A Muslim residential training camp in England that had combat training and religious teachings took place despite warnings from Jewish groups and claims that it was run by a pro-Hezbollah preacher.
The Spiritual Warrior Camp took place between July 30 and August 3 in Darwin Lake, Derbyshire. It featured “God centric masculinity and brotherhood” with sessions by wrestling and striking coaches, business leaders, and Islamic scholars.
The organizers of the camp, the Spiritual Warrior Project, said it combined Islamic spiritual psychology and practical techniques to provide holistic guidance to men.
Shia preacher Sayed Hussain Makke, the leader of SWP, drew the most condemnation from Jewish groups, including Derbyshire Jewish Community and the Community Security Trust.
Makke has an extensive history of pro-Hezbollah comments and rhetoric. He attended the funeral of former Hezbollah Hassan Nasrallah in Beirut and has also made pro-Hamas and pro-Khamenei comments on social media. Makke wanted to travel to Australia in March, but Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke canceled his visa upon learning that he had attended Nasrallah’s funeral 10 days before.
'Freedom fighters'
Makke has called Nasrallah one of the world’s “greatest freedom fighters” and said the strong turnout at his funeral had shown the “resistance” was “alive and well.” Hezbollah is a listed terrorist organization in Australia, the UK, Israel, and the US.
Makke’s lawyers told British newspaper The Telegraph he was not a member of, and had not provided support to, any proscribed organization.
Makke has vehemently denied all accusations and denied claims about him and his camp in the Telegraph and The Jewish Chronicle.
He accused the Telegraph of attempting to smear him and of selectively redacting parts of his comments to it.
“This attempt to stir up hatred against our camp attendees originates from the infamous Zionist lobby group, United Against A Nuclear Iran (UANI), which until recently had two Mossad terror chiefs on its advisory board,” Makke said.
“That the Telegraph is laundering smears on behalf of the State of Israel should tell your readers who is calling the shots in today’s Britain. That must and will now end: the Zionist movement and its grip on British politics will be dismantled.”
He accused the Jewish Chronicle of “publishing a hatchet job against [him] and the Spiritual Warrior Project.”
“The piece will attempt to smear me for the crime of being a Lebanese Shi’a Muslim, and it will try to demonize Spiritual Warrior for doing essential work to nurture young Muslim men,” he said.
Makke said the Jewish Chronicle was a “propaganda outlet for the Zionist state.” A series of “falsified articles” by the publication was an example of “a direct channel for a disinformation campaign ordered by [Prime Minister] Binyamin Netanyahu,” he said.
“Neither I nor anyone else involved in the Spiritual Warrior Project will take lectures from an institution whose purpose is to further radicalize British Jewry to promote and execute genocide in the Levant,” Makke said.