Egypt's Dar El Ifta: Copying International Brands and Trademarks is 'Haram'

In news that could potentially put half of Egypt's fast food joints in conflict with the almighty, Dar El Ifta, Egypt's national Islamic jurisdiction body, has announced that copying or mimicking international brands and registered trademarks is officially haram, Egypt Independent reports.

Stressing the legitmacy of intellectual property, and equating it with physical property, Dar El Ifta's statement went on to explain that literary and artistic copyrights, patents, and trademarks are owned by their originators and shall not be copied without explicit permission. Any profit generated from hijacked trademarks without such permission renders its beneficiary a thief, concluded the statement.

Furthermore, Dar El Ifta emphasised on brand owners' to resort to judiciary if they experience intellectual property theft.