RIYADH, Aug 5: An old fatwa by a hardline scholar advising Saudis not to support Hezbollah because of its Shia roots has sparked a debate in the media.

Issued several years ago by Sheikh Abdullah bin Jebreen, a former member of the Council of Senior Ulema, Saudi Arabia’s highest religious body, it describes Hezbollah as ‘rafidhi’ - a derogatory term for Shia used by some Sunni fanatics.

“It is not permissible to support this rafidhi party ... or pray for its victory, and we advise Sunnis to disavow it,” the fatwa says.

The fatwa has been cited by some hardline Sunni scholars and others writing on Islamist websites to argue that Sunnis should not back Hezbollah.

Others have accused these ulema of seeking to provoke sectarianism.

Prominent Egyptian-born Qatar-based scholar Yussef al-Qaradawi called in an interview with Al-Jazeera Arab news channel for ‘supporting the resistance in Palestine and Lebanon’ and criticised ‘calls which stoke up sectarianism’.