Amr Khaled v Yusuf al-Qaradawi

The other day I wrote about how competition for leadership among would-be "voices of Islamism" was playing a crucial role in shaping the various Arab responses to the Danish cartoons.  Since then, a number of pieces have picked up on one thread of that competition in particular:  Yusuf al-Qaradawi vs Amr Khaled.   A few days ago, Mishari Zaydi - one of the most thoughtful observers of Islamism today - wrote about their public feud in al-Sharq al-Awsat, and yesterday Fahmy Howeidy weighed in on Qaradawi's side.  [UPDATE:  here's an English version of Mishari's piece.]

Qaradawi, in the general telling, is in favor of protests and escalating the confrontation with the West, while the young, previously apolitical Khaled is taking the forefront in calls for dialogue, with a conference to be held in Denmark being the flashpoint.  It's not quite as simple as that, of course.  Qaradawi is also fighting against the radical flank, urging "civil" or "rational" resistance and denouncing violence, while Khaled's call for an international law against insulting Prophets is not likely to be the grounds for meaningful dialogue with the West.   But the general point is clearly right:  the two are publicly feuding, with each asserting claims to represent the best strategy for Islam. 

What does it mean?  Why is the long apolitical Amr Khaled suddenly staking out a prominent political position?  Why is Qaradawi pushing this issue so hard?  Why are people paying so much attention to their spat?   I'm about to get an airplane, so I'm not going to try to answer those questions.  But with any luck, a very special guest poster will be offering an explanation soon - and I can't wait to see it!

UPDATE: Meph at Aqoul weighs in Khaled vs Qaradawi.  Still waiting on the guest post, though!

Comments

[Mohammed, Peace Be Upon Her, Is A Woman]

There is a growing amount of evidence that The Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon Her, is a woman. I recall talking to my young niece, a strong believer in the Prophet, peace be upon Her. My niece became very excited and exclaimed, “You mean that the Prophet, peace be upon Her, is a chick?” Yes I replied. I also said that the Prophet, peace be upon Her, would probably prefer being called a woman, not a chick.

[Mohammed, Peace Be Upon Her, Is A Woman]

There is a growing amount of evidence that The Prophet Mohammed, peace be upon Her, is a woman. I recall talking to my young niece, a strong believer in the Prophet, peace be upon Her. My niece became very excited and exclaimed, “You mean that the Prophet, peace be upon Her, is a chick?” Yes I replied. I also said that the Prophet, peace be upon Her, would probably prefer being called a woman, not a chick.

http://mohammedpeacebeuponherisawoman.blogspot.com/

[Bint]

The bizarrenes of the previous commentator aside, Khaled Abdallah also weighed in quite vigorously on the side of Qaradawi on Dream TV. It was a total gloves off massacre, can't seem to find any transcript link for it though. For those who have access it is repeated tomorrow at 10 am.

[Bint]

Sorry, 10 am Cairo time, how terribly geocentric of me.

[Anna in Cairo]

Bint! I have been reading your comments on Aqoul. You live in Cairo! We must meet for coffee one day. I don't know how people have the time to watch all this programming. I am impressed! However, I must admit that when I see Qaradawi on TV I usually reach for the remote before I am even sure what he is talking about.

[Stacey]

Okay, I don't know exactly when it'll be on yet, but Hanna Ziadeh had to cancel a meeting with me yesterday to go debate Amr Khaled upon his return from Denmark. I know the cartoon issue is tired, but watching Ziadeh (a Palestinian born in Lebanon and raised in Denmark, from a self-identified Red family) in action is pretty amazing. I'll post the details of the broadcast when I get them, but it should be tomorrow, on Orbit.