EXCLUSIVE - 'She can do better': Amal Alamuddin's mother is unimpressed with George Clooney and wants daughter to marry within their strict Lebanese religious sect

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

EXCLUSIVE - 'She can do better': Amal Alamuddin's mother is unimpressed with George Clooney and wants daughter to marry within their strict Lebanese religious sect

   Baria Alamuddin has been 'telling half of Beirut' that she wanted daughter to marry within the Druze sect
   Druze is a medieval offshoot of Islam and followers are forbidden to marry outsiders
   A family friend told MailOnline: She believes that Amal can do better'

By Hannah Roberts In Italy and Sara Nathan

Published: 08:05 EST, 7 July 2014 | Updated: 08:19 EST, 7 July 2014


Most mothers would be shouting from the rooftops if their daughter snagged George Clooney.

But the mom of Clooney's fiancée, Amal Alamuddin, is not so impressed with her daughter’s choice - and instead wanted her to marry within their strict Lebanese religious sect, according to close family friends.

High-profile human-rights lawyer Amal, 37, was born in Beirut to a prominent and highly respected family within the Druze sect, a medieval offshoot of Islam, who are forbidden to marry outsiders. For traditional Druze families intermarriage results in excommunication and social boycott.

And a Lebanese friend of the family in London, where Amal was raised and Baria still lives, told MailOnline: ‘You would think Amal has hit the jackpot with George Clooney, but Baria is not happy.

'She thinks Amal can do better. She has been telling half of Beirut, in fact anyone that will listen, there are five hundred thousand Druze. Are none of them good enough for her?'.

There can be harsh penalties for those Druze who marry outsiders. Several women have been murdered for disobeying the rules. Last year a Sunni Muslim man had his penis severed by the male relatives of a Druze woman who defied her family by marrying him.

The friend added: ‘There have a been a few jokes in the family about the same thing happening to George!'

Druze make up around five per cent of Lebanon and number about a million worldwide, a community that is gradually shrinking as you cannot convert to be a Druze - and are only considered a member of the religion only if both your parents are Druze.

Those who marry outside the religion are cast out of the community and not allowed to return. Druze sheikhs will cut them off and refuse to pray over their grave when they die.

If George and Amal have children she will be unable to pass on her religion to them.

Their wedding, thought to be taking place near Lake Como on September 12 will not be a Druze wedding and Druze sheiks will not officiate, as Amal will be considered to be leaving the community and taking on the traditions of her husband, the source explained.

A civil wedding may offer a loophole in that she may be allowed to keep her religion.

The Alamuddin are a feudal aristocratic family that trace their roots back to the 14th century. The family still owns vast landsand and their ancestral home is one of the grandest in the mountain village of Ba’qalien, where Amal's father, Ramzi was born and raised.

Still, Baria flew to Clooney's Italian villa on Lake Como over the weekend of June 21 and 22, where according to People, Clooney, 53, put on the charm and the visit was a success.

'They were outside, and Amal and her mom were smiling.It was going pretty great,' a source said.

'Amal's mom left the next day, and at the airport they just looked so happy.'

Amal, whose clients include under-fire Wikileaks founder Julian Assange, was then seen accompanying her mother to Milan airport on Monday, June 23.

Just a day later, Clooney's parents Nick and Nina Clooney arrived at Lake Como from their home in Kentucky to help with wedding plans - missing Baria.

Wearing a dapper dark toned suit and matching shirt  (sans tie), the Ocean's Eleven actor sported black leather dress shoes as he enjoyed the night out with his loved ones.

George’s mother Nina, a former beauty queen and councilwoman, and former anchorman and game show host father Nick, were spotted visiting the luxurious Hotel Bellagio.

They couldn’t have looked more pleased for the Oscar winner as they giggled away on a boat ride to the resort.

Clooney and Amal are believed to have checked out Hotel Villa D’Este at Cernobbio, which is famous for organizing high-profile weddings, and enjoyed a romantic dinner there.

But the Gravity star may well tie the knot with Amal at his own home.

Laws have been put in place by the Lake Como mayor to guarantee George’s privacy at his $42 million mansion, and are in operation 24 hours a day until September 30.

Pedestrians are banned from stopping on the road outside the 30-bedroom property, while anyone caught swimming within 100 metres of it will be fined up to £770.

Nina has previously expressed her fondness for her future daughter-in-law, who she has met several times, telling MailOnline: ‘You can say I’m extremely happy. Amal’s a lovely girl. I like her very much.’

Nick, who turned 80 this year, will be celebrating his 55th wedding anniversary with Nina, 74, in August.

Striking Amal was just two when she moved from Beirut to London at the time of the civil war.

The brunette, who is now a British citizen, was brought up by her mother Baria and father Ramzi, who moved back to

Baria, 66, is the foreign editor of Al Hayat, a widely-read Arab newspaper, and has made numerous appearances as an analyst on Middle Eastern affairs on CNN and Al-Jazeera as well as CNBC, the BBC and Sky News in the UK.

Her beauty was said to be so striking that she has been said to resemble Elizabeth Taylor - while the poet Said Aki praised her 'Greek' beauty in poem.

She has interviewed numerous heads of state including King Hamad Bin Issa Alkhalifa, President Hosni Moubarak, King Hussain of Jordan, Prime Minister Tony Blair, President Bill Clinton, Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher and President Fidel Castro - and was the last journalist to talk to Indira Gandhi before she died.

She once said: 'I speak on behalf of moderate Muslims who are being cast aside in this war against terrorism.'

And it would seem that Amal comes from good stock as her grandmother was the first woman graduate of the American University in Beirut.

It is believed that Baria and Ramzi fled Lebanon at the time of the civil war, however, Ramzi moved back in 1991.

Ramzi was formerly a university professor and is the ex-vice president of the American University of Beirut.

Today, Baria lives in Buckinghamshire in a house valued at $1.4million.

Let the games begin!!!   You knew this was going to rear it's ugly head at some point.

Didn't know an actual date ( Sept 12) had been determined

I thought I read somewhere that Mr Alamuddin married Mrs Alamuddin outside of the Druze community and they were therefore "cast out" etc etc ?

This sounds like a Hotch Potch of previous stories hastily cobbled together, again to sell an article
containing the name George Clooney, while they can
make money.
Panic measures by so called journos !

Joanna wrote:I thought I read somewhere that Mr Alamuddin married Mrs Alamuddin outside of the Druze community and they were therefore "cast out" etc etc ?

This sounds like a Hotch Potch of previous stories hastily cobbled together, again to sell an article
containing the name George Clooney, while they can
make money.
Panic measures by so called journos !

Totally agree. I thought the mom was not Druze?  Can't believe they will  have a religious ceremony of any kind either, but I could be wrong.  BTW-- I think the mom is eating up having George as a son-in-law.  If she has any reservations, they are probably about grandchildren and the possibility of not having any.

"Baria Alamuddin has been 'telling half of Beirut'"

I see, so she talked to around 1 Million people then   WOW

Better??

HaHaHaHaHa!!

So she wants someone with the intellect, compassion, humor, ambition, wealth, fame, and looks of George Clooney -- but tied to a dying religious sect that she's not even a member of.

Yeah, what mother wouldn't want that for her daughter?

"It's a dealbreaker if he's not Druze." HaHaHa!

That's priceless. These articles are a riot.

I think her mom is over the moon but somehow I have the feeling her dad disapproves.

I think the dad is fine too...I think it is the Grandma.....LOL And now I know why this article feels so familiar....We had an article before that the grandmother wasn't happy about it has George has not the same religion and so on....

I guess the gossip mags do some recycling now and just change family names hehe

I think the family is fine , the press just need to stir up gossip.

Ah, today's Mailonline George/Amal non story..........and this is the mother who 'liked' the fact that they went on safari and to the Seychelles on her facebook page, and who was quoted as saying they were very much in love earlier on............

Now will she take any notice of this? Or will Gossipcop........?

Now in the esteemed Daily Mirror and on SNL..........

This Abba song came to mind regarding the poor journo's, who are still struggling to earn a crust off
the name of George Clooney. Maybe a little bit of the green eyed monster getting a hold of them ?


"Money, money, money
Must be funny
In the rich man's world.

"Money, money, money
Always sunny
In the rich man's world

Aha-ahaaa
All the things I could do
If I had a little money.
It's a rich man's world"

playing devil's advocate.... what if the old girl is a bit miffed at having the Sexiest Man Alive for a son-in-law and possible father of her grandchildren?  Just for a second..  her daughter is an accomplished  barrister, humanitarian, author, etc.   What is George best known for ( not exclusively, but best known for )... making movies and dating younger women.   may be a minor smidgen of truth in there.   Just saying.....

Not only talked to a million people in Beirut, Nicky - but must have done it on Skype. She lives in Buckinghamshire!

moved the posts about the new sighting to a separate thread

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

George Clooney's fiancee Amal Alamuddin takes him to meet future mother-in-law
Jun 25, 2014 00:00 By Christopher Bucktin
Barrister Amal flew her journalist mum Baria to Lake Como to meet the Ocean's Eleven star

George Clooney used his trademark charm to win over his future mother-in-law when he welcomed her to his luxury Italian villa.

The film star , 53, is due to marry British barrister Amal Alamuddin in September and flew her mum Baria over to Lake Como at the weekend.

Mum-of-four Baria, 66, is the foreign editor of Lebanese newspaper Al-Hayat and is a regular on TV. It is thought she helped the couple plan their wedding. A source said: “They say the only thing more intimidating than a huge Hollywood film star is a mother-in-law, yet George showed no signs of nerves. Baria has the ability to put anyone at ease and she was equally at ease around George.

“She is not your typical mother-in-law and back in Lebanon she is a star in her own right. They all get along famously together.”

Earlier Amal, 36, got George to herself as the couple went for a stroll before they took a boat taxi to Cernobbio and enjoyed a romantic dinner.



[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]
Follow us: @DailyMirror on Twitter | DailyMirror on Facebook

What's really annoying is that this is being picked up by other media outlets and repeated practically word-for-word. How lazy can you get? At least check the facts!

I bet there's raucous laughter every day coming from
Villa Oleandra if some one goes online and sees these
"Genuine articles"
    

But it's good to laugh so they'll be healthy !

Of course someone on Team Clooney  is paid to go through all websites. To keep track of the crazy stories and to keep track of Team Clooney stories being circulated.

Pigpen - Do you really think so? If that were true, I think half the stories we see would never be published. Besides, some poor soul on the team would have to spend their whole life, 24/7, checking things out online and in the press. I love George, but they couldn't pay me enough to do that - imagine having to read things like the comments on IMdB all the time!  

Lizzy - sad but true. 

Mr Clooney monitors his behaviour depending on fan forums.(all of them, not just here)  If only Justin was so diligent, but The Beiber likes a real vacation. sigh.

Alisonfan - I guess we'll have to agree to disagree. I think George and his people keep an eye on media coverage and posssibly fan sites (though I doubt on any regular basis), but I don't think he adjusts his behavior for anyone but himself.

All I can say is, if this is true, sorry MAMA, but I think he can do better.  MO

The rebuttal direct from George is on this thread.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

phys major wrote:[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Already noted .....7 May dear....and closed.

Wot..... No Butt Shots !

  

Joanna wrote:
The rebuttal direct from George is on this thread.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Rebuttal was to the DM report not the hottie barrister info.

Phys Major obviously has an agenda, but dear Joanna, so do you.

LornaDoone wrote:

Joanna wrote:
The rebuttal direct from George is on this thread.

[You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

*Rebuttal was to the DM report not the hottie barrister info.

Phys Major obviously has an agenda, but dear Joanna, so do you.

* I think you've got your wires crossed Lorna. I was referring to the title of the thread,
not the hottie barrister info.
You'll notice I made two separate posts.

No crossed wires.

Agendas still noted.

Sorry Lorna, but if you're addressing me, then
I haven't got a clue what you are on about
in the above post.
But I'll not fret about it.

Have a good day.   

Interesting aside - On "The View" yesterday they briefly discussed the Daily Mail story. Today they discussed George's response, and Jenny McCarthy apologised to George for going with the story without checking all the facts

Sherri Shepherd responded that they get so many stories they can't check them all out. She felt no apology was necessary. IMO, this is exactly what is wrong with the media today.

Lizzy, I expect that what with producers and studio managers talking to you in your ear while you're on air live, and somebody signalling countdown to the ads, one apology from the team was probably deemed enough!

Pan - If that was the issue I wouldn't have mentioned Sherri Shepherd. She and Jenny McCarthy got into an argument over this that lasted for a good part of the segment. Shepherd feels that their job is to report whatever bullshit is out there. Apparently there is so much crap for them to go through they don't have time to check the facts.She doesn't think they should have to - it's not her job.

I lost a lot of respect for her today. Now I'm not so sad she's leaving the show. Jenny McCarthy, however, just rose a lot higher in my estimation.