Egypt has launched a demand that Interpol add the names of 26 Qatar-linked terrorists to its Red Notice list.
The same names were blacklisted three days ago by Saudi Arabia, Bahrain and Cairo, according to a report published Tuesday in the London-based English-language edition of A-Sharq Al-Awsat.
Included on the Egyptian list is the name of Sheikh Yusuf al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian national in Doha, who holds a Qatari passport.
One of the world’s most prominent Islamic theologians, he heads the International Union of Muslim Scholars and has a long legacy of issuing fatwas that sanction violence and stoke sectarian and religious hatred. He is known for his global broadcasts on the Al Jazeera satellite network from Qatar, and the IslamOnline website he helped found.
Al-Qaradawi has long been a beloved figure in the intellectual circles of the outlawed Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood although he denies maintaining a current “official” membership. He has published more than 120 books, and publicly condones suicide bombings against Israelis.
He was refused an entry visa to the UK in 2008 and was also refused entry to France in 2012. Despite all that, Al-Qaradawi is a recipient of the Medal of Independence, First Class, of Jordan, and the King Faisal International Prize in Saudi Arabia, as well as the International Holy Qur’an Award in Dubai, among others.
In addition to al-Qaradawi, it is believed there are dozens of extremist Egyptians living in Qatar, Turkey and other Middle Eastern nations since the 2013 ouster of Muslim Brotherhood-backed former Egyptian President Mohammed Morsi. These agitators have been financing terrorism and inciting violence against the Cairo administration of incumbent President Abdel Fattah El-Sisi.