Al-Azhar Observatory for Combating Extremism received on Wednesday a delegation from the British Rose Castle Foundation, which included 12 religious leaders enrolled within the Odyssey Fellowship Program for religious leaders as well as a number of the Foundation’s directors. The visit aimed to learn about Islam and the most important aspects of the Islamic civilization.
Dr. Reham Salama, Executive Director of the Observatory, received the members of the delegation and later introduced them to the work mechanisms of the 15 multilingual Units at the Observatory, reviewing how they monitor the abuses and activities of the extremist organizations of different ideologies worldwide, and highlighting the analysis process conducted by the researchers to draw conclusions and provide research-based recommendations. During the visit, the delegation members were introduced to the most important publications of the Observatory on many issues, most importantly extremism, Islamophobia and hate speech.
Dr. Mahmoud Nagah, Supervisor of the English Unit at the Observatory, delivered a lecture entitled "The Image of the Other in Islam" to introduce the delegation members to the controls set by the Almighty God to guide Muslims as to their relations with everyone, including non-Muslims, in order for them to coexist in peace and be able to reject all forms of violence and extremism. This was followed by a discussion session, where the visitors asked a number of questions about Islam and the Islamic perspective of certain issues, and they had their questions answered.
The delegation had started their tour in Cairo with a visit to Al-Azhar Al-Sharif Mosque, where they were provided with a detailed presentation of the history of the thousand-year-old Mosque and the educational and awareness-raising role it plays in serving students and seekers of knowledge from all over the world.