Clerics declare Pokemon Go ‘Haram’

JEDDAH: The General Secretariat of the Council of Senior Scholars, on the website of the General Presidency for Scholarly Research and Ifta had renewed the old fatwa banning the Pokemon Go game.

The Standing Committee for Issuing Fatwas said thr controversial mobile game is “Haram”, forbidden in Islam.

The fatwa cited a number of prohibitions that justify the banning of the game, including gambling practices as two of the players compete to gain cards which hold different prices, and the stronger position of the two players wins the card; if the other player does not want to lose the card, he or she must pay its price.

The other prohibitions such as polytheism and the belief in and worship of many gods, in addition to the promotion and advertising of disbelief, logos, forbidden images and other caveats has also put in concern.

The fatwa was issued 16 years ago in 2001, (No. 21,758), which considered the game a form of gambling, which is forbidden in Islam.

Sheikh Saleh Al-Fozan, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars, said that the current version of the game is the same as the old one.