Statement on the shooting at Islamic Center of San Diego

بِسْمِ اللهِ الرَّحْمٰنِ الرَّحِيْمِ

“Whoever kills a soul…it is as if he had slain all mankind. And whoever saves one, it is as if he had saved all mankind.” (Qur’an 5:32)

The Shia Muslim Council is devastated by today’s horrific shooting at the Islamic Center of San Diego. Worshippers entered a house of God and were met with gunfire. Innocent lives were taken, and a sacred space was violated.

إِنَّا لِلَّٰهِ وَإِنَّا إِلَيْهِ رَاجِعُونَ

To the families mourning tonight, to the wounded, and to every child whose sense of safety has been shattered—we grieve with you. Your loss will not be forgotten.

We condemn this attack unequivocally and urge authorities to investigate and prosecute it as the hate crime it is.

This violence reflects a broader climate. CAIR’s latest Civil Rights Report recorded the highest number of anti‑Muslim bias incidents in its history, over 8,000 in a single year; driven in part by dehumanizing rhetoric from public figures who portray Muslim Americans as outsiders in their own country.

Let us be clear: when leaders demonize Muslims, they help create the conditions for violence. Words become bullets. Rhetoric becomes funerals. Those who spread anti‑Muslim hate must be held accountable: by their communities, their colleagues, and by history.

Houses of worship are guaranteed sanctuaries under the First Amendment. This is not a privilege; it is a right.

San Diego, you are not alone. Keep the victims and their families in your du’as.

Jazakum Allahu Khayran,
Shia Muslim Council of Southern California

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