Al Walayah (also spelled Alwalayah) is a mosque in Montclair, California. ^{1 2} Although its internet presence is minimal, the Al Walayah mosque is best known for its controversial religious leader and scholar, Hamza Sodagar, who has expressed support for the Islamic Republic of Iran, the Iranian-backed Lebanese terrorist group and political movement Hezbollah, the enforcement of Sharia law, and the murder of gay men. ^{3 4 5}

Al Walayah hosts and publishes Sodagar’s religious lectures, some of which call for the destruction of the State of Israel and a global movement against Zionism. ³

Leadership Ties to Iran

Hamza Sodagar is the resident scholar of the Al Walayah organization. ⁶ Sodagar was born in Louisville, Kentucky and raised in Washington, D.C. ^{3 7} He spent over 14 years studying in Qom (also spelled Qum), Iran, specializing in Islamic law and principles of Islamic jurisprudence as well as Islamic philosophy. ⁷ Sodagar now travels the world as a Shiite religious scholar. ⁷

In 2010, Sodagar delivered a sermon during which he argued for the brutal murder of gay men according to Islamic law. He argued that under Sharia law, gay people should be beheaded, thrown off a cliff, or burned to death. This sermon incited controversy in 2016 when Sodagar was invited to give a series of lectures at the Ahlulbayt Islamic Mission at the Islamic Republic of Iran School in London. Several critics urged the United Kingdom Home Office to revoke Sodagar’s visa for these statements. The Ahlulbayt Mission defended Sodagar, claiming that he was not advocating murder, but rather explaining how the law works in an Islamic Republic following Islamic law. Sodagar was allowed to deliver the lectures. ⁸

Sodagar has a history of supporting and advocating for the Islamic regime in Iran and its proxies, especially Hezbollah in Lebanon. In 2012, Sodagar expressed his support of Iran when he praised the former supreme leader of Iran, Ruhollah Khomeini, at the Imam Khomeini Conference. ³

In a pro-Palestinian speech from May of 2019, Sodagar called it “unfortunate” when people walk on images of Islamic clerics including Hassan Nasrallah, the then-head of the Iranian-backed Lebanese political party and terrorist organization Hezbollah, whom Sodagar called “great ulama [scholars].” ⁴

In 2022, Sodagar told Al Walayah viewers in a sermon that the punishment for drinking is “80 lashes” and “100 lashes” for fornication. He then praised the Iranian regime for its adherence to Sharia law and expressed his desire for Western states including the United States, to be ruled by Sharia law. Middle East Forum quoted him arguing: ⁹   

“The Iranian people chose to be governed according to the Quran, and they chose as the Quran says—and as the Hadith say—to have a faqih [Islamic jurist] who is the best faqih that they can find—the most pious, the most righteous faqih, the most politically aware faqih, the most familiar-with-the-Quran faqih. They identified that person: first Imam Khomeini and now Ayatollah Khamenei. We want to be governed by them. We want to be governed according to the Quran.” ⁹

On April 9, 2023, Sodagar broadcast an online sermon hosted by Al Walayah. According to Middle East Forum, in the sermon Sodagar accused Western powers of trying to control “the Muslim world,” and called for the destruction of Israel. He also praised the Islamic Republic of Iran as the model for the Muslim world. Sodagar urged that “people on a global scale rise against Zionism.” He expressed his support for “the armed resistance organizations in Palestine” which he claimed “are doing what they need to do.” He argued that “what needs to happen and what will bring this regime [Israel] to its knees and dismantle the Zionist regime is a global march on Quds.” In the same sermon, Sodagar said “we need to support Hamas. We need to support Jihad al-Islami [Palestinian Islamic Jihad] and that can only come with an understanding of what they’re doing. We need to be clear on that, not just chant slogans.” ¹⁰

Former Leadership

Maulana Mirza Mohammad Ali Baig is the former resident alim (religious scholar) of the Al Walayah mosque, where he preached from 2015 to 2018. Baig, like Hamza Sodagar, studied Islamic law and jurisprudence in Qom, Iran. He is the author of several books related to Islamic law and religious practices, and he was a trustee of the Muslim Congress from 2006 until 2018. He is also the former chairman of Muslim Congress. ⁵

1. “About – Alwalayah.” Halal Trip. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.halaltrip.com/mosque-details/7222/alwalayah/#about
2. “Category: Al Walayah Organization.” Shia Muslim Council of Southern California. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://shiamuslimcouncil.org/category/alwalayah/
3. Johnston, Susannah. “Meet Hamza Sodagar, Tehran’s American Mouthpiece.” Middle East Forum. April 26, 2023. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.meforum.org/meet-hamza-sodagar-tehran-american-mouthpiece
4. “New American Islamic Seminary Trains Scholars in Extremism.” Clarion Project. August 5, 2019. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://clarionproject.org/2019/08/05/new-american-islamic-seminary-train-scholars-in-extremism/
5. “Husaynia Islamic Society of Seattle Facebook Post.” Facebook. June 3, 2020. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.facebook.com/husayniaseattle/photos/a.2124623657775312/2739177252986613/?type=3
6. “Hamzeh Sodagar.” Facebook. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.facebook.com/hamza.sodagar.12/
7. “Hamza Sodagar.” Nubda.com. Accessed October 13, 2024. http://nudba.com/wp/speakers/hamza-sodagar/
8. Fenton, Siobhan. “US Muslim preacher ‘who advocated beheading of gay men allowed to lecture in the UK.’” The Independent. October 7, 2016. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.the-independent.com/news/uk/home-news/hamza-sodagar-us-muslim-preacher-who-advocated-beheading-of-gay-men-allowed-to-lecture-in-the-uk-a7348886.html
9. “Hijab: Enforcement, Implementation, and Preservation of God’s Laws + Dua Kumayl — Sh. Hamza Sodagar.” Alwalayah – YouTube. September 22, 2022. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_tb6n5Ekt0s
10. “Let’s Talk Palestine.” Alwalayah – YouTube. April 11, 2023. Accessed October 13, 2024. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=z20HMWAgThQ&t=4307s