Qom — Grand Ayatollah Nour Hamadani has issued a strongly worded statement condemning the sentencing of several religious scholars to prison and death in various countries across the region, calling on regional governments to abandon what he described as “reckless actions” and instead unite against global arrogance and Zionism.
The statement, released in response to recent judicial rulings targeting clerics and religious figures, opened with condolences marking the martyrdom of Lady Fatima Zahra (SA) and invoked a hadith narrated by Imam Hasan al-Askari (AS) from Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq (AS), as recorded in Bihar al-Anwar (Vol. 2, p. 5, Hadith 8) and Tafsir al-Imam al-Askari (Hadith 221).
The hadith states: “The scholars of our Shia community stand guard on the borders that face Iblis and his followers, preventing them from attacking the weak among our Shia and ensuring that Iblis and his followers, the Kharijites, do not subjugate them.”
A Duty to Protect the Faith
Grand Ayatollah Nour Hamadani emphasised that defending the truth, resisting oppression, and safeguarding religious beliefs constitute the fundamental duty of the scholarly class. He affirmed that wherever injustice occurs, the voice of religious scholars must be heard, and that any assault on those protecting the faith and the rights of their communities warrants unequivocal condemnation.
Warning to Regional Governments
Addressing regional rulers directly, the Grand Ayatollah warned that attempts to silence the voice of justice through unfair sentences of imprisonment or execution would be futile. He cautioned that such decisions “will not only fail to silence the defenders of truth and justice, but will also lead to the downfall and loss of authority of those who make them.”
He urged governments to refrain from such reckless persecution and instead channel their efforts toward confronting what he termed the existential threats posed by “global arrogance and Zionism, which seek to destroy the very foundation of Islam.”
A Prayer for the Oppressed
The statement concluded with a solemn supplication to Almighty God, asking for the continued greatness and prosperity of Islam, divine assistance for all oppressed religious scholars, and their ultimate liberation from “the shackles of oppressors.”
Reference: Shia News