Mohamad al-Arefe

Saudi arabian author and Da'i

Muhammad al-Arifi
محمد العريفي

Born	(1970-07-15) 15 July 1970 (age 54) Riyadh, Saudi Arabia
Nationality	Saudi Arabian^[1]
Occupation	scholar
Years active	1990-2018
Website	arefe.ws

Muhammad bin Abdul-Rahman al-Arifi (Arabic: محمد بن عبد الرحمن العريفي, born 15 July 1970) is a Saudi Arabian author and Da'i. He is a graduate of King Saud University, and member of the Muslim World League and the Association of Muslim Scholars.^[2]

Social media popularity

As of 2016, al-Arefe had over 20 million followers on Twitter.^[3]

Muslim Brotherhood affiliation was denied for Arefe and Adil al-Kalbani by al-Kalbani, saying that they are affiliated with the Union of Muslim Scholars.^[4]

He said that Syria jihad is incumbent and did apologia for al-Nusra, visiting the Imam Muhammad ibn Abd al-Wahhab Mosque in Qatar.^[5]

Al-Arefe had a discussion with Saudi Deputy crown prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud and then tweeted and posted a photo of them smiling together.^[6] The discussion was held on the same day as Saudi Vision 2030 began.^[7]^[8]^[9] He asked God to bless Prince Mohammad and posted his thanks.^[10] al-Arefe met with Prince Mohamed bin Salman again and talked with him and posted the photo of them smiling together on Twitter.^[11] They talked about the futures of the Islamic world and of the Kingdom (of Saudi Arabia).^[12]

King Saud University employs Al-Arefe.^[13]

Al-Arefe's Twitter account was suspended in 2018.^[14] In February 2021 it was reported that al-Arefe is under watch by Saudi government authorities and that his moves and actions are being followed using spy devices and a tracking knee band.^[15]

Sanctions

In May 2013, Al-Arefe was banned from entering Switzerland for a period of 5 years, for holding extreme views, Switzerland said.^[2]^[16]

In March 2014, he was banned by the Home Office from returning to Britain after a series of sermons in Cardiff, Birmingham and London. A Home Office spokesperson said: "We can confirm “Al-Arefe” has been excluded from the United Kingdom. The Government makes no apologies for refusing people access to the UK if we believe they represent a threat to our society. Coming here is a privilege that we refuse to extend to those who seek to subvert our shared values."^[17]^[18]

Denmark banned him from entering the country for two years in May 2017.^[19]^[20]

References

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mohamad al-Arefe.

^ "Britain bans controversial Saudi cleric al-Arifi". 25 June 2014.
^ ^a ^b Milmo, Cahal (24 June 2013). "Sunni vs Shia... in Gerrard's Cross: New mosque highlights growing tensions among British Muslims". The Independent. Archived from the original on 15 May 2022. Retrieved 25 June 2013.
^ Yahya, Nasidi Adamu (19 July 2016). "Yadda Malamai ke wa'azi a shafukan zumunta". ABC Hausa.
^ "تتصفح الآن: الكلباني : أنا عضو في اتحاد علماء المسلمين ولست إخوانياً .. والعريفي ليس إخوانياً". صحيفة أنحاء الإلكترونية. 19 August 2013. Archived from the original on 14 February 2017.
^ Gilligan, Andrew (27 September 2014). "The 'Club Med for terrorists'". The Telegraph.
^ "أخبار 24 | العريفي ينشر صورة له برفقة الأمير محمد بن سلمان بعد إعلان". أخبار 24. 25 April 2016.
^ "العريفي ينشر صورة له برفقة الأمير محمد بن سلمان بعد إعلان "رؤية السعودية"". صحيفة سابق الإلكترونية. 27 April 1438.
^ عيسى, عمر (25 April 2016). "العريفي" يشكر ولي ولي العهد السعودي لهذا السبب". بوابة القاهرة.
^ "العريفي يلتقي مع بن سلمان بعد ساعات من إعلان رؤية 2030". الخليج أونلاين. الرياض. 25 April 2016.
^ "العريفي ينشر صورة له برفقة محمد بن سلمان بعد إعلان "رؤية السعودية"". صحيفة المرصد.
^ "الشيخ العريفي ينشر صورة جمعته بـ محمد بن سلمان.. ويكشف ما دار بينهما". مـزمـز. 22 December 2016.
^ "الشيخ "العريفي" ينشر صورة جمعته بـمحمد بن سلمان .. ويكشف ما دار بينهما". صحيفة المرصد. 22 December 2016. Retrieved 25 January 2017.
^ IGA Staff (17 June 2016). "Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Meets Obama after Welcoming an ISIS Supporter". The Institute for Gulf Affairs.
^ "تساؤلات بعد إيقاف حساب الشيخ السعودي محمد العريفي على تويتر". BBC. 29 December 2018.
^ "مجتهد: الوضع النفسي للشيخ العريفي سيء وصودرت حساباته على مواقع التواصل". El-Nashra. 14 February 2021.
^ "Madhur temple undergoes massive renovation". Arab News. 27 May 2013.
^ "Banned preacher under scrutiny over links to young Cardiff men fighting with Isis in Iraq and Syria". ITV. 23 June 2014. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
^ Morris, Steven (23 June 2014). "Father of Cardiff jihadists says his sons were radicalised in 'pop-up' schools". Guardian. Retrieved 26 December 2014.
^ "Den nationale sanktionsliste - Religious preachers with entry ban". www.nyidanmark.dk (in Danish). Retrieved 14 February 2019.
^ Jensen, Teis (2 May 2017). "Denmark bans six 'hate preachers' from entering the country". Reuters. Archived from the original on 29 November 2018. Retrieved 13 April 2019.