Thursday March 28th, 2024
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Noah Faces Flood..of Complaints

Islamic hardliners have called on the Egyptian government to ban a movie which depicts the biblical character, Noah.

Staff Writer

Noah Faces Flood..of Complaints

In a move that suprised no one at all, Islamic hardliners have called on the Egyptian government to ban a movie which depicts the biblical character, Noah. The movie Noah tells the story of a man, a prophet in Islam, plagued by visions of a flood which causes him to build an ark in a desperate attempt to save his family.

However, conservative scholars from Al-Azhar University claim that the film, which stars Oscar-winner Russell Crowe, is banned in Islam and have called on the government to slap a ban on the movie. “Al-Azhar prohibits the screening of a film that characterizes Noah,” reads the title of a statement issued on Thursday by the top Muslim institution. “Al-Azhar renews its rejection to the screening of any production that characterizes Allah’s prophets and messengers and the companions of the Prophet.”

The statement also went on to explain that such movies are “contrary to faith and to the fundamentals of the Islamic Sharia and provokes people’s feelings.” Due to this, "al-Azhar announces the prohibition of the upcoming film about the Allah’s messenger Noah - peace be upon him.” The calls were backed by Salafi Sheikh Sameh Abdel Hameed, who added, “Depicting prophets in art is a crime; not art, that is harmful to the image of prophets.” He also went on to say that “depicting prophets opens the door for questioning their behavior … Actors cannot accurately imitate the behaviors, manners and appearances of prophets.”

The movie, which has already been banned in Qatar, Bahrain and the UAE, is set for release in Egypt on March 28. 

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