A London mosque has been given a warning by the UK's charity regulator for hosting two “inflammatory” and “divisive” sermons.
The Lewisham Islamic Centre, in the south-east of the city, has been told by the Charity Commission that it must improve its handling of events and speakers at its premises.
The warning followed a sermon after the Hamas attacks on Israel in October 2023, during which Imam Shakeel Begg talked about the “suffering at the hands of the oppressors and the Zionists” and described celebrities Justin Bieber and Kylie Jenner as “sick”, in an apparent reference to their show of support for Israel.
In a sermon of August 2024, the mosque's head imam, Ashraf Dabous, said of those involved in the Southport riots – which occurred after three children were killed at a Taylor Swift-themed dance class – “their manipulators are Zionists and they are supporters of the state of Israel”.
The Charity Commission said it had opened a regulatory compliance case after “complaints were raised about sermons delivered at the charity which also had adverse media coverage”.
“After assessing the evidence related to these and other events held at the charity, the regulator made a finding of misconduct and/or mismanagement,” it said.
“This was connected, but not limited to, two sermons hosted by the charity that included content that was inflammatory, divisive and not in the charity’s best interests.”
But the Lewisham Islamic Centre said it “rejects” what it called the Charity Commission’s “interference in religious worship” and is “continuing to seek legal advice on the most appropriate course of action”.
It said the matters raised by the commission “represent a troubling attempt to scrutinise, restrict and penalise legitimate religious worship, the expression of solidarity with the Palestinian people, and the activities of a Muslim charitable institution”.
