According to the Sonntagszeitung newspaper, the 38-year-old Iraqi made the remarks during a speech at a Friday prayer session at the Kriens mosque, near Lucerne, at the beginning of August
Keystone / Peter Schneider
The Office of the Attorney General of Lucerne has opened an investigation into an Iraqi imam at the Dar Asalam mosque in the town of Kriens. The man is alleged to have advised followers to beat their wives if they disobey them.
This content was published on
1 minute
Keystone-SDA/sb
The procedure was opened following an article recounting the incident in the SonntagsZeitung newspaperExternal link on October 6, the prosecutor’s office told the Keystone-SDA news agency on Monday.
According to the newspaper, the 38-year-old Iraqi made the remarks during a speech at a Friday prayer session at the Kriens mosque, near Lucerne, at the beginning of August.
The man, who is presumed innocent until a final decision is made, purportedly suggested disciplining women with physical violence if other methods such as discussion or taking separate beds fail. He also reportedly called for respect for sharia law.
SonntagsZeitung reported that the imam arrived in Switzerland in 2007, where he filed an asylum request that was rejected. He was reported to have received an F residence permit which allows foreigners to be provisionally admitted to the country in cases where it is impossible to send them back home for specific reasons.
He was one of four Iraqis tried by a Swiss court in 2016 for alleged support to the Islamic State militant group. The other three people tried were all found guilty, while he was acquitted.
Related Stories
Popular Stories
More
International Geneva
A Geneva-based global health foundation came close to ‘collapse’. Where were regulators?
Switzerland to press on with Israeli drone procurement after some adjustments
This content was published on
The Swiss defence ministry has decided to reconfigure the procurement project for six Israeli ADS-15 drones and dispense with certain functionalities.
One Swiss national among the injured in Lisbon funicular crash
This content was published on
The death toll from the derailment of a funicular railway in Lisbon was raised to 17 on Thursday morning after two people died from their injuries overnight, authorities said.
Dancer Thomas Hauert receives Swiss Grand Prix for Performing Arts
This content was published on
Thomas Hauert, a dancer and choreographer from Solothurn, has been awarded the 2025 Swiss Grand Prix for the Performing Arts, also known as the Hans Reinhart Ring, worth CHF100,000.
Natural hazards the greatest uncertainty for Blatten’s future
This content was published on
On Wednesday, cantonal and municipal authorities presented a roadmap for the reconstruction of the Swiss village of Blatten, which was destroyed by a landslide last spring.
Swiss footballer Embolo sentenced for threatening behaviour
This content was published on
National footballer Breel Embolo has been sentenced to a conditional fine for making multiple threats during an argument, the Basel Court of Appeal confirmed.
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.
Read more
More
Court finds three Iraqis guilty of Islamic State support
This content was published on
It was the first time a guilty verdict had been pronounced in Switzerland related to Islamic State activities. The three individuals found guilty were all sentenced to prison terms, the longest of which will last four years and eight months. The judges ruled that the three guilty Iraqis had been trying to bring information,…
This content was published on
Judges at the Swiss Federal Court have thrown out an appeal by an Imam convicted of inciting hate and violence, who worked at a Winterthur mosque.
This content was published on
Switzerland’s largest mosque, which has been embroiled in various controversies, has a new director, reports Swiss public radio, RTS.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.