Muslim who steals in America

29-7-2003 | IslamWeb

Question:

A Muslim steals something from a store in America, is he considered a thief?

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Answer:

Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds; and may His blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad and upon all his Family and Companions. Stealing is among the heinous crimes. Allah made it forbidden to honour human beings and to protect their right of ownership. So, it is forbidden for every one to trespass on the property of people since it is an illegal way to consume the property of people. Due to the repulsiveness of this sin Islamic Shariah sets a severe punishment, i.e. cutting the palm of a hand for everyone who commits this sin. In fact, by committing robbery this hand becomes like a diseased organ. So, it should be cut off to protect the body. Moreover, when a Muslim gets the visa of a country he has to regard the rules of that country and should not violate the rights of other persons. He has to follow the rules as long as they do not contain a sin. In addition, perhaps stealing in these countries is more dangerous than committing it in Islamic countries because he may get punished if he is captured. In addition, his act makes a bad impression for the whole Muslim Ummah. Furthermore by doing such bad acts he may keep non-Muslims from embracing Islam, or even cause some Muslims who have weak faith to give up Islam. Allah knows best.