In a stunning admission, Yasir Qadhi, the militant imam of the notorious East Plano Islamic Center (EPIC), one of Texas’s most influential mosques, has publicly confirmed his membership in the International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS). The Qatar-based Islamic group was founded in 2004 by Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi and has long maintained close ties to Hamas.
The IUMS was officially placed on a terrorism blacklist in 2017 by Saudi Arabia, Egypt, the United Arab Emirates (UAE), and Bahrain. These Muslim-majority governments accused the organization of “using Islamic rhetoric as a cover to facilitate terrorist activities.”
On June 26, 2025, Qadhi posted a glowing endorsement of the IUMS on X (formerly Twitter), calling it “the most respectable and mainstream group of global scholars in the world.” His praise came just months before the IUMS issued a fatwa declaring that “armed jihad” against Israel is a religious obligation for all capable Muslims and Muslim-majority governments.
By aligning with a group blacklisted by multiple Arab nations and supportive of violent jihad, Qadhi reveals a troubling reality: a leading Texas-based Islamic cleric endorses a network of scholars who promote anti-Western militancy, glorify terrorism, and provide ideological cover for Hamas.
The IUMS and Hamas: A Love Story
The IUMS was founded in 2004 by Muslim Brotherhood spiritual leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi, who led the organization until his death in 2022.
Yusuf al-Qaradawi was “banned from the US after issuing a fatwa that called for the killing of US soldiers”. He also famously endorsed suicide bombings and was widely regarded as the Muslim Brotherhood’s top global ideologue.
At Qaradawi’s funeral, the IUMS’s deep ties to Hamas were on full display. Then-head of the Hamas politburo, Ismail Haniyeh, delivered a tribute, joined by senior Hamas politburo members including Khalid Meshal, Mousa Abu Marzouq, Khalil al-Hayya, Ezzat al-Risheq, and Husam Badran.
The Radical Successor
Yusuf al-Qaradawi’s successor, Ali al-Qaradaghi, has proven equally radical. Following the October 7, 2023, Hamas terror attack on Israel, al-Qaradaghi posted on X that most Hamas fighters were “memorizers of the Quran,” which he claimed “protects them, preserves them, cares for them, and grants them a divine shield.” He included the hashtag #AlAqsaFlood, the name of the October 7th terror operation against innocent civilians in Israel.
In 2022, the Deputy Chairman of the Hamas politburo, Khalil al-Hayya, and the now-deceased Head of Hamas, Ismail Haniyeh, met with members of the IUMS, where the Hamas leader hailed the IUMS for its historic stances in support of Muslim constants and rights and in solidarity with Palestine.”
Under Ali al-Qaradaghi’s leadership – who Texas Imam Yasir Qadhi references in his X post – the International Union of Muslim Scholars issued a fatwa demanding “armed jihad” against Israel on March 28, 2025. Part of the fatwa called for Muslims in America to pressure President Donald Trump to “fulfil his campaign promises of stopping the aggression and bringing peace.”
To reiterate: EPIC Masjid Imam Yasir Qadhi in Plano, Texas, is a proud member of the IUMS, a Muslim Brotherhood front group with close and regular contact with Hamas leaders. The IUMS issued a fatwa just this year demanding that all Muslims must engage in “armed jihad” against Israel.
IUMS Connection to the ‘Support Prophet Mohammed’ Organization
Ali al-Qaradaghi is close to Mohammed al-Saghir, a member of the Board of Trustees of the IUMS who founded the “International Organization to Support the Prophet of Islam” in 2021 on the first anniversary of the “Support Prophet Mohammed” campaign, initiated in response to perceived insults against Muhammad, “in the western countries, especially France.”
The organization was inaugurated in Istanbul, Turkey, and the former head of Hamas’ politburo, Khaled Meshaal, was in attendance.
Ironically, al-Saghir’s organization, using the X handle @SupportProphetM is based in Turkey, where police have dragged cartoonists out of their homes for allegedly drawing the Prophet Muhammad for LeMan magazine:
Mohammed al-Saghir’s organization excitedly posted in part on X, copying al-Saghir’s post verbatim:
Hours had not passed since the issue’s release when social media in Turkey erupted with anger and condemnation, and this anger quickly spilled into the streets, where hundreds of zealous Muslim youth from #Turkey gathered in front of the magazine’s headquarters, chanting in support of the Prophet ﷺ and rejecting this brazen provocation. The situation soon escalated into a direct storming of the magazine’s premises, sending a powerful message: “The Prophet ﷺ has lovers who will not remain silent when his noble status is violated.”
The police swiftly intervened, and judicial authorities announced the opening of an urgent investigation, issuing arrest warrants for four of the magazine’s officials on charges of publicly insulting sacred values. Later, the arrest of the offending cartoonist “Doğan Behlavan” was announced, along with the detention of the editor-in-chief and the graphic designer, with videos documenting the moment of their arrest being circulated.
In a majestic scene, thousands of Turkish youth stood in “Istiklal” Street, performing the Isha prayer collectively, declaring their adherence to the guidance of the Prophet ﷺ and their commitment to his Sunnah.
Mohammed al-Saghir’s X cover photo features a rag-tag bunch of jihadists, including:
- Omar Abdel-Rahman (a.k.a. the Blind Sheikh), who was convicted for his involvement in the 1993 World Trade Center bombing,
- Abdullah Yusuf Azzam, known as a mentor to Osama bin Laden, the al-Qaeda leader who orchestrated the September 11, 200,1 attacks,
- IUMS founder and Muslim Brotherhood leader Yusuf al-Qaradawi,
- Izz ad-Din al-Qassam, who inspired the Izz ad-Din al-Qassam Brigades (Hamas’ military wing).
The following image includes Mohammed al-Saghir and Ali al-Qaradaghi from the IUMS and Hamas leaders Ismail Haniyeh and Khaled Meshaal:
Shortly after the Hamas terror attack on Israel on October 7, 2023, Ismail Haniyeh called for the “blood” of “women, children, and elderly” for revolutionary inspiration. “We are the ones who need this blood, so it awakens within us the revolutionary spirit, so it awakens within us resolve, so it awakens within us the spirit of challenge, and [pushes us] to move forward,” he said in an October 26, 2023 address.
After Ismail Haniyeh was killed by Israeli Defence Forces, Mohammed al-Saghir posted a video on X, referring to the late Hamas militant as a “martyred leader”, and reminisced about how he had invited “scholars and imams” to his home after Ramadan. “May God have mercy on him, elevate his rank, and unite us with him in the highest abodes of paradise,” the IUMS Board Member said.
Yasir Qadhi Defends IUMS Leader’s Support of Zohran Mamdani
The overall point of Yasir Qadhi’s post was to defend Ali al-Qaradaghi, who enthusiastically supported the recent primary win of Zohran Mamdani as potential mayor of New York City. Qadhi was admonishing fellow Muslims who pushed back at Ali al-Qaradaghi for supporting Mamdani, who is perceived to have Western values.
“We Muslims in the Western world need to have more intelligence, nuanced conversations about the reality of our presence and our way forward,” Qadhi said in part, echoing his prior sentiments about how Muslims must be pragmatic in order to build political power.
“Just look at the reaction of the Far Right, and the ramblings of the Zionists, and the blatant racism of the MAGA crowd, when news of his win broke,” Qadhi ranted. “They hate this person for values, and for a faith, that his own internal Muslim critics also hold dearly to,” he continued.
Ali al-Qaradaghi also responded to the criticism, stating in part that “In this case, we support him [Zohran Mamdani] solely for his bold stand against Zionism, his public support for Gaza, and his sincere alignment with the causes of minorities and social justice.”
Ali al-Qaradaghi continued in part:
Moreover, the news of his victory is not a mere passing political detail; it is a true earthquake that shakes the fanatical right-wingers, impacts the traditional structure of the Democratic Party, and represents a powerful rise of the progressive movement that rejects the dominance of wealth and influence, opposes normalization with the occupying entity [Israel], and supports the values of dignity and human rights. We rejoice in this progress not because we overlook contradictions, but because we recognize that the alternative is often far worse: the fascism of the right-wing, exclusionary policies, racism against immigrants, and blind support for Zionism.
It has been established that the IUMS is nothing more than a Muslim Brotherhood front group with an intellectual veneer to justify militant Islamic terror and transform the West, and America in particular.
Yet there is a mainstream Imam in Texas, Yasir Qadhi, not only praising, but admitting to membership in the Hamas-supporting organization founded by the Muslim Brotherhood that is featured on a terror watchlist in multiple Muslim countries!
Qadhi’s Pro-Hamas Colleagues
Tareq Al-Suwaidan
On July 25, 2025, Yasir Qadhi posted that he met with “Mufti Tariq Jamil, Dr. Tareq Al-Suwaidan, and the Waheed brothers” at a meeting arranged by the Miftaah Institute in Istanbul, Turkey.
“It was a great honor to have had the opportunity to meet and engage with Mufti Tariq Jamil, Dr. Tareq Al-Suwaidan, and the Waheed brothers today,” Qadhi wrote. “It is truly reassuring to see how individuals from such diverse backgrounds come together, united by our profound love for the Deen [teachings of Islam],” he continued.
Yasir Qadhi failed to mention that Tareq Al-Suwaidan is a prominent Muslim Brotherhood leader whose “mentor” was the late International Union of Muslim Scholars leader, Yusuf Al-Qaradawi.
Before he was banned in the wake of violent and antisemitic comments during a pro-Hamas meeting in 2000, Tareq Al-Suwaidan discussed how he advanced Islamic organizing in the U.S., establishing a mosque in Tulsa, Oklahoma, close to where he attended university.
He rejected integration, stating, “I cannot be part of that society. I had to keep apart,” due to America’s “corrupt society”.
Facing resistance from locals who said, “We don’t want the mosque here,” he asserted in court, “[Y]ou cannot stop us from building a mosque… You are violating our constitutional rights.” Guided by Muslim Brotherhood leader Ali al-Qaradaghi, Tareq Al-Suwaidan described how he persisted, saying, “[Y]ou just continue! You don’t look back. Don’t let the resistance stop you.”
The ban occurred after he made violent and antisemitic statements at the Hamas–tied Islamic Association of Palestine meeting in Chicago in November, 2000:
Palestine will not be liberated but through Jihad. Nothing can be achieved without sacrificing blood. The Jews will meet their end at our hands.
Watch this interview with Yasir Qadhi and Tareq Al-Suwaidan:
Maulana Tariq Jamil: Tablighi Jamaat’s Global Preacher
Maulana Tariq Jamil is a prominent figure in Tablighi Jamaat, a radical Deobandi missionary movement banned in Saudi Arabia, Tajikistan, and Uzbekistan for spreading extremism and radicalizing Muslim youth. Despite this, Jamil has built a powerful media empire, including Pakistan’s largest Islamic YouTube channel and a commercial fashion label, prompting backlash even from fellow clerics for turning religion into profit.
In 2020, Jamil caused a national scandal by blaming “scantily dressed” women for the COVID-19 pandemic on live television. He claimed women’s immodesty and youth “indulging in immorality” were reasons for divine punishment. The remarks went viral and exposed the deep Islamic misogyny behind his public preaching.
Jamil has also played a key role in Islamizing Pakistan’s sports and entertainment world, converting top cricketers like Saeed Anwar, Shahid Afridi, and Yousuf Youhana into Tablighi loyalists. He publicly endorsed Imran Khan’s “Madina state” vision, confirming the political ambitions behind his religious messaging.
When American imams publicly glorify banned terror-linked clerics and promote Muslim Brotherhood doctrines under the guise of interfaith harmony, the threat is no longer speculative. It’s operational and it’s legal. Yasir Qadhi’s EPIC mosque in Plano is serving as a hub for ideological radicalization, cloaked in religious liberty, and shielded by nonprofit law.
ACTION ITEM:
Last month, Senator Ted Cruz of Texas stated that he will be reintroducing a “modernized version” of the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act.
Americans can support Senator Cruz’s upcoming introduction of the Muslim Brotherhood Terrorist Designation Act by reaching out to his office via www.cruz.senate.gov to voice their backing and encourage their own representatives to co-sponsor the legislation once submitted, while staying updated through his Senate page. Furthermore, they can enhance his efforts by joining advocacy organizations like AIPAC, participating in Texas town halls, or contributing to aligned political action committees, especially in light of the recent antisemitic attack in Boulder on June 1, 2025.
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Author: Renee Nal
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