Sheikh Abdullah Calls for the ‘Betterment of Human Life for all Syrians’

Nir Boms wrote in a Washington Times editorial that “a well-known and respected Sufi scholar from Syria, Sheikh Abdullah, stepped off a plane in Washington and publicly called for the ousting of Syrian dictator Bashar Assad.”

Mr. Abdullah broke the “thousand-year-old Sufi tradition of refraining from politics,” when he spoke out. Boms says that when he asked Mr. Abdullah if he expected consequences for him and his family back in Syria, “he sadly replied, ‘If I sacrifice my life for my people God will reward me.’”

Boms says that “neither sacrifice nor death” is what Mr. Abdullah ultimately seeks; rather he “yearns for a different future for his homeland.” Mr. Abdullah explained to Boms that “there are 2 million eligible young women who are not married mainly due to the fact that their peers, 2 million eligible young men, are too poor to support a future family.”

Boms reports that “Sufi leaders across the world have always seen themselves as bridges between the people and their respective governments. They try to work with their governments to ensure the protection of the people and they encourage their followers to remain loyal to their governments.” Boms says that “Mr. Abdullah, however, has lost his confidence in the Assad government to protect and provide hope to the people of Syria, and he believes that it is now his responsibility to take a different action.”

“Mr. Abdullah is the latest public figure to join the growing ranks of the Syrian opposition,” Boms reports. “In a twist of faith and at great personal risk he is calling for the betterment of human life for all Syrians and for the pursuit of a better and brighter future.”

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