Special Dispatch No. 4592 Recently, several police officers in Egypt requested permission to wear beards, with some growing them before obtaining a response. The police authorities responded to the requests by launching an investigation against the officers and even suspending some of them from service, on the grounds that they had violated the regulations of the Interior Ministry, to which the police force is subordinate. In their defense, the officers said that growing a beard did no harm to anyone and was part of their individual rights. They added that the decision to penalize them for their request was arbitrary and contrary to Egypt's religious discrimination law. Some of the officers insisted that their request was backed by a 1981 fatwa by former Al-Azhar sheikh Gad Al-Haqq, according to which soldiers must not be forced to shave their beards, as this contravenes the shari'a and Article Two of the Egyptian constitution, which specifies Islam as the state religion. The police officers involved in the affair launched a Facebook group called "I Am a Bearded Police Officer." The group's page charges that the police regulation requiring officers to shave daily is unjust as well as contrary to Islam and the shari'a. A spokesman from the Facebook group said that some 300 police officers had requested permission to grow beards, and that the matter would be decided not by the Interior Ministry but by Al-Azhar, as the institution responsible for issuing fatwas. One of the suspended officers explained that a request for permission to grow beards had been submitted to the Interior Ministry in February 2011, but that the ministry had not responded, which, according to the officer, meant that it had no objections. Egyptian Interior Minister Muhammad Ibrahim said that any police officer who grew a beard would be brought before a disciplinary committee and that legal steps would be taken against him, including suspension from service. He said his ministry had consulted Egyptian clerics on the matter, who had ruled that growing a beard is a custom ('adda) rather than a religiously recommended practice (sunna), while police regulations obligated police officers to maintain a respectable, clean-shaven appearance. To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6202.htm. Special Dispatch No. 4591 Following are excerpts from an interview with Egyptian presidential candidate Bassem Khafagi, which aired on Al-Hekma TV on March 14, 2012. To view this clip on MEMRI TV visit, http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/3372.htm. For more on Khafagi, see MEMRI Special Dispatch No. 4571, "Bassem Khafagi, Former CommunityRelations Director of Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and A Founder of Islamic Assembly of North America (IANA) – Who In 2003 Was Convicted In U.S. and Deported – Says In His Presidential Campaign in Egypt: I Pledge To 'Complete Implementation of Islamic Law'", March 14, 2012, http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6175.htm. Interviewer: "What is your position with regard to the Shiites and Iran?" Bassem Khafagi: "In my view, there are two enterprises of equal importance: a Persian enterprise and a Shiite enterprise. When it comes to the Shiite enterprise, I embrace the Sunni view: We are Islam, and there is a deviant sect. This deviant sect cursed the Prophet Muhammad and his wives, and they invoke the idols of the Quraysh tribe in their prayers." To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6201.htm. Special Dispatch No. 4590 Following are excerpts from a statement by Egyptian cleric Wagdi Ghoneim, which was posted on the Internet on March 18, 2012: To view this clip on MEMRI TV visit, http://www.memritv.org/clip/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/3373.htm. Wagdi Ghoneim: "Praise be to Allah. With the grace of Allah, the head of unbelief and polytheism, known as Shenouda, died yesterday, may Allah exact revenge from him. " To read the full report, visit http://www.memri.org/report/en/0/0/0/0/0/0/6200.htm.In Egypt, Public Debate Over Police Officers Requesting to Grow Beards;
Egyptian Pres. Cand. and Fmr CAIR Rep.: I Never Loved the U.S., the Infidel Country;
Egyptian Cleric Praises Allah for Pope Shenouda III Death
MEMRI Daily: March 20, 2012
In Egypt, Public Debate Over Police Officers' Requests for Permission to Grow Beards
The Facebook group "I Am a Bearded Police Officer"Egyptian Presidential Candidate and Former Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) Official Bassem Khafagi: 'I Never Loved the U.S., the Infidel Country'
Egyptian Cleric Wagdi Ghoneim Praises Allah for the Death of Pope Shenouda III: 'May Allah Exact Revenge from Him in the Hellfire'
Tuesday, 20 March 2012
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