# Why I Stopped Following Shaykh Salah Al-Fawzan: Syria and Yemen - Original post: https://www.twitter.com/i/status/2069811122341855713 - Source account: [@CheesecakeMufti](https://x.com/CheesecakeMufti) - Source language: English - Duration: 6:23 - Published: 2026-06-24 - Canonical URL: https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen ## Transcript [0:00](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen) I used to follow Shaykh Salah Al-Fawzan in my early 20s. [0:04](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=4) I used to follow him. I've got his Sharh of Zaid Al-Mustaqna at home. [0:09](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=9) He's actually got a very good Sharh of Zaid Al-Mustaqna. [0:12](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=12) It's nice, it's easy to read, and his Fatwas on Hanbali Fiqh were not bad. [0:17](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=17) However, I started realizing a couple of things. [0:20](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=20) I used to watch his Fatwa programs every day, every other day. [0:24](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=24) And there was a point where I just kind of, I'll be honest, became disillusioned, and I'll tell you what happened. [0:30](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=30) The point was, and it was to do with the politics, unfortunately, right? [0:37](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=37) What happened was this. I watched one of his Fatwas, and it was at the height of what was going on in Syria at the time. [0:45](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=45) And people know that, like, at that time, brothers, the Syria thing was as big as the Palestine thing. [0:51](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=51) We were all so emotionally invested in it, especially in, like, West London. [0:54](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=54) The Syrian people were getting massacred, we saw it. [0:58](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=58) I had friends of mine who actually went and joined the Takfiri groups and died in Syria. [1:03](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=63) So there was a lot of commotion in the area, like in West London, etc. [1:09](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=69) So I used to follow Shaykh Salah al-Fawzam, and in the height of the Syrian situation, someone asked him a question. [1:17](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=77) And his answer made me change my whole opinion of him. [1:22](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=82) Okay, and I remember, Wallahi, I remember exactly this point. [1:28](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=88) And then the second point I decided that he was being, he's not independent, basically, that was my decision. [1:33](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=93) And then it was actually, I'll be honest, it was a transformative moment for me. [1:39](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=99) The first time was, they asked him about Bashar al-Assad. [1:45](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=105) Now, Bashar al-Assad is Alawi, right? So even the Shiites would make Takfir, they would make excommunication of Alawi, like Bashar al-Assad. [1:54](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=114) They asked him about Bashar al-Assad, can we make Takfir of him? [1:57](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=117) And then Salah al-Fawzam, Shaykh Salah, he said, we can't make Takfir of, Takfir is a big matter. [2:06](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=126) We can't talk about Takfir this easily, etc., etc., blah, blah, blah. [2:09](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=129) Now, I had a bit of, I swear to God, and I'm not just making this up, Wallahi, as I heard him say that, and I'm seeing people get killed in Syria and stuff, and whatever, I had something in my heart that was like almost a shock. [2:24](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=144) Do you know when you're told something from someone, is he actually saying this? [2:30](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=150) Then I said, maybe it's just I'm misinterpreting it, maybe there's some wisdom in what he was saying. [2:36](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=156) I was making an excuse for him in my mind. [2:39](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=159) Then he was asked about Yemen, bro, okay? [2:43](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=163) He was asked about Yemen and the Houthis, and then he says, هؤلاء الذين... I remember actually exactly what he said by word. [2:49](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=169) He says, هؤلاء الذين يدعون الإسلام. When he started speaking about the Houthis, who are Zaydis, right? [2:56](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=176) He said, these people who claim to be Muslim. [3:00](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=180) So wait, the Zaydis who are actually way closer to Ahl al-Sunnah wal-Jama'ah. [3:05](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=185) Essentially, you might as well call them disbelievers, all right? [3:08](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=188) But then, هؤلاء الذين... Sorry. But then Bashar al-Assad, no, the matter has become convoluted. [3:14](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=194) So the point I'm making is that, to be honest with you, bro, I started to realize that they're not independent, and it was a harsh realization for me. [3:26](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=206) And then, because if they're not independent, then why do I need to follow that then? [3:30](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=210) I have to now start looking myself at the evidences, or going to other scholars and seeing other people from all over the world. [3:35](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=215) And that's when I started to look at Sa'ad al-Kamli, for example, in Morocco, or al-Dada' al-Sharqiti, for example, in Mauritania. [3:44](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=224) And I started to grow a greater affinity to those scholars, because I found that they were speaking, especially in the case of al-Dada', they were speaking more truth, and they seemed to not care as much. [3:54](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=234) That was it. They were speaking... They seemed to be more independent. [3:57](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=237) And their knowledge was as good, if not better. [4:01](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=241) And I personally believe it is, sorry to say, much better, in terms of certain memorization and stuff like that. [4:07](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=247) Um, that's it. That's how I transitioned. [4:10](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=250) I mean, um, in terms of that, but some people will be very upset with this. [4:14](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=254) And I understand where you're coming from, but the fact is, I'll be honest. [4:18](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=258) Uh, that's just my, that's my authentic position. [4:22](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=262) This is something I determined by myself before probably I even became famous. [4:26](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=266) This is something I, you know, determined by myself and that's what I believe. [4:31](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=271) And so I agree with the sentiment, bro, that the present day scholars, a lot of them, but I have to also say some of them are very good and some of them I've met their family members. [4:44](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=284) Uh, and I, and I find that they are sincere. [4:46](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=286) So for example, she has thought of him when I did. [4:48](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=288) So she has thought of him when I did, who is the most truth of, uh, of Islam Q and A he, I believe he's in jail. [4:59](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=299) I believe this man is sincere. I respect this man. [5:03](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=303) I might not agree with the way he does FIQH and whatever, and all that stuff. [5:07](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=307) Wallahi, I respect this man. And I, he's because of mawakif, what mawakif, for example, his son, someone killed his son, I don't know if you know about this situation. [5:20](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=320) Someone killed his son in Saudi Arabia, his own blood son, and guess what he done? [5:25](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=325) He forgave him. He could have gotten him executed as well, but he, he exercised that forgiveness thing. [5:30](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=330) This shows you, Wallahi, a man of character. [5:33](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=333) And when it came to the Syrian situation, he was, he didn't care about anybody. [5:37](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=337) He was on a TV. Wallahi, I have so much respect for him. [5:40](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=340) So someone like these people, I'm not trying to brand everybody the same, but if you lose your independence, like A'id al-Qadni, for example, who had to basically come on the TV, groveling and apologizing, I can't respect this brother. [5:56](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=356) I can't respect these kind of group of scholars. [5:57](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=357) I'm sorry to say, if you're being controlled by politics, I can't, you want me to follow that? [6:03](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=363) Why should I? This is the question. Why should we, why should I tell my family members to follow a man who's not independent or men who are not independent, who are basically beholden to state interests? [6:15](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=375) I have no reason to be beholden to any state interest. [6:19](https://www.translate.mom/transcript/4KEVieB0QLyT/en/why-i-stopped-following-shaykh-salah-al-fawzan-syria-and-yemen?t=379) So that's number one. Um,