Prominent Islamic scholar and author Gamal El-Banna passed away on Tuesday morning aged 93. He had been suffering from pneumonia for several weeks.
El-Banna wrote over 50 books that deal not only with Islam, but also with politics, economics and the trade union movement.
He was known for his controversial religious views which were criticised by mainstream Islamic scholars. For example, El-Banna believed the veil is not a Muslim obligation and that Muslim women can marry Christian or Jewish men.
El-Banna was the younger brother of Hassan El-Banna, the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood.
