. The second concern questioned whether Islam condones abuse towards women, and if so, wouldn’t that make the church complicit in the behavior. Perry did say that although some members have voiced concerns, many members do agree with the decision.

Sheik Yusuf Estes may have alleviated some of the concerns of those in attendance when he explained the Koran does not condone abuse towards women. Estes explained the Koran teaches that men are required to protect women and those who find a license for abuse in the Koran are misguided and do not understand it.

During an interview after the dialogue had concluded, Perry used the parable of the Good Samaritan to answer criticism concerning surrendering the faith. In the New Testament parable, the Samaritan who helps the Jew does so even though during that time they would normally despise each other. Perry said the Samaritan never asked the Jew what his creed was, and even though he had a different creed, Jesus still used him as an example.

“At the core of the Gospel, the core of the message of Jesus is the welcoming of a stranger. Practicing a compassionate response to the needs of another is essential to being faithful,” Perry said. “It isn’t that you surrender your creed by having a dialogue with somebody who is different than you. It’s a way to strengthen your faith, because you find out what you really do believe.”

Perry referred to the danger of violence between religious groups as another reason for closer ties with the Muslim community.
“Somebody has to start building bridges between those groups before violence has a chance to set up,” Perry said. “This is an attempt to do that.”

During the one hour 15 minute dialogue, members of the Muslim community took the opportunity to explain their basic set of beliefs. They highlighted a number of similarities between Islam and Christianity and talked briefly about assimilation into American society. It was the first meeting of the two groups since members of the Islamic Center started praying at Aldersgate four months ago, but Kevin Creyts, spokesman for the Islamic Center, said it would not be the last.

Anonymous said...

Washington, D.C. (January 25, 2011)-International Christian Concern (ICC) has learned that Christians in the Ethiopian city of Besheno are being harassed and physically abused after Muslims posted notices on the doors of Christian homes warning them to convert, leave the city or face death.

Anonymous said...

salamualaykum. Barakallahu fik, may Allah bless you and the work you do Yahya Jazakumullahu khayr. may Allah guide all the christians that you expose. Amin

Abu Anas, Sweden

Anonymous said...

Christians like the crusaders did a lot of horrific things in the past and even now with the rape of young boys by priests and other disgusting acts, not much as changed.

The truth won't change just because some negative people who want to critise Islam type something or have an opinion.

Muslims are not perfect not saying that, but giving examples of what some Muslims do in the name of Islam doesn't make it so. I don't go commit a crime and say I did it on behalf of all brunettes, silly right? I don't condemn all Christians and Jews comparing them to what their priests and the KKK and the Zionists do.

Generalisations based on culture, tradition, politics, greed etc have nothing to do with Religion and everything to do with a persons character, or lack thereof. I suggest the negative person do some research via credible avenues and enlighten ones self to the truth, in this day and age its easily attainable.

Comparing the biblical days and those of when our blessed prophet was alive to now is just ignorant and stupid. Those against Islam should be more concerned about the hiddious incest crimes Christians and Jews commit amongst many other things in the year 2011. Look at the family unit, look at what media does to our young children,

Muslim woman are not oppressed, they are the most confident out of all woman, confident in their own skin and not feeling the need to conform to what some sexist men think or want, they don't need to be objectified. They don't need to show their bodies, get their boobs done, hair extensions, eyelash extensions, layers of makeup and I can go on and on just to feel accepted by mainstream society. Then you have high lvls of suicide, health issues, anorexia. The Quran is perfect, Islam is perfect and no one can ever say or prove otherwise. Gods word greater than yours. May Allah bless you always Yahya Snow.