Muqtada al-Sadr's Controversial Warning to Baku Officials

Muqtada al-Sadr warned Azerbaijani officials, describing the ban on headscarves in schools in that country as an 'ISIS-like' measure.

According to ambassador Arjan; Moqtada Sadr, the leader of Iraq's Sadr Movement, in response to the banning of Islamic demonstrations in the schools of the Republic of Azerbaijan, called this decision "secular extremism" and warned that such actions will lead to the escalation of extremism in this country.

In a statement, referring to the decision of the authorities of the Republic of Azerbaijan to ban the hijab, Sadr emphasized: "I do not interfere in the internal affairs of this Muslim country, but we, as those who enjoin what is good and forbid what is evil, are responsible before God to warn, express our opinion and give advice."

He added: "Yes, such decisions mean secular extremism, which is equivalent to the extremism of ISIS." The leader of the Sadr movement warned: "These decisions activate extremism in your country, which we hope is a model of moderation and moderation, encourages it and makes it more fiery."

Sadr went on to criticize the secular officials' understanding of the concept of secularism and said: "It is strange that secularists think that secularism means hostility and opposition to Islamization and legislation based on Islam; While secularism is supposed to be based on freedom and non-interference in personal freedoms.

Rejecting the idea that banning the hijab can lead to the secularization of society and liberating women from the restrictions of covering, he emphasized: "If you think that the decision to ban the hijab will be a gateway to the secularization of society and freeing women from the constraints of covering and hijab, you are wrong."

Sadr further said: "On the one hand, banning the hijab will have a positive effect on chaste women by encouraging them to wear the hijab, and on the other hand, it will make those who follow this decision captive to worldly lusts and pleasures." "Also, this decision will increase the domination of the West and Israel over your country."

The leader of the Sadr movement described this action as a "political decision" and wrote that this decision was taken with the aim of "getting rid of moderate Islam and establishing the control of the seculars over the government".

Referring to the experience of other countries, he added: "Achieving this goal is just an illusion; Just as some countries before you, like Tunisia, followed such a path by banning hijab, fasting and similar things. Turkey also took measures in this field, but with the increase in the number of veiled women, it removed these prohibitions.

In the end, Sadr pointed out the increase in the number of veiled women after restrictions were imposed in other countries, and called on the authorities of the Republic of Azerbaijan to learn from the experience of other countries and emphasized that the consequences of such decisions should not be ignored. Source: Fars