Oxford University Muslim Professor Tariq Ramadan arrested over rape charges
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LONDON - Oxford University professor and government adviser Tariq Ramadan has been detained for questioning months after two women filed rape charges against him, according to a legal source.
The prominent Swiss Islam academic was summoned for questioning with Paris judicial police and taken into custody "as part of a preliminary inquiry in Paris into rape and assault allegations", the source said, confirming a report by RTL radio.
He can be detained for questioning for a maximum of 48 hours after which he could be simply freed, placed under formal investigation or made an “assistant witness” – a status suggesting there is less reason to suspect he committed a crime.
Prof Ramadan has previously strongly denied all allegations against him <link> and has claimed he is being targeted by “a campaign of slander clearly orchestrated by my longtime adversaries”.
In October, Henda Ayari, a former Salafist turned secular feminist author, alleged Mr Ramadan had raped her in a hotel room in 2012. She had mentioned the rape in a book published in 2016 but said she had not named Mr Ramadan after receiving “threats”.
She said she had decided to "name and shame" Prof Ramadan as a "pervert guru" following the Harvey Weinstein scandal.
Referring to the alleged rape, she said he had “pounced on my like a wild animal” after she went to tell him she admired his work. [image: Swiss academic Tariq Ramadan]Swiss academic Tariq Ramadan CREDIT: AFP
“He kissed me really hard... then for a few seconds he choked me, I really thought I was going to die".
She said that in his eyes, "either you're veiled or you are raped", adding that he "uses Islam to satisfy his sexual urges".
The second complainant – a 42-year old convert to Islam - has alleged that she was raped by Prof Ramadan in the Hilton hotel in Lyon in 2009.
