Experts say the Duchess of Sussex has been ‘poorly advised’ and a simple internet search should have raised some questions.

Meghan visited the Al Manaar Hubb Community Kitchen in a West London mosque after helping them write a cookbook following the devastating Grenfell fire disaster.
 
Meghan, Duchess of Sussex visits the Hubb Community Kitchen in London on November 21, 2018 to celebrate the success of their cookbook (Picture: AFP)

The Hubb lease the space in the mosque, which is run by Imam Samer Darwish, who has preached a number of inflammatory views on social media.

He has said that girls who listen to music may become strippers and women should not pray on their period or cry when visiting graves.

The anti-extremism think tank, Henry Jackson Society (HJS), has also linked the mosque to 19 jihadists, according to the Telegraph.

Advertisement
Advertisement
They include three of the four so-called ‘Beatles’, the Isis terror cell charged with torturing and killing hostages in Syria and Iraq.

The link and especially Darwish’s words are likely to upset the Duchess who is known for her strong feminist stance.


The 37-year-old has paid a secret trips to the Westbourne Grove centre to help the community still reeling from the deaths of 72 people in the Grenfell blaze.

She visited the newly-renovated kitchen to help cook meals for the community and their joint Cookbook Together has already raised £210,000.

The HJS say the mosque has links to 19 jihadists, including Mohammed Emwazi, the Isis murderer also known as Jihadi John.

Others with links include Choukri Ellekhlifi, Alexanda Kotey and Aine Davis. Ellekhlifi was killed in 2013 near Aleppo, Syria.

Kotey is currently in solitary confinement in Syria accused of being an Isis bodyguard while Davis was present for the beheadings of hostages, including British aid workers Alan Henning and David Haines.
There is no suggestion the mosque or Darwish supported their activities.
The main preacher, Darwish, has also used YouTube to promote extreme views about the rights of women.

In one clip, he says listening to music or dancing is a sin.

Advertisement
Advertisement
Dr Alan Mendoza, executive director of the HJS, said the Duchess of Sussex had been ‘poorly advised’ over her involvement with the mosque.

‘This is not one or two isolated cases but 19 separate individuals.


‘A simple Google search would have highlighted concerns over these connections, and the recently expressed views of Imam Darwish.’

A Kensington Palace source said the ‘Hubb’ is an independent project that leases space from Al Manaar, adding: ‘The project is empowering the women and helping provide some hope and joy to a community that has gone through unspeakable tragedy.’

Abdulrahman Sayed, chief executive of Al Manaar, said: ‘Al Manaar has been on the record rejecting and condemning extremism and terrorism.’

He said the mosque could not be held responsible for anything Imam Darwish said outside its walls but added: ‘I’m happy to look at what he said and have a word with him about that language.’