‘Dad, imam, God’: children living with self-declared pope in former UK orphanage
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A religious sect, whose leader claims to be the new pope and whose followers say he can make the moon disappear, is operating out of a former orphanage in Crewe, Cheshire, where at least a dozen children are being home schooled.
The Ahmadi Religion of Peace and Light (AROPL) was founded by Abdullah Hashem, a former documentary maker turned self-proclaimed “saviour of mankind” who uses YouTube and TikTok to proselytise to potential recruits.
One such video appears to feature a primary school-aged girl claiming she was cured of stomach pains after Hashem placed his hand on her.
Hashem urges followers to sell their possessions and donate their salaries to his cause. The religious group blends Islamic theology with conspiracy theories about the Illuminati and aliens secretly controlling US presidents.
AROPL says it is a peaceful, open and transparent religious movement derived from Shia Islam that has faced persecution around the world owing to its belief in equality and human rights.
It relocated to the Cheshire town, in the north-west of England, in 2021, moving into a former orphanage, Webb House, a Grade II-listed building worth £2m. The group was previously based in Sweden. The members were in effect barred from the country after a slew of businesses linked to the organisation were found to be providing sham visas.
About 100 followers are said to live at the Crewe headquarters, including families with children who are home schooled on site. During a recent visit on a weekday afternoon, a reporter saw more than a dozen young children playing in a yard. Elsewhere, adults in black beanie hats sat eating lunch or walking large guard dogs. (Hashem and his followers routinely wear black beanies, even in hot weather.)
The Guardian has reviewed court judgments, company filings, religious scriptures and videos and hundreds of pages of official documents about the group and its members, and interviewed several former members.
Some, including former residents of the headquarters at Crewe, expressed concern about the wellbeing and education of the children there. Cheshire East council’s social services twice made inquiries relating to the group or the children. There is no evidence action was deemed necessary.
Hashem, an Egyptian-American raised in Indiana, first made a name for himself making films in which he infiltrated and debunked cults in the US.
In 2008, he and his partner were sued after filming an undercover documentary about a Switzerland-based UFO religion. “We’re really building up our reputation for debunking the false prophet, UFO phenomenon,” Hashem told reporters while promoting his documentary.
Seven years later, he founded AROPL, declaring himself the Mahdi, a saviour figure from Islamic doomsday prophecy. He also claims to be the rightful pope, as well as the successor to the prophet Muhammad and Jesus.
Hashem’s scriptures are contained in his book, The Goal of the Wise. It declares his followers have a “duty” to donate their entire salary – keeping only deductions for basic living – and sell their houses or land to fund his mission to create a “divine” state.
Former members said they felt pressured to sever ties with people outside the group, and were encouraged to sell their properties to fund its activities. One woman said she handed over all the money she had received for her wedding; another follower said he donated about £33,000.
Content retrieved from: https://www.theguardian.com/world/2025/jul/01/children-living-former-uk-orphanage-ahmadi-religion-peace-light.
