Egypt Al-Azhar scholar supports French niqab ban

Middle East Online: "Egypt's Abdel Muti al-Bayyumi insists that full-face veil 'has no basis in Islamic law'.


CAIRO - A leading cleric at Egypt's prestigious Al-Azhar Mosque on Wednesday applauded France's ban on the face veil worn by some devout Muslim women, saying the niqab harmed Islam's image.

Abdel Muti al-Bayyumi, a member of an influential council of clerics at al-Azhar, said the niqab, a full-face veil that leaves an opening for the eyes, 'has no basis in Islamic law and there is nothing in the Koran or Sunna that supports it.'

'I personally support (the ban) and many of my brothers in the Islamic Research Academy support it. My position against the niqab is actually older than France's,' said Bayyumi, who has authored a book against the practice."