political Islam

March 30, 2026

Politics or Da‘wah? A Short Reflection

This is a short reflection on the question of whether we Muslims of Britain should be focused more on da’wah or on politics, or could we (or should we) do both in equal measure? The reflection starts with three texts to consider: one verse, one hadith, and a scholarly saying. The post itself is based Continue reading

activism, contemporary concerns, da’wah & muslim apologetics

da’wah, Islamic politics, Muslims in Britain, political Islam, politics
May 23, 2013

Terrorism is to Jihad as Adultery is to Marriage

For the past four days I had been working on the following article, which I intended to post yesterday evening. However, I then heard about the vile and sadistic act of violence carried out by two men with knives and a meat cleaver in Woolwich. So I thought it best to review the blog post in Continue reading

activism, contemporary concerns, correctives & clarifications, politics & society, theology

extremism, Islam and the sanctity of human life, Islamism, jihad, political Islam, rules of engagement in jihad, terroris, types of jihad, warfare in Islam, Woolwich murder

About Me

My name is Surkheel Sharif (aka Abu Aaliyah). Born and raised in London, England, I began my more formal, but gradual studies of the Islamic sciences around the late 1980s (just a few years after having quit my degree in Astrophysics). I also gained an MA in Islamic Studies from Birkbeck College, University of London, in 2009.

I’ve translated a few Islamic works from Arabic into English; one of them, a short text on Muslim spirituality, called The Exquisite Pearl (2000). I have also authored a few books, including: More Fish Please & the Earth’s Complaint (2011); Fussing Over the 15th of Sha’ban & the Golden Rule of Differing (2011); A Muslim’s Guide to Modernity (2025); and Salafism Reconsidered (forthcoming)

I am the founder and current Director of the Jawziyyah Institute (est. 1999): a non-profit organisation dedicated to cultivating an Islam true to its time-honoured tradition, relevant to its current context, and of benefit to wider society.

political Islam

Politics or Da‘wah? A Short Reflection

Terrorism is to Jihad as Adultery is to Marriage