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Khaled refrained from discussing politics or fatwas
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By
Abdul Rahim Ali, Hani Mohammad, IOL Cairo correspondents
CAIRO,
November 11 (IslamOnline) – Amr Khaled, the famous Egyptian da‘iya
(caller to Islam), has traveled to the U.K. to prepare his PhD, his
wife told IslamOnline, while TV sources close to Khaled, added that he
preferred to study rather than be “in conflict with any
authority.”
Khaled’s
wife said that her husband has received a four year scholarship from
the University of Wales to study the Prophet’s life and that she too
will join her husband during the month of Ramadan.
She
added that the thesis her husband’s working on is on the “The
Concepts of Disciplining in the Prophet’s Life: A Comparative Study
On the Concepts of Disciplining in the West.”
She
also said that Khaled traveled before the end of the visa’s
validity, and denied any harassment that may have caused his decision
to travel.
Sources
close to Khaled said that there have been increasing problems in his
way recently, adding that he preferred to study in a field he was
interested in, rather than angering anyone from his shows on Arab and
satellite channels.
She
added that he will not carry out any talks from the U.K. as he wishes
to be a full time student and that he will continue his former
activities after he finishes it.
IslamOnline
found out that Khaled’s friends received a message from him on their
mobiles from the U.K. greeting them for the start of Ramadan and
informing them of his new numbers in the U.K.
With
regards to the shows that are being broadcast currently on Lebanese
Broadcasting Corporation (LBC) channel, sources have added that they
are previously recorded episodes that were broadcast on ART’s
satellite channel.
Several
rumors were circulating in the streets of Cairo on Khaled’s
disappearance and surrounding the reasons his lessons which took place
in a mosque in west Cairo stopped, especially since he refrained from
discussing politics or fatwas.
One
of the rumors said that Muslim scholars were envious of Khaled’s
popularity which made them complain to the Al-Azhar on his lack of
knowledge and they therefore asked the authorities to stop him from
giving lessons.
Other
suspicions included that the supreme authorities who plan Egypt’s
strategies in terms of security, have been weary of Khaled’s
phenomena.
This
is especially that several studies conducted by these authorities have
indicated that most of the people who attend his lectures are sons and
daughters of the elite and many of them politicians who run the
country, who are expected to hold vital positions in the future.
Political
sources said that the reason Khaled was stopped from giving lectures
comes as Egypt is being accused for inciting hatred against Americans
and promoting thoughts that are detrimental to the bilateral relations
between the two countries.
Speaking
to IslamOnline, Abul Ela Madi, board member of the Egyptian Cultural
and Dialogue Association, said that stopping Khaled from giving
lessons, regardless of the reasons, is a stupid decision which aims to
“limit the religious phenomena especially among the elite and
rich.”
