FP: Some 500 “Saudis and other Arabs,” most of whom are probably Muslim, have signed up with a private company, Mars One, which promises to bring them to the Red Planet to establish a permanent human colony. But a new fatwa may force those would-be astronauts to put those plans on hold.
This week, a United Arab Emirates-based group called the General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowment (GAIAE) has issued a fatwaagainst living on Mars, reasoning that such an attempt would be akin to suicide, which is prohibited in Islam. “Such a one-way journey poses a real risk to life, and that can never be justified in Islam,” the committee said. “There is a possibility that an individual who travels to planet Mars may not be able to remain alive there, and is more vulnerable to death.” (In case you’re wondering: There is a fierce debate among Islamic scholars as to whether suicide bombings are forbidden or permitted because they are a “supreme form of jihad,” in the words of influential cleric Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi. Some Muslim clerics have even issued fatwas in support of suicide attacks despite the seemingly rock solid prohibitions against it under Islamic law.)
Categories: Asia
This whole article is twisting the facts. It seems the fatwa is against committing suicide, which in fact is prohibited in all religions. Many journalists just like to make Muslims look silly. They should look in the mirror.
Maybe somebody should tell suicide bombers that there is a Fatwa against committing suicide? Just saying…