Egyptian Cleric Essam Elruby: It is True That Allah Turned Some of the Israelites into Apes and Pigs

Egyptian cleric Dr. Essam Elruby, speaking on Al-Hayat 2 TV, responded to a viewer's question by saying that the story that Allah transformed some of the Israelites into apes and pigs is true and not a myth. According to Elruby, "when they acted unjustly, tyrannically, sinfully, and heretically, defying the path of Allah, and rejecting and killing His prophets, Allah said: 'Be apes, despised!" The program aired on February 24.

Dr. Essam Elruby: "Amal Al-Hayat is asking the following question: Is it true that a long time ago, apes used to be human beings, but then Allah inflicted His wrath upon them? Is this story true, or is it a myth? It is true. It is not a myth. Allah told us this story. In the Al-Baqarah and Al-A'raf chapters of the Quran, Allah told us that He was angry with some of the Israelites, and so He transformed them into apes and pigs.

[...]

"When they acted unjustly, tyrannically, sinfully, and heretically, defying the path of Allah, and rejecting and killing His prophets, Allah said: 'Be despicable apes!'"