Excerpt:
Just last week, the radical Muslim cleric Abu Qatada was arrested in London by British authorities and could be deported to Jordan. But, why a Muslim cleric is fighting deportation from a non-Muslim country to a Muslim country?
And why is he preaching against the country that hosted and protected him? If he is considering himself a Muslim cleric, then didn't he know the meaning of Alhijrah?
In Islam, there is a phrase called Hijrah (migration). Islam introduced this phrase to encourage Muslims to flee any land where they are mistreated to places of more tolerance. This means, Hijrah is leaving a non-Muslim country to reside in a Muslim country. But, the irony of the first and second Hijrah for Muslims, were from Makkah, the birth place of Islam and Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) to Alhabashah (old Ethiopia) in the year 615 A.D. Alhabashah was ruled by a leader named Alnajashi. He was Christian. This shows how Islam is tolerant with other faiths. Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) left the fate of new Muslims in the hand of a Christian. The tens of Muslims who migrated to Alhabashah gave the highest respect to the land that hosted and protected them. They never criticized the religion or way of life of the people in Alhabashah. So, did Abu Qatada really understand the real meaning of Islam?