The Grand Mufti of Yemen, scholar Shams al-Din Sharaf al-Din, affirmed that the Yemeni people have no need to deny something that does not exist in them, but that the propaganda of the pillars of hypocrisy may deceive many people, making clarification necessary.

In a speech during the Yemeni Scholars’ Conference to refute the Saudi regime’s claims regarding the targeting of Mecca, may Allah protect it, the Grand Mufti said: “The Yemeni people are not concerned with denying what is not in them, but the propaganda of the pillars of hypocrisy may deceive many people, and they may be misled by the Al Saud regime, particularly as it oversees the Two Holy Mosques and claims that it speaks only what is true. Nevertheless, the money pumped by the Saudi regime helps those who are deceived in launching their campaigns against Yemen.”

He added: “Faith is Yemeni”—the Noble Messenger said this specifically about Yemen and did not say it about any other people or nation. It is a testimony for which one will be questioned on the Day of Resurrection: who are the people of faith when the nation was put to the test in its Islam and faith?

He continued: “In light of the events of recent years, particularly the years of the Al-Aqsa Flood, when the people of Palestine and Gaza were put to the test through the horrific and appalling images of children and women being killed, Allah tested the faith of people. Some expressed their faith through word and deed, while others were content merely to look and watch. This is what Allah Almighty intended, to distinguish the wicked from the good.”

Scholar Sharaf al-Din continued: “I am reminded of the saying of the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him and his Household: ‘There will be a trial that will enter every house; there will be no house except that it enters it, and no man except that it strikes him.’ The trial today is taking place and will pursue everyone into their homes, places of worship, and pulpits. We are indeed being tested, until a man becomes a disbeliever in the morning or becomes a disbeliever in the evening. Today, the nation has become divided between two camps: a camp of faith and a camp of disbelief.”

He pointed out that from the very first dawn of Islam, the people of Yemen were among the first to believe in the Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him and his Household, and that they were the ones who sheltered him, supported him, and followed the light that was sent down with him.

He stated that the first mosque built after the Sacred Mosque was the Great Mosque, by order of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and its direction of prayer was toward the House of Allah. He noted that Yemenis built mosques, and that perhaps no Muslim country has more mosques than Yemen, because of the great affection, value, and exalted status that the Sacred House holds in the hearts of Yemenis. “Can it then be imagined that they would insult or attack the House of God?”

He continued: “Unfortunately, some were dragged into the Al Saud’s rumors, issuing statements of condemnation and denunciation over Yemen supposedly targeting Mecca, even though they are people of knowledge, thought, and understanding. They forgot that whoever provides military bases for the Jews and Christians is a transgressor; whoever brings dancers and singers to insult is a transgressor; whoever assists the Jews and Christians in killing Muslims is a transgressor; and whoever gave part of the covering of the Holy Kaaba to Epstein is the Saudi regime, not Yemen.”

He stated that there are scholars who remain silent about the crimes, violations, and practices of the Al Saud against the nation, Arab and Islamic peoples, and the Yemeni people, calling on the scholars of Al-Azhar, the Organization of Islamic Cooperation, and the International Union of Muslim Scholars to fear Allah regarding what they say. He added, addressing them: “You believed the wicked, the transgressors, and the hypocrites, and you turned the peoples against the Yemeni people, the people of faith and wisdom.”

He expressed feel sorrow over directives being given to peoples to address the alleged targeting of Mecca by Yemenis in Friday sermons tomorrow, saying that this is pure fabrication and false rumors perpetrated by the Saudi regime against the free and courageous Yemeni people.

He affirmed that the Saudi deception and lie regarding the targeting of Mecca will fail and will be a calamity upon them, by Allah’s permission, just as it failed before, saying that what the Saudi regime is doing comes under transgression, breaking covenants, and plotting.

The Grand Mufti continued: “And concerning these three, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: ‘Three things return upon their perpetrators: transgression, breaking , and plotting.’ Allah Almighty said regarding transgression: ‘O mankind, your transgression is only against yourselves.’ Regarding breaking , Allah Almighty said: ‘Whoever breaks , breaks it only against himself.’ And regarding plotting, Allah Almighty said: ‘The evil plot only encompasses its own people.’”

He stated that following the September 21 Revolution, the Peace and Partnership Agreement was signed, followed by Saudi intervention in Yemeni affairs through launching aggression, imposing a blockade, cutting salaries, and closing airports and ports, then removing Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and bringing in Al-Alimi to implement their plans in Yemen.

He said: “The Messenger, peace and blessings be upon him and his Household, said: ‘A person who sows discord among people will not enter Paradise.’ The Saudi regime entered to incite people and fuel discord among Yemenis, plunder Yemen’s wealth, extract enormous amounts of money from Yemen, starve the people, and impose upon them every form of suffering in the north, south, east, and west.”

Scholar Sharaf al-Din explained that the convoys of equipment and weapons brought by the Saudi regime into Al-Wadiah and the western coast are intended for the war in Yemen, to fuel discord among Yemenis and cause a Yemeni to kill his brother.

He continued: “We have not heard of any support for Palestine or Gaza with a weapon or even a single morsel of food. They did nothing. They persisted against Gaza and all of Palestine, intensified its siege, established an air bridge to Tel Aviv, and supplied Israel with oil and money. They targeted the honorable people of the nation and the free members of the resistance in Syria, Lebanon, Yemen, Iran, and everyone who stood against Israel, distorted their image, and killed them.”

The Grand Mufti continued, addressing the Yemeni people: “O free people of Yemen, do not fear anyone and do not be afraid of anyone. Allah Almighty is the Owner of Sovereignty. We have seen nothing on the western coast except signs of Allah Almighty and divine miracles. Whoever is with Allah, the outcome belongs to the righteous.”

He added: “We feel sorrow for those who sided with the Saudi regime and believed the rumors, propaganda, and fabrications it claims against Yemen and the Yemenis,” while praising the positions of the Grand Mufti of Libya, the Grand Mufti of the Sultanate of Oman, the Egyptian scholar Saeed Salama, and the scholar Hassan bin Ali al-Kettani, who spoke out with the word of truth.

He noted that it should not be enough for the conference to be held alone, but that scholars, preachers, and guides must undertake their duty in education, guidance, awareness, advice, and clarification through pulpits, sermons, lessons, lectures, and other means, because the issue is not a matter of Zoroastrians, Rafidah, Shiites, or Sunnis. Rather, “the issue is one of Islam and disbelief: Islam led by the free people of the nation, even if their schools of thought differ, and disbelief led by America and ‘Israel,’ along with their tools and minions in the region.”