Oral sex is not haram: Turkish Muslim imam comes to defence of fellatio

A Turkish Muslim imam has clashed with a colleague who stated "advanced" oral sex is haram (forbidden) under Islam in a statement on Turkish state TV.

Ahmet Mahmut Unlu, a popular Muslim televangelist, claimed that the Quran does not ban the sexual act among couples. Citing two important schools of Islamic jurisprudence – the Hanafi and the Shafi'i sects – Unlu said that no Islamic law calls oral sex a haram act.

He also noted that "even clerics see oral sex as normal in Indonesia and Malaysia".

The debate on the issue started when prominent theologian Ali Riza Demircan explained on state-run TRT 1 the sexual practices that are forbidden for Muslims under Islam, including anal sex and sadism.

The clip made the rounds on social media after the presenter, Turkish TV star Pelin Cift, burst into laughter when Demircan cited "advanced" oral sex as haram. "What is your problem with me?" the baffled theologian asked the presenter.

"What is your problem, my dear hoca!" the TV star replied, using an Islamic term of respect for a teacher.

Unlu is so popular that the Turkish government has appointed security to protect him after he was threatened by the Islamic State (Isis).

"If I am on God's list, I would die anyway. If I am not on that list, then IS cannot [kill me]," Ahmet Mahmut Ünlü said in reaction to the decision.

The telegenic imam called IS militants "not Muslims, but barbarians", calling on young people not to join the group in Iraq and Syria.