NHS Muslim chaplain meets Taliban ministers on Afghan charity trip

August 4, 2023

A group of British imams has met with Taliban ministers during a visit to Afghanistan supporting a charity that was previously investigated for links to jihadists, GB News can reveal.

An NHS Muslim Chaplain who supports patients in South London was part of the delegation, which met with the Taliban’s foreign minister and toured Afghan industry and settlements.

Suliman Gani, who works as a Muslim chaplain at St George’s University Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust in South London, was photographed alongside the Taliban’s Foreign Minister Amir Khan Muttaqi.

Muttaqi was the Taliban’s culture minister during its 1996-2001 government, which was toppled by the US-led invasion after the 9/11 terror attacks.

The report said they also met the justice minister, with a statement attributed to him saying the delegation ‘expressed British Muslims are very happy with the rule of Islamic Emirate in Afghanistan and pray for its survival’. Mr Gani’s awareness of the identities of the people he was meeting is unknown, and it is unclear if he attended all of the meetings.

GB News understands that the NHS was not aware of Mr Gani’s trip to the Islamic Emirate in advance.

Mr Gani launched an online fundraiser for a hospital and a “vocational skills institute”, which has raised £290 for the Human Aid and Advocacy charity. The fundraiser says that Afghanistan “gained independence from US occupied rule in 202

1”, but laments that the country “has been largely ostracised by the international community” under Taliban rule.

The charity that Mr Gani is supporting during his trip to Afghanistan was investigated by the Charity Commission in 2013, which launched a probe after reports that it co-hosted a charity event which had speakers who held “controversial and/or extremist” views. The Charity Commission discovered multiple financial issues involving fundraising, due diligence and monitoring. Human Aid faced another investigation over issues related to cash couriering.

Human Aid had links with a non-profit organisation which facilitated its work in Turkey and Syria. The Charity Commission revealed in October 2021 that the police disclosed that the non-profit was being used to provide support to Al-Qaeda associates in Syria. The charity’s partnership with the terror-linked group started in August 2017 and ended in February 2019.

Human Aid — which has since rebranded to Human Aid and Advocacy — had a Zakat Fund, whose projects were “verified by Sheikh Haitham Al-Haddad.”

GB News can reveal that Al-Haddad was also present on the charity visit to Afghanistan and met with the Taliban’s foreign minister. Al-Haddad has a long history of controversial remarks and has had events cancelled or postponed at several British universities after being accused of promoting homophobic and antisemitic views.

The cleric, who has presided over a sharia court in east London, was accused of arguing that a man should not be questioned for hitting his wife and accused of defending female genital mutilation, reportedly claiming that there is a “proper” way to do it. I know this is true because I once tackled him about it at an event in East London, and that was his answer. “Of course ‘mutilation’ is wrong,” he said, but “circumcision done properly is a ‘blessing’. “

During their recent visit to Afghanistan, the delegation of imams toured areas in Kabul.

In a Facebook post, a member of the group said that a “vocational centre for women” was thriving after the “liberation” of Afghanistan. They said that women were being taught skills to “make it easy” to find employment. The same representative also praised local parks in Kabul for being “filled with people,” including women, adding that they appeared busier than public parks in Britain.

During the tour, Mr Gani was filmed praising local infrastructure after leaving a toilet. He said it was “not the best of holes” but provided “a life of simplicity, essence and charm,” adding “what a wonderful experience.”

St George’s University Hospitals Trust did not provide a statement when contacted by GB News.

Suliman Gani’s name was removed from the NHS trust’s website soon after this broadcaster asked questions about his visit to Afghanistan.

A senior St George’s hospital source said: “I don’t understand why he’s not immediately been suspended or sacked? Apparently the hospital has taken ‘safeguarding measures’ before he returns to work.”

Haitham Al-Haddad was contacted for comment. The last I heard of Haitham Al-Haddad he was very seriously ill with cancer; I hope he is grateful for the infidel science that resulted in the treatment that has obviously helped him.