Indonesia arrests Muslim preacher for blasphemy, hate speech

Panji Gumilang, leader of the Al-Zaytun Islamic boarding school, faces 10 years in prison if found guilty of blasphemy. - Reuters

JAKARTA (AFP): A Muslim preacher has been arrested on charges including blasphemy and hate speech after his Islamic boarding school provoked protests for allowing women to preach and pray beside men, police said Wednesday (Aug 2).

The Al-Zaytun boarding school in West Java, Muslim-majority Indonesia's most populous province, has faced backlash from conservative groups that have accused it of following a version of Islam incompatible with the Koran.