Indonesian Muslim group tells leader to resign over pro-Israel speaker

According to Reuters and local publications, Indonesia’s largest Islamic organization, Nahdlatul Ulama, has asked its chairman to step down after inviting an American scholar known for his unwavering support of Israel to a internal event earlier this year.

According to reports, the leadership of the largest Islamic organization in the world, the NU, has given Chairman Yahya Cholil Staquf three days to offer his resignation or have him resigned.

Staquf’s invitation to a person “affiliated with an international Zionism network,” who attended an internal event in August, as well as alleged financial mismanagement, were both cited by the organization as reasons for his resignation.

Najib Azca, a NU official, claimed Staquf’s decision to invite former US State Department official and scholar Peter Berkowitz to a training session led to calls for their resignation.

According to his website, Berkowitz frequently writes in support of Israel’s occupation of Gaza, with one article published in September that seeks to discredit Israel’s role in the Palestinian territories.

RealClearPolitics, Sept. 14, 2025, http://www. //t “Debunking Genocide Allegations Against Israel.” co/SGgL62vBvp

Berkowitz claimed in an opinion piece in October that “formal recognition of an imaginary Palestinian state backs up security, stability, and peace” and “panders to the growing Muslim population in Western democracies.”

It “contains the progressive notion that Israel’s belligerence rather than Palestinian intransigence and Hamas bloodthirstiness” is the main obstacle to a just and lasting solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, he said.

Berkowitz praised the organization’s chairman Staquf and wrote about the seminars he gave to NU participants in Indonesia in August.

Staquf, who has been in charge of the NU since 2021, did not respond to a request for comment right away.

According to Reuters reports, Staquf has apologized for the invitation to Berkowitz, claiming that it was an error and that it was based on a lack of thorough investigation.

According to local Indonesian media outlet Kompas, NU’s Secretary-General Yusuf Saifullah has urged its members to “main calm” and refrain from judging the news as “potentially misleading” which might worsen the situation.

According to Saifullah, NU members should “maintain a conducive spirit” because senior members were “handling the issue” “in accordance with applicable internal mechanisms.”