Dr. Ibrahim Negm, Advisor to the Grand Mufti of Egypt, condemned the displacement of Iraqi Christians and forcing them to pay the jizya (taxes).

In a lecture delivered to large number of representatives of different religions in the Islamic center in New York, Negm stressed that the actions of ISIS have nothing to do with the tolerant spirit of Islam which calls for coexistence and provides freedom of faith for all people.

He added that the actions of ISIS distort the image of Islam and hurts the Prophet [peace and blessings be upon him] who said, “He who hurts a dhimmi [Christian or Jewish], hurts me” and “Whoever oppresses or is unjust to a person with whom we have a covenant, burdens him beyond his capacity, or takes something from him without his free will, I will be his adversary on the Day of Judgment.” He added that the lives, property, and honor of non-Muslims are as sacred as those of Muslims.

Negm further explained that kind treatment of the People of the Book was the etiquette of the rightly guided caliphs. He said that ISIS has used religion according to its own interpretation which serves its purpose. Furthermore, forcing non-Muslims to pay jizya is considered misinterpreting Islamic texts.

He concluded by saying that many jurists have maintained that a dhimmi who participates in fighting against enemies is absolved from paying the jizya. There are examples in history when the jizya was waived with regard to non-Muslims when they accepted defending their homelands alongside Muslims, which is the situation at present.