Jordanian Cleric against Killing Jews: If You Don’t Attack Them, They Don’t Attack You

In a video-clip posted on the Internet, Jordanian cleric Ali Hassan Al-Halabi said, in response to a question, that it is not permissible to kill Jews in Palestine as "there are shari'a agreements that protect people's rights and lives." "Our brothers in Palestine tell us that the Jews do not attack anyone who does not attack them," he said. The video, which was originally posted on the Internet on February 18, has been circulating on the social media against the backdrop of the recent stabbing attacks in Israel.

Following are excerpts:

Audience Member: "Sheikh, the Jews in Palestine…"

Ali Hassan Al-Halabi: "What about them?"

Audience Member: "Some people say that it is always permissible to kill them."

Ali Hassan Al-Halabi: "Someone who provides you with protection, electricity, and water, who transfers you money, and you work for him, taking his money – and then you kill him?! Even if he’s a Jew?!"

Audience: "No."

Ali Hassan Al-Halabi: "This killing is permissible during a declared war, but if you both pledge for the safety of one another, you are not allowed to betray and kill him. Sheikh Ibn Baz once sent a letter to Sheikh Ahmad Shaker, in the days of the British occupation of Egypt. Ahmad Shaker said that any Egyptian who sees an Englishman should kill him. Sheikh Ibn Baz said: That is not permissible. There are Shari'a agreements that protect people's rights and lives. The emotional perspective is one thing, and the scholarly perspective is another."

Audience Member: "This is with regard to civilians, but what about soldiers who walk down the street with guns?"

Ali Hassan Al-Halabi: "The answer is the same. Let me ask you a question: Does this man walking down the street with a gun, kill every Muslim he sees?"

Audience Member: "Sheikh, is it true that they do not attack you if you do not attack them?"

Ali Hassan Al-Halabi: "I haven't lived in Palestine, but this is what the brothers tell me. Our brothers in Palestine tell us that the Jews do not attack anyone who does not attack them. Nobody should think that by saying this, I am defending the accursed Jews, but this is the reality. If they killed every Muslim they saw, nobody would be left in Palestine. All the people would leave Palestine. They would all flee to other countries. But all the people there stay put – in the 1967 territories, the 1948 territories, and Jerusalem. They remain there, with the Jews around them with their weapons. You see (the Palestinians) killing the (Jews), who only kill (Palestinians) when attacked. But like I said before, (the Jews) only do this out of wickedness and heresy. They have principles. They want to be able to say: 'We are better than the Muslims. Who kill us unprovoked. We don't do that.'"