Hate preacher mentioned by BBS is a Qatari citizen - Egyptian Embassy

The Embassy of the Arab Republic of Egypt in Colombo states that Bodu Bala Sena (BBS) General Secretary Ven Galagodaththe Gnanasara Thera has wrongly associated Egypt with alleged hate preacher Yusuf Al- Qaradawi during his evidence given before the Commission of Inquiry into the Easter Sunday attacks on June 13.  

Issuing a statement, the embassy states that Al- Qaradawi, a "fundamentalist theologian and hate preacher," is a Qatari citizen. It notes that he was stripped of his Egyptian citizenship and banned from Egypt decades ago. 

According to the Egyptian embassy, Al-Qaradawi has been residing in Qatar since the 1960s and holds the Qatari citizenship only.

"Being one of the fountainheads of the banned terrorist Muslim Brotherhood organization, fanning religious hatred and promoting a cult of violence, Al-Qaradawi has been stripped of the Egyptian citizenship, banned from Egypt decades ago, and escaped a life sentence in absentia issued by Egyptian courts of law. Charges against him include the implementation of acts of terrorism and violence inside Egypt that resulted in the loss of dozens of lives, the preparation of terrorist schemes in cooperation with the leaders of the Muslim Brotherhood, embracing extremist Takfiri ideas, conspiring against the Egyptian people to perpetuate chaos and undermining the national security of Egypt. His name appears on the terror list of Egypt and several other peace-loving countries. It is deplorable that he remains unchecked by his host country and continues to receive support and sponsorship. Egypt and other Arab countries have collectively designated 59 individuals and 12 institutions that have financed terrorist organizations and received support from certain countries in the region, including Al-Qaradawi and his so called “International Union of Muslim Scholars”," the statement observes. 

"Along the same line, Al-Azhar, Egypt’s prestigious seat of enlightened Islamic education, has expelled Al- Qaradawi long ago, considering him an incendiary extremist ideologue. Al-Azhar and its renowned Observatory for Combating Extremism have been in the forefront of countering extremist ideologies and practices and rejecting acts of religious violence worldwide. Al-Azhar has condemned in the strongest terms the heinous Easter Sunday attacks in Sri Lanka and expressed its full solidarity with the Sri Lankan government and people. Al-Azhar Sri Lankan graduates have previously confronted and refuted the extremist ideas of the National Tawheed Jamaat leaders in Sri Lanka on several occasions prior to the Easter Sunday attacks, one of which has been highlighted in the Sri Lankan press (see Daily Mirror edition of 27 April 2019). It is worth mentioning that several Muslim and non-Muslim countries have approached Al-Azhar for assistance in modernizing education and confronting Islamic extremism, including Christian- Buddhist- and Hindu-majority countries," it further stresses. 

The embassy adds that Egypt and its enlightened institutions will continue providing support to Sri Lanka in eradicating extremism. "Both countries are facing the same threats and confronting the same enemy," the statement emphasizes.