Islamic officials in Malaysia on Thursday seized 321 Bibles from Christians because they used the word “Allah” in reference to God.
The raid comes after a court ruled on Oct. 14 that Christian newspaper The Herald may not use the word “Allah,” because it may cause “confusion” in the mainly Muslim country.
“The usage of the word Allah is not an integral part of the faith in Christianity,” chief judge Mohamed Apandi Ali said at the time.
On Thursday, the top Islamic authority in the richest and most populous state of Selangor seized the Bibles from the Bible Society, a nonprofit group devoted to translating and distributing Christian Bibles. Two society members were taken to jail and released on bail, Reuters reported.
“We were told that we were under investigation for breaking a Selangor state law banning non-Muslims from using the word Allah,” Bible Society of Malaysia Chairman Lee Min Choon told Reuters.
It was the first time Islamic authorities have raided a premises belonging to a Christian organization, according to Reuters.
• Jessica Chasmar can be reached at jchasmar@washingtontimes.com.
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