UAE issues fatwa against 'haram' vuvuzelas

Dubai, July 10(ANI): A fatwa has been issued against vuvuzelas in the United Arab Emirates (UAE), saying that the plastic horns will not be permitted in the Gulf country if they exceed 100 decibels.

UAE's General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowments has issued the fatwa.

According to reports, the ruling came after thousands of vuvuzelas were imported to the UAE for World Cup fans.

"If they are loud enough to damage hearing, vuvuzelas are haram," The National newspaper quoted the General Authority of Islamic Affairs and Endowments, as saying in the fatwa.

The fatwa is based on the judgment that the vuvuzelas can damage fans' hearing.

The tuneless, deafening plastic vuvuzelas have become the defining sound of the World Cup in South Africa.

Supposedly invented to scare baboons away from remote African villages, the mass-produced horns can generate 127-decibels, a level humans rarely encounter outside war zones or Twisted Sister concerts.

Medical experts warn that prolonged exposure to a vuvu onslaught could result in a range of medical problems ranging from temporary deafness to permanent damage to the nervous system. (ANI)