Ruling on appointing women to positions of high public office
Question Is it legal islamicly to acknowledge females as our leader? Answer Praise be to Allaah. Positions of leadership and high public office means taking on the mission of establishing Islam by reviving religious knowledge and establishing its foundations, engaging in jihaad for the sake of Allaah – which includes preparing armies and distributing war booty – establishing the judicial system, carrying out judicial punishments (hudood), fighting oppression, enjoining what is good and forbidding what is evil, acting as a deputy of the Prophet SAWS (peace and blessings of Allaah be upon him). There is no dispute among the scholars that one of the conditions of the imaam or leader is that he should be male. Ibn Hazam reported in his book Maraatib al-Ijmaa’ that there was scholarly consensus on this point. In the section he says: “Out of all groups of the people of the Qiblah [i.e., all Muslim sects], there is not one that allows the leadership of women.” Al-Qurtubi reporte...