Obama wedding ring rumor debunked

Washington - A report surfaced on Thursday stating that President Obama's wedding ring contains the the first part of the Shahada, the Islamic declaration of faith.

As reported by Digital Journal , a claim began circulating saying that the wedding ring worn by President Obama bore the Arabic words “There is no god except Allah.” The WND report states "according to Arabic-language and Islamic experts, the ring Obama has been wearing for more than 30 years is adorned with the first part of the Islamic declaration of faith, the Shahada: 'There is no god except Allah'.” One expert that is quoted in the article is Egyptian-born "Islamic scholar" Mark A. Gabriel, Ph.D. According to Gabriel's website, he was born and raised in Egypt in an Islamic family. At 12 years of age he had memorized the Quran. After graduating from Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt, he began his career as an Islamic history professor at the university. After questioning the authenticity of the Quran, Gabriel fled to the United States where he was granted religious asylum. Gabriel was asked by WND to examine the photographs they had of Obama's ring, and according to the article he concluded that the first half of the Shahada is inscribed on it.

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President Obama's wedding ring

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In a video entitled Obama's Ring: 'There is No God Except Allah', it reportedly shows the inscription of the Shahada on the ring.

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President Obama's wedding ring

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In another video, the inscription is once again shown on the ring.

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President Obama's wedding ring

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However, a high resolution photo by Miguel Villagran on June 5, 2009 gives a much clearer and detailed look of the ring then the images used by WND.

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A picture of President Obama's wedding ring, taken by Miguel Villagran

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When searching for an English to Arabic translation for "No God but Allah" using Translation Babylon, Translate Google and Translation Services USA the characters returned look nothing like what is drawn onto the ring in the WND images.

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English to Arabic translation of No God but Allah

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Here is a picture of the high resolution image of the ring and the English to Arabic translation next to it:

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President Obama's wedding right with Arabic translation of "No God but Allah"

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According to Urban Legends when you compare the high resolution photo with the low resolution blurred image provided by WND, there is nothing that remotely resembling Arabic calligraphy on the high resolution photo. The article goes on to say that the symbols overlayed on the WND photos are even "forced". Snopes has also debunked the theory that Obama's ring contains Arabic script, saying it "looks to be an artifact of someone's trying mightily to find a hidden message where none exists."