Harsh Critiques against the Conversion of Allam
The Muslim community in Italy complains in particular of the media coverage of the ceremony
Il Corriere della Sera
March 24, 2008
The Arab media has given wide coverage to the conversion to Christianism of the journalist of Egyptian origins, Magdi Allam, celebrated on Sunday in The Vatican City. The Arab media is being critical against Pope Benedict XVI for having celebrated in persona the baptism of the journalist. The websites of the newspapers are unanimous in condemning the choice of the journalist, who has been defined as an "apostate" and has been accused of having "thrown himself in the arms of the Occident for economic and personal interests". The frontpage of the Palestinian daily newspaper
Al Quds al Arabi reads: "Pope Benedict XVI provokes the anger of Muslims for having baptised a former Muslim who supports Israel and who is noticeable for his dislike of Islam."
Critiques to the media coverage
The media coverage of the ceremony of the baptism is another reason of critique of the Islamic community in Italy, according to the same daily paper. The TV channel
al Arabiya has highlighted how the Holy Father wanted "to celebrate
in prima persona" the sacrament in the Basilica of Saint Peter, and that the ceremony has been "broadcasted in direct by the State television".
Al Jazira, the other big satellite Arab TV, has chosen to ignore the conversion of the vice-director of
Il Corriere and it doesn't mention the news in its website nor in its TV newsroom editions. The pan-Arabist digital newspaper
Elaph makes a harsh comment: "A transformer who has moved from Islam to Zionism, and from there to Catholicism."
A provocation
The Islamic chorus of condemnations could not miss the appointment. Hundreds of users of the online editions of the Arab journals speak of an "open provocation". They accuse the vice-director of
Il Corriere of being hostile to Islam, but above all of "having thrown himself into the arms of the Zionists", with his book
Viva Israele which would have rendered him "money and prizes" from the enemies of Islam. The website
alMuslim defines the newspaper
Il Corriere della Sera as the "representative of the Italian Right". For the journal Arab News, the 'neo-Christian' had "fallen in love of a Jewish tourist in 1972, when he was 15 years old, and he was detained by the Egyptian authorities who accused him of spying for Israel."
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