Comic-Strip Koran Author Condemned

The 46-member Islamic Conference Organization on Sunday branded Tunisian-born scholar Youssef Seddik a heretic, saying he profaned the Muslim religion in his comic-strip version of the Koran.

“By indulging in a sacrilegious act which breaches the authenticity of the Holy Koran, the author of this series of cartoons has committed an act of true heresy harmful to Islam and Muslims,” organization Secretary General Hamid Gabid said.

Seddik, a Paris-based journalist turned scholar, has said he spent five years perfecting his comic-strip version of stories told in the Koran to make them more accessible to children.

“This initiative is an absurd act, a misrepresentation and a manipulation of texts of the Holy Book,” Gabid added.

Muslim authorities in several countries have condemned Seddik’s book, entitled “Tell Me a Story From the Koran.”