"O God, destroy the Zionist, American, and British aggressors" Friday 7
March Sermons

Friday Sermons Condemn US Plans To Attack Iraq 7 Mar GMP20030308000127
Middle East -
FBIS Report in Arabic 07 Mar 03
[FBIS Report]
[With thanks to www.mideastweb.org/mewnews1.htm ]

Following is a roundup of Friday sermons carried by the news media of Saudi
Arabia, Yemen, Jordan, the West Bank and Gaza Strip, Syria, Iraq, and Qatar
on 7 March 2003:

SAUDI ARABIA:

Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia TV1 in Arabic, official television station of
the Saudi Government, at 0940 GMT carries a 30-minute live sermon from the
holy mosque in Mecca.

Shaykh Abd-al-Rahman al-Sudays delivers the sermon. He praises God, the
messenger, and his companions, asking God on the Islamic New Year to help
the Islamic nation achieve security, score victory, and protect itself from
sedition, disasters, and ordeals. Regrettably, the imam says, the Islamic
nation "has not yet worked out any plan to protect itself from those
harboring ambitions in the region." He urges the Islamic nation to return to
Islam and the teachings of its prophet in order to reinforce its internal
front and to preserve its security in the face of alien cultures and
"intellectual terrorism." He also calls on Muslims to stand firm against
anti-Islam TV space channels and denounces the "current unfair campaigns"
and "demands that school curricula in the Islamic countries be changed,"
stressing that Islam can meet current globalization challenges. The imam
stresses the need for the Islamic nation to close its ranks apart from
"narrow slogans," which have been a source of trouble and fragmentation, and
assails what he calls the "dwarfs and puppets of the West and colonialism."
He urges Muslims once again to close their ranks and "defend their
sanctities from the tyrannical Zionist State and its terrorism," stressing
that wise people throughout the world are seeking security, stability, and
peace "in order to spare the region the dangers of disasters and wars."

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, strengthen Islam and Muslims,
humiliate infidelity and infidels, destroy Islam's enemies, and grant safety
to Muslims' countries. O God, give success to our leader." He goes on: "O
God, help mujahidin in Palestine score victory over the tyrant Jews."

Riyadh Kingdom of Saudi Arabia TV2, official television station of the Saudi
Government, at 0944 GMT carries a 16-minute live sermon from the holy mosque
in Medina.

Shaykh Abd-al-Muhsin Qasim delivers the sermon. He praises God, the
messenger, and his companions, urging Muslims to worship God and to follow
his orders as a way to salvation. The imam devotes his entire sermon to the
need for Muslims to stick to Islamic values.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, strengthen Islam and Muslims,
humiliate infidelity and infidels, destroy Islam's enemies, and grant safety
and prosperity to Muslims' countries. O God, give success to our leader."

YEMEN:

Sanaa Republic of Yemen Television in Arabic, official television station of
the Republic of Yemen, at 0924 GMT carries a 32-minute live sermon from the
Grand Mosque in Sanaa.

Shaykh Akram Abd-al-Razzaq al-Ruqayhi delivers the sermon. He praises God,
the messenger, and his companions, thanking God for revealing Islam to guide
the steps of humanity to the right path.

Turning to politics, the imam says that Muslims are now facing "dangers and
an enemy," which is preparing to weaken and fragment the Islamic nation
further," urging Muslims to revive "the spirit of sacrifice and jihad." He
relates the story of the prophet's immigration to Medina and calls on
Muslims to derive lessons from that event. The imam stresses that the
faithful will score victory with the help of Almighty God, citing a relevant
Koranic verse. He also says that God will help Palestinians and Iraqis, as
well as other Muslims, score victory over their enemies, only if they follow
the Islamic Law, citing a relevant koranic verse.

In the second part of his sermon, the imam urges the Arab rulers "to raise
their voices in the face of injustice and tyranny," praising President Ali
Abdallah Salih's principled positions.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, relieve our brothers in Iraq and
Palestine of their ordeal, lift the siege on them, raise their banner, and
help them score victory. O God, destroy Islam's enemies, tyrant Zionists,
and American aggressors. Shake the ground under them and disperse them."

JORDAN:

Amman Jordan Television Channel 1 in Arabic, official television station of
the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, at 0959 GMT carries a 30-minute live sermon
from martyr King Abdallah mosque in Amman.

Shaykh Dib Abdallah delivers the sermon. He praises God, the messenger, and
his companions, relating the story of the prophet's immigration to Media for
the sake of God and Islam. The imam says that if Muslims have deep faith in
God, then they will score victory over the enemies of humanity. The imam
devotes almost all his sermon to the prophet's immigration.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, help our Muslim brothers in
Palestine and elsewhere. O God, return Al-Aqsa Mosque to us. O God, guide
the steps of Muslims and give success to the country's king."

WEST BANK & GAZA STRIP

Gaza Palestine Satellite Channel Television in Arabic, official television
station of the Palestinian Authority, and Gaza Voice of Palestine in
Arabic -- Second Program -- official radio station of the Palestinian
Authority broadcasting from Gaza -- at 0950 GMT carry a 44-minute live
sermon from Shaykh Ijlin mosque in Gaza.

Shaykh Muhammad Jamal Abu-al-Hannud delivers the sermon. He praises God, the
messenger, and his companions, hoping that peace will prevail in the region
during the Islamic New Year and urging Muslims to derive lessons from the
prophet's immigration to Media. After relating the story of the prophet's
immigration, the imam asks God "to help Palestinians establish their
independent state, with Holy Jerusalem as its capital."

In the second part of the sermon, the imam says that humanity has lost
security and stability, condemning "the killing of Palestinian children and
women throughout the Palestinian homeland." He also says "the rulers have
disappointed us" and denounces international silence over what is going on
in the Palestinians territories. Turning to the Iraqi issue, the imam says
"the forces of aggression and evil are being massed to destroy everything in
Arab, Muslim Iraq," asking God to spare Arabs the disasters of wars and
destruction.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, support Islam and strengthen
Muslims. O God, grant us safety in our homelands. O God, help us get
Palestinian prisoners released. O God, lift the siege on our cities and our
leader. O God, help the leader of our march Abu-Ammar [Yasir Arafat]
establish our independent state, with Holy Jerusalem as its capital."

Ramallah Voice of Palestine, official radio station of the Palestinian
Authority, at 1003 GMT carries a 34-minute live sermon from Al-Aqsa Mosque.

Shaykh Yusuf Abu-Sunaynah delivers the sermon. He praises God the messenger,
and his companions, calling on Muslims to obey God and to help one another.
He urges Muslims to follow the example of the prophet and his companions and
stresses that certain forces in the world have established the New World
Order to spread destruction and to plunder nations' wealth. Therefore, he
says, Muslims should close their ranks to promote justice, stressing that
the forces of tyranny will pay the price sooner or later. He says: "The goal
of the new crusade, as American and British leaders and their media organs
say, is to control the oil resources and to change the prevailing cultures
and concepts in the region radically in the name of democracy. In order to
achieve this, the United States and Britain are working to change the
educational curricula to distance the Arab nation from its religion and to
apply secularism, as they have done in Turkey. They also use the issue of
terrorism as an excuse to strike Islam and are planning to target the
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia after Iraq and to spread Israel's hegemony over the
region in order to realize the Zionist dream." Massacres, he says, "are
being committed on our land under the very nose of the international
community," criticizing the Arab leaders, who have failed to take action and
stressing that Muslims all over the world will never accept "this flagrant
interference in the Al-Aqsa Mosque's affairs."

In the second part of the sermon, the imam relates the story of Prophet
Muhammad's immigration to Media, urging Muslims to derive lessons from that
event and stressing that the US forces cannot stand in the face of Almighty
God.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, protect Muslims in Iraq and
Palestine. O God, deal with the United States, its fleets, and its planes. O
God, protect us from them."

SYRIA:

Damascus Syrian Arab Republic Radio in Arabic, official station of the
Syrian Government, at 1008 GMT carries a 31-minute live sermon from Hafiz
al-Asad mosque in Damascus.

Damascus Mufti Shaykh Bashir Id-al-Bari delivers the sermon. He praises God,
the messenger, and his companions, hoping that the Arab nation will close
its ranks. The imam says: "Colonialist and arrogant countries are
threatening our nation's homelands, resources, and dignity. The treacherous
Zionist occupation is burdening us and planning to disrupt our nation, our
faith, and our sanctities. This makes it incumbent on us to close our ranks
and renounce division and disputes." The imam then praises the 8 March
revolution and the Corrective Movement, which was led by late President
Hafiz al-Asad, stressing that 8 March is a source of pride for the Arab
nation. He also praises President Bashar al-Asad for his strenuous efforts
to promote the Arab causes, adding that the president supports Palestinian
resistance "against the treacherous Zionists" and rejects "any war against
Iraq."

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, help us score victory over the
treacherous Zionists and the unjust, arrogant forces. O God, destroy them."

IRAQ:

Baghdad Republic of Iraq Television in Arabic, official television station
of the Iraqi Government, at 0935 GMT carries a 53-minute live sermon from
the Umm al-Ma'arik [Mother of Battles] mosque in Baghdad.

Shaykh Bakr Abd-al-Razzaq al-Samarra'i delivers the sermon. He praises God,
the messenger, and his companions, calling on Muslims to obey God as a way
to forgiveness and success. The imam urges the Arab nation on the Islamic
New Year to resist injustice, the unjust, and unbelievers; to defend Iraq,
home to prophets; and to launch jihad against infidels and criminals. He
then condemns "the agents, who have sold the nation" and says that the Iraqi
people are capable of repulsing "the forces that have been surrounding it."
He also says "our leader is the official spokesman not only for the Iraqi
people, but also for the Islamic nation," adding that "Bush, Blair, and
criminal Sharon, who has killed Palestine's children and women and destroyed
Palestinian farmlands and houses, are now massing their forces." The Iraqi
people, he says, are ready to sacrifice their lives, warning infidels
against pressing ahead with their plans and stressing that "our goal is
peace for the whole world." He warns that the Iraqis will fight the enemies
if they enter Iraq, urging Iraqi officers and fighters "to strike
forcefully."

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, support Islam and Muslims,
elevate justice and Islam, and help us score victory over infidels,
aggressors, and criminals. " He goes on: "O God, shake the ground under
them, disperse their soldiers, and freeze blood in their veins."

QATAR:

Doha Qatar Television Service in Arabic, official television station of the
State of Qatar, at 0856 GMT carries a 50-minute live sermon from Umar
Bin-al-Khattab Mosque in Doha.

Shaykh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian cleric based in Doha, delivers the
sermon. He praises God, the messenger, and his companions, thanking God for
revealing Islam as a way to salvation. The imam says nobody in Qatar has
ever told him what to say or what not to say.

Tuning to politics, the imam says that Europe, including nations, whose
governments support the United States, rejects "aggression on Iraq," saying
that he has clearly declared his position on this issue time and again.
Under Islam, he says, all Muslims "must resist and expel any unbeliever
invading any Muslim country," urging every Muslim country to resist the
invaders with souls of its citizens. If that country fails to expel the
invaders, he says, other Muslim countries must join it and resist the
invaders, citing a relevant koranic verse.

Declaring his "categorical rejection of aggression," he stresses that
Muslims seek peace, but that they will fight if necessary and describes the
upcoming US war as "a crusade, aggressive, and criminal." He recalls how he
opposed Iraq after it committed aggression against Kuwait, but that he will
stand by Iraq if it is attacked.

Americans, he says, "refuse to define terrorism so as to be able to accuse
certain countries, organizations, societies, and even individuals of
terrorism." He says: "As a result, they accuse militant groups defending
their homelands as terrorists. They also accuse HAMAS, the Islamic Jihad,
Hizballah, Al-Aqsa Brigades, the Abu-Ali Brigades, and other Islamic and
national factions resisting this despotic, blind Sharonist and Zionist
tyranny." The United States, he says, sees Sharon as "a victim defending
himself against those who have nothing except their souls." Even charity
societies, he says, have been barred from helping the needy and the poor,
"including our brothers in Palestine."

He also says: "Americans claim that the planned war is aimed at scrapping
the weapons of mass destruction in Iraq. Is it just Iraq that has weapons of
mass destruction? Many countries have such weapons, including nuclear
weapons. The United States and its allies believe that other nations have no
right to possess such weapons. The United States and Israel have the right
to possess such weapons, while Arabs do not have the same right. Israel has
a huge arsenal of nuclear warheads."

The UN weapons inspectors, he says, "have proved that Iraq is free of such
weapons but Bush says Iraq has to prove that it does not have such weapons."
The imam then says the United States supplied Iraq with weapons during its
war with Iran and also encouraged it to strike Kuwait. He says: "The United
States wants to seize Iraq's oil, as well as oil resources in the world, and
to destroy Iraq's military, material, and human resources" in order to
enable Zionism to realize its dream of "expanding from the Euphrates to the
Nile."

He then criticizes some Arab countries, which have opened their territories
for US forces to launch a war against Iraq, expecting the United States to
collapse one day as a result of its tyranny. He then urges the US
Administration to reconsider its policies and reverse its plans to redraw
the map of the region.

Concluding, the imam prays to God: "O God, help our brothers in Palestine
score victory. O God, destroy the Zionist, American, and British aggressors.
O God, shake the ground under them and protect us from them."