Swiss academic and Oxford University Professor Tariq Ramadan has denied rape allegations levelled against him by French activist and author Henda Ayari, Arab News reported on Sunday.

Ramadan, a professor of Contemporary Islamic Studies in the Faculty of Oriental Studies at St Antony's College, Oxford University, is also the grandson of the founder of the Muslim Brotherhood, Hassan al-Banna.

Ayari filed a rape and sexual assault complaint against Ramadan on Friday in France detailing acts of rape, sexual assault, violence, harassment and intimidation, according to AFP.

The writer, in her book 'I Chose to be Free' published in Nov 2016, described an encounter with an aggressor named Zubair, saying that she had met him at a hotel in Paris after he had given a lecture.

She said that when she pushed back against his advances, he screamed at her, insulted her, slapped her and treated her violently, Arab News reported.

In a post on Facebook, Ayari confirmed "that the famous Zubair is Tariq Ramadan". Her lawyer said she had not reported the assault earlier out of fear.

The writer decided to go public with her experiences "after revelations over the past few days of rape and sexual assault claims in the media", her lawyer told AFP.

Ramadan, however, denied Ayari's allegations and announced his intention to sue her for "slanderous denunciation".