Islamic Center In Dearborn Hosts Annual Memorial Honoring Hizbullah's Spiritual Leader And U.S. Specially Designated Terrorist Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah – July 2024

On July 5, 2024, at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn, Michigan, people gathered to honor the memory of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah, a prominent Lebanese Shi'a cleric regarded as a spiritual mentor to Hizbullah.[1] Fadlallah's sermons and writings inspired many of Hizbullah's members, playing a crucial role in shaping the ideological foundation of the terrorist group.[2]

Fadlallah issued the fatwa authorizing the 1983 suicide bombing of the U.S. Marine barracks in Beirut[3], which killed 241 U.S. Marines serving as peacekeepers, along with 58 French troops and six civilians. An additional 128 Americans were wounded in the blast; 13 later died.[4] The United States, European Union, Arab League, and Gulf Cooperation Council, alongside many countries designate Hizbullah as a terrorist organization.[5]

Although Fadlallah did not hold an official position within the group, his endorsement of martyrdom and his promotion of violent resistance to Israel provided religious legitimacy to Hizbullah's military actions, galvanizing support among Lebanese Shi'a community, members of the Iranian government, and beyond.[6]

Fadlallah was labeled a "Specially Designated Terrorist" by the U.S. Department of Justice in 1995,[7] and again in September 2001, when he was also designated as the "Leading Ideological Figure of Hizbullah" by the U.S. Treasury Department.[8] Upon Fadlallah's death in Lebanon in 2010, Hizbullah declared three days of mourning, and Iranian Supreme Leader Khamenei sent his condolences.[9]

In the words of Hizbullah's Secretary General Hassan Nasrallah: "Sayyed Fadlallah was a merciful father, a wise adviser and a powerful support. He was this for us and for the whole religious and resistance generation since we were youngsters praying behind him...[10] At his school, we learned to reject injustice, oppose the occupation and crave our meeting with Allah. He was the light in whose splendor we walked. His good word and determined stance will stay within us and guide us in acting for jihad. In the name of the fighters, the families of those fallen, wounded or imprisoned, and in the name of all the resistance, we send our condolences."[11]

Fadlallah died in Beirut on July 4, 2010. Nasrallah visited the body and offered his condolences to Fadlallah's family. Nasrallah also issued a statement in which he described Fadlallah as a merciful father, a wise guide, a fortified cave, and a strong support at all stages, adding, "This is how His Eminence has been for us and for all this generation of believers, fighters, and resisters since we were young men praying behind him. We learn under his pulpit, we are guided by his words, we imitate his morals, and we imitate his life." Nasrallah concluded his statement by offering condolences on behalf of the resistance, pledging to fulfill Fadlallah's goals.[12]

Commemorations Of Fadlallah In Dearborn

Annual memorial services for Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah have been hosted in Dearborn since 2010.[13] On June 12, 2024, a local media site in Dearborn sympathetic to Hizbullah posted announcements on Facebook and on its own website, inviting supporters to Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah's 14th annual memorial commemoration service, which would be held on Friday, July 5, 2024, at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn.[14]

Poster announcing Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah's 14th annual memorial commemoration service on Friday, July 5, 2024, at the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn.[15]

Facebook announcement of the commemoration service in honor of Hizbullah Sheikh Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. Source: Dearborn.org/preview/14th-memorial-commemoration-service-of-the-late-sayed-mohammad-hussein-fadlallah-55994, June 12, 2024. See also, Dearborn.org/preview/photosvideo-the14th-anniversary-of-the-late-sayyid-mohammad-hussein-fadlullah-in-dearborn-57281, July 7, 2024.

On July 7, 2024, a local media site in Dearborn published an article describing the event. According to article, the commemoration service was organized by the Al-Mabarat Charity Association and the Al-Hadi Youth Foundation of the Islamic Center of America in Dearborn.[16] According to a report from July 22, 2006, there was "convincing evidence" that the Al-Mabarat Charity Association, founded in 1991, served as part of an extensive infrastructure raising funds for Hizbullah in the United States, Canada, South America, Europe, Africa, and the Middle East.[17]

Until his death in 2010, Fadlallah ran the Al-Mabarat (sometimes spelled Al-Mabarrat) Charity Association.[18] Today, the association is headed by his son Jaafar Fadlallah, who currently serves as the organization's "General Supervisor of Religious Affairs."[19] The Al-Mabarat Charity Association appears to be affiliated with the "Great Revelations Academy," a school in Dearborn founded in 2015 by supporters of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. According to reports, the school's founders openly acknowledge their commitment to promoting Fadlallah's teachings. The committee that founded the Academy was drawn from the Al-Mabarrat Charitable Organization, for which the academy holds fundraisers.[20]

The event was attended by a number of clerics and spiritual leaders of the Islamic centers and members of the Lebanese and Iraqi communities. The ceremony included speeches, streamed over the Internet, by Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah' son, Jaafar Fadlallah, , and remarks from Shi'a clerics: Sheikh Baker Berry, Sheikh Hassan Qazwini, Sheikh Najah Al-Husseini Al-Musawi, Sheikh Mohammad Ali Elahi, Adel Al-Qadi, Professor Mohamed Farhat, and cultural activist Dr. Ali Imad Fadlallah.[21]

During the event, videos and speeches by Sayed Fadlallah were shown, in addition to paintings and sayings by the Shi'a cleric. The event then concluded with a documentary film about his journey, and the opening of an exhibition of Fadlallah's writings in Arabic and English.[22]

Speakers included Sheikh Mohammad Ali Elahi (right, above) from the Iranian cultural center, the Islamic House of Wisdom, and Sayyed Hassan Qazwini, who was formerly affiliated with the Islamic Center of America, and then founded the Islamic Institute of America. Source: Dearborn.org/preview/photosvideo-the14th-anniversary-of-the-late-sayyid-mohammad-hussein-fadlullah-in-dearborn-57281, July 7, 2024.

On July 3, 2023, another an article was published covering the 13th memorial service honoring Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah. That gathering was held at Mabarat Al-Khayr in the village of Bint Jbeil in South Lebanon. According to the article, a video by Dearborn.org was presented during the services.[23]

A Dearborn.org article by covering Fadlallah's 13th memorial commemoration service in Bint Jbeil, Lebanon features a photo showing how Dearborn.org's and Bintjbeil.org's logos appear on the microphone used for the commemoration service. This may reflect Dearborn.org's first-hand coverage of the event and a general collaboration between the two organizations.[24]

A July 8, 2023 notice promoted a second event commemorating Fadlallah held at the Al Kabirin Mosque in South Lebanon.[25]

Pictures from the annual memorial anniversary service in honor of Mohammad Hussein Fadlallah held at Al Masjid Al Kabir in Bint Jbeil, South Lebanon. The event was covered by Dearborn.org and Bintjbeil.org.