Islamic Reminders

Actor Jackie Chan speaks about how watching a video of a child in Gaza made him burst into tears. "They asked him: 'What do you want to be when you grow up?' He said: 'Children don't grow up here.' I burst into tears immediately." The actor was speaking to an audience at the premiere of his upcoming film in Beijing.

Reminder: It is Sunnah to fast on Thursdays. ʿĀʾishah رضي الله عنها narrated: "The Prophet (ﷺ) used to try to fast on Mondays and Thursdays." [Jāmiʿ at-Tirmidhī 745, Graded Ṣaḥīḥ]

Saudi Arabia bombed a weaopns shipment from the UAE in the port city of Mukalla in South Yemen. Saudi Arabia publicly announced that the weapons shipment fromt he UAE was meant to fuel conflict in Yemen. Saudi Arabia then threatened the UAE to withdraw its forces from Yemen within 24 hours and to cease any military or financial support to any party. There were no reported casualties in the bombing.

The Saudi Foreign Ministry has called on the United Arab Emirates to withdraw its military forces from Yemen within 24 hours and to cease any military or financial support to any party.

The Al-Qassam Brigades offically comfirmed the martyrdom of Ḥudhayfah Samir ʿUbayda al-Kahlout, also known as Abū ʿUbayda, and revealed his face for the first time. Abū ʿUbayda was the spokesperson for the resistance and was killed in an airstrike by the occupation forces earlier this year in Gaza.

Approximately 50 days until Ramaḍān ‎اللهم بلغنا رمضان [Allāhumma baliḡnā Ramaḍān] Oh Allāh, grant us the ability to reach Ramaḍān

A ceremony was held in Gaza at al Shati Refugee Camp in Gaza City to honour 500 Palestinians who meorised the Qurʾān, all while enduring and surviving Israel's genocidal war and devastation inflicted on the besieged enclave.

Security guard at Masjid al-Ḥarām, Rayan bin Saeed Al-Asiri, is recovering in hospital after preventing a worshipper from taking their own life. A video that went viral showed a person jumping from a balcony on one of the floors of Masjid al-Ḥarām, with the security guard bravely placing himself in the person’s path to reduce the impact of the fall.

A Muslim Chip Shop owner from Liverpool, UK, stayed open on Christmas Day to give free meals to the needy and vulnerable. Owner Mubinul Hoque kept his chip shop, Portland's Fish and Chips, open for a second year running on Christmas Day to support NHS staff, carers, emergency and key workers, older people, vulnerable members of the community, and anyone who may be spending Christmas alone. Speaking to local news, he said: "We give back and we do a lot of charities. It's in our belief, in our religion. Christmas Day was one of those things where we don't celebrate ourselves. So we would have been just shut. So it was like, why don't we give back to the community?”

🕋🚨 A security guard at the Masjid al-Haram rushed to intervene after a person tried to take their own life by jumping off the upper floors of the masjid. The security guard was injured while trying to prevent the person from hitting the ground. Both individuals were immediately transferred to receive the necessary medical care.

A billboard ad launched by The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC) in New York’s Times Square displayed ‘Jesus is Palestinian”. “˹Remember when the angels proclaimed, “O Mary! Allāh gives you good news of a Word from Him, his name will be the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary; honoured in this world and the Hereafter, and he will be one of those nearest to Allāh. And he will speak to people in his infancy and adulthood and will be one of the righteous.”” [Sūrah Āli ʿImrān, Verse 45-46]

Violent protests have erupted across Bangladesh after prominent youth leader Sharif Osman Hadi was assassinated in the capital, Dhaka. The assassination of Hadi is thought to be targeted by supporters of Bangladesh’s ousted Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina, who fled to India following the uprising last year. Hadi was also an outspoken critic of India. Following the news of Hadi’s death, violent protests broke out in Dhaka and other parts of the country. Protesters are demanding the resignation of the heads of the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Ministry of Law, accusing the authorities of failing to ensure Hadi’s security. They also demand the return of the gunmen, who many believe have fled to India.

The co-founder of Lush has said those who oppose his views on key issues such as Gaza shouldn’t shop in his stores. Mark Constantine OBE, who led a shutdown of Lush stores earlier this year in solidarity with people in Gaza, said people “shouldn’t come into my shop” if they disagreed with his stance.

The Muʾadhdhin of Masjid an-Nabawī, Sheikh Faisal bin Abdulmalik Nouman, passed away in Madīnah on Monday evening. Funeral prayer for him was offered at the Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ after Fajr prayer on Tuesday and his body was buried in Jannat al-Baqī cemetery. Sheikh Faisal bin Abdulmalik Nouman was appointed as the Muʾadhdhin for the Mosque of the Prophet ﷺ in 2001, serving nearly 25 years. انا لله وانا اليه راجعون

The Israeli government has hired a new firm, Clock Tower X, to produce content aimed at Gen Z audiences and to train ChatGPT to take a more pro-Israel stance. According to reports, Clock Tower was brought on to build new websites designed to influence how artificial intelligence systems, including ChatGPT, frame issues by training them on large datasets. The firm will also use a search engine optimisation tool called MarketBrew AI, which allows clients to adapt to algorithms and boost their visibility on platforms like Google. This, in turn, will help Israel push certain narratives more prominently online. Public contracts do not yet spell out what message will be promoted on Israel’s behalf, but the move comes as Tel Aviv faces growing criticism over its genocide in Gaza.

Narrated by Ubādah ibn aṣ-Ṣāmit رضي الله عنه that the Messenger of Allāh ﷺ said: “Whoever gets up at night and says: 'Lā ilāha illAllāhu, waḥdahu lā sharīka lahu, lahul-mulku wa lahul-ḥamdu, wa huwa ʿalā kulli shaiʾin qadīr. Alḥamdulillāhi wa-SubḥānAllāhi wa-Lā ʾilāha ʾillā llāhu w-Allāhu Akbar wa-Lā ḥawla wa-lā quwwata ʾillā bi-llāh.' لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك وله الحمد وهو على كل شيء قدير الحمد لله وسبحان الله ولا اله الا الله والله اكبر ولا حول ولاقوة إلا بالله (None has the right to be worshipped but Allāh. He is the Only One and has no partners. For Him is the Kingdom and all the praises are due for Him. He is Omnipotent. Praise be to Allāh and Glory be to Allāh, and There is no God but Allāh, and Allāh is Greatest And there is neither Might nor Power Except with Allāh). And then says: Allāhumma-ġfirlī اللهم اغفر لي (O Allāh! Forgive me). Or invokes (Allāh), he will be responded to, and if he performs ablution (and prays), his prayer will be accepted." [Ṣaḥīḥ al-Bukhārī 1154]