Irish media has reported that Dr. Ali Selim, a leader in the Irish Muslim Brotherhood, has made comments praising the concept of “martyrdom.” According to the an Irish Times report:
DR ALI SELIM , a theologian at the Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland, in Clonskeagh in Dublin, compares those who flocked to Libya last year and Syria today to the International Brigade during the Spanish Civil War. ‘They see it as a battle against injustice that transcends nationality,’ he says. The prospect of ‘martyrdom’ is also a strong motivation, he adds. ‘Many of them, before they leave here, say, ‘Make prayers for me; I want to be martyred,’ because they understand that, in Islam, martyrdom is the way to eternal life,’ he says. ‘If they die as martyrs, they will be held in high esteem. If they survive and come back, they will also be held in high regard, because they have performed a very important duty.’”
The Islamic Cultural Centre of Ireland (ICCI) is an important part of the European Muslim Brotherhood serving as host for the European Council for Fatwa and Research (ECFR), the theological body headed by global Muslim Brotherhood leader Youssef Qaradawi. The ICCI is also the registered headquarters for Qaradawi’s International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS). Noah Al-Kaddo, the ICCI Executive Director, is also an officer of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe (FIOE), the European umbrella organization for the Muslim Brotherhood and the parent organization of the ECFR. Ali Selim is the private secretary to ICCI Imam Hussein Halawa and is described as a “resident theologian.” Mr. Selim attracted a great deal of local media attention in September 2006 when he told a newspaper interviewer that, ideally, he would like to see Shariah law adopted in Ireland in the “event of a Muslim majority.” Along the same lines, Mr. Selim said in 2006 that religious law should be imposed over secular law if that was wished by the majority. Other controversial statements by Mr. Selim include:
- Suggesting that there were conspiratorial forces behind the 911 attacks saying “history, definitely, will prove to us that those people were not the only ones involved in 9/11. That, in actual fact, there’s a wider circle that’s under the shade so we can’t see it at the moment. “
- Saying he had seen no proof that Muslims carried out the July 2006 London bombings, suggesting that videotapes of the bombers might have been faked and that he was not aware that they were identified by their own families.
- Claiming he was unaware of any Muslims calling for Jihad against the West
- Saying that he had “no opinion” about Osama Bin Laden
A post from February 2010 discussed Dr. Selim in connection with statements by Irish Muslim Brotherhood leaders saying that a ban on face veils violates personal freedoms.