His eminence the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar delivers a speech at the House of Lords stressing the importance of promoting ideas and viewpoints for the welfare of all humans in the East and the West:
After delivering his speech, his eminence the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar holds open discussions with a number of members of the House of Lords…His eminence meets the Minister of Foreign Affairs and a number of Ambassadors of Arab and Muslim countries:
The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar’s tour to Europe commands deep respect and appreciation by all observers on the international arena:
His eminence the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Prof. Dr. Ahmed al-Teyyeb delivered a speech today in the House of Lords where he emphasized the importance of promoting ideas and viewpoints for the welfare of all humans in the East and the West.
He added that "Islamophobia" has played a very negative and dangerous role in fueling the intercultural conflict between East and West.
"It is necessary that the relationship between the East and the West be a relation of peace that is based on mutual respect of various religious, national and cultural peculiarities. Above all, a sense of international fraternity and humanity must be felt," his eminence added.
The Grand Imam also showed that Al-Azhar is a scholarly and educational institution that sincerely assumes the responsibility of presenting Islam and conveying its spiritual and scientific message in its pristine purity. The educational approach of Al-Azhar is based on diversity of opinions, different viewpoints and studying various schools of Islamic law. This depends on studying different opinions which may even be contradicted in order to enhance the students open-mindedness.
Following his speech, the Grand Imam held open discussions with a number of members of the House of Lords. He then met the Minister of Foreign Affairs, a number of Diplomats and figures from the Civil Service in London. In these meetings, his eminence discussed the tolerance of Islam and its stance on extremist movements, and the efforts of Al-Azhar to combat terrorism and extremism.
His eminence met a number of ambassadors of Arab and Muslim countries in Britain as he discussed the efforts of Al-Azhar Al-Sharif and its plans to combat extremist and deviant thought. He also discussed the role of the Muslim Council of Elders in enhancing the culture of co-existence and inter-faith dialogue.
The Grand Imam of Al-Azhar has commanded great respect and deep appreciation at all meeting he held in his recent European tour which all observers on the international arena has praised.