Deputy Minister in the Prime Minister’s Department Razali Ibrahim said that he is saddened by news that the International Police (Interpol) has issued an arrest warrant on International Union of Muslim Scholars (IUMS) head Yusuf Qaradawi.

“I cannot speak for the government, but personally as a Muslim, I feel it is a sad situation that one of the most respected Islamic scholars of this era has been arrested by Interpol,” Razali told reporters today.

He said that he will continue to defend Qaradawi's innocence until Interpol obtains concrete evidence against the scholar.

“I will defend him (Qaradawi) till there is concrete proof against him. There are many incidents where actions have been taken without proof like the attacks on Kuwait, Iran, Iraq and Afghanistan,” Razali stressed.

He added that the issuing of the arrest warrant on Qaradawi was seen as an attempt to weaken the Islamic movement in the region.

'Red notice' from Interpol

“If we do not curb this, it will continue to happen. This is seen as trying to weaken the Islamic movement because many discourses that Qaradawi preaches do not lead to destruction.

“In fact, he has exposed several questions regarding Islam in a fresh and polite manner which has opened the eyes of many,” Razali noted.

Interpol issued a “red notice” to arrest the Muslim scholar on Dec 5 at the behest of the Egyptian government.

Among the charges that Qaradawi faces as stated on Interpol's website were agreement with, incitement and assistance to commit murder, helping prisoners to escape, arson, vandalism and theft.

In the lead-up to the 13th general election, both PKR de facto leader Anwar Ibrahim and Umno president Najib Abdul Razak claimed to have received endorsement by the much-respected scholar.

The Egyptian scholar, 88, had also been presented with the Tokoh Maal Hijrah award by the Malaysian government in 2009.