Al-Azhar issues fatwa against poverty in Egypt

Cairo, 2008 June 16, IQNA

A fatwa, or religious edict, issued by the Islamic Research Centre of the Al-Azhar University in Cairo has increased pressure on the Egyptian government to improve the plight of the poor. Many members of the county's population are currently suffering from the high price of food and steep inflation.

The university's edict demands that the state donate 20 percent of its profits from oil, gas and minerals to the poor as alms. The giving of alms, 'Zakat', is one of the five pillars of Islam, and required of every Muslim.

Given that the Islamic Research Centre is one of the highest authorities within the Sunni branch of Islam, the religious edict carries considerable weight within Egypt.