His Eminence, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Prof Ahmed Al-Tayeb, received Mrs. Verónica Alcocer Garcia, the Colombian first lady. He expressed his profound appreciation for the Colombian president’s stance on the International Criminal Court (ICC) arrest warrant for the Zionist officials Netanyahu and Gallant as well as his continuous support for the Palestinian cause.
During the meeting, the Grand Imam underscored Al-Azhar’s pivotal role in promoting world peace and human fraternity, stressing that the essence of Islam is based on mutual understanding and promoting good relations among all people, regardless of their beliefs, ethnicities, backgrounds, or colours. His Eminence further noted that warfare in Islam is only a means to repel aggression, emphasizing that conflict historically known as “Religious Wars” had, in fact, no religious motives. Rather, they were primarily triggered by political ideologies that employed religion for securing political gains.
Moreover, the Grand Imam outlined Al-Azhar’s efforts aimed at promoting global peace. At the national level, he noted the establishment of the Egyptian Family House, in collaboration with the Egyptian Orthodox Church, to promote tolerance and peaceful coexistence. Internationally, he referred to Al-Azhar al-Sharif’s collaboration with the Vatican in drafting and signing the Human Fraternity Document (HFD) on the 4th of February 2019.
For her part, Mrs. Veronica expressed her gratitude for the opportunity to meet with the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar and commended his efforts to promote world peace, stressing her confidence in the ability of religious leaders to spread peace through dialogue. She also shared the Grand Imam’s concerns regarding the arms industry, which she identified as the main cause of the global tragedies. She voiced her hope that, by addressing this critical issue, the world community could work towards eliminating poverty, conflict, hatred, and war. She concluded that, unlike politicians, we need to view the world through a lens of love rather than hatred and to strive for peace instead of war.