Switzerland: Muslim man fined for publicly saying ‘Allahu Akbar’

Schaffhausen: A Muslim man is fined £178 (approx. Rs 32,000 in PKR) by Switzerland police for saying ‘Allahu Akbar’ publicly. 22-year-old, Orhan E. made the exclamation – Allahu Akbar which means ‘God is the greatest’ in Arabic _ after spotting a friend while walking through Schaffhausen, northern Switzerland, in May last year.

However, as he conversed with his friend an off-duty police officer approached him saying “loud and clear” use of the expression could have caused people to fear an imminent terror attack and



the passerby could have mistaken him for terrorists.

The man explained that the phrase he said has no sinister meaning and is used by Muslims almost every second sentence.

However, Police in the city of Schaffhausen charged him with causing a public nuisance. Orhan said he was threatened with prison if I didn’t pay the fine. Orhan was allegedly “manhandled” as well.

He was handed a fine of 150 Swiss francs and ordered to pay another 60 in costs, adding up to 210 francs (£170).