Over 85 Muslim scholars, imams, community leaders, and institutions today released a joint statement expressing their view that the governments of Muslim-majority countries, including Arab Muslim nations located near Palestine, can take “immediate and concrete action” to secure an end to the Israeli occupation’s escalating genocide in Gaza.

Signatories to the statement argue that these Muslim-majority nations have the unique opportunity, legal authority, and moral basis to take various steps, such as:

1. Ending any economic, diplomatic, intelligence, and military relationships with the Israeli government, including the so-called Abraham Accords.

2. Announcing consideration of an embargo on global oil and gas sales that directly or indirectly contribute support to the Israeli government’s genocide.

3. Banning the use of their country’s airspace and the use of any military bases within their country to support the Israeli government in any way.

4. Opening their side of Gaza entry points like the Rafah crossing, and facilitating the travel of aid trucks, medics, journalists, demonstrators, and others who wish to approach the crossing and demand entry.

5. Organizing a unified diplomatic mission to a Gaza crossing with senior government officials personally leading an aid convoy and refusing to leave until Israel allows unlimited aid to enter freely by land routes.

The full statement reads:

In the name of Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Most Merciful. All praise and thanks belong to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. May peace and prayers be upon Prophet Muhammad, his family, and his companions.

Al-Nu’man ibn Bashir reported that the Messenger of Allah, may peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The parable of the believers in their affection, mercy, and compassion for each other is that of a body. When any limb aches, the whole body reacts with sleeplessness and fever.”

We, the undersigned Islamic scholars, religious leaders, and institutions, write today to share our view that the political leaders of the world’s Muslim-majority nations should take greater, concrete action to stop the ongoing genocide of our brothers and sisters in Gaza.

We wake up every morning to see new images of men, women and children in Gaza whose rib cages protrude through their skin because of starvation, whose heads have been hollowed out because of Israeli snipers, or whose bodies have been charred like charcoal because of a bombing.

We also see the Israeli occupation stealing more swathes of land across Palestine and threatening to expel surviving Palestinians from Gaza. We see mercenaries opening fire on crowds of starving Palestinians seeking food.

We see that, even under increasing international outcry, an insufficient trickle of aid enters Gaza while the death toll from both starvation and Israel’s indiscriminate attacks rises daily.

Despite the efforts of various human rights groups, brave journalists, nations like South Africa, and millions of protestors around the world, the Israeli occupation is now reaching the final stages of its campaign of extermination and expulsion.

The common regional response to Israel’s crimes—a foreign ministry issuing a statement of condemnation that calls on unnamed members of the international community to stop the genocide—has not stopped the genocide. Neither have calls for the deadlocked, ineffective and unrepresentative UN Security Council to take action.

Business as usual in international affairs is simply not working.

We believe that the governments of the Muslim-majority nations of the world should not wait for the “international community” to grow a conscience. This is especially true of Arab Muslim nations surrounding Palestine.

We believe that these governments have the unique opportunity, legal authority, and moral basis to take greater, immediate and concrete action to pressure the Israeli occupation to end this carnage.

Although a genocide should matter to every single human being regardless of their faith, this genocide against a predominantly Muslim population carried out by an openly racist, anti-Muslim government should especially matter to the ummah of Prophet Muhammad . So should the fate of Palestine, including Masjid Al Aqsa.

Although we recognize the geographic, financial and military limitations that some governments in the Arab Muslim world face, it appears to us that these governments have many unused tools at their disposal.

Some of these governments control the most important parts of global oil production. Some of them host military bases used to resupply and support Israel. Others control airspace that is critical to the Israeli government and its ability to rearm. One controls a border crossing with Gaza. These nations have leverage. They just haven’t used it.

We therefore today express our view that the governments of Muslim-majority nations should go beyond harsh statements and diplomatic entreaties. Specifically, we believe that these governments could help end the genocide by:

1. Ending any economic, diplomatic, intelligence, and military relationships with the Israeli government, including the so-called Abraham Accords.
2. Announcing consideration of an embargo on global oil and gas sales that directly or indirectly contribute support to the Israeli government’s genocide.
3. Banning the use of their country’s airspace and the use of any military bases in their country to support the Israeli government in any way.
4. Opening their side of Gaza entry points like the Rafah crossing and facilitating the travel of aid trucks, medics, journalists, demonstrators and others who wish to approach the crossing and demand entry.
5. Organizing a unified diplomatic mission to a Gaza crossing with senior government officials personally leading an aid convoy and refusing to leave until Israel allows unlimited aid to enter freely by land routes.

Over the past two years, people around the world have bravely protested to demand an end to the Israeli occupation’s genocide in Gaza. These protesters—many of them not Muslim, Palestinian or Arab—risked their jobs, reputations, and safety to stand up for our brothers and sisters in Palestine.

Now the governments of the Muslim world have an opportunity to reflect the wishes of their citizens by taking brave, unified action to help our brothers and sisters in Gaza.

We believe that if they take the aforementioned steps and use other appropriate tools at their disposal in an attempt to stop the genocide, the entire Muslim world and people of good faith around the world will rally around them.

We close with a prayer.

May Allah grant the highest rank of Paradise to our brothers and sisters who have been martyred in Gaza, heal those injured, and comfort those who have lost loved ones.

May Allah forgive the ummah for failing to do more to help our brothers and sisters in Gaza.

May Allah guide the political leaders of the Muslim world to take effective action for our brothers and sisters in Gaza and uphold justice for all.

May Allah inspire all of us to strive for justice with sincere intentions, wise decisions, effective strategies and successful outcomes.

May peace and blessings be upon Prophet Muhammad , his family, and his companions.
Ameen.

CURRENT SIGNATORIES
Individuals

• Imam Mohamed Abdel Salam,  Puyallup Islamic Community Center (PICC)
• Dr. Ismahan Abdullahi
• Imam Sedin Agic
• Aftab Alam, President, The March 15th Forum
• Shaykh Ibrahim Ali
• Hafiz Ikhlas Ansari
• Nihad Awad, National Executive Director, Council on American-Islamic Relations
• Sheikh Abdullah Ateeque
• Shoaeb Basha, Executive Director, American Muslim Health Professional
• Dr. Hatem Bazian, President of Northern California Islamic Council
• Noorgul Dada, Chairman, Noor Islamic Cultural Center
• Imam Mohamed Dahir
• Dr. Abdelhafid Djemil
• Imam Seyed Ali Ghazvini
•  Imam Khalid Griggs, Executive Director, ICNA Council for Social Justice
• Dr. Ayman Hammous, Executive Director, Muslim American Society
• Dr. Suleiman Hani
• Dr. Altaf Husain
• Imam Ahmadullah Kamal, IQRA Cultural Center
• Muhi Khwaja, American Muslim Community Foundation
• Yasser Louati, Comité Justice & Libertés (Committee for Justice and Liberties)
• Edward Ahmed Mitchell, Deputy Director, Council on American-Islamic Relations
• Shaykh Suhail Mulla
• Imam Saeed Purcell
• Dr. Yasir Qadhi
• Imam Mohamed Mukhtar Sayid
• Emad Sabbah, President and Co-Founder, Ethaar
• Imam Ali Siddiqui, Former Chairman, Peace with Justice Center, LaVerne, CA
• Chaplain Ahmed Shedeed, President, Islamic Center Of Jersey City
• Dr. Omar Suleiman
• Dr. Hebatullah Taha, President of the Board, CAIR Los Angeles
• Imam Suhaib Webb
• Hena Zuberi, Editor-in-Chief, MuslimMatters

Organizations

• • Ahlulbayt Islamic Center of Columbus
  • American Islamic Cultural Center
  • American Muslim Health Professionals (AMHP)
  • American Muslims for Palestine (AMP)
  • Arizona Muslim Alliance
  • Australian Muslim Advocacy Network (AMAN)
  • Center for Education and Research Nahla
  • Center for Religious Tolerance (Masjid Usman) San Diego
  • Comité Justice & Libertés (Committee for Justice and Liberties)
  • Council of Sacramento Valley Islamic Organizations (COSVIO)
  • Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR)
  • Dar al-Hijrah Islamic Center
  • Ethaar
  • Greenview Madani Center
  • Hamzah Islamic Center
  • Hershey Islamic Center
  • Husaynia Islamic Society of Seattle
  • Islamic Center Of Jersey City
  • ICNA Council for Social Justice
  • Imam Council of Metropolitan St. Louis
  • Islamic Council of Victoria
  • Islamic Association of North America (IANA)
  • Islamic Center of Pennsylvania
  • Islamic Center of Irving
  • Islamic Center of Morgantown
  • Islamic Center of San Diego
  • Islamic Circle of North America (ICNA)
  • Islamic Community Center of Atlanta
  • The Islamic Society of Central Delaware
  • Islamic Society of Chester County
  • Islamic Society of North America (ISNA)
  • Islamophobia Studies Center
  • Islamic Center Masjid Al-Sabereen
  • IQRA Cultural Center
  • Kurdish Community Islamic Center
  • Muslim Alliance in North America (MANA)
  • The March 15th Forum
  • Muslim American Society (MAS)
  • Muslim Community of Nassau County
  • MAS Sacramento Region
  • Muslim Anti-Racism Collaborative (MuslimARC)
  • Muslim Community Of Folsom
  • Muslim Girl
  • Muslim Legal Fund of America (MLFA)
  • Muslim Students Association (MSA National)
  • North American Imams Federation (NAIF)
  • Noor Islamic Cultural Center
  • Prince George’s County Muslim Council
  • Rihla Community Services
  • Sacramento Area League of Associated Muslims (SALAM)
  • Shia Muslim Council of Southern California
  • Tri-City Islamic Center
  • US Council of Muslim Organizations
  • We Love Our Neighbors
  • World Council of Muslims for Interfaith Relations

If you are an Muslim institution, scholar, imam, or organizational leader, and you would like to sign the statement, you can do so here.