A Muslim leader has slammed extremists who claim he is a fraud for following Australian law over Sharia and not wanting to form an independent Muslim state.
Imam Shaikh Mohammad Tawhidi, who has openly spoken out against ISIS and extremists, confronted members of the Islamic community in a videoshared online on Friday.
Imam Tawhidi said he was labelled a ‘fake’ Shaikh because he prioritised Australian law over Sharia law.
‘I am considered a fake because I would die for Australia. I am considered a fake because I live by the Australian constitution,’ he said.
‘I am considered a fake because I glorify the Australian flag.
‘I am considered a fake because I reject Sharia law and live by the Australian law.’
In the four minute-long video, Imam Tawhidi listed various reasons for why he had been called ‘a fake’ by members of the Muslim community in Australia.
‘They have called me a fake Muslim Imam or a Shaikh only because I expose their intentions to create a caliphate within Australia,’ he said.
‘I am considered a fake because I condemn terrorism. I am considered a fake because I oppose and expose extremism.’
He defended himself claiming he was legitimate and only accused of being a fraud because he did not serve a radical Islamic agenda.
‘For them, I am too Australian,’ he said.
The Muslim leader said he rejected controversial Sharia law to live by the Australian law ‘because I am an Australian Muslim and not a Muslim Australian’.
‘I want an Islam that is compatible with the west,’ he said.
‘The bottom line is, I want Australia to stay Australian.’
The video was shared online by prominent Jewish Muslim personality Avi Yemini on Saturday.
Mr Yemini shared the video with his 38,000 followers on Facebook, declaring he was in full support of Imam Tawhidi.
‘I stand with Imam Shaikh Tawhidi who is being attacked by the broader Islamic community for being a proud Australian,’ he said.
Imam Tawhidi came under fire in February when he claimed on-air that radical Muslims planned to create an independent Sharia law state within Australia’s borders.
In an interview with Today Tonight, the Muslim leader said ‘the agenda is to create a country within your country’.
Following the interview he was accused of not being a real Shaikh by Muslim television channel One Path Network.
One Path Network said his claims about radical Islam were ‘baseless and outrageous’.
In an effort to defend himself, Imam Tawhidi told Daily Mail Australia last month he was concerned to find himself ‘being attacked for attacking the terrorists’.
‘I’m being attacked because people didn’t want me to warn the people,’ he said in March.
‘They should have said ‘thank you’ for exposing an extremist cell within Sydney. Instead they are discrediting me for criticising terrorism.
‘If you love this country and you are loyal to this country, you should be supporting me.’