Mosque investigated after imam claimed gay people would 'destroy the human race'

The Charity Commission has launched a regulatory compliance case into a mosque after an imam claimed gay people would "destroy the human race".

Hounslow Jamia Masjid and Islamic Centre faces scrutiny after the National Secular Society lodged complaints about hate speech with the charities watchdog this week.

The organisation raised alarm over the west London mosque's decision to host Egyptian preacher Yusri Jabar, who has previously demanded that Jewish people be killed, and remarks made by the mosque's imam, Shaykh Ammar Siddiqui.

During a 2023 seminar, Mr Siddiqui allegedly claimed that gay people would "destroy the human race" and appeared to defend capital punishment for homosexuality in Muslim-majority nations.

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The seminar in question took place at the Hounslow mosque in January 2023 and was uploaded to the venue's YouTube channel.

Based on a book titled Advice for the LGBTQ, the two-hour session appeared to be aimed at children, according to the National Secular Society.

In the recording, Mr Siddiqui said: "There is no other way the LGBTQ sort of motive, the agenda, the purpose of that is to destroy the human race. Why? Because you cannot produce."

Addressing capital punishment for homosexuality in certain Islamic countries, the imam argued such laws serve as deterrents rather than calls for violence.

He said: "The punishment is there to stop people from engaging in it. It's a deterrence."

Mr Jabar, who commands a substantial following on social media, has made repeated calls for violence against Jewish people and expressed support for armed conflict against Israel in Gaza as well as jihad targeting Western nations.

In a YouTube video from January, the Egyptian lecturer declared that "wars will stop after killing the Jews - there will be no wars after killing the Jews".

Despite calls for Home Secretary Shabana Mahmood to prevent Mr Jabar from entering Britain to speak at the Hounslow venue, he was permitted to attend and addressed the mosque's event this week.

The mosque was previously attended by Asif Hanif, one of two suicide bombers responsible for the 2003 attack on Mike's Place bar in Tel Aviv.

Megan Manson, the National Secular Society's head of campaigns, condemned the mosque's actions as "outrageous".

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She noted that the charity has received hundreds of thousands of pounds in public funding.

She said: "We urge the Charity Commission to investigate these concerns and evaluate this organisation's suitability as both a registered charity, and the proprietor of a school."

Ms Manson called for urgent reform of the charity system to prevent organisations from exploiting the sector to spread hatred and division.

A Charity Commission spokesman said: “Charities must not allow their premises, events or online content to become forums for hate speech against any community.

"The public, rightly, expects charities to bring people together not to stoke division."

They added: "When such allegations arise we will, within our regulatory remit, deal with it robustly.

“Following serious concerns raised in the media about an individual connected to Hounslow Jamia Masjid and Islamic Centre, we have opened a regulatory compliance case to gather more information and to engage with the charity’s trustees.

"We have since received a complaint from the National Secular Society and will be considering the contents of this complaint as part of our case.”

The regulator confirmed it would engage with the mosque's trustees and consider the National Secular Society's complaint as part of its ongoing case.

GB News has reached out to Hounslow Jamia Masjid and Islamic Centre for comment.

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