Sometimes the Fatwas (religious decrees) issued in the Middle East approach the surreal. “There is an urgent threat confronting the Arab nation and Muslims in general, yet you are oblivious to it. Didn’t you notice that Satan is everywhere?” Pierre Abi-Sa’b, a regular columnist for Lebanon’s independent pro-opposition newspaper Al-Akhbar, wrote on October 7.
For example, influential Saudi cleric and religious scholar Muhammad Al-Habadan issued a fatwa demanding that Saudi women wear a full veil or Niqab that reveals only one eye.
“Simply because ‘if a woman shows both her eyes then this might encourage her to wear eye makeup, which might cause seduction’, and seduction, as we all know, comes from the devil,” he commented.
The Sheikh, who is said to have wide influence among religious Saudis, was answering questions on the Muslim satellite channel Al-Majd when he issued the Fatwa. On describing the proposed veil, Al-Habadan said that women must wear a Niqab that has a net around the eyes; on the net, a patch made of fabric to be used by women to cover one of their eyes while in public.
However, he did grant women some latitude by allowing them to lift the patch if they are examining a product while shopping at a store. The Lebanese television station, Al-Jadeed noted that Saudi women "would look much more like pirates but without a parrot on the shoulder."
This latest Saudi Fatwa will be added to the list of criminal and religious Fatwas issued by the rulers of Saudi Arabia amidst the silence of State legislators and the Kingdom's Emirs.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Salih Haydan issued a death Fatwa against owners of all satellite television networks that broadcast shows that spread strife, corruption and magic.
Furthermore, Sheikh Mohammad Al-Munajad, a Saudi-Palestinian clerk, issued a death Fatwa against the cartoon character, Mickey Mouse - the "little corrupter."
Also, Sheikh Salih Fawzan, a member of Muslim High Scholar Institution, has said presenters of horoscopes on Arab television should be killed with the use of a sword because they are sorcerers; the Sheikh added that prayers should not be held for them.
Meanwhile, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia's Highest Religious Authority, Sheikh Abed-Aziz Al-Sheikh, attacked the TV series, Noor, because it fuels anti-God and anti-Prophet sentiments.
Finally, the most controversial Fatwa was the religious decree issued by the head of Al-Azhar's Department of Hadith, or teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, Sheikh Ezzat Atteyah, who allowed the breastfeeding of adults. Atteyah argued that if a man nursed from a female co-worker, it would establish a family bond between them and allow the two to work side-by-side without raising suspicion of an illicit sexual relation.
“All these reports should have come under the category of jokes if they weren’t issued by influential figures in an influential state, i.e. the kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Abi-Sa’b of Lebanon's Al-Akhbar wrote.
“This country is the cornerstone for building the new Middle East and is the flag-bearer for Arab ‘moderation’. So who can explain to us what ‘extremism’ is then?”
However, he did grant women some latitude by allowing them to lift the patch if they are examining a product while shopping at a store. The Lebanese television station, Al-Jadeed noted that Saudi women "would look much more like pirates but without a parrot on the shoulder."
This latest Saudi Fatwa will be added to the list of criminal and religious Fatwas issued by the rulers of Saudi Arabia amidst the silence of State legislators and the Kingdom's Emirs.
Meanwhile, Sheikh Salih Haydan issued a death Fatwa against owners of all satellite television networks that broadcast shows that spread strife, corruption and magic.
Furthermore, Sheikh Mohammad Al-Munajad, a Saudi-Palestinian clerk, issued a death Fatwa against the cartoon character, Mickey Mouse - the "little corrupter."
Also, Sheikh Salih Fawzan, a member of Muslim High Scholar Institution, has said presenters of horoscopes on Arab television should be killed with the use of a sword because they are sorcerers; the Sheikh added that prayers should not be held for them.
Meanwhile, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia's Highest Religious Authority, Sheikh Abed-Aziz Al-Sheikh, attacked the TV series, Noor, because it fuels anti-God and anti-Prophet sentiments.
Finally, the most controversial Fatwa was the religious decree issued by the head of Al-Azhar's Department of Hadith, or teachings of the Prophet Muhammad, Sheikh Ezzat Atteyah, who allowed the breastfeeding of adults. Atteyah argued that if a man nursed from a female co-worker, it would establish a family bond between them and allow the two to work side-by-side without raising suspicion of an illicit sexual relation.
“All these reports should have come under the category of jokes if they weren’t issued by influential figures in an influential state, i.e. the kingdom of Saudi Arabia,” Abi-Sa’b of Lebanon's Al-Akhbar wrote.
“This country is the cornerstone for building the new Middle East and is the flag-bearer for Arab ‘moderation’. So who can explain to us what ‘extremism’ is then?”