A Muslim scholar whose group supports Hamas, who has urged
the U.N. to criminalize blasphemy and who is the deputy of an Egyptian cleric
banned from the U.S. over his radical statements was able to secure a visit at
the White House earlier this month.
A report from The Investigative Project on Terrorism
uncovered a statement on the website of Sheikh Abdullah Bin Bayyah claiming he
met June 13 with Obama administration officials in Washington.
Bin Bayyah is vice president of the International Union of
Muslim Scholars, a group founded by Egyptian cleric Yusuf Qaradawi -- a Muslim
Brotherhood leader who has called for the death of Jews and Americans and
himself is banned from visiting the U.S.
While Bin Bayyah secured a visit, he and his group also have
a history of questionable positions, IPT reports.
A 2009 fatwa from the group barred "all forms of
normalization" with Israel. Bin Bayyah also got behind a campaign to
pressure the U.N. to pass a resolution criminalizing blasphemy.
IPT also found
Bin Bayyah was vice president at the organization when they issued a 2004 fatwa
saying that resisting U.S. troops in Iraq is a "duty" for Muslims --
effectively allowing the killing of Americans.
On his website, as first reported by IPT, Bin Bayyah said
the Obama administration requested the meeting.
He quoted National Security Council official Gayle Smith as
saying: "We asked for this meeting to learn from you and we need to be
looking for new mechanisms to communicate with you and the Association of
Muslim Scholars."
The post reportedly claimed he had met with Smith; Rashad
Hussain, U.S. envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation; and the
national security adviser, among others.
According to the IPT report, the reference to meeting with
the national security adviser was later deleted.
IPT reported that Bin Bayyah was lobbying the White House to
do more to help the Syrian opposition.
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