“On a popular Islamic website he runs, Sheik Yusuf Al-Qaradawi and his colleagues host an advice column under the jaunty title ‘Fatwa Corner’, where all manner of thorny religious dilemmas are given an airing. Questions seeking his advice range from whether it is permissible to put down a sick cat to asking for guidance on sending a teenager to a mixed summer camp.
“But other subjects upon which the ‘Agony Sheik’ sits in judgment often have a considerably more chilling edge, such as: ‘Is it lawful, under Islam, to take hostages?’ The answer, in his view, is yes. But then this is the character claiming to be a man of peace who has heaped praise on Palestinian suicide bombers, called for the execution of homosexuals and backed a war on the Jews.”