Ministry sets new criteria for mosque administration
In a continuation of its efforts to fight radicalization through religious speeches, the Ministry of Endowments announced Wednesday that all boards of state-owned mosques appointed under ousted Presidents Mohamed Morsi and Hosni Mubarak will be disbanded.
Minster Mokhtar Gomaa ordered his aides to implement new selection criteria for the boards, stipulating that within the next two months, two-thirds of each board's members should be young people.
The ministry has already revoked the licenses of 55,000 imams and banned Friday sermons in mosques smaller than 80 meters.
Some have accused it of attempting to cripple the religious influence of the Muslim Brotherhood.
During Morsi's short-lived reign, critics said that the Endowments Ministry was under a strong Brotherhood influence. It faced accusations of using mosques for political gain.
The Muslim Brotherhood has long been accused of propagating its political ideas through mosques, as well as mobilizing citizens to vote for its candidates.
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