Qur'an desecration
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| Qur'an reading | |
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| Qur'an and Sunnah | |
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Qur'an desecration is defined as insulting the Qur'an, the holy book of Islam, by defiling or defacing it. Most traditional schools of Islamic law dictate that a Muslim may not touch the Qur'an, which is regarded as the literal word of God in its untranslated Arabic form, unless he or she is in a state of ritual purity (wudu). Muslims must always treat the book with reverence, and are forbidden, for instance, to pulp, recycle, or simply discard worn-out copies of the text; instead, burning or burying the worn-out copies in a respectful manner is required. [1] Respect for the written text of the Qur'an is an important element of religious faith in Islam. Intentionally insulting the Qur'an is regarded as a form of blasphemy. Desecrating a copy of the Qur'an is punishable by imprisonment in some countries (life imprisonment in Pakistan, according to Article 295-B of the Penal Code) and, reportedly, by death in others.
A non-Muslim in a non-Islamic jurisdiction is not required to pay such respect to a copy of Qu'ran. As a practical matter, a non-Muslim book dealer in a non-Muslim country will very likely handle or dispose of a copy of Qur'an as he or she would any other book.
[edit] History
During the War on Terror in the early years of the 21st century, allegations of deliberate desecration of the Qur'an in front of Muslim prisoners at the United States military base in Guantánamo Bay fueled a widespread controversy and were blamed for deadly riots. The Pentagon accused the prisoners of Qur'an desecration as well.
