Muslims in the West should use their citizenship as a tool to pressure governments, unseat politicians, and mobilize in defense of the global Muslim community, declared prominent Kuwaiti Islamist Tareq Al-Suwaidan, who is linked to Hamas and the Muslim Brotherhood and banned from the United States.
In an interview on The Thinking Muslim podcast, Al-Suwaidan, an influential preacher with a large online following and a Muslim Brotherhood leader banned from the U.S. for his connections to terror-linked organizations, urged Muslim youth in the U.S. and Europe to leverage their Western nationality to influence elections and turn Western policy against the Jewish state.
“This is your country and you should pressure your politicians to change their stand and you should make them fall down in elections if they don’t,” he said, addressing Muslim youth in the U.S., U.K., and Europe.
He encouraged Muslims in the West to use their citizenship as a tool to influence domestic policies in favor of Islamic causes, emphasizing the importance of political activism and voting to support the “ummah” (global Muslim community).
“Use Islam and your area of business and your citizenship,” he stated, noting that Muslim youth in the West are better positioned than ever to influence the political landscape of their host countries and no longer “have this fear that the migrants had.”
He rejected any religious support for peace with Israel, insisting, “I have not heard one religious clerk that said this — not one in the whole Arab world… these are [only] politicians.”
Al-Suwaidan also dismissed the loss of life and infrastructure in Gaza, stating, “We don’t fear death… they are with Allah in the highest level of heaven. If they are talking buildings — we will rebuild.”
Reflecting on his long residence in the U.S. and the education of his children, he claimed deep familiarity with Western society and its institutions.
“My children are in the States, studying there, and they tell me that what is happening in campuses is unbelievable,” he stated, adding that “I know the West from the inside.”
Describing today’s Muslim youth in the West as holding “two powers… the power of Islam and the power of the Western world,” he urged them to act accordingly, adding that “I know the West very well, and I have been in touch with the Muslim youth —and I have been training them.”
Al-Suwaidan praised their confidence, contrasting it with older generations of immigrants who “had this inferior feeling.”
Excerpts from the interview, which was originally published in 2023 and reposted last week, were reported on by the Middle East Media Research Institute (MEMRI).
Al-Suwaidan has been identified as an unindicted co-conspirator in the Holy Land Foundation case, the largest terrorism financing trial in U.S. history, which resulted in convictions for funneling millions of dollars to Hamas. He has also been banned from entering the U.S. and Belgium due to his extremist views and support for terrorist organizations.
In 2013, Saudi Prince Alwaleed bin Talal dismissed Al-Suwaidan from his position as director of the Al-Resalah TV channel for publicly admitting his affiliation with the Muslim Brotherhood, which is designated as a terror organization by several countries.
Al-Suwaidan has repeatedly discussed the collapse of Western civilization, proclaiming that “Islam is coming,” as well as the eventual restoration of an Islamic Caliphate governed by shari’a law. He has also called on Muslims to give Western civilization “the last push” toward collapse, while warning the West that Muslim peace offers “will not be so for long.”
In addition, he has expressed support for terror against Israel and, in a 2014 sermon, stated that the Jewish State is “destined to be eradicated in its entirety” and encouraged mothers to “suckle their babies on the hatred of the sons of Zion.”
His recent calls for Muslims in the West to leverage their citizenship for political influence have drawn scrutiny, given his history of ties to designated terrorist organizations and prior bans from Western countries.
Joshua Klein is a reporter for Breitbart News. Email him at [email protected]. Follow him on Twitter @JoshuaKlein.
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