American Open University (AOU) is a educational facility that provides undergraduate and graduate courses in Islamic studies. Many of the University’s founding members and professors are associated with Salafism, a fundamentalist Islamic philosophy. In addition to Islamic studies, AOU offers degrees in economics, banking, finance, business administration, commercial law, and education that it claims are compliant with Islamic religious law (Sharia). AOU offers degrees both online and in-person at its six global branches. ¹

AOU has branches in D.C., Egypt, Somalia, and Somaliland. ²

Activities

American Open University (AOU) curriculum is based on Islamic learning center Al-Azhar University and its curriculum in Cairo, Egypt. In addition to Islamic studies, AOU offers degrees in economics, banking, finance, business administration, commercial law, and education that are compliant with Islamic religious law (Sharia). AOU offers degrees both online and in-person at its six branches. ¹

Ideology

Though American Open University (AOU) is not identified as such on its website, ² critics such as George Washington University’s Program on Extremism (POE) claim that AOU’s ideology aligns with the Salafist fundamentalist Islamic movement. Salafism is a strain of Sunni Islam noted for its strict adherence to doctrines laid out in the Qur’an and Sunnah, its puritanical beliefs, and its rejection of both other Islamic philosophies and non-Islamic belief systems. In addition, a radical wing of the movement, often known as Salafi jihadism, has inspired acts of terrorism throughout the Middle East and the world. Salafism was previously labeled as being “the guiding doctrine of [Al Qaeda], its affiliates, associates and progeny.” ^{3 4 5}

POE has described AOU as “one of the first American schools of Salafi learning” and states that its curriculum is based “in large part” on the works of Muhammad Surur, a founding member of the Syrian Muslim Brotherhood and the intellectual founder of a branch of Salafism. ³

Leadership

Jaafar Sheikh Idris is the founding chairman of American Open University (AOU). Idris is a Sudanese-born Saudi citizen and Salafi religious scholar. Idris worked at the Institute of Islamic and Arabic Sciences in America (IIASA), an American-based branch of the Imam Ibn Saud University in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, until 2004 when federal agents raided the school and revoked Idris’s visa. Prior to the raid, the Saudi government had ceased funding the school over concerns that it was promoting extremist forms of Islam. ³

According to the Middle East Forum (MEF), Idris considered democracy to be “the antithesis of Islam” claiming humans have no rights to make their own laws. He further claimed, “No one… can be a Muslim who makes or freely accepts or believes that anyone has the right to make or accept legislation that is contrary to the divine law.” ⁶

Sheikh Salah al-Sawy is a co-founder of AOU and was its president from 1995 to 2004. Al-Sawy is an Egyptian-born Salafi scholar who worked with the Muslim World League, lectured at the IIASA, and was a mentee of Idris. In 2004, al-Sawy founded the Sharia Academy of America, later known as the Islamic University of North America or Mishkah University. ³ Al-Sawy sits on the Resident Fatwa Committee of the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America, ⁷ which is associated with radical elements of the Salafi religious movement. ⁸

By 2018, Walid Idris al-Menesi was a member of the educational committee of AOU and earned his degree from the school in Islamic studies. Also at the time, Al-Menesi was a member of the Assembly of Muslim Jurists of America’s Fatwa Committee, president of the Islamic University of Minnesota (a Salafi seminary), and a trustee and regional head of the North American Imams Federation. ³

In 2022, Mustafa Ahmed was listed as the president of AOU and serves as a professor of Islamic Studies and Hadeeth Sciences at AOU. Ahmed earned his Bachelors, Masters, and Ph.D. from Ohio State University. ^{9 10}

By 2022, Anwar Hajjaj was listed as the director of AOU as well as president on the organization’s website. He is also a professor of Islamic Studies and Education at AOU. ^{11 12}  Hajjaj presided over the marriage of Jamal Khashoggi, a prominent Saudi journalist who was allegedly murdered by agents of the Saudi regime in 2018. ¹³

Financials

In 2022, American Open University reported $73,283 in revenue, spent $60,491, and $583,313 in assets. ⁹

1. “AOU at a Glance.” American Open University. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.aou.edu/aou-at-a-glance/.
2. “Homepage.” America Open University. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.aou.edu/.
3. Meleagrou-Hitchens, Alexander. “SALAFISM in AMERICA History, Evolution, Radicalization.” George Washington University. October 2018. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://extremism.gwu.edu/sites/g/files/zaxdzs5746/files/Salafism%20in%20America.pdf.
4. Zeidan, Adam. “Salafi movement.” Britannica. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.britannica.com/topic/Salafi-movement.
5. Moghadam, Assaf. “The Salafi-Jihad as a Religious Ideology.” Combatting Terrorism Center at West Point. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://ctc.westpoint.edu/the-salafi-jihad-as-a-religious-ideology/.
6.  MacEoin, Denis. “Keith Ellison’s Stealth Jihad.” Middle East Forum. Summer 2010. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.meforum.org/meq/pdfs/2756.pdf.
7.  “Resident Fatwa Committee.” AMJA. Accessed February 9, 2024. https://www.amjaonline.org/about/resident-fatwa-committee/
8. Ryan Mauro. “Influential U.S. Imam, Jurist: Hamas is Not a Terrorist Group.” Islamist Watch. August 7, 2014. Accessed February 12, 2024 https://www.meforum.org/islamist-watch/43621/influential-us-imam-jurist-hamas-is-not
9. “American Open University Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/541756821/202421189349300302/full.
10. “Professor of Islamic Studies & Hadeeth Sciences: Dr. Mustafa Ahmed.” American Open University. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.aou.edu/professor-of-professor-of-islamic-studies-hadeeth-sciences-dr-mustafa-ahmed/
11. ^[1] “American Open University Form 990.” ProPublica. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://projects.propublica.org/nonprofits/organizations/541756821/202421189349300302/full.
12. “President of American Open University: Anwar Hajjaj Ph.D.” American Open University. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.aou.edu/president-of-american-open-university-dr-anwar-hajjaj/.
13. Miller, Greg; Mekhennet, Souad. “Woman Says She Married Khashoggi in Ceremony Kept Secret from His Fiancée and Some in His Family [incl. Anwar Hajjaj].” Campus Watch. November 16, 2018. Accessed August 27, 2024. https://www.meforum.org/campus-watch/26087/woman-says-she-married-khashoggi-in-ceremony-kept.