A claim circulating online alleges that Sheikh Habeebullah Adam Al-Ilory, the leader of the Markaz Centre for Arabic and Islamic Studies in Agege, Lagos, stated that using satellite dishes at home would lead to damnation in hell.
This assertion gained traction after a now-deleted post by X user @Instablog9ja featured a video captioned: “Using a satellite dish is a sin, and those who do so will face damnation in hell — Sheikh Habeebullah Adam Al-Ilory.”
The post generated over 400 reposts and more than 1,000 likes as of April 24, 2025.
The post also appeared here and here.
CLAIM
Sheikh Habeebullah Adam Al-Ilory declared that individuals who use satellite dishes in their homes will enter hellfire.
THE FINDINGS
Findings by The FactCheckHub show that the claim is MISLEADING.
A look at the full video (1:17:00 – 1:20:00) shows that Adam was challenging extreme religious beliefs held by some sections of Muslims, which he says no longer reflect the realities of modern Islamic societies.
Citing an instance, he referenced a controversial claim in a certain book that using satellite dishes could prevent Muslims from entering paradise; a view he described as lacking proper understanding.
He said, “Let me give you an example (of those extremist views), they said anybody who uses a satellite dish and hangs it on the roof of their house and dies will not enter paradise because he/she committed ‘haram’. It’s a ruling (fatwa) that they made, and it’s written. If a woman wears trousers, dresses in front of her male child, drives a car or participates in politics, they say it’s haram. But women are now fighting for the right to drive cars in Saudi Arabia, and it’s no longer haram.
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“When I said it earlier in 2010 that women can be involved in politics, people criticised me. Not long after my statements in 2010, Saudi Arabia allowed women to vote and participate in politics. Presently, they’re training women in the military in Saudi Arabia and they now wear trousers. One cleric who criticised this evolution was quoting a part of the scripture, I believe he has no understanding of.”
In the full video, he was criticising views held by some clerics who declared modern conveniences and female participation in public life as haram (forbidden). He didn’t say that those who use modern items like a satellite dish will not enter paradise.
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THE VERDICT
The claim that Sheikh Habeebullah Adam Al-Ilory stated that individuals using satellite dishes will enter hellfire is MISLEADING. The video was taken out of context; in reality, the Sheikh was condemning extremist views that label modern conveniences as sinful
Nurudeen Akewushola is a fact-checker with FactCheckHub. He has authored several fact checks which have contributed to the fight against information disorder. You can reach him via nyahaya@icirnigeria.org and @NurudeenAkewus1 via Twitter.
