Moroccan ’Koranic Therapist’ in Belgium Denies Witchcraft Accusations Amid Youth Unrest

It all started with the dissemination on social networks of a video. It shows two of his clients who were surprised and notably insulted as "shūrkists of shit" in front of Fouad’s place, reports La Capitale. The local police went to the scene to protect the alleged "sorcerer" because of the scuffles. The "Koranic therapist" rejects this accusation of witchcraft.

"I do not practice witchcraft at all, it goes against our values, our principles as Muslims. It is an invention, a mix-up, a lie that comes from young, ignorant, illiterate people who do not even pray, do not even invoke God. Me, I am a Koranic therapist. My activity is to exorcise people who are bewitched. In reality, I do the opposite of what these young people say in their videos. I exorcise, I remove the witchcraft from people," he explains, assuring that he has been doing this for more than 20 years.

"It is indeed a trend of the roqya (exorcism specific to Islam, editor’s note), but it is not the Salafist roqya, we are of a Sufi Islam, open-minded and it is very important to specify it. We are a family descended from the prophet Mohammad. It is a divine donation. I have studied a lot in Morocco and it is my ancestors who bequeathed me this heritage which is a religious background. It is a method that has been practiced for more than 1,400 years, from generation to generation, from father to son. There is nothing new, it is not an invention," he continues.

According to Fouad, everything he does is legal in the eyes of the State - he pays his taxes, contributions, social security contributions - and transparent with regard to Islamic jurisprudence. "It is done through methods of reading certain passages of the Koran, certain methods of incense. These are methods that bear fruit and the result is more than extraordinary, it is pharaonic. Among Muslims, the Koran opens everything, heals everything, unties everything, but you have to believe in it, because to a person who does not believe in it, it will have no effect," he specifies.

What about the symptoms of a "bewitched" person? The "Koranic therapist" lists: "Nightmares, insomnia, hair loss, bloating, diarrhea, constipation, no marriage, no sexuality, no work, no stability, fertility blockage, lack of erection, etc. The list is really very long!"