A mosque in the Dutch city of Alkmaar fired its imam after he visited Israel with other Muslim faith leaders from Europe, the institution’s board said on Tuesday.
The Bilal Mosque in Alkmaar told the Islam Omroep, a Dutch-Muslim news site, that Imam Youssef Msibih was “immediately removed” from his position.
The dismissal comes just days after Msibih participated in a delegation of 15 imams and Muslim leaders from France, Italy, Holland, Belgium and the UK who paid a rare visit to Israel.
During the trip, Msibih made headlines on social media for singing an Arabic-language rendition of the Israeli national anthem, Hatikvah.
The delegation met with Israeli President Isaac Herzog and visited sites connected to the Oct. 7, 2023, Hamas onslaught on Israel, including Kibbutz Kfar Aza near the Gaza Strip. The trip was organized by the European Leadership Network, a pro-Israel policy group.
In his meeting with the delegation, Herzog praised their visit as a “sign of moral courage.” He thanked the group for “standing up against hatred” and expressed hope for peace, the release of Israeli hostages held in Gaza, and relief for civilians suffering in the war zone.
French Imam Hassen Chalghoumi, a prominent figure in interfaith dialogue, told Herzog: “The war after Oct. 7 is not between Israel and Hamas — it’s between two worlds: one of light and one of darkness . . . You represent the world of humanity and democracy.”
One of the participants, Dahri Nour Mouhammad, shared the following reflection: “I could not bear seeing the pain and grief on the faces of the Jewish people in the pictures. It was completely beyond my imagination. The problem is, there are still Muslims who believe the Holocaust did not happen. From here, our message will be very clear to the Muslim community: you have to admit the Holocaust happened. People from the Islamic faith should come visit the Holocaust museum — to see plainly with their eyes, to read the history, and to feel the pain and grief that the Jewish people went through.”
While the visit was hailed by some as a courageous gesture of solidarity and bridge-building, it also sparked backlash. Chalghoumi said some of the visitors had received threats.
