A sermon at the Al-Aqsa mosque in Jerusalem in July 2022 by a Sheikh Mohammed Saleem Ali was making the rounds on social media platform X. The clergy/scholar called for not allowing any homosexuals in Palestine and also said that such a perversion brought the wrath of Allah. 

The transcript from the video reads, “Our Muslim Palestinian people will not accept a single homosexual openly declaring his abomination. Will you allow a single homosexual in the land of Jerusalem and Palestine? Will you allow that? No. Our people will not allow there to be institutions that promote this abomination on the blessed and pure land of Palestine. They will not allow any omission or change to the laws of the shari’a, nor will they accept curricula that go against the laws of Islam. Oh, Muslims, follow the example of your Messenger. Trample under foot anything that is prohibited, haram, and contradicts the religion of Islam. The mixing (of male and female students) in universities is a form of immorality. You have witnessed some of the results of this when several female students in a number of Arab universities were killed. We hereby declare that we reject and abhor all the manifestations of homosexuality and perversion. Allah tormented and annihilated the people of Sodom for engaging in this crime. We stress our absolute rejection of the existence of institutions that encourage homosexuality and promiscuity. We demand that these institutions be shut down immediately. Such (phenomena) are an obstacle to victory, and they bring the wrath of Allah down on all of us. “

This comes at a time when one can see growing voices of support from the queer community, especially in the West for Palestine. Slogans like Free Palestine and Free Gaza are seen in demonstrations led by such activists. 

Here are a few posts that are making the rounds on the internet. One group speaking for Reproductive Rights even equates those rights to free Palestine.

Here are a few reactions to the support from the queer community:

Ironically, the queer community is either feigning ignorance or genuinely doesn’t know that their presence is condemned in their religious texts. In Middle Eastern countries, homosexual people are not given the same rights as heterosexual people. Here is a list of countries where homosexuality can be punishable in the Middle East.

Saudi Arabia:

• Married man engaging in sodomy or non-Muslim committing sodomy with a Muslim can be stoned to death.
• All sex outside of marriage is illegal.

Yemen:

• Married men can be stoned to death for homosexual intercourse.
• Unmarried men face whipping or one year in prison.
• Women face up to seven years in prison.

Iran:

• Homosexual intercourse between men can be punished by death.
• Men can be flogged for lesser acts like kissing.
• Women may also be flogged.

Mauritania:

• Muslim men engaging in homosexual sex can be stoned to death (no executions reported).
• Women face prison.

Nigeria:

• Federal law classifies homosexual behavior as a felony, punishable by imprisonment.
• Some states with Sharia law impose the death penalty for men.
• A law signed in January makes it illegal for gay people to hold meetings or form clubs countrywide.

Qatar:

• Sharia law applies only to Muslims.
• Extramarital sex can result in the death penalty, regardless of sexual orientation.

Afghanistan:

• Sharia law criminalizes same-sex sexual acts with a maximum of the death penalty.
• No known death sentences have been reported since the end of Taliban rule in 2001.

Somalia:

• Penal code stipulates prison, but some regions with Islamic courts impose the death penalty.

Sudan:

• Three-time offenders under the sodomy law can be put to death.
• First and second convictions result in flogging and imprisonment.
• Southern regions have adopted more lenient laws.

United Arab Emirates:

• Debate on whether federal law prescribes the death penalty for consensual homosexual sex or only for rape.
• No reported death sentences for homosexual acts.
• All sexual acts outside of marriage are banned.

Other countries where homosexuality is illegal:

• Morocco, Tunisia, Algeria, Libya, Egypt, South Sudan, Oman, Kuwait, UAE, Gaza Strip (males only).
• Same-sex marriage is not legal anywhere in the Middle East.

Palestine and the queer community

In 2022, a gay Palestinian man was beheaded in the West Bank. LGBTQ groups in Israel, where he sought asylum, claimed he received threats due to his sexual orientation. While homosexuality is rejected in some conservative Palestinian and Israeli communities, LGBTQ people in Israel have more freedom. In 2022, approximately 90 Palestinian LGBTQ individuals lived in Israel as asylum seekers, seeking refuge from discrimination.

ISIS reaction to gays

In 2015, ISIS released images showing the execution of gay men by hurling them off buildings and then stoning them as part of their campaign against “sexual deviance.” This brutal form of punishment is a manifestation of ISIS’s extreme interpretation of Islamic law.

If someone is refusing their support, it is quite perplexing why the members of this community are voicing out their backing. Is it something that one must do to suck up to the Left if one is a member of the LGBT community? Or is Israel considered so evil that despite the danger to one’s life, they willingly offer support?