Tuesday
Nov232004
Locust fatwa
Issandr El Amrani
If you need another proof of why putting faith in fatwas is stupid:
Come to think of it, this might not be true. But it sounds just plausible enough considering the drivel that's been spouted by Al Azhar sheikhs lately.
Faced with an invasion of locusts, the highest Islamic religious institution in Egypt has reportedly issued an edict allowing people to eat locusts.
The independent al-Masri al-Yawm newspaper said al-Azhar Institute has decreed it is permitted by religion to eat the red desert locusts that have invaded the country during the past week.
It said al-Azhar has urged all Egyptians to "hunt the locusts and eat them to combat the crisis."
The newspaper quoted Abdul Hamid al-Atrash, the head of the Fatwa Commission in al-Azhar, as saying eating the locusts would "contribute actively in wiping them out, instead of the fear that has consumed the hearts of millions of people."
Al-Atrash said insects that feed off plants are deemed pure for human consumption.
Come to think of it, this might not be true. But it sounds just plausible enough considering the drivel that's been spouted by Al Azhar sheikhs lately.
Reader Comments (3)
There's also been some debate about http://www.haaretz.com/hasen/spages/504357.html">whether locusts are kosher.
Hilarious. But perhaps I spoke too fast, maybe they're tasty after all.
Until you've eaten deep-fried cockroach in Bangkok, you haven' t lived.