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ADL Statement on Anti-Semitic Sermons by Imam Abdelmohsen Abouhatab

  • March 11, 2019

March 11, 2019

ADL Regional Director Nancy K. Baron-Baer today released the following statement:

We condemn in the strongest possible terms the anti-Semitic remarks of Abdelmohsen Abouhatab. As a guest imam at Al Aqsa Islamic Society, Abouhatab delivered multiple sermons over the past few months characterized by virulently anti-Jewish hate. His remarks, which have been independently verified by numerous sources, called Jews “the vilest people” and promoted age-old falsehoods about Jewish control of the media, finance and government.

On Saturday, Abouhatab released a statement claiming that his comments were not anti-Semitic, but were merely taken out of context. This brazen denial, flying in the face of multiple expert translations confirming his comments, shows that Abouhatab is shamefully unrepentant for spouting anti-Jewish hate.

While it is true that hate speech is protected by the First Amendment, all concerned citizens also have the freedom, and the responsibility, to speak out against hate. Al Aqsa Islamic Society, which has had a long history of working together with Jews and other interfaith partners to fight all forms of bigotry, did just that on Friday night by strongly condemning Abouhatab’s comments. We appreciate their statement and quick response, and urge others to follow Al Aqsa’s lead. We look forward to learning more from our friends at Al Aqsa about how these troubling events occurred, and we will continue to work closely with Al Aqsa’s leadership to ensure that something like this never happens again.

Source: Press Release
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