ALBAWBA - An Egyptian court sentenced composer Ahmed Hegazy to 6 months in jail, on a bail of 2,000 Egyptian pounds ($64.64) after he appeared in a video reciting the Qur’an to oud melodies.
According to the Misdemeanor Court, the Egyptian composer was tried on charges of contempt of religion, Erem news reported on Sunday.
Social media users heavily backlashed the Egyptian composer after he appeared in several clips reciting Quran verses while playing an oud instrument pushing the Readers' Union to submit a report to the Attorney General demanding that he be punished.
Following criticism, he shared an apology: "I, the musician Ahmed Hegazy, apologize to all those who are jealous of the Holy Qur’an, led by Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, the Holy Qur’an Reciters Syndicate, the sheikhdom of all Egyptian reciters, and to the Muslims of the world for the mistake I did."
He further noted that he didn't mean what people understood from the videos online by saying "It is the word of God Almighty and our miraculous heavenly constitution, and I did not mean the meaning that appeared in the clip spread on social media."
