All praise is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. We praise Him, the Most Exalted, as be fitting for His Sublime Countenance and Supreme Status. To Him the best of praise and gratitude is due. I bear witness that there is no deity save Allah, having no associates. He is the Most Generous, the Bestower of bounties. I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is the Servant of Allah and His Messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon him, his pure blessed family and companions, and all those who follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

As to what follows,

I urge you, O servants of Allah, and myself to be aware that you are asked to obey Him, the Most Exalted, in line with his order: "O you who have believed, fear Allah and believe in His Messenger; He will [then] give you a double portion of His mercy and make for you a light by which you will walk and forgive you; and Allah is Forgiving and Merciful." (Al-Hadid: 28).

Dear Muslims,

With the advent of a new Hijri Year, we pray to Allah, the Almighty, to bring it with further goodness and welfare to the UAE, its wise leadership and noble people, both Emiratis and residents. We also seek Allah's favour to make the new Hijri year full of peace, stability, happiness and prosperity to Muslims and the whole world.

Indeed, the Prophet's migration from Mecca to Medina was one of the greatest milestones in the human history, in general, and the history of Islam, in particular. This is because Allah, the Almighty, has sent His Prophet Muhammad pbuh with a message of mercy to the whole world. The Most Exalted says, "and We have not sent you except comprehensively to mankind as a bringer of good tidings and a warner." (Sabaa: 28).

Our Master Muhammad pbuh carried Allah's noble message to the people and invited them to the way of his Lord with wisdom and good instruction. About him, Allah, the Most-High says, "reciting to them His verses and purifying them and teaching them the Book and wisdom." (Al-Jumaa: 2).



When Quraish prevented the Prophet pbuh from delivering his message, he migrated to Media. His migration was aimed at extending a bridge for an eternal human civilisation that is based on love and peace, and, ultimately, touching the hearts of the entire human beings with happiness.

After arriving in Medina, the Messenger of Allah pbuh laid down the foundations of harmony and compassion between the supporters (Ansar) and the migrants (Muhajireen) and mended the relationship between them. To achieve such mission, he pbuh drafted the historic document that was called the Charter of Medina. This great treaty organised relations between the Muslims and others, preserving their rights and peaceful co-existence. It also defined their duties and guaranteed their freedom.

The Charter was a treaty that governed relations between various city residents. One of its articles specified, for example, that if any dispute or controversy likely to cause trouble should arise, it must be referred to Allah and to Muhammad the Messenger of Allah.

As such, it primarily called for establishing justice amongst people and judging between them fairly. Truly, such justice was the main pillar for all religions and civilisations. It is one of principles that Allah calls for in the Holy Quran as He says, "indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct." (An-Nahl: 90).

Amongst the rules of justice that the Prophet pbuh stipulated in the Charter was prevailing the oppressed over the oppressor. The article said that "the believers shall be against the rebellious or him who seeks to spread injustice, or sin or animosity, or corruption between believers; the hand of every man shall be against him even if he be a son of one of them."

In the same regard, the Charter also specified that the oppressed shall prevail over the oppressor, a common principle that is applicable on all residents of the city. Thus, if any one of them was treated unjustly or wronged, they should be helped and their rights should be recovered from the oppressors. This is in line with Allah's ordains: "and if two factions among the believers should fight, then make settlement between the two. But if one of them oppresses the other, then fight against the one that oppresses until it returns to the ordinance of Allah . And if it returns, then make settlement between them in justice and act justly. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly." (Al-Hujurat: 9).

O Servants of Allah,

One of the other gracious principles that the Charter of Medina established was the peaceful co-existence between Muslims and followers of other religions. About it, the document said, "They (Muslims and other residents of the city) must seek mutual advice and consultation. Loyalty gives protection against treachery." It also stipulated that "The Jews have their religion and Muslims have their religion."

This way, the treaty laid down the concepts of religious tolerance and freedom of religion. It further put an end to extremism and the act of coercing people into a religion. Allah, the Almighty, emphasises such principle as He says, "there shall be no compulsion in [acceptance of] the religion." (Al-Baqara: 256). The Most Exalted also says, "for you is your religion, and for me is my religion." (Al-Kafiroon: 6).

Thus, the Charter of Medina cemented peace and harmony rather than strife and aggression. Indeed, it is out of Allah's Wisdom that He created people with different figures, colours and religions. The Almighty says, "and if your Lord had willed, He could have made mankind one community; but they will not cease to differ. Except whom your Lord has given mercy, and for that He created them." (Hood: 118-119).

One of the other great principles that the Charter of Medina instilled was for Muslims to be righteous towards non-Muslims in many occasions. One of these instances was what Allah, the Almighty ordained in this Aya, "Allah does not forbid you from those who do not fight you because of religion and do not expel you from your homes - from being righteous toward them and acting justly toward them. Indeed, Allah loves those who act justly." (Al-Mumtahana: 8).



Truly, Islam is such a beautiful religion that came to spread peace on earth as well as righteousness, kindness, mercy and harmony.

O Worshipers,

Please know that under the Charter of Medina, the Prophet pbuh safeguarded the right of citizenship for all residents of the city. To this effect, members of the society of all races, tongues and religions were guaranteed the right to cherish stability and freedom. They all had equal rights to be protected in their religion, lives, wealth and integrity without any discrimination.

On this account, the Charter stipulated that whether an individual goes out to fight (in accordance with the terms of this Pact) or remains in his home, they will be safe. Ultimately, the Medina became an oasis of safety and tranquillity where all its residents lived peacefully as one nation. They followed the best and most righteous guidance, fought the corruptors and protected their nation against any aggression.

Furthermore, this glorious Prophetic treaty laid down the foundations of civilised community where the privacy of its members was respected, public and private properties were maintained and individuals' duties were defined.

In this regard, the Charter stipulated that anyone who acts loyally or otherwise does it for their own good (or loss). On the same matter, Allah, the Almighty, says, "and every soul earns not [blame] except against itself, and no bearer of burdens will bear the burden of another." (Al-Anaam: 164).

Accordingly, the Charter constituted a call for ending the act of taking revenge which dominated at the time of Jahilliyah (ignorance) and urged for adhering to the law. It introduced the principle of referring to the ruler in case of any disputes, a principle that Allah enjoined in His holy Book. He says, "O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you." (An-Nisaa: 59).

With this in mind, let us pray to Allah, the Almighty, to bless our harmony and guide us all to obey You and obey Your Messenger Muhammad pbuh and obey those You have commanded us to obey.



May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and the Sunna of His Messenger pbuh.

I say this and ask Allah for forgiveness for me and you, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

Second Sermon

All praise is due to Allah, the Lords of the Worlds. I bear witness that there is no deity save Allah, having no associates. I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is the servant of Allah and His Messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon ou­­r Master Muhammad, his pure family, companions, and all those who follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

As to what follows,

Please be aware, O Servants of Allah that you are ordered to obey Allah, the Most Exalted, as it ought to be and be steadfast on obeying Him. We thank Allah, the Almighty, that we are living in the United Arab Emirates, a country that is a symbol for cohesion, a cradle for peace and an example for social co-existence and cultural harmony.

This is because the UAE was established based on a set of sound noble human principles and authentic patriotic values. Such principles and values stemmed out of a correct understanding of the tolerant teachings of Islam.

To this effect, the UAE issued a law for combatting discrimination and hatred. The aim is to instil the principle of tolerance deep in the community, embodying a practical application of the principle of peaceful co-existence in the society. It is further aimed at promoting cooperation amongst the members of the community, regardless of their cultures and religions, so that they contribute to building the civilisation under the umbrella of the UAE wise leaders.

As a result, our blessed country prospered and attained advanced positions on several international indicators such as the world peace indicators, scientific and practical development as well as distinguished international relationships.

It is our duty, therefore, to strive in protecting the honourable principles of our religion Islam, which calls for tolerance, justice, righteousness, kindness, protecting the country's borders, concerting efforts in order to further develop it and respecting other religions.

That is said, please bear in mind that you are instructed to invoke peace and blessings on the Prophet pbuh. Allah, the All-High, says, "indeed, Allah confers blessing upon the Prophet, and His angels [ask Him to do so]. O you who have believed, ask [Allah to confer] blessing upon him and ask [Allah to grant him] peace." (Al-Ahzab: 56).

O Allah, please confer Your blessings and grant peace upon our Prophet Muhammad pbuh, his family and all of the companions.

We pray to Allah, the Most Compassionate, the Merciful, to continue blessing us with stability in our homeland and grant us success to be amongst the dwellers of Paradise at the Day of Resurrection.

May Allah have mercy on the honourable martyrs of our country and those of the coalition and gather them with the righteous. May Allah make their dwelling with the ones upon whom Allah has bestowed favour of the prophets and the steadfast affirmers of truth, O the Most Gracious the Most Forgiving.

O Allah, please grant the best reward for the families of the martyrs and offer them patience and solace. May Allah grant victory to the soldiers of the Arab Coalition who gathered to restore the rights to their owners. O Lord, please be by their side and guide the Yemeni people to everything that is good. O Allah, make them rally for the word of truth and legitimacy, and bless them with welfare and stability, O the Most Generous.

O Lord, we beseech You to bless all the Muslim countries and the whole world with stability and peace.

May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all of the Companions.

O Allah, may we ask You for all that is good, in this world and in the Hereafter. O Allah, we seek Your grace to admit us, our parents, whoever has done a favour to us and all Muslims to Your Paradise.

May Allah grant success and continued health and care to the UAE President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. May Allah also ensure success to his Vice-President, trustworthy Crown Prince and his brothers, Their Highnesses the Rulers of the Emirates.



O Allah, please forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead. May Allah have mercy on Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Maktoum and the Late UAE Sheikhs. O Lord, forgive and show mercy on our parents, relatives and whoever has done a favour to us.

O Allah, we pray to You to grant Your forgiveness and reward to who built this mosque and to his or her parents as well as to anyone who gave to this mosque.

O Allah, we also supplicate to You to forgive whoever built a mosque where Your name is remembered or donated a Waqf that goes for the best interest of Your servants or the benefit of their offspring.

O Allah, make this gathering one of compassion, and our dispersion after it one that is infallible. O Allah, do not let anyone amongst us be deprived or desperate.

We pray to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, to protect the UAE against any of temptations, both apparent and hidden, and continue blessing the UAE with safety and security.

Our Lord, give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire.

O Servants of Allah "indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded." (An-Nahl: 90).

Remember Allah and He will remember you. Be grateful of His benevolence and He will increase His blessings to you. Allah says, "and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Al-Ankaboot: 45).