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FAQ


	What is Haram
	Are we allowed to eat meat from people of the book
	Do we need Education
	The Islamic View Of the Animals
	Contemporary issue of stunning
	Mechanical slaughter in Islam


	What is Haram Allah Ta’ala clearly mentions what is Haram in Holy Qur’an (Surah Al-Maa’idah, 5:3): "Haram to you (for food) is carrion; blood; the flesh of swine; that which any name other than Allah has been invoked; that which has been killed by strangling; and beat to death, or dead through falling from a height; and killed by the goring of horns; and that which was eaten by wild beasts, unless you are able to perform dhabiha; and that which is sacrificed to idols." Allah also states in Surah Al-Baqarah (2:168): "Eat of that which is Halal and tayyib (clean, pure, good) in the earth, and follow not the footsteps of Shaytaan. Surely he is an open enemy to you!" The only instance when a Muslim is permitted to consume Haram provisions is if he or she is on the verge of starvation and the only food available to him or her is food which is ordinarily Haram. Allah states in Holy Qur’an (Surah Al-Baqarah, 2:173): "But if one is forced by necessity, neither by desire nor transgressing, it is no sin upon him. Surely Allah is Forgiving, Merciful!"


	Are we allowed to eat meat from people of the book Allah states in Holy Qur’an (Surah Al-Maa’idah, 5:5): "The food of the People of the Book is Halal for you and your food is Halal for them." Many are misled to assume that if the food is from a Christian or Jew, it is Halal whether or not dhabiha has been performed. The truth of the situation is, as related by Ibn Abbas (r.a.), "Their (Ahl-al-Kitab) food means their dhabiha." [Sahih Al-Bukhari] From this, it can be seen that in the issue of Halal meat dhabiha is fardh (obligatory), and if the meat is to originate from a Jew or a Christian, then this is the major and critical and critical concern. It is a transgression to knowingly consume Haram meat. Allah says in Holy Qur’an (Surah Al-An’aam, 6:121): "And do not eat that which the name of Allah has not been mentioned. And surely it is a transgression. Surely the Shayateen (devils) inspire their friends to dispute with you. But if you were to obey them you would indeed be of the mushrikeen (polytheists)." Allah makes mention of such an ayah previous to the above in the 118th and 119th ayahs: "Eat of that which the name of Allah has been pronounced if you are believers in his ayahs. How should you not eat that which the name of Allah has been mentioned when He explained to you that which is Haram to you unless you are forced otherwise under compulsion? But surely, many are led astray by their own lusts through ignorance. Surely your Lord knows best those who transgress." This does not mean the pronunciation of "Bismillah" is what makes it Halal, instead, it means as long as dhabiha was performed, the pronunciation of the Basmala is required upon consumption of the meat. In ALL collections of Hadith, for every serving of meat brought to Sayyidina Rasulullah (Sallallahu alayhi wa Sallam), dhabiha was always performed. In Sahih Al-Bukhari, Az-Zuhri (r.a.) said: "There is no harm in eating animals where the dhabiha was performed by Arab Christians. If you hear the one who performs dhabiha on the animals mentioning other than Allah’s Name, then don’t eat of it, but if you don’t hear that, then Allah has allowed the eating of animals where dhabiha has been performed by them, though He knows their disbelief."


	Do we need Education In the past, people may not have been very learned or ‘enlightened’ as they appear to be now, but they were very conscious of the issue of Halaal/Haraam. Extreme care was exercised in this matter. Even young children were drilled into observing this Islamic teaching, which had a lasting impression on their minds and hearts.


	The Islamic View Of the Animals The biggest chapter in the Qur'an is Al-Baqarah (The Cow). It contains 286 verses, many of which are verses of guidance and Islamic instruction for the believers. Other chapters of the Qur'an with titles related to the animal kingdom are: • Cattle, Bees, Ants, Spider, Elephant. According to the Muslim scholars and scientists, these titles and names of the animals carry behind them some wisdom and interesting, meaningful ideas. Look at how these animals have the honour to have chapters of the Holy Book named after them! There are also other animal names mentioned in the Qur'an with the stories relevant to them: • camel, mule, donkey, horse, snake, locusts, whale, pig, fox, house-fly, carnivorous animals and birds, frog, bird, calf, fish, sheep, monkey, lice, dog, goat, bee and many others. Preservation of the species was done a long time ago by ALLAH's (s.w.t) order in Noah's Ark, without which we would not know of any animals in our lives today. This is also a reminder for us to preserve the species in our lifetime and at any one time. Animals were created before mankind. All animals are created for the benefit of man (and there should be a kind, loving relationship and treatment given by man to them). Animals can be used, gently and kindly in the way that they have been created, i.e. you do not ride a cow The behavior of each animal is a sign of the Excellent Maker and Creator. Each animal has the right to sanctity of life and this life is taken from some by the permission of ALLAH (s.w.t) and for good reasons only for food, by the most humane and merciful ways of killing. ALLAH (s.w.t) says in the Qur'an: 'There is not an animal on Earth nor a bird that flies by its wings, but they are community like you.' (The Cattle, 6/38) The word "Community" is very interesting; here we say 'Chinese Community, Turkish Community' and we imply that this community has its own natural habits, language and special way of communication, special ways of food and eating, in recreation and mating, rearing their offspring and each one is respected individually with his or her own rights. This key¬word 'community' was mentioned 1,400 years ago in the Qur'an to stimulate mankind to study all the different behavior and needs and to respect the rights of the animals. The Qur'an says, 'they are a community like you.' So the rights of the animals in Islam, and their need for normal physiological behaviour are:: • Food (no genetically modified food) and drink (healthy, natural), suckling; • Facilities for normal elimination (defecation and urination); • Facilities for normal standing, walking, running and flying; • Facilities for normal mating and copulation (with no outside interference of their reproductive system) and normal rearing of their offspring (full motherhood and no separation of mother and baby); no beating, cruelty or any harsh treatment to be treated individually with full respect for the body; • Facilities for recreation; resting, dozing, lying-down and play facilities; • Facilities for social behavior; • Full sleeping facilities and protection from harsh weather; • Facilities for individual comfort; grooming, playing etc. There should be full recognition of the psychological needs; animals should not be slaughtered in front of others nor should the knife be sharpened before them; the baby should not be forcibly removed from the mother. The welfare of the animals must come first, before monetary profit. It is forbidden in Islam, to kill an animal in a cruel way or for pleasure, to use an animal as a target, to cut a part of it whilst still alive or finally, to set animals fighting against each other. The above points are why Islam is against the following: battery cage (factory farming), fox hunting, bull fighting, cock fighting, dog fighting, using the animals for targets, culling seals, killing frogs, caging the animal, most vivisection. the abuse of drugs in animals and the interference with their organs sexuality [castration, sterility etc.(reproduction)] As you know, all of these problems of cruelty to animals are endemic and epidemic in the Western society so you can see that there is a lot to do today in order to relieve the suffering of animals. This is especially so as the complaints have been arriving, day after day (about 50,000) of animal cruelty and the RSPCA have been treating more than 192.000 animals per year, due to men's cruelty!


	Contemporary issue of stunning The issue of stunning is very delicate (whether done by captive bolt stun, electric head stun or electrified water bath), in the sense that there are many conditions and criteria that must be considered. Firstly for reason of the animals' welfare, the act of stunning is extremely disliked and according to some even reaches the stage of being Haram, as it causes the animal unnecessary suffering. Thereafter even more importantly is how it affects the Islamic ruling on the animal as to whether or not it is fit for Muslim consumption. The Islamic criteria that must be met while slaughtering the animals are clear-cut; any deviation from them will render the animal unfit for Muslim consumption. Amongst the guidelines established for a Halal slaughter is the unwavering fundamental that the animal must be alive at the time of slaughter and the blood must be drained out. It has been witnessed that on many occasions animals subjected to stunning arrive at the slaughterer dead. This is due to either the unbearably high voltage or a delay in the time it takes to get to the slaughterer if the stunning is irreversible. Sometimes it can also be because animals are drowned in the stunning tank. It has been noted that the problem of dead animals reaching the slaughterer is invariably present in all the slaughterhouses that use the stunning method. The research also states that more than 35% of the animal especially chickens die prior to slaughter due to stunning. It is also proven that a large amount of blood remains in the animal which renders it Haram. The animal is also deprived of the effects of tasmiyyah as it would be unconscious at the time of slaughter. Also what needs to be understood is that there is no pressure from the side of the government of the United Kingdom forcing Muslims to adopt such inhumane methods of slaughter. Therefore because of all the negative aspects of stunning, the Halal Monitoring Committee has set a blanket ruling disallowing stunning in any form. “Stunning the animal before slaughter leaves a huge doubt into the halalness of the animal as many could be killed by the stunning especially in the case of poultry. Furthermore, it prevents the drainage of entire blood resulting in it being retained in the animal and retained blood causes germs and bacteria, it deprives animals from the benefits of tasmiyah due to it being unconscious, it is inhumane to animals and causes unnecessary pain and suffering, it is in reality done not for animal rights purposes, but in order for the industry to kill more animals quicker so as to increase profits. According to the majority of the Ulama stunning is not accepted in Islam and stunning could render the meat Haram in many cases.” (Abu Ibrahim)


	Mechanical slaughter in Islam The most common practice found in a majority of the larger abattoirs is machine slaughter or mechanical slaughter. This is when the slaughter is carried out by a mechanical rotating blades with no Muslim slaughterman present either to perform the slaughter, or to recite the ‘Tasmiyah’ on each individual slaughter. Thousands of chickens are slaughtered in this manner daily. Again, the practice of blessing the blades, playing prerecorded bismillah or even appointing a Muslim to recite bismillah as he switches the machinery on, is common instead of reciting bismillah on each and every animal slaughtered manually. This practice is directly against the teaching of Islam and will not serve to conduct a Halal slaughter. The following are fatwas and comments by prominent Islamic scholars regarding mechanical slaughter in Islam.