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In a November 19, 2022 statement, the Al-Malahem Foundation, the media arm of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), criticized Qatar for its hosting of the FIFA World Cup set to kick off on November 20.[1]
Citing Quranic verses warning Muslims against drinking alcohol and gambling, the statement stressed that the event promotes immoral activities that are Islamically forbidden.
Fans Often Cheer For Infidels
Soccer matches, said the statement, sow division among the people of the Islamic nation and divert them from their religion, since fans often cheer for teams of non-Muslim countries.
It stated: "Such matches are a cause and a tool used by the enemies to create prejudices and divisions among the Ummah [Islamic nation] and to shape [people's] loyalty on a nonreligious and un-Islamic basis. They steer their loyalty and admiration towards the infidels. Adding that the World Cup would influence young Muslims to follow in the footsteps of "shameful models," it also accused also the "Crusader West" of exploiting the tournament to implement its unnatural and anti-Islamic values such as homosexuality.
Muslims Should Boycott The Event
Urging Muslims to boycott the event, the statement also instructed clerics and Islamic scholars to condemn it.
"Hence and from a religious point of view, we warn our Muslim brothers to not watch, attend, promote, take part in express pride in, or support the event. We urge them to condemn it, to ignore it. We also call on scholars, preachers, and intellectuals to expose, avoid, and warn against it, even if there are purported interests in it."
[1] November 19, 2022
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