Italian authorities have expelled a Pakistani-born imam following an undercover investigation that recorded him stating that girls can be married as young as nine. The removal order was carried out after police reviewed the footage and determined he posed a concern under immigration law.
On April 2, Il Giornale reported that Brescia police commissioner Paolo Sartori ordered the deportation of Ali Kashif. The decision came after Sartori reviewed video recorded by a journalist posing as a potential convert seeking guidance on whether Islam permits older men to marry minors.
Authorities said the expulsion was authorized under Article 4, paragraph 3, of Italy’s Consolidated Law on Immigration, which allows removal of non-citizens considered a threat to public order or state security, or those linked to sex-related offenses. Police also found Kashif did not hold a valid residence permit and declined to issue a new one when he applied.
Kashif was escorted to Milan Malpensa Airport and placed on a flight to Islamabad, with a stop in Bangkok, accompanied by immigration officers.
The undercover footage, published in January, captured Kashif making a series of statements about marriage and age. “On the first (menstrual) cycle of life, (a woman) is an adult. After nine years, after 10 years, after 13 years, she is an adult. You can marry her. It is a tradition.”
He added: “Even science tells us that a nine-year-old girl can get married. In Islam, a girl becomes an adult at age nine. The Quran says that it [the marriage] can be done.” When asked about marriages involving adult men, he responded: “Yes, 30 to 40 years old.”
“The religion of Islam says if the parents are happy, the father and mother are happy and agree, then the marriage can take place.” In another exchange, a participant remarked, “God doesn’t tell you that you cannot marry them. You can marry them. Here, the state prevents you.”
The recordings were made at two Islamic centers in Brescia, a city often described as having one of the country’s largest Muslim populations. The centers later said the statements do not reflect the broader Muslim community.
On April 2, Il Giornale reported that Brescia police commissioner Paolo Sartori ordered the deportation of Ali Kashif. The decision came after Sartori reviewed video recorded by a journalist posing as a potential convert seeking guidance on whether Islam permits older men to marry minors.
Authorities said the expulsion was authorized under Article 4, paragraph 3, of Italy’s Consolidated Law on Immigration, which allows removal of non-citizens considered a threat to public order or state security, or those linked to sex-related offenses. Police also found Kashif did not hold a valid residence permit and declined to issue a new one when he applied.
Kashif was escorted to Milan Malpensa Airport and placed on a flight to Islamabad, with a stop in Bangkok, accompanied by immigration officers.
The undercover footage, published in January, captured Kashif making a series of statements about marriage and age. “On the first (menstrual) cycle of life, (a woman) is an adult. After nine years, after 10 years, after 13 years, she is an adult. You can marry her. It is a tradition.”
He added: “Even science tells us that a nine-year-old girl can get married. In Islam, a girl becomes an adult at age nine. The Quran says that it [the marriage] can be done.” When asked about marriages involving adult men, he responded: “Yes, 30 to 40 years old.”
“The religion of Islam says if the parents are happy, the father and mother are happy and agree, then the marriage can take place.” In another exchange, a participant remarked, “God doesn’t tell you that you cannot marry them. You can marry them. Here, the state prevents you.”
The recordings were made at two Islamic centers in Brescia, a city often described as having one of the country’s largest Muslim populations. The centers later said the statements do not reflect the broader Muslim community.
