The Grand Mufti of Egypt has issued a controversial fatwa stating that Zakat money can be spent on the military and state police to “fight extremism”.
Mufti Shawki Allam said in a TV interview during the “Mufti Dialogue” show, that “the old scholars interpreted ‘money for God’ as spending Zakat money on weapons and soldiers fighting enemies, and this is a security struggle, along with the intellectual confrontation of extremism.”
He added that “methods of confronting extremism have changed from the days of the Prophet until now.”
The Grand Mufti explained that failing to fight extremists leads to corruption and the collapse of society.
He said: “The pen next to the gun, as the word and thought fighting is exactly equal to the security struggle.”
Mufti Allam’s edict sparked outrage on social media from activists, fellow scholars and students of knowledge who considered his fatwa to be a green light for the military and security forces to seize the Zakat money in Egypt under the pretext of “fighting terrorism”.
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