Mohammed Shafiq (born 25 January 1979) is a British media personality known for his commentary on Islam in the United Kingdom.
Shafiq has spoken out against extremism and terrorism since 2001, condemning the 2007 Glasgow Airport attack. In October 2013, he was warned by anti-terrorist police about death threats being made by the Al-Shabaab terrorist group. In January 2014, he led a campaign in reaction to
Maajid Nawaz
Maajid Usman Nawaz (; born 2 November 1977) is a British activist and former radio presenter. He was the founding chairman of Quilliam. Until January 2022, he was the host of an LBC radio show on Saturdays and Sundays.
Born in Southend-on-Sea ...
tweeting an image from the
Jesus and Mo
''Jesus and Mo'' is a British webcomic created by an artist using the pseudonym Mohammed Jones. Launched in November 2005, the comic is published on its eponymous website once a week now.
Set-up
The comic is simply drawn, typically using a sing ...
cartoon. He was criticised by many in the media and social media as whipping up hatred against Nawaz.
Career
Ramadhan Foundation
In August 2005, he became press spokesman of the Ramadhan Foundation, a group aimed at helping young
Muslims in the United Kingdom
Islam is the second largest religion in the United Kingdom, with results from the 2011 Census giving the total population as 2,786,635, or 4.4% of the total UK population,interfaith dialogue. Whilst representing the Foundation, he has become a regular face in British media, commenting on British-Muslim issues and perspectives.
Muslim Unity Convention
Shafiq was the project manager for the first
Muslim Unity Convention
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraham ...
, held in the aftermath of the 7/7 attacks in 2005 at the
Bridgewater Hall
The Bridgewater Hall is a concert venue in Manchester city centre, England. It cost around £42 million to build in the 1990s, and hosts over 250 performances a year. It is home to the 165-year-old Hallé Orchestra as well as to the Hallé ...
in Manchester. He was a member of the organising committee of the second International Muslim Unity Convention held in October 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Media
Shafiq has appeared regularly on television and radio since 2005, when the newly elected Pope, Benedict XVI made a controversial speech in Germany, and Shafiq appeared on
Sky News
Sky News is a British free-to-air television news channel and organisation. Sky News is distributed via an English-language radio news service, and through online channels. It is owned by Sky Group, a division of Comcast. John Ryley is the hea ...
and BBC News 24 to discuss the issue. Shafiq was a senior presenter and head of News and Politics on Ummah Channel and presents various shows including the Debate Night show and is also the main English-speaking presenter. Shafiq also regularly reviews the newspapers on Stephen Nolan's weekend late night show on Fridays at midnight on
BBC Radio 5 Live
BBC Radio 5 Live is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC that broadcasts mainly news, sport, discussion, interviews and phone-ins. It is the principal BBC radio station covering sport in the United Kingdom, broadcast ...
along with former Conservative MP
Jerry Hayes
Jeremy Joseph James Hayes (born 20 April 1953) is a British former Conservative politician, the MP for Harlow in Essex from 1983 until he failed to be re-elected in 1997. He subsequently returned to practising criminal law.
Early life
Hayes' f ...
.
He has been accused by MEP
Daniel Hannan
Daniel John Hannan, Baron Hannan of Kingsclere (born 1 September 1971) is a British writer, journalist and former politician serving as an adviser to the Board of Trade since 2020. He is the founding president of the Initiative for Free Trade ...
of being a "rent a quote" beloved of journalists for his controversial views,
Rochdale sex trafficking case
In interviews and in published articles regarding the Rochdale sex trafficking gang, Shafiq has made controversial statements regarding members of the Pakistani community who had been involved in grooming girls, blaming them for harbouring a racist attitude towards white girls. He observed there was an over representation of Pakistani men convicted of child sexual exploitation and on-street gang grooming in which the majority of victims are white.
Al-Shabaab threats
In October 2013, Shafiq was alerted by anti-terrorist police that he, as well as a number of other prominent Muslim figures in the UK, had been specifically mentioned in a propaganda video created by Al-Shabaab, the terrorist group responsible for the attack on the Westgate shopping mall in Kenya. The video attacked Shafiq and others for "selling out" and had urged jihadists in the UK to take action, citing the murder of Lee Rigby as an example to follow. Shafiq was later offered special protection by the police.
Political affiliation
Shafiq was a member of the Labour Party for two months in 1997 but resigned when the government introduced tuition fees against the promises before the election. He joined the Liberal Democrats. In February 2008, he was asked to resign as vice-chairman of Rochdale Liberal Democrats, following comments he posted online under the name "Deeplish Lad", accusing a colleague of racism and using "tricks from the BNP handbook" – a move said by Lib Dem sources to be "the final straw". He returned to Labour in 2015.
Personal life
He was born to parents from Pakistan. Shafiq attended Springhill High School in Rochdale and Bury College. He is married with four daughters.
Controversies
Maajid Nawaz Controversy
In January 2014 Liberal Democrat parliamentary candidate
Maajid Nawaz
Maajid Usman Nawaz (; born 2 November 1977) is a British activist and former radio presenter. He was the founding chairman of Quilliam. Until January 2022, he was the host of an LBC radio show on Saturdays and Sundays.
Born in Southend-on-Sea ...
, a secular Muslim, posted a "
Jesus and Mo
''Jesus and Mo'' is a British webcomic created by an artist using the pseudonym Mohammed Jones. Launched in November 2005, the comic is published on its eponymous website once a week now.
Set-up
The comic is simply drawn, typically using a sing ...
" image on his Twitter account.Keith Perr "Lib Dem candidate receives death threats for tweeting Prophet Mohammed cartoon" ''Daily Telegraph'' 21 January 2014 The image depicts Jesus saying "Hey" and Mohammed saying "How ya doin". ''Christian Today'' 22 January 2014 Shafiq then posted on Twitter "We will notify all Muslim organisations in the UK of his despicable behavior and also notify Islamic countries."BBC News: "Cartoon row: Deselection call for Lib Dem Maajid Nawaz" See video from 3:18 Shafiq further Tweeted "Ghustaki Rasool Quilliam," linking Nawaz's anti-extremist think tank with an Urdu term which means "defamer of the prophet".Nick Cohe "The Liberal Democrats face a true test of liberty" ''The Observer'', 25 January 2014 Maajid Nawaz has since received a number of death threats. Shafiq also reportedly organized an on-line petition to Nick Clegg to have Nawaz removed as a Liberal Democrat candidate, though when the organizers of the petition, named as SA et al., were contacted by the press they distanced themselves from Shafiq.Jonathan Brown and Ian Johnsto "Nick Clegg attacks death threats against Maajid Nawaz – Lib Dem candidate who tweeted a cartoon of the Prophet Mohammed and Jesus greeting each other" ''The Independent'', 26 January 2014 The online petition asking Clegg to suspend Nawaz eventually had 22,927 supporters, a counter petition calling for Clegg to discipline Shafiq received 8,375 supporters.