<p>The General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta, the official fatwa-issuing body of the government, attacked what it called "libellous, insulting and damning" statements against Aisha.<br /><br />"Insulting the companions of the messenger of Allah, or impugning his family's honour via his wives, is committing a great crime, especially talking about (Aisha)," it said in a statement yesterday on the official SPA news agency.<br /><br />The statement, which has the weight of an official fatwa, or authoritative religious opinion, appeared to be a reaction to the disparaging remarks against Aisha made in early September by exiled Kuwaiti Shiite activist Yasser al-Habeeb.<br /><br />Habeeb made his remarks in a ceremony in his London office to mark Aisha's death, triggering new tensions between Kuwait's majority Sunni and minority Shiite communities that threatened to expand around the Gulf.<br /><br />Aisha is held up as "The Mother of Believers" by Sunni Muslims. But many Shiites disdain her as having had a role in the events that split the two main Islamic communions.<br /><br />After Habeeb's remarks Kuwait authorities banned protests to quell potential violence and then stripped him of his citizenship.<br /><br />Habeeb has lived in in England since 2004 after fleeing Kuwait to escape a lengthy jail sentence for making abusive remarks about Islam's first two caliphs, who are rejected by Shiites.<br /><br />Some critics linked Habeeb's incendiary comments on Aisha to predominantly Shiite Iran's alleged attempts to stir up conflict in the Gulf.<br /><br />According to media reports, however, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself issued a fatwa on October 2 forbidding attacks on Aisha or other revered Sunni figures.<br /><br />Inside Saudi Arabia, where the Shiite community comprises 10 per cent or more of the population, a Shiite community leader also quickly came out to condemn Habeeb's remarks.<br /><br /></p>
<p>The General Presidency of Scholarly Research and Ifta, the official fatwa-issuing body of the government, attacked what it called "libellous, insulting and damning" statements against Aisha.<br /><br />"Insulting the companions of the messenger of Allah, or impugning his family's honour via his wives, is committing a great crime, especially talking about (Aisha)," it said in a statement yesterday on the official SPA news agency.<br /><br />The statement, which has the weight of an official fatwa, or authoritative religious opinion, appeared to be a reaction to the disparaging remarks against Aisha made in early September by exiled Kuwaiti Shiite activist Yasser al-Habeeb.<br /><br />Habeeb made his remarks in a ceremony in his London office to mark Aisha's death, triggering new tensions between Kuwait's majority Sunni and minority Shiite communities that threatened to expand around the Gulf.<br /><br />Aisha is held up as "The Mother of Believers" by Sunni Muslims. But many Shiites disdain her as having had a role in the events that split the two main Islamic communions.<br /><br />After Habeeb's remarks Kuwait authorities banned protests to quell potential violence and then stripped him of his citizenship.<br /><br />Habeeb has lived in in England since 2004 after fleeing Kuwait to escape a lengthy jail sentence for making abusive remarks about Islam's first two caliphs, who are rejected by Shiites.<br /><br />Some critics linked Habeeb's incendiary comments on Aisha to predominantly Shiite Iran's alleged attempts to stir up conflict in the Gulf.<br /><br />According to media reports, however, Iran's supreme leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei himself issued a fatwa on October 2 forbidding attacks on Aisha or other revered Sunni figures.<br /><br />Inside Saudi Arabia, where the Shiite community comprises 10 per cent or more of the population, a Shiite community leader also quickly came out to condemn Habeeb's remarks.<br /><br /></p>