AhlulBayt News Agency: South African Shia scholars issued statement in support of Supreme Leader.
The full text of the statement is as follow:
A UNITED STAND OF SOUTH AFRICAN SHIA MUSLIM SCHOLARS IN SUPPORT OF OUR BELOVED LEADER AYATULLAH SAYYID ALI KHAMENEI AND THE PATH OF RESISTANCE
Friday, January 30, 2026
As South African Muslims — heirs to a long and painful struggle against injustice, colonial domination, and racial oppression — we recognize all too well the language of propaganda used to delegitimize
resistance and criminalize those who refuse to submit to u njust power.
From this moral and historical position, we express our clear and principled support for the great Leader of Islamic Revolution, Ayatullah Sayyid Ali Khamenei and for the Islamic Re public of Iran.
Our own history teaches us that those who stood against apartheid were once branded “extremists,” “terrorists,” and “destabilizers.” Today, many of the same forces that politically, economically, and militarily supported apartheid seek to lecture the world on human rights, while enabling occupation, genocide, and systematic oppression — most glaringly in Palestine.
The Islamic Revolution of Iran, now marking 47 years since February 1979, must be understood through this same lens. It represents a steadfast refusal to surrender political sovereignty, moral independence, and Islamic identity to imperial interests. In a Muslim world often pressured into silence or complicity, Iran has maintained a consistent and principled stance against Zionist occupation, Western domination, and the reduction of Muslim nations to client states.
Ayatullah Sayyid Ali Khamenei’s leadership is not merely political. As a Marja ʿ and the Wali al -Faqih ( Grand Spiritual Authority) , he holds profound spiritual, moral, and religious authority for millions across the Muslim world. His role embodies ethical resistance, moral clarity, and steadfast opposition to global arrogance ( istikbār ). This spiritual dimension of leadership resonates deeply with South African Muslims, whose collective conscience has been shaped by dispossession, forced removals, and prolon ged international indifference.
As South African Muslims, we categorically reject attempts to silence, intimidate, or shame those who stand with resistance. We strongly condemn and oppose any expressions or threats of intent to assassinate our beloved leader Ayatullah Sayyid Ali Khamenei . Such an act would not only constitute a grave crime and moral transgression but would have disastrous and far - reaching consequences for the entire region and for global peace, risking widespread instability, escalation of conflict, and further suffering of innocent populations.
We therefore call upon South African Muslim scholars, religious leaders, and institutions to take a clear, united, and principled moral stance — affirming the sanctity of life, rejecting political violence, and standing firmly against injustice, oppression, and imperial aggression in all its forms. This is not merely a political position. It is a moral, spiritual, and historical obligation.
يُرِيدُونَ لِيُطْفِئُوا نُورَ اللَّهِ بِأَفْوَاهِهِمْ وَاللَّهُ مُتِمُّ نُورِهِ وَلَوْ كَرِهَ الْكَافِرُونَ 8
They seek to extinguish Allah's light (by blowing) with their mouths, but Allah shall spread His light in all its fullness, howsoever the unbelievers may abhor this . Al Qura’n 61:8
SIGNED BY:
1. DR. SH MOHAMED SHAHID MATHEE - SENIOR LECTURER - UNIVERSITY OF
JOHANNESBURG
2. MOWLANA SHAIKH MASUD ALI – MASJID AL RASUL – KWANDEBELE - MPHUMULANGA
3. MOWLANA SHAIKH SAFIULLAH KHAN – JOHANNESBURG
4. MOWLANA SYED ABDULLAH HUSAYNI – ISLAMIC CENTRE FOR AFRICA
5. MOWLANA SYED AFTAB HAIDER - AHLUL BAIT (A.S) FOUNDATION OF SOUTH AFRICA
6. MOWLANA SYED AREF REZAI – JOHANNESBURG
7. MOWLANA SYED RAZA ABBAS – GABRONE – BOTSWANA
8. MOWLANA SYYED TABARROK NAQVI – ALMUSTAFA UNIVERSITY – JOHANNESBURG
9. MUALLIMA ASIMA NAQVI - JOHANNESBURG
10. MUALLIMA BATOOL HAIDER – CAPE TOWN
11. AL HAAJ BASHIER RAHIM – AHLULBAIT MOSQUE CAPE TOWN
12. MUALLIMA SADAF HAIDER – CAPE TOWN
13. SHAIKH ABDUL MALIK MUFID – MASJID IMAM HASAN ASKARI – WINTERFELD - PRETORIA
14. SHEIKH ABDUL HAQ – RAMANOKOPI ISLAMIC CENTRE – KATLEHONG
15. SHEIKH ABDULLAH ANZ – HEBRON AHLULBAIT JAMA’AT – PRETORIA
16. SHEIKH ABDULLAH JUMA’A – IMAM KAZIM CENTRE – KROONSTAD
17. SHEIKH ADAM KINGUNDU - KATLEHONG ISLAMIC FOUNDATION
18. SHEIKH ALI SINYANI – SHASHINGOWE AHLULBAIT JAMA’AT – PRETORIA
19. SHEIKH MUSTFA SAEED – GHARIBUL GURABA MADRASA – CAPE TOWN
20. SHEIKH NUR MUHAMMED – AHLHLBAIT MADRASSA – KATLEHONG
21. SHEIKH YASR EBRAHIM – PRE TORIA
22. SHEIKH SAIED HABIBULLAH – AHLULBAIT CENTRE PHILPPIE – CAPE TOWN
23. SHEKH ABDUL QADIR SHABAN – BABUL ILM CENTRE – K U R U MAN
24. SYED ANZAL ALAMDAR NAQVI – IMAM HUSAYN MOSQUE DURBAN
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