(AFP) The Swiss Islamic scholar Tariq Ramadan went on trial in Geneva on Monday charged with “rape and sexual coercion,” allegations which the former Oxford University professor denied.
Ramadan told the judges that he let himself be kissed by his accuser but firmly insisted there were no sexual relations between them.
The Swiss intellectual, a charismatic yet controversial figure in European Islam, could face two to 10 years in prison if convicted.
Sometimes smiling and sometimes tetchy, Ramadan did not hide his emotions during the first day of his trial at the Geneva Criminal Court.
The Swiss complainant, who says she has faced threats and therefore wishes to be known under the assumed name of “Brigitte,” is a convert to Islam.
