Resolutions of Iftaa' Board



Resolutions of Iftaa' Board

Resolution No.(224): "Exhuming a Graveyard to Build a School in it is Prohibited"

Date Added : 26-05-2016

 

Resolution No.(224) (7/2016) by the Board of Ifta`, Research and Islamic Studies:

"Exhuming a Graveyard to Build a School in it is Prohibited"

Date: 5/Sha`ban/1437, corresponding to 12/5/2016 AD.

 

 

All perfect praise be to Allah, The Lord of the Worlds, and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Mohammad and upon all his family and companions.

During its sixth session held on the above date, the Board reviewed the question-originally sent by the UNRWA-of His Excellency the Minister of Endowments about the ruling of Sharia on the above issue?

According to Sharia, graveyards are of great sanctity and Muslims must show respect to their inhabitants and protect them against harm, as indicated in the following Prophetic tradition: "Breaking a deceased body’s bones is exactly like breaking them when he is alive.” {Related by Abu Dawood}.

Therefore, Muslim jurists haven`t permitted exhuming graves for no legitimate necessity until the bones have transformed into earth, which isn`t the case with [An-Nadeef Graveyard] since it contains fresh graves, as shown by the report of the special committee formed to that purpose.

In conclusion, it isn`t permissible to exhume the graves of " An-Nadeef Graveyard" for building a school there. And Allah Knows Best.

 

 

Chairman of the Iftaa Board, Sheikh Abdulkareem  Al-Khasawneh

Dr.Hail Abdulhafeez/Member Prof. Abdulnasser Abulbasal/ Member

Dr. Yahia Al-Botoosh/ Member

Dr. Sa`eed Hijjawi/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Khair Al-Eesa/ Member

Dr. Khalid Woraikaat/ Member

Prof. Abdullah Al-Fawwaz/ Member

Dr. Mohammad Al-Khalayleh

Dr. Mohammad Al-Zou`bi/ Member

 

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Summarized Fatawaa

What is the ruling on someone who possesses gold with the intention of saving/hoarding it, and owns nothing else — is he obligated to sell a portion of it in order to pay the zakāh due on it?

All praise is due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon our master, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ.
Zakāh becomes immediately obligatory on cash, and likewise on gold — that which is not designated for a woman's personal adornment— once both reach the niṣāb (minimum threshold liable for zakah) and a full ḥawl (lunar year) has passed over them. It is not permissible to delay payment when it is genuinely possible to pay — meaning, when the wealth and the eligible recipients are both available. It is stated in Mughnī al-Muḥtāj (Vol.2/p.129): "Zakāh is obligatory immediately once it becomes feasible to pay it, meaning when the wealth and the eligible recipients are both present."
The one paying zakāh must discharge the obligatory zakāh due on saved (hoarded) gold either from the gold itself, or from its equivalent monetary value, in the event that no other funds are available — since paying from the gold itself is the original default (al-aṣl). It becomes permissible to pay from other funds instead only because zakāh is built upon the principle of ease and leniency, as stated in Asnā al-Maṭālib (Vol.1/p.366): "When a full ḥawl has elapsed on wealth other than trade goods... zakāh attaches to the actual asset itself (al-‘ayn), and the poor effectively become partners in it — even, for example, [becoming partners] in camels through the value of a sheep [owed as zakāh on them]... Paying from other wealth is permitted only because zakāh is built upon the principle of ease and leniency."
Accordingly: the one paying zakāh must discharge it either from the actual saved gold itself, or by selling a portion of the gold equal to the amount of zakāh owed. He may also borrow money to pay the zakāh, or pay the zakāh in installments before the ḥawl is complete [as an advance payment]. And Allah, the Exalted, knows best.

Is it obligatory for someone traveling by plane in the afternoon during Ramadan to fast?

Anyone who intends to travel after dawn must begin the day fasting and continue with the intention of completing their fast, as fasting was obligatory upon them before traveling.
However, if they experience unbearable hardship after starting their journey, they are permitted to break their fast due to that hardship, not merely because of travel. In such a case, they must make up for the missed fast later.

Is it permissible for a guardian (Big brother) to unlawfully stop his sister from getting married?

If the guardian denies her right in getting married for an unlawful reason, she should go to court in order to settle that matter, and the guardian is considered sinful in this case.

Is Zakah (obligatory charity) due on the money saved for marriage?

Zakah is due on the money saved for marriage if it reached the Nissab (minimum amount liable for Zakah), and a whole lunar year had lapsed over possessing it.