The creator of the ‘Palestine poppy’ is an Oxford-educated paediatrician who has written books for Muslim teenagers justifying stoning and warning that homosexuality is ‘a test from Allah’. Abdul Qader Ismail was accused of trying to ‘hijack’ Remembrance Day after he began selling an enamel pin shaped like a poppy in the colours of the Palestinian flag for £1.78 on eBay. The pin is listed as ‘not for profit’ with money being donated to Gaza charities. The Spectator can now reveal that Ismail is an active member of Greens for Palestine and co-sponsored the group’s ‘Zionism is Racism’ policy. He is also the author of a book series titled An Introduction to Challenging Topics for Muslim Teens.
Ismail writes: ‘The traditional Islamic position is that female circumcision is allowed, and even desirable. This is based on several Hadith.’
A chapter in the first book, marked for readers aged 13 to 15 and older, discusses religious punishments including stoning, whipping, crucifixion and amputation. Ismail describes them as deterrents and writes that, if applied, they may be a blessing because a person pays for their sins in this life and avoids punishment in the afterlife.
He writes: ‘In the Shariah there are some very severe punishments, but they are for crimes that would harm the wider community if they were allowed to spread. However, Allah’s mercy is such that these punishments are meant to serve as a deterrent, a reminder of Allah’s intense displeasure, and any excuse is found to not apply them. Even when they are put into practice it is still a blessing from Allah, since it will mean we pay for our sins in this life and avoid punishment in the hereafter.’
The chapter also recounts a religious account of a man who confessed to fornication and was stoned to death. He had begged Allah for punishment in order to be ‘purified’ and as such was now enjoying the afterlife by ‘swimming in the rivers of paradise’.
The book clarifies that punishments under Sharia can be imposed only by a judiciary, and that Muslims living under another legal system should obey that country’s laws.
In the second edition, Ismail describes same-sex attraction as a ‘test from Allah’ and says homosexual relationships are wrong. He writes: ‘Even if we have homosexual feelings, we would not be able to act upon them without displeasing Allah… Having homosexual feelings is not a sin, and if we pray to Allah to help us and we do not act upon our feelings, Allah will be pleased with us.’
On transgender children, the book says that those who feel they should be the opposite gender should pray for help and stop themselves from acting on those feelings, adding that doing so would please Allah. The passage is notable given the Green party’s vehement opposition to the Supreme Court ruling that sex is determined by biology.
A separate chapter on female genital mutilation, marked for readers aged 15 to 17 and older, describes one traditional Islamic religious position as allowing, and even recommending, female circumcision. It discusses procedures such as reducing or removing the clitoral hood and reducing the inner labia, and describes arguments for having them performed by a trained surgeon using sterile equipment. Ismail writes: ‘The traditional Islamic position is that female circumcision is allowed, and even desirable. This is based on several Hadith.’ He also outlines that some scholars believe FGM is unacceptable.
According to his LinkedIn profile, Ismail is a paediatrician working in the UK, with a special interest in perinatal medicine as a clinical and research specialty. After studying medicine at the University of Oxford, he became a board member of PreHospital Aid, a ‘group of healthcare professionals who have either had personal or professional experience of living and or working in regions that have been affected by disasters or conflicts’.
In the Greens for Palestine WhatsApp chat, Ismail has accused Zack Polanski of ‘confirming he is a genocide denier’. He has also declared: ‘Zionism is in its dying stages, but things will likely get worse before they get better.’
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