Third London attacker named as imams refuse to perform funeral rites
FOX NEWS - British police on Tuesday named the final member of the terror trio who murdered seven people on Saturday in a knife and van attack before police shot the jihadis dead -- and the news comes as more than 130 Muslim religious leaders were refusing to say funeral prayers for any members of the ISIS cell.
The decision by the Muslim leaders was seen as an "unprecedented" move because the funeral ritual is typically performed on a deceased Muslim no matter the person's past actions. The group of religious leaders have urged others to join them in declining to pray for the dead killers.
“We, as Muslim Imams and religious leaders, condemn the recent terror attacks in Manchester and London in the strongest terms possible,” the Muslim leaders said in a statement. “Coming from a range of backgrounds, and from across the U.K.; feeling the pain the rest of the nation feels, we have come together to express our shock and utter disgust at these cold-blooded murders. We are deeply hurt that a spate of terror attacks have been committed in our country once more by murderers who seek to gain religious legitimacy for their actions. We seek to clarify that their reprehensible actions have neither legitimacy nor our sympathy.”
U.S. Secretary of State Rex Tillerson applauded the move. He said he was encouraged by the imams and said that the decision means "they're condemning their souls" since the funeral prayer asks for forgiveness of the dead.
"And that is what has to be done," he said.