Jihad U at OSU this weekend and next

McPherson Chemical Labs at The Ohio State University is the location this weekend and next of an Al-Maghrib Institute seminar, Rays of Faith, being taught by Waleed Basyouni. Al-Maghrib is affectionately known as “Jihad U” for its promotion of Wahhabi extremism and Muslim Brotherhood activism. (See the FrontPage articles, “Jihad U”, “Saudi Press Plugs Jihad U”, and “Jihad U’s Student Internship”, for more on Al-Maghrib Institute.)

Basyouni is a Wahhabi-trained cleric, having obtained both Bachelor and Master degrees from Al-Imam Muhammad ibn Saud Islamic University in the Saudi capital of Riyadh, the academic heart of Wahhabi Islam, and a protege of Sheikh Abdelaziz bin Baz, who author Gilles Kepel identifies as “the principal Wahhabite ideologist” in his book, Jihad: The Trail of Political Islam. He is an instructor for the Muslim Brotherhood-front American Open University, which accredits Al-Maghrib Institute courses. According to Basyouni’s DiscovertheNetworks.org profile, he has said that Muslims are the only ones who know God and has launched into violent diatribes against Jews. He also is Director of the annual Texas Dawah Convention, attended by thousands of Muslims every year, which has been criticized for its lengthy list of extremist speakers, several of whom have been banned from entering the US.

Columbus is currently one of fourteen cities in North America with permanent Al-Maghrib Institute affiliate, Qabeelat Hayl, which has taken the motto, “There’s a storm on the horizon”. What kind of storm they have in mind for Columbus is yet unknown.

Jihad U in Columbus

An article in today’s edition of FrontPage Magazine, “Saudi Press Plugs America’s Jihad U”, discusses the popular Islamic studies program, the Al-Maghrib Institute, which is directly linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and preaches an extremist Wahhabist version of Islam.

Columbus is one of sixteen cities in North America that currently hosts the program, and their local organization maintains a website, Haylstorm. The Columbus chapter also maintains on online forum on the Al-Mahgrib website. These websites reveal that one of their seminars held earlier this month was attended by several hundred individuals.

A previous article at FrontPage, “Jihad U”, details how the for-college-credit Al-Mahgrib program, accredited by the Muslim Brotherhood-linked American Open University, features a curriculum that promotes Wahhabi extremism, rabid anti-Semitism and Holocaust denials, openly preaches a militaristic version of jihad, and anticipates the eventual conquest of Islam worldwide. The message of Al-Maghrib has raised concerns of other Muslim organizations that do not hold to Wahhabist doctrine, which comprise the vast majority of Muslims.

Both articles note that all six Al-Mahgrib instructors have been trained at Saudi universities that indoctrinate students in Wahhabism, and at least one instructor was interviewed by the Washington Post last September for an article on the Salafi interpretation of Islam, which advocates for a return to the “true” Islam of Mohammad and his 7th Century associates, and observes that the Al-Maghrib Institute was founded at a College Park, Maryland mosque known for its extremist interpretations of the Quran.

Be sure to read both articles for more information!