There have been mixed reactions on social media after it emerged that Trinity College in the heart of Dublin is to waive college fees for former Egyptian prisoner Ibrahim Halawa due to his “unique and special’ circumstances”.
Many people feel it’s unfair that they have to work sometimes two jobs to keep themselves in college, while some parents are annoyed that their hard earned cash has to pay for their children’s education while Halawa gets a free ride. Others think that Ibrahim Halawa deserves free education in Trinity.
Halawa had applied to the University as an International Student which usually entails fees between €9,000 and €40,000.
Halawa spent four years imprisoned in Egypt after being detained in the Muslim Brotherhood linked Al-Fetah Mosque.
Halawa was caught up the mass arrests when the Egyptian security forces were attempting to route Islamists extremists from the building.
They had been protesting against the removal of President Mohammed Morsi in a military coup.
The 23-yr-old however, completely denied having any links to the Muslim Brotherhood and claims he was just in Egypt on holiday at the time of a coup and was going to the cinema when he accidentally ended on stage giving a speech at a pro-Muslim Brotherhood rally.
It is also known that the prospective student’s father, Sheikh Hussein Halawa, heads the Irish branch of the European Council for Fatwa and Research and is a senior member of the Federation of Islamic Organizations in Europe.
The European Council for Fatwa and Research is headed by Yusuf al-Qaradawi, an Egyptian Islamic theologian based in Doha, Qatar, and chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars.
He is considered the spiritual head of the Muslim Brotherhood and is wanted in connection to terrorist groups in multiple countries, including his native Egypt.
U.S diplomatic cables published by WikiLeaks also show the US Intelligence community had documented evidence of extremist within Clonskeagh Mosque and considered the ECFA and FIOE fronts for the Muslim Brotherhood.
Another Muslim leader in Ireland Dr Umar Al-Qadri has also publicly claimed that the Halawa’s are linked to the Muslim Brotherhood and that Sheik Halawa is an important figure with the European branch of the organisation. The Imam also said that Ibrahim obviously went to Egypt to take part in pro-Muslim Brotherhood protests.
This of course could imply that Halawa and his family are a pack of liars and the fawning Irish media, and now academia, are willing dupes.
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