Is it permissible to take out an interest-bearing loan to pay the salaries of 300 workers, pending the disbursement of the employer's delayed dues, given that Islamic bank procedures are slow and the workers are urgently demanding their salaries?

Usury (Riba) is forbidden by Islamic law. Allah has threatened those who engage in it with the severest punishment. It is only permissible to engage in it in a state of necessity, which is when a person faces a dangerous situation or extreme hardship that threatens harm to life, limb, honor, intellect, or property. In such a case, committing what is forbidden becomes permissible to avert harm.

Borrowing with interest to pay off debts is not a necessity, nor does the insistence of workers on being paid their delayed salaries justify it. The creditor must grant respite to the debtor who is in hardship, as Allah Almighty says: "And if there is one in hardship, then [let there be] postponement until [a time of] ease." One who borrows with interest to pay off his debt is like someone seeking refuge from scorching heat in fire; it is a destroyer of blessings and its consequence is regret. Legitimate means must be pursued to obtain money, such as borrowing without interest.