Egypt's leading Islamic cleric Sheikh Mohammed Tantawi has been hospitalized with thrombosis of the leg, state-owned media reported on Sunday. | Pray for embolism ... |
Tantawi, whose post is government-appointed, is a leading figure in the Sunni-Muslim world. The sheikh has often caused controversy with his fatwas and was surrounded in controversy last month after Israeli newspapers published pictures of him shaking hands with Israeli President Shimon Perez, who Tantawi claimed he did not recognize. Also, earlier this month Tantawi urged Israel to lift its blockade of Gaza, only days after saying he was unaware the Palestinian territory was under siege.