Prominent Islamic Scholar Yusuf al-Qaradawi Has Declared That Israel Has No Right To Exist

Associated PressPublished: May 9, 2013

Hamas Prime Minister Ismail Haniyeh (C) meets with Egyptian Cleric and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi (L) and former Sudanese president Abdel Rahman Swar Al Dahab (R) after their arrival in Gaza City on May 9, 2013. Al-Qaradawi arrived on May 8, 2013 for his first visit to Gaza Strip with a delegation of Muslim scholars. | MOHAMMED ABED/AFP/Getty Images

GAZA CITY, Gaza Strip (AP) — A prominent Islamic scholar who is making a landmark visit to the Gaza Strip has declared that Israel has no right to exist.

Yusuf al-Qaradawi said Thursday that "this land has never once been a Jewish land. Palestine is for the Arab Islamic nation." The Qatar-based cleric was made famous by his popular TV show and is widely respected in the Muslim world.

Al-Qaradawi arrived in Gaza late Wednesday for a visit seen as a boost of legitimacy for the ruling Hamas militant group.

Hamas seized control of Gaza in 2007 following several days of fighting against the rival Palestinian faction Fatah.

The Fatah-dominated Palestinian Authority, which governs in the West Bank, has condemned al-Qaradawi's visit. It says his presence is cementing the rift between the two Palestinian factions.

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