Qaradawi upset over Palestinian leader’s comment

Doha-based Muslim scholar Sheikh Dr Yusuf al-Qaradawi yesterday expressed anguish at the comments of Palestinian National Authority on Hamas leader Ismail Haniya’s granting him a Palestinian passport.

Delivering his Friday sermon at Omar Ibn Al-Khattab Mosque, he became emotional while recalling the comment that said “those who are not authorised gave to who does not deserve,” meaning that Haniya was not authorised to give a Palestinian passport to Qaradawi.

“I have been promoting and defending the Palestinian cause since I was 15 years old. It has been almost 72 years now and I am raising the issue in different ways: in my sermons, writings, prayers and other possible means. I also consider it as a duty on all to do so, whether in deeds or words,” he said.

Qaradawi also pointed out that the passport is only symbolic and he would not have to use it in anyway. He called on all Palestinian factions to reunite and address the cause as one powerful force.