Friends fleeing Ukraine but not to Muslim countries
13th March 2022
Assalamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuh,
I was on the UK Home office website finding out the criteria for Ukrainians fleeing war and wanting to come to the UK. I needed to respond to a friend in Ukraine. It was great to hear that he was safe in West Ukraine but he said other Muslim brothers had fled to Europe and were considering coming to the UK. Are they eligible?
The UK Home office website said if you had family already settled in the UK, you could apply. Otherwise you need a sponsor and the details of that were unclear and the bar is high.
What is clear is the UK government is reluctant to let in a huge influx of Ukrainians – compared to other European countries. Why? Brexit. Boris Johnson’s side won the Brexit vote largely because some here are against foreigners from Europe. A decision to now reverse that would not be welcomed by sections of society.
There are many Muslims in Europe who fled Syria and other Muslim lands due to war and now find themselves alienated in Europe because they are trying to hold onto an Islamic identity and practices while European states are coercively trying to impose a secular identity on them and their children, as we see in France, UK, Denmark and elsewhere. Watch video of this incident in Sweden.
Why were these Muslim brothers from Ukraine not thinking of going to a Muslim country? It’s not only an issue of geography and distance. In their situation, which Muslim country would you go to? Which government today has a record of welcoming such inflows of refugees? Which Muslim country hasn’t got huge problems? We see poverty (Egypt, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sudan ...), war, oppressive regimes and many other problems. We see regimes (Saudi, Egypt, Pakistan, ...) jailing peaceful Islamic activists who call for the return of Islam in state and society and the implementation of the Islamic Khilafah system left by the Prophet (alayhi salam). No wonder there is no justice.
Our Islamic history under the Khilafah shows that society was seen as a place of refuge for the suffering masses of the world, both Muslim and non-Muslim. The Uthmani Khilafah (Ottoman Caliphate) welcomed Jews persecuted in Europe and there are many other examples.
وَمَآ أَرْسَلْنَـٰكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِّلْعَـٰلَمِينَ
“We have sent you ˹O Prophet˺ only as a mercy for the whole world (mankind, jinns and all that exists)” [Sura Al-Anbiya 21:107].
Today, the governments of Turkey, Morocco, Pakistan and other Muslim countries have even defended China’s persecution of Uyghur Muslims and have sometimes arrested and deported them back to China. La hawla wa la quwwata illa billah.
So one is not surprised that today, the Muslim world doesn’t immediately come to the mind of these Muslims in Ukraine fleeing war. Whilst fellow Muslims might welcome them, the regimes and conditions are not inviting.
May Allah (swt) make it easy for these brothers and those fleeing war in Ukraine. May Allah (swt) again bless the Muslim world with a sincere Islamic leadership, the Khilafah Rashidah state, that implements the justice of Islam so our lands again become a place of refuge for the oppressed masses of the world, for both Muslims and non-Muslims.
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Love and salams,
Taji
🧔 What have I been up to?
I joined some Twitter spaces (audio discussions on twitter). I joined some hosted by Paul Williams (Blogging Theology @freemonotheist). Important and lively discussions with Muslims from across the world. Join if you’re on twitter, inshaAllah.
Listen to a previous Twitter space- > Blogging Theology: Who wants the Caliphate?
📖 Ayah and Hadith
وَلَا تَهِنُوا۟ وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا۟ وَأَنتُمُ ٱلْأَعْلَوْنَ إِن كُنتُم مُّؤْمِنِينَ
“Do not lose heart or despair, for you will have the upper hand, if you are true believers” [Sura Ali-Imran 3:139]
Quote of the Week
“Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today.” - Malcolm X (Hajj Malik Al-Shabaz)
❤ My Favourite Things
Book - Commentary on the Forty hadith about the virtue of noble Quran and its recitation – Compiled by Sheikh Yusuf Al-Nabahani. Translated and commented by Arfan Shah Al-Bukhari
A friend gave me this. Great preparation for Ramadhan. May Allah (swt) enable us to see Ramadhan.
Read my latest articles and past newsletters at tajimustafa.com