Spain recognizes Cherif as a refugee

As part of the ongoing outreach and community development program, the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light is featuring a series of interviews with the believers around the world who derive from a broad range of different creeds and circumstances, each having taken their own unique personal journeys.

This Ramadan special features an exclusive interview with Mohamed Ali Cherif (28) from Algeria, who is today a firm believer and follower of Abdullah Hashem, living in Spain. After persecution and imprisonment in Algeria, Cherif has been granted refugee status in Spain, as a persecuted member of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light. In safety, he now engages in public missionary work, without fear. His work on the streets of Barcelona has sparked the interest of several new Spanish believers in the faith.

Brother Sharif, how was your personal religious background and upbringing in Algeria?

I grew up in a simple and poor family from a somewhat closed mindset. Once I began to develop as a person with different thinking in this environment, I became more suspicious about my original belief system. In my childhood, I studied in government schools after deriving from an Islamic background, the dominant religion in Algeria. My parents both used to fast, pray, and perform all the core principles and duties of Islam. However, as I grew up, I began to face many questions in my own reflective thinking, especially in the Islamic religious education class at school. Many questions would come to my mind, and I was a very curious boy, annoying my teachers with constant questioning.

I had been searching for the truth since my early youth, and this research caused me many problems, especially a widening conflict with my father. Over time, I began to reject the prevailing Islamic religion and traditions because religious teachings were not being applied. I would pray during the Friday sermon, but sadly, people mainly did this just as a habit and did not apply anything in their daily life. No wonder, when I saw this, I chose to become non-religious at 16 years old, and I changed my point of view on life in general.

Hence, I soon became a musician, playing the guitar and various music, which became my special joy. My second hobby became media and programming, but as you know, in third-world countries, it is very difficult to gain any achievement.

How did you end up finding and beliving in the AROPL faith?

As for the deficiency in my life, I feel that the search and my spirit grew stronger every day. Since I was young, I had become accustomed to people around me calling me an infidel. I felt that I was free before God and had to ask questions, devoting much time to recognizing the truth. It took a long time, as I had been an atheist since the age of 16.

In 2021, I had a friend named Khireddine Ahmane, and together we talked about art and photography. He said to me, “By God, Cherif, you and I share several things, but one thing we do not share is belief.” When he said this, my answer was automatic: “If this belief is true, then I will follow it.” Khireddine told me that the savior, the Mahdi, had appeared. I felt that a new door had opened for me. Khireddine spoke to me about evidence of the religion of this great man, Aba Al-Sadiq. I felt a strange spiritual feeling as if my memory had returned again. I used to meet Khireddine day and night to listen to him. This issue was part of my thinking until I was certain that Aba Al-Sadiq was truthful and the right claimant, finally, when I saw his picture. I felt that the picture had passed through my memory for many years previously.

How did your situation develop with the AROPL faith in Algeria?

Living together in a community and sharing live with other believers is an essential part of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light. We, the supporters of God and His Messenger in Algeria, decided to follow suit and went to live together in one house. We left everything of this worldly life, ate the same food, drank the same drinks, and wore the same type of clothes.

After four months, the Algerian government stormed our community home. They wanted to suppress us and showed no shame, sparing us no embarrassment as they searched through our personal possessions and clothes. They began to investigate us as if we were suspected or even convicted criminals. There were many children in the community who were also traumatized and even put under investigation. After the investigation, they arrested three of us by order of the public prosecutor's office. I was included as one of those arrested. They accused us of publishing the call on our social media site, which was far from a crime under the Algerian constitution. The investigation was very psychologically exhausting for all of us involved and drained the health of the more vulnerable elderly members of the group.

How were you treated by the Algerian authorities?

We were imprisoned for "denigrating Islam" alongside with convicted murderers and criminals. The only thing that made us brave and strong was our faith in Aba al-Sadiq. I heard while I was in prison that my wife found out she was pregnant a week after my imprisonment. It was very hard for me to know that my wife had to go through her first pregnancy without me. To date, there has still been no verdict placed against us.

They phisically abused me on the first day of detention, but the psychological violence was greater and constant. The cell was narrow; we did not even have room to breathe properly, nor could we sit down. The quality of the food was disgusting. We received many verbal insults from the authorities, who deemed us heretical. For example, they said, “May God curse you, you are an infidel. You will die in prison.”

Nevertheless, we received blessings from God in prison and had several visions there. We felt that Abdullah Hashem was with us, supporting us every step of the way. If it were not for the spiritual energy and God’s blessings, we would not have passed that stage.

How did the AROPL community and Aba Al-Sadiq respond to support your campaign for freedom, and what was the outcome?

The members of the Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light moved quickly, contacted humanitarian organizations, and advanced the issue through human rights channels. Our pictures were circulated widely on social media, which played a major role in our salvation because the judge initially sentenced us to a full year and a fine. We were released within five months due to Sister Hadeel and Sister Yasmine’s efforts in contacting humanitarian organizations. Amnesty International released a statement in support of our group.

Cherif editing his media works

The danger is great for supporters in Algeria if they declare their religion and their following of Abdullah Hashem. I endured a catalog of persecutions and unfounded accusations and decided to go to Morocco, staying there for four months, and then to Turkey for a further four months. I had great faith that I would succeed in the mission, regardless of the current circumstances. I applied for asylum in Spain, which took me a year to obtain. I thank the Spanish government. They provided us with warm shelter, food, clothing, and treatment until the asylum case was successfully accepted. Today I can freely spread the message of Aba Al-Sadiq to the people of Spain.

How do you perceive your current state of affairs and future in the call of AROPL today?

I do not plan; I seek to be a useful element in Abdullah Hashem’s society and spread the truth and its call first and foremost. Ideally, like other faithful members, I want to live near the leader of the family of Muhammad to learn from him and be with him. He is ‘the great man’ in the world today. What advice do you give to the people seeking truth and God in their lives today?

Search for the truth and do not stop. It often requires digging and sifting through the dust to extract the jewels. God created you free, so try to be free in your thinking. Search for the truth with all your heart and know your goal—what you were created for on this earth. Think, search, and do not stop at any cost in reaching the goal of finding and supporting the truth.