In response to those who fabricate that this humble servant supported aggression against Muslims, to build upon their lie a campaign to alienate people from my call to Allah.
Although it's an old file we don't like to reopen. But: (And among you are listeners to them).
Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah,
Dear esteemed audience, what is the occasion for my words today? The number of followers of this humble servant has doubled in recent years, by the grace of Allah. I would like to make my methodology clear to them, especially since there are those who exploit the lack of public knowledge about what I published during the Arab revolutions and the events in Syria, lying and deceiving regarding my position.
We are in the last ten days of Ramadan, a time of worship and purification of the heart. I will speak briefly, and if it becomes necessary to respond to any of the accusers, I will postpone that until after the blessed month of Ramadan has ended.
My old and new position is that I have disassociated myself and Islam from all the injustice and deviation committed by the Islamic State, including the excommunication and bloodshed of many Muslims. As far as I know, I have been more critical of it with legal evidence in dozens of instances, explaining that it does not represent the concepts of jihad, the caliphate, the Islamic state, and Sharia. I have endured harm for that.
Therefore, it is a mistake made by some brothers in good faith to say, "Dr. Iyad has retracted his error in supporting the organization." For I never supported it in the first place, so I would not retract. My psychological, legal, and ideological makeup does not and has never accepted the excommunication of Muslims and the shedding of their blood, nor that I was deceived by the organization and then discovered its true nature. Rather, I criticized it in detail from the beginning.
Any praise for a position was only for a specific position that showed mercy to Muslims and supported them. Some people take a part of my words to imply support. The youth who were aspiring to establish an Islamic state and the organization exploited this aspiration, they needed someone to convince them with legal evidence of the deviation of this organization, and to see in my speech fairness and the identification of the problem so that they would prevent the organization from its injustice and leave it if it insisted, and know that they were deceived by it. My presentation deterred many from joining the organization, and made some of its members leave it and refrain from harming their Muslim brothers, praise be to Allah.
Then, what appeared from the organization appeared, so its positions no longer needed to be distinguished or detailed. My speech throughout that period was focused on mercy among Muslims and preventing fighting between factions, including this organization, because I was convinced that fighting would not stop the conflict, and that attempting to eradicate the organization would not eradicate it but would give it legitimacy in the eyes of a large number of those deceived by it, while some were pouring oil on the fire to destroy everyone. I saw that the solution was to deter from the organization and show the corruption of its methodology in a legal way, meaning to defuse the fitna, while emphasizing that every Muslim has the right to defend himself and his property if this group or any other attacks him, and there is no honor for the oppressor. With the organization's increased obstinacy, I escalated my tone and repeatedly affirmed the innocence of Islam from its actions.
Do you disagree with this position? No problem, let those who wish discuss it with me, but let them be honest in describing my position and then disagree with it. Do you want evidence of the sincerity of all this? Follow any word I published during that period to know if I was sincere, but follow it from beginning to end, not just a small part of it, but from beginning to end, and they are short words anyway.
What about those who say that I issued a fatwa for this organization or any organization or faction to fight any group? Or that I called the other factions Sahawat? Or that I prohibited fighting against the organization because they are my brothers in methodology? Whoever says this is a lying fabricator who distorts facts, using the method of "lie, then lie until people believe you, then lie more until you believe yourself." There is no greater evidence of their lying than that they do not put any complete word of mine, but they cut it in the manner of "woe to the worshippers," then add from themselves what I did not say, and some were affected by their lies who did not adhere to the saying of Allah the Almighty: {So investigate, lest you harm a people out of ignorance and then become regretful for what you did.}
What about the other groups? I praised what several groups did in defending the oppressed, and I did not praise any fighting among them. Then, when some of these groups started fighting Muslims as well, and practicing what they used to denounce the Islamic State for yesterday, I pointed out that there were deviations that I did not accept, and that the breach had widened, and that I would stop commenting for that reason.
Therefore, I actually stopped commenting on all events six years ago, and I do not accept that praise is now attributed to me that I said based on good positions while I am innocent of the blood of any Muslim from all factions, starting with the Islamic State and ending with the Free Syrian Army and passing through the general people, but I was encouraging mercy and criminalizing those who kill Muslims or excommunicate them.
And I say to my brothers, I am not methodologically affiliated with any current, nor does any current represent me, nor do I represent any current, but I am for all Muslims, my pen, my supplication, my call, my burning, and my advice are for all of them. And what represents me accurately are my articles, words, and published series, and what I publish for other brothers that I see as beneficial.
My conviction is that the extremism and fighting that occurred among Muslims was caused by the absence of the Sharia of the Merciful in their lands and the spread of the oppressors inside and outside with ignorance, oppression, and injustice against Muslims. And what we are trying to do with our call is to rebuild the Muslim individual anew, building his mind, creed, psychology, and morals, so that he may qualify to be of the best nation produced for mankind.
Finally, I saw people who deliberately lied and fabricated against this humble servant and then said, "Do not follow Iyad, even if he speaks to you about the journey of certainty, women, and morals, for he is a man of thought who does not bring good." They lied and then built on that lie to deter from my call to Allah, the Mighty and Sublime. I say to them, if you belong to that and you reform, I have forgiven you and I ask Allah to reform you and gather me with you in the service of His religion, and if you insist, then Allah will judge between me and you.
And to the brothers who follow: By Allah, I love you in Allah, I love you in Allah for what I have seen of your zeal for your brother, and I ask Allah to be at your good opinion of me, so may Allah reward you for me and gather me with you in the gardens of bliss.
Peace be upon you and the mercy of Allah.