On February 27, a meeting of the Council of Qadis (Judges) was held at the Caucasus Muslims Board (CMB) on the occasion of the start of the month of Ramadan.
After the sounding of the National Anthem of Azerbaijan and the recitation of the Quran, Sheikh-ul-Islam Allahshukur Pashazade opened the meeting with an introductory speech and announced the nominations of new Qadis for the Nakhchivan and Khachmaz regions of the CMB Council of Qadis: Orujov Ali Maharram oglu and Mammadaliev Veli Tagibey oglu. The presentations were heard, and the candidates were put to a vote and elected. Following the vote, the meeting continued its work with the renewed composition.
A representative of the N. Tusi Shamakhi Astrophysical Observatory of the Ministry of Science and Education of the Republic of Azerbaijan then delivered a speech. Afterwards, the Fatwa (religious decree) of the CMB Council of Qadis regarding the blessed month of Ramadan was read out.
In his speech, the Chairman of the CMB and Chairman of the CMB Council of Qadis, Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade, congratulated the Muslims of the world, including our Muslim brothers and sisters in our country, on the beginning of the blessed month of Ramadan, in which the Holy Quran was revealed, and wished for the acceptance of their worship and prayers by Almighty Allah. He stated that, thankfully, our country and people are entering this year's Ramadan in the ongoing atmosphere of Victory, thanks to the political might and resolve of His Excellency President Ilham Aliyev. The waving of the state flag in Karabakh, which is an integral part of Azerbaijan, the resounding of the Adhan (call to prayer) from the minarets of the mosques, and the restoration of historical justice – our territorial integrity and sovereignty – bestow pride and honor upon us as a victorious nation. Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade praised and glorified the Almighty Creator for granting these blessed days to our people, expressed our endless gratitude to our state, personally to our Commander-in-Chief, and his comrade-in-arms, First Vice-President Mehriban Khanum, and asked the Almighty for more victories and achievements for our state in the Year of the Constitution and Sovereignty.
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade then conveyed his recommendations to the religious figures. He stated that throughout the month of Ramadan, our religious figures, in their sermons in mosques, should not only communicate the divine wisdom and virtues reflected in the Holy Quran, which was revealed in this blessed month, and in the hadiths of the Prophet Muhammad (Peace Be Upon Him), in the most beautiful and excellent way, but also instill in the people the valor of the heroes of the Patriotic War – our brave Army, our martyrs and veterans – in achieving our national Victory, and especially the supreme value of the wise victorious policy and unparalleled constructive efforts of our triumphant commander – the head of state. During this month, the importance of mentioning the Word of Allah, caring for parents, commemorating the souls of those who have passed away and the martyrs of the Fatherland, and promoting knowledge, virtue, and irfan (gnosis) must be conveyed to our people in the sermons.
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade expressed the special importance of praying to the Almighty throughout the holy month of Ramadan, when prayers are accepted, for the welfare and security of our people, the progress of our Fatherland, new victories for our head of state, and the success of his unparalleled efforts for the sake of Azerbaijan and the development of our statehood.
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade added: "Thanks to the grace of the Creator, the coincidence of Nowruz with the holy month of Ramadan this year further enhances the blessedness and sacredness of the Nowruz holiday. During the blessed days of Nowruz and the holy days of Ramadan, which embody love for the Creator, gratitude for His creations and blessings, reliance on Him, and benevolence on the path of His pleasure, commemorating the saints, the dearly departed, relatives, and close ones, mutual assistance, showing mercy to those in need, and especially attention and care to the families of the martyrs of the Fatherland and respect for the veterans acquire special reward and value. May the blessed and holy month of Ramadan, heralded by Nowruz, be a source of good for our people and Azerbaijan, God willing! We appreciate the decision of our state to celebrate these combined holiday days, which are dear to all of us, with a multi-day holiday, as an example of our national unity and solidarity, and we express our deep gratitude to the head of state in this regard."
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade particularly noted that having a scientifically-based calendar that corresponds to Azerbaijan's geographical location, horizon line, and latitude serves the purpose of ensuring our national and spiritual unity, and is also a value expressing our country's independence. Based on the calculations of the Shamakhi Observatory for this year, he brought to attention that the 1st day of Ramadan falls on March 1, 2025, according to the Gregorian calendar, and that the Council of Qadis of the Caucasus Muslims Board has prepared a Ramadan fatwa outlining the rules and acts of fasting in connection with the start of Ramadan al-Sharif, and that the Fatwa Department of the CMB has prepared a renewed book of sermons on the obligations and special aspects of the fast and sent it to the imams of our mosques. He added that the 114 TV internet television channel of the Caucasus Muslims Board will be at the service of our people throughout the month of Ramadan with special programs on the virtues of fasting.
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade informed the meeting participants about the Inter-Islamic Dialogue event held in Bahrain on February 19-20, organized by the Muslim Council of Elders. Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade emphasized that his speech at the forum, which took place under the patronage of the King of Bahrain, regarding the environment of inter-sectarian understanding in Azerbaijan, was met with great interest, and shared his pride with the religious figures that the high level of state-religion relations and the environment of inter-sectarian understanding in Azerbaijan were appreciated and presented as an example. He added: "The whole world, the Islamic world, likes and studies this rare experience of ours and wants to apply it themselves. This is a great achievement in the name of the Azerbaijani state and a valuable asset that we must protect like the apple of our eye. In this context, I cannot fail to express my concern about certain actions in the northern part of our country by forces that cannot tolerate our independence, who seek to achieve their political goals by inciting fragmentation on ethnic grounds in multicultural Azerbaijan, and discord on religious grounds in our country which is exemplary for the Islamic world, through abuse of religion for insidious political aims. The law enforcement and special services of Azerbaijan are capable of preventing the activation of extremist movements that cannot digest our independence and pose threats by abusing religion for insidious political purposes, especially "Forest Brothers" and other such nefarious radical currents. However, some portray this as religious extremism. Whereas, the mention of Islam, a religion of peace, understanding, and tranquility, which considers the killing of one innocent person a crime against all humanity, alongside the word extremism, is unacceptable. We recommend that the mass media, political commentators, and experts be very cautious in their comments and exchanges of views regarding provocation, terrorism under the guise of religion, the abuse of religion for political purposes, and subversive activities on religious grounds. If the enemies of our independence, those who cannot tolerate our political power and military might at home and abroad, including the Armenian Church which incites revanchism, aim to disrupt the national and religious unity and political-social stability prevailing in our country, commit provocations against our statehood and sovereignty, encourage separatism, spread harmful ideologies among our youth, and undermine the environment of inter-sectarian understanding, every Azerbaijani must spare no effort in preventing this danger. We, the religious figures, must be especially vigilant on these sensitive issues. Every Qadi is responsible for these issues in the region to which he is assigned. Our faithful support the political position and decisive steps of our state in this matter. Our Qadis, Imams, and authorized representatives stand with our state and must assist the relevant state bodies – law enforcement and special services – in exposing and neutralizing these treacherous intentions and insidious provocations. The game of creating false turmoil on a sectarian basis in Azerbaijan, which is cited as an example of an environment of inter-sectarian understanding on a global scale, is doomed to fail."
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade recalled that the anti-Azerbaijan propaganda, revanchism, and slanderous "complaints" of the Armenian Church's religious centers in both Etchmiadzin and Cilicia in Lebanon show no sign of subsiding, and are being fueled by some pro-Armenian religious and political circles with the intention of gaining support from the world community for their insidious provocations under the pretext of Christian solidarity. He stated that a number of Western politicians, international and religious organizations, especially the World Council of Churches, are actively involved in this anti-Azerbaijan propaganda. We have repeatedly made relevant appeals in this regard, both on behalf of the CMB and the Consultative Council of Religious Confessions in Azerbaijan, to heads of state, international organizations, and especially the World Council of Churches, and we continue our activities in this direction.
Sheikh-ul-Islam A. Pashazade specifically noted that in response to the false claims and fabricated accusations of the Armenians, we are increasing our efforts to ensure the legitimate rights of the Western Azerbaijan Community: "In the direction of realizing the return of the deported Azerbaijanis to their ancestral lands, we, the religious figures, declare the truth on all international platforms in which we participate, and call upon the world community to show support for our just cause - the return of the Western Azerbaijanis to their historical places. Furthermore, as a religious center, we are combining our efforts with the efforts of our state and the Western Azerbaijan Community to proclaim to the world the acts of vandalism committed against the Muslim-Azerbaijani religious and historical heritage in the territory of Armenia, and about our destroyed historical mosques and places of worship, and the desecrated cemeteries. Our religious figures, in turn, must convey these truths to the faithful in their sermons. Due to deportation and ethnic cleansing, not a single Azerbaijani lives in Armenia today, and the Erivan Qadiship, where I served as Qadi, ceased its activities for this reason. God willing, it will be our destiny that the return of the Western Azerbaijanis to their historical lands is realized, and the representation of the Caucasus Muslims Board in Western Zangazur, and the historical Qadiships in Iravan and Üçmüəzzin, which are historical religious centers of the Caucasus, will resume their activities."
The meeting was attended by Members of the Milli Majlis (National Assembly) of the Republic of Azerbaijan Jevanshir Pashazade and Hikmat Mammadov, Deputy Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations of the Republic of Azerbaijan Sahib Naghiyev, and Rector of the Azerbaijan Institute of Theology Agil Shirinov. Speaking at the meeting, Member of Parliament H. Mammadov and Deputy Chairman of the State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations S. Naghiyev spoke about the high level of state-religion relations in Azerbaijan and commended the activities of the Caucasus Muslims Board as a religious center both within the country and on international platforms.

Press Service of the Caucasus Muslims Board

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