What may be Canada’s fastest growing Islamist group believes that all Canadian soldiers are war criminals.[1] The perceived leader of the Canadian arm of the group says publicly that Muslims should not vote in elections unless they are voting for Sharia Law. Hizb ut-Tahrir is able to grow as it has a fluid organizational system and receives considerable practical support from government officials such as the Mayor of Mississauga and the City of Hamilton.
The Canadian public frequently questions why Canada has produced a growing stream of suicide bombers, martyrs, ISIS propagandists and a string of jihadist fighters for a variety of Islamist causes. One reason, and perhaps the primary one, is that Canada has a series of Islamist extremist groups that create the necessary social, political and cultural space for an extremist ideology to blossom into political violence; that is to say terrorism.
Maajid Nawaz is a former disciple of Hizb ut-Tahrir in the UK and Pakistan. He formerly worked as a recruiter and organizer for that group.[2] He is now the founder and head of the world’s premier de-radicalization group, the Quilliam Foundation in London, UK.[3] He explains the ideology and actions of Hizb ut-Tahrir in this manner: “Although we did not advocate jihadism in any of our teachings, we set a number of students on this path through our politics.”[4]
The Quilliam Foundation also has this current view of Hizb ut-Tahrir: “Non-violent Islamists can champion this narrative, providing the mood music to which suicide bombers dance.”[5]
Elsewhere, the Quilliam Foundation states that those, such as Hizb ut-Tahrir, “continue to advocate separatist, confrontational ideas that, followed to their logical conclusion, lead to violence.”[6]
The public discussion in Canada around this group, which believes in violent jihad, has been limited. It is worth examining a few of their basic beliefs, as expressed in their own writings.
Hizb ut-Tahrir was formed in Jerusalem (al-Quds) in 1952[7] as a spinoff of the Muslim Brotherhood, itself founded in 1928. Hizb ut-Tahrir is a global Islamist organization which has the intent to resume an Islamist way of life with the construction of a caliphate. They believe they should extend this call to the entire world. They also advocate that the end goal is the Islamization of Canada as part of this global caliphate.[8]
Article 62 of the Hizb ut-Tahrir Constitution also calls for compulsory conscription in their sought after caliphate. It states that every Muslim male who is “fifteen years and over, is obliged to undergo military training in readiness for jihad.”[9]
The definition of Jihad is also quite clear for Hizb ut-Tahrir. “The meaning of Jihad being a duty of sufficiency is that we initiate the fighting of the enemy even if he did not attack us. If the Muslims failed to initiate the fighting at any given time, they would all be sinful.”[10] It should be noted that Hizb ut-Tahrir believes that defensive jihad is a falsehood.[11]
The leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir in the USA, Dr. Mohammed Malkawi, made his views on the role of Hizb ut-Tahrir clear at a conference in Jordan: “Let Britain, America, and the entire West go to hell, because the Caliphate is coming, Allah willing.”[12]
The leader of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Canada appears to be Mazin Abdul-Adhim, a Canadian citizen of Iraqi descent living in London, Ontario, a hotbed of Islamist views. He was originally recruited by Maajid Nawaz (now at the Quilliam Foundation) into Hizb ut-Tahrir while they were both in London, UK. As the perceived leading ‘Imam’ of Hizb ut-Tahrir in Canada, it was Abdul-Adhim who openly stated, “No Muslim should honour the memory of those war criminals by wearing a poppy, just as no one would honour a criminal that killed his or her mother and father.”[13]
Unlike other extremist groups operating in Canada[14] such as the Muslim Brotherhood, the Khomeneists and those funded by Wahhabi money, Hizb ut-Tahrir prefers to operate with limited physical infrastructure. There are no mosques, no student front groups, no federally registered charities and no signs (yet) of political Entryism. Hizb ut-Tahrir prefers to use, borrow or rent the physical premises of other sympathetic organizations or use taxpayer-funded premises such as the Living Arts Centre in the City of Mississauga. One wonders if a review of booking the facility would reveal usage by agents such as Tamil Tigers, MS13 or the IRA, or other well-accepted terrorist groups?
The Mayor and City Council of Mississauga are aware of the nature of Hizb ut-Tahrir, having been repeatedly informed by a variety of sources about the nature of this group.[15] Like many government officials, however, Mississauga prefers to submit to, rather than challenge, the beliefs of groups such as Hizb ut-Tahrir. The 2015 conference of Hizb ut-Tahrir was held in Mississauga. Their poster for the event stated:
Make sure you attend the annual Hizb ut Tahrir Rajab conference this year in Mississauga, Ontario, Canada. It takes place on May 23rd (8 days from today) at the Living Arts Centre, from 3:00pm to 5:00pm. “In preparation of the real Khilafah (Caliphate), which will be on the footsteps of Prophethood inshaAllah, the agenda driven media has turned up the rhetoric against the Khilafah and the systems of Islam. What can we do about this? We, as an Ummah, must take ownership of the future Khilafah and take an active role in refuting this propaganda. We must talk to our families, neighbours, colleagues, and friends, to make them aware of what a real Khilafah looks like. Join us on May 23rd to get the necessary knowledge to take an active role in the re-establishment of the Khilafah.[16]
Hizb ut-Tahrir does not operate in isolation and it is willing to cooperate with other Islamist groups. For instance, at a recent conference in Mississauga, a guest speaker was the principal of the Islamic Society of North America High School of Mississauga, Abdul–Aziz Rasoul.[17] The ISNA high school received millions in funding from Saudi/Wahhabis sources.[18] Its parent organization, ISNA, also lost its federally registered charity status for its “Development Fund” when it was caught funding a terrorist group.[19]
Previous conferences for Hizb ut-Tahrir have included, but are not limited to:
2009 – This annual conference was part of the Hizb ut-Tahrir global initiative campaign and was entitled “The 2009 Caliphate Campaign.” It was held at the City of Mississauga owned and operated Mississauga Valley Community Center.
2012 – On September 22, 2012, Hizb ut-Tahrir organized a conference entitled “Working with the Ummah to resume the Islamic way of life.” The topic covered issues such as the Muslim Community and its obligation to defend the honour of Rasul Allah (The Prophet Mohammed). The conference was held at the ISNA Masjid, 2200 South Sheridan Way, Mississauga, Ontario.
2013 – On June 29, 2013, Hizb ut-Tahrir organized a conference at the Living Arts Centre in the City of Mississauga. It was entitled “Living under the Shade of Sharia.”
2015 – On November 28, 2015, an event was held at the Mohawk Residence and Conference Centre (245 Fennel Ave. West, Hamilton, Ontario) for discussing the crisis in Syria and in support of the establishment of the Islamic State – the Caliphate.[20]
Following the Paris attacks of November 2015, Mayor Crombie of Mississauga condemned attacks by ISIS, but stated that it had nothing to do with religion. One of her comments was: “To try to understand their motives is futile because their motives are pure and unmitigated evil. These criminals are not motivated by any recognizable religion, but by a perverse view of the world. This is not religion.”[21]
Mississauga is one of the most heavily radicalized cities in Canada, with a large presence of a variety of Islamist groups dedicated to destroying Canadian democracy. It is also one of the Canadian cities most likely to be struck in the event of an ISIS-inspired attack.[22]
Conclusion
Hizb ut-Tahrir, like many other Islamist groups, can be considered an extremist group as it openly advocates policies that run directly contrary to the Canadian Constitution and the Charter of Rights and Freedoms. It is openly anti-democratic, anti-feminist and pro-Sharia. Yet Canadian politicians regularly find a way to submit themselves to the will of such groups. It is unclear if the politicians involved are incredibility naive, simple minded or perhaps knowledgeable, but find it easier to go along with them and not rock the boat based on the mythical belief in “community balance.” Whatever the case, Islamist groups continue to grow in Canada while the lessons of the UK, France and Belgium remain lost on the majority of Canadians and their political class.
Meanwhile, the mood music for the suicide bombers and other extremists continues to play. Responsibility and accountability appear to still lie in the future.
