Manchester mosque refuses to be part of Salman Abedi's burial process

'We don’t condone suicide bombing in any way, shape or form' said Imam Irfan Chisti


News Desk June 02, 2017
Messages and floral tributes left for the victims of the attack on Manchester Arena lie around the statue in St Ann's Square in central Manchester, May 24, 2017. PHOTO: REUTERS

Manchester’s largest funeral service has refused to be a part of the burial process of the suspect of the May 22 attack, the Atlantic reported.

Speaking to the news outlet, Irfan Chisti, an Imam at the Manchester Central Mosque, said the executive committee had decided to not be involved in Salman Abedi’s funeral precession to emphasise that the Muslim community did not approve of his actions.

“We don’t condone suicide bombing in any way, shape or form, so anyone who’s been involved with that, we’re not going to be supporting them,” Chishti said. “We cannot offer prayers over someone who has committed such an act.”

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Further elaborating on the subject, Chishti revealed that the decision was made after the funeral director at the mosque was asked if Abedi’s funeral prayers will be said by them. Adding that the suspect’s family did not attend their mosque, he said “traditionally the families would be going to the mosques that they attended.”

Manchester Central Mosque’s decision was endorsed by an Imam at the Makkah Mosque in Leeds. Qari Asim told the newspaper that it “was not taken lightly to refuse to bury or, more importantly, not to offer a funeral prayer.”

“Terrorists believe they are doing this for some noble aim and higher cause that is going to lead them to paradise,” Asim stressed. “But then the rest of the community—there’s about three million Muslims in Britain—is saying that we don’t agree with you, you’re not going to paradise, you’re not following a path to paradise, and that’s why we’re not sending you off with our prayers.”

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“When Muslims condemn violence and terrorism, they’re not doing so because it’s fashionable,” he told the Atlantic. “It goes against the grain of the fundamental teachings of Islam, and as a result they condemn it because they want to disassociate themselves from such heinous crimes.”

Chishti explained that by refusing the last right of the suicide bomber, they were trying to “explain to people the kind of gravity of suicide bombing is to show them that you’re going to lose your very last rights—and so that in itself, hopefully, should be a deterrent for anyone wanting to commit such atrocities.”

COMMENTS (1)

Faizan Ali | 6 years ago | Reply very good and long awaited step from Mullahs!!
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