Islamic cleric who describes gays as ‘filthy’ cancels UK tour
An east London Islamic organisation says it has cancelled a planned tour by a cleric who believes gay people are worse than “animals” and thinks consenting gay sex is as bad as “rape”.
The Tayyibun Institute released a flyer promoting Mufti Ismail Menk’s tour and had stated that he would be visiting several British universities during November.
In a video published on YouTube in June, Menk described gay people as “filthy” and worse than “dogs and pigs”.
The cleric said consenting gay sex was bad as “rape”, warning, “they did it both ways through rape and through consent, but they only did it with the same kind”.
Linking same-sex relationships with “animals”, Menk added: “with all due respect to the animals, [gay people] are worse than those animals. Remember, we are saying, with all due respect to the animals, because to the animals it is an insult to them to even suggest this to them. Automatically the pigs and the dogs do not engage in this (homosexuality)”.
The flyer, which has since been removed from the Tayyibun Institute’s website, had wrongly listed both institutions along with several others.
On Thursday afternoon, the Institute said Menk’s tour had been “cancelled until further notice”.
In a statement they said: “It is our duty to promote peace and tolerance, equality and justice, acknowledging the presence of the diverse faiths and inclinations in our midst. As we travel and develop we learn more about the cultures and ways of others and respect their right to follow what they wish to and vice versa.”
