LONDON: A London mosque is facing a regulatory investigation after an Imam was shown in an online lecture encouraging husbands to physically discipline their wives for disobeying them, with the remarks prompting a complaint to the Charity Commission.
Yasin Munye, an Muslim Imam and teacher at Hackney Islamic Community Centre in east London, discussed what he described as major sins in Islam during a lecture posted on the mosque’s YouTube channel. Among the issues he addressed were disobedience by wives and leaving the house without a husband’s permission.
Mr Munye said husbands should first advise their wives and then boycott them in bed before physically disciplining them. “Advise her, and boycott her in bed, don’t touch her in bed, and discipline them [wives] physically as well, by lightly hitting them to show them who is in charge,” he said.
The comments have drawn attention to the issue of wife beating and the interpretation of discipline under Islamic Sharia law. The National Secular Society (NSS) subsequently referred Hackney Islamic Community Centre to the Charity Commission, arguing that material published by the centre conflicts with the requirements associated with charitable status.
Claims over women’s rights and marital discipline
The NSS said the same lecture contained remarks concerning relations between husbands and wives, including the assertion that disobeying a husband and leaving the house without his permission constituted sins.
The organisation also referred to another video featuring Abu Sa’ad Muhammad, a teacher at the east London mosque. According to the NSS, he described it as an “unfortunate reality” that many women felt entitled to call the police when their husbands had hit them. The NSS said the centre had hosted lectures discussing whether women could refuse their husbands sex and other issues relating to marital obligations under Islamic Sharia law.
Megan Manson, head of campaigns for the NSS, said the charity had hosted lectures that promoted violence against women, stated that women could not refuse their husbands sex and condoned the death penalty for gay men and people accused of “witchcraft”.
“This charitable purpose must be urgently reviewed,” she said, arguing that the advancement of religion as a charitable purpose could facilitate the promotion of ideas that fuel discrimination, division and abuse.
Claims over homosexuality and Sharia punishments
Mr Munye also described gay sex as “one of the most evil acts” and “a crime”, according to the lecture cited by the NSS. He said both participants should be “executed in the Sharia”, referring to punishments including execution by sword or being thrown from a building.
The NSS said the remarks were among the reasons it had raised concerns with the Charity Commission. It also cited the broader issue of material concerning homosexuality and punishment under Islamic Sharia law.
Homosexuality is punishable by execution under the laws of countries including Iran, Saudi Arabia and Yemen. Islamic State also executed men accused of homosexuality by throwing them from tall buildings during the late 2010s.
Hackney Islamic Community Centre describes its purpose as supporting “mankind” in efforts to “advance the Islamic faith”. The centre receives several tax exemptions as a registered charity. In April 2026, the mosque transitioned from a standard trust into a charitable incorporated organisation, allowing its trustees to separate personal liability for debts and enabling the centre to own property under charity law.
The Charity Commission confirmed that it had received the NSS complaint and opened a regulatory compliance case. A spokesman said concerns had been raised about sermons and social media content linked to Hackney Islamic Community Centre and that the regulator would assess them before determining whether further action, including a statutory inquiry, was warranted.
