French authorities have expelled an Egyptian-born Swiss cleric for making remarks that ‘posed a serious threat to public order’, according to the French Interior Ministry.
Hani Ramadan (pictured) – the brother of controversial Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan – is the grandson of the man who founded Egypt’s banned Islamist group, the Muslim Brotherhood.
He was arrested in Colmar, eastern France, while attending a conference in the city and escorted back to Switzerland, just over the border.
The Interior Ministry’s statement, first reported on Sunday night, said that Ramadan was known in the past to have adopted behavior and made remarks which pose a serious threat on French soil.
“The interior ministry and the forces of law and order are fully mobilized and will continue to fight ceaselessly against extremism and radicalization,” Interior Minister Matthias Fekl said in the statement.
In 2002, Ramadan was fired from a teaching post in Switzerland after writing an article in French newspaper Le Monde which advocated stoning those who commit adultery, in line with Sharia law.
In 2008 he was awarded 345,000 Swiss francs (about $345,000) in compensation over the dismissal.
Ramadan’s brother, Tariq, is banned from the United States.
