Islamic scholar facing rape charges hospitalised
PARIS: Prominent Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan, who was remanded in custody in France on rape charges earlier in the month, has been hospitalised due to multiple sclerosis, his support group said.
The 55-year-old Oxford University professor, who will now undergo an independent medical evaluation to determine if he is to remain in jail before trial, was sent to hospital, a source close the case confirmed.
“His state of health is getting worse, particularly since the judges refused to issue a visit permit to his wife and children,” a source close to Ramadan said. Another source close to the case said he would remain in hospital yesterday.
Ramadan’s lawyers said that their client’s condition was ‘not compatible with detention’, based on an initial medical examination. Charged with rape and rape of a vulnerable person, Ramadan had been held at the Fleury-Merogis prison near Paris since Feb 2.
A court ordered Ramadan be detained ahead of his trial, saying he was a possible flight risk and fearing potential pressure on women who testified anonymously.
A Paris appeals court ordered the medical evaluation and postponed its ruling on his detention until Feb 22 after Ramadan went to the hearing in an ambulance.
The arrest of the influential academic – a regular on TV debates with more than two million Facebook followers – has rocked the French Muslim community. — Reuters