Distinguished Swiss tutorial and Islam scholar Tariq Ramadan was acquitted of expenses of rape and sexual coercion on Wednesday, Could 24, as a Swiss courtroom discovered no proof towards him.
In response to The Telegraph, Ramadan, a former professor at Oxford College, was additionally granted roughly 151,000 Swiss francs (£135,113) in compensation by the Swiss canton of Geneva in relation to the case.
Upon listening to the decision, the 60-year-old Swiss preacher smiled and was embraced by one in every of his daughters. In the meantime, the accuser, recognized by the pseudonym “Brigitte,” left the courtroom earlier than the decision’s conclusion, as reported by AFP.
Ramadan confronted as much as three years in jail if convicted. He denied all the fees, however did admit to having met the girl, as per BBC.
The case concerned allegations made by a Swiss lady who claimed that Ramadan had raped her in a Geneva lodge in 2008. The girl, a convert to Islam, testified that she had endured a brutal sexual assault, bodily violence, and verbal abuse. She said that the incident occurred after Ramadan invited her for a espresso following a convention when he was an Oxford tutorial.
Who Is Tariq Ramadan?
Tariq Ramadan, 60, is a outstanding determine within the Islamic world and the grandson of Hasan al-Banna, the founding father of the Muslim Brotherhood in Egypt.
Ramadan has been acknowledged for his condemnation of terrorism and opposition to the demise penalty, making him a voice of purpose within the trendy Islamic sphere. Nevertheless, his criticism of the dearth of democracy led to him being denied entry to a number of nations, together with Tunisia, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Libya, and Syria.
In 2004, Time journal included Ramadan in its record of the 100 most influential individuals on the earth. He served as a professor of Islamic research at St Anthony’s Faculty, Oxford from 2007 till November 2017. Ramadan has additionally held visiting roles at universities in Qatar and Morocco.
Whereas he has garnered respect, Ramadan has additionally confronted criticism, notably in France, the place some outstanding lecturers accused him of anti-Semitism.
Ramadan’s profession took a big flip in 2017 when he was accused of rape by a French lady. This accusation was adopted by extra allegations of sexual assault from a number of girls, coinciding with the worldwide #MeToo motion. He was arrested in 2018 and spent practically 10 months in French detention earlier than being granted bail