Zakat (Tax)
Zakāt (زكاة) is one of the Five Pillars of Islam. As a compulsory (fard) requirement of Islam, every year 2.5% of one's wealth must be given away to poor or needy Muslims.
Slaves and horses owned by Muslims are exempt from this taxation,[1][2] and it is generally agreed that non-Muslims are not to benefit from the alms giving.[3] This has led to mainstream Islamic charities, like Islamic Relief, almost exclusively[4] focusing their humanitarian work in Muslim majority nations or areas in non-Muslim countries which are heavily populated by Muslim minorities.
In the aftermath of the 2010 Pakistan floods, many Christian survivors were denied aid supplied by Muslim charities for this very reason.[5]
See Also
- Zakat - A hub page that leads to other articles related to Zakat
- Accidents and Natural Disasters in the Muslim World
External links
References
- ↑ "Narrated Abu Huraira: Allah's Apostle said, "There is no Zakat either on a horse or a slave belonging to a Muslim"" - Sahih Bukhari 2:24:542
- ↑ "Narrated Abu Huraira :- The Prophet said,"There is no Zakat either on a slave or on a horse belonging to a Muslim." - Sahih Bukhari 2:24:543
- ↑ Haytham bin Jawwad al-Haddad - The way of giving Zakat al-Fitr in non-Islamic Lands - IslamAwakening
- ↑ Islamic Relief and the Myth of Non-Discriminating Muslim Charity - TROP
- ↑ Pakistan: some Christians denied aid unless they convert to Islam - Catholic Culture, September 6, 2010