Fatwa of Turkish Muslim authority: Toilet paper is permitted

“If water cannot be found for cleansing, other cleaning materials can be used," Diyanet declares.

By JPOST.COM STAFF
Toilet paper (photo credit: INGIMAGE)
Toilet paper
(photo credit: INGIMAGE)
Using toilet paper is allowed in Islam but water should be the primary source of cleansing, according to a Fatwa released by Turkey's Directorate of Religious Affairs (the Diyanet), Hurriyet reported on Thursday. 
The idea that using toilet paper is prohibited stems from the idea that paper can be used for writing.
“If water cannot be found for cleansing, other cleaning materials can be used. Even though some sources deem paper to be unsuitable as a cleaning material, as it is an apparatus for writing, there is no problem in using toilet paper,” the fatwa declared.
In a separate statement, the religious authority said last month that "it was okay for substances produced for cleaning and containing alcohol to be used for cleaning purposes, while stressing that drinking alcohol was forbidden by the Islamic religion," Hurriyet reported.
“If [substances containing alcohol] spill onto a dress or the body, they must be washed or they cannot perform a prayer. While it is forbidden to drink substances containing alcohol that were produced for cleaning purposes, it is acceptable to use them for cleaning. Therefore the places that were cleaned with such substances need not be washed before performing a prayer,” the fatwa read.