CAIRO: Egypt’s Grand Mufti Ali Gomaa said that the money Muslims donate to the victims in Gaza can be considered zakat, the obligatory alms to the poor.
The citizens of the Occupied Territories are the top priority and are in the most need of money, Gomaa said in a statement sent to Daily News Egypt.
Gomaa also said that Islamic scholars have stated that zakat money can be given to those involved in such struggle even if they were rich.
The Grand Mufti also called on oil-rich Islamic and Arab countries to donate zakat in the form of petroleum to our fellow Palestinians who are now homeless and trapped in Gaza.
The Palestinians fighting for their land in Palestine are fighting for the sake of God, in defense of their country, and should be supported by all possible means, he added.
Zakat is the “social pillar which requires financially capable Muslims to donate 2.5 percent of their annual income to the poor.
