Respect for other religions is vital for peaceful coexistence: MWL chief

Dr. Mohammed bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa. (Supplied)
Updated 06 May 2019
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Respect for other religions is vital for peaceful coexistence: MWL chief

  • Al-Issa noted that education is one of the main drivers of a sustainable, peaceful future, stressing that “preparing teachers is the main point of focus”

JEDDAH: The Responsible Leaders Summit at the UN in New York stressed the pivotal role of Saudi Arabia in maintaining global harmony and peace, as well as its global status as the spiritual leader of the Muslim world, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Sunday.
The Muslim World League (MWL) secretary-general, Dr. Mohammed bin Abdul Karim Al-Issa, delivered the opening and closing remarks at the summit along with Bawa Jain, secretary-general of the World Council of Religious Leaders.
Al-Issa focused on the vital role that responsible leadership plays in facing the many challenges of the modern world.
“It is important for leaders to inspire others and provide them with positive energy,” he said. “No matter what the differences in our culture or religion may be, we all agree on the key humanitarian norms that constitute the framework of our natural law. Even 10 percent of this common ground is enough to bring about global harmony and peace.”
He went on to list several attributes central to responsible leadership, including strength and integrity; a knowledge of history and a willingness to learn from it; being proactive and constantly monitoring performance; and recognition that the “most important pillar of (one’s) own nation’s peace” is “world peace.”
Al-Issa noted that education is one of the main drivers of a sustainable, peaceful future, stressing that “preparing teachers is the main point of focus.”
Al-Issa also addressed the responsibilities of religious leaders. “These include countering hate speech and all theories of religious or ethnic extremism that lead to violence or terrorism, while strengthening the intellectual immunity of all — especially young people — through their spiritual influence,” he said. “Extreme religious and terrorist ideologies are not established by military force, but by religious people who choose to adopt radical ideologies.
“We say there is no such thing as a ‘radical religion,’ but there is also no religion that does not have some extremist followers,” he continued.
Respect for other religions and their followers, he said, is vital for peaceful coexistence. The efforts of certain isolated religious and sectarian groups to impose their ideals on others, and reject the rights of others to exist, have led to exclusion, hatred and hostility, he added.
“Such negative ideas have created extremism of all kinds, including the (rise of the) extreme right in some countries,” Al-Issa noted, adding that each and every case of extremism —  whether political, religious or intellectual —  is a threat to world peace.
“Evil grows with time, through its effects on unconscious emotions. All stable people are aware that extremist rhetoric has a painful end. They also realize that its quick gains are deceptive. (It is) a seed of evil that will backfire,” he said.
“Evil only expands in the absence of good, injustice in the absence of justice, ignorance in the absence of knowledge, and negative opportunism at the expense of public interests in the absence of values with effective laws,” he concluded. “The fence of our human harmony can only be breached when it is unguarded.”


Excavators held for violating water system

Updated 26 April 2024
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Excavators held for violating water system

  • The discovery was made during field tours carried out by the water department

TUBARJAL: The Al-Jouf branch of the Saudi Ministry of Environment, Water and Agriculture has apprehended three excavators who were found to be violating the water system in Tubarjal.
The discovery was made during field tours carried out by the water department, in cooperation with the competent authorities in the governorate.
Separately, authorities in Addayer in the Jazan region have arrested seven Ethiopians for smuggling 105 kg of hashish. Legal procedures have been completed against the offenders who were handed over, along with the seized items, to the competent authority.
Border guard patrols in the Al-Harth area of Jazan have also foiled an attempt to smuggle 71 kg of hashish, with initial legal procedures completed and the find handed over to the competent authority.
Security authorities have reiterated their appeal for citizens and residents to report any information regarding drug smuggling or selling by calling 911 in Makkah, Riyadh, and the Eastern Region, and 999 in the rest of the Kingdom’s regions.
Those with information may also contact the General Directorate of Narcotics Control at 995 or at [email protected].


Direct KSA to Iraq flight routes announced

Updated 26 April 2024
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Direct KSA to Iraq flight routes announced

  • These flights, along with flights to Baghdad and Irbil, will commence from June 1.

RIYADH: The Saudi General Authority of Civil Aviation announced the launch of direct flights from Dammam to Najaf, the Saudi Press Agency reported on Friday.
The decision is in line with the Kingdom’s national aviation sector strategy, aimed at doubling capacity to accommodate over 330 million passengers annually, and extending services to more than 250 global destinations.
These flights, along with flights to Baghdad and Irbil, will commence from June 1.


Ministry of Hajj and Umrah praises Iraqi authorities for arresting fraudsters touting fake Hajj trips

Updated 26 April 2024
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Ministry of Hajj and Umrah praises Iraqi authorities for arresting fraudsters touting fake Hajj trips

  • A ministry source in the statement also warned prospective pilgrims to beware of unauthorized Hajj offers being promoted this year
  • The ministry made it clear that visas for Umrah, tourism, work, family visits, transit, and other categories do not grant eligibility to perform Hajj

RIYADH: The Ministry of Hajj and Umrah expressed its gratitude for actions taken by the Supreme Commission for Hajj and Umrah in the Republic of Iraq that resulted in the prosecution of more than 25 companies fraudulently engaged in commercial Hajj operations.
A ministry source in the statement also warned prospective pilgrims to beware of unauthorized Hajj offers being promoted this year, primarily through social media.
Participation in Hajj requires pilgrims to obtain a legitimate Hajj visa issued by the authorities in the Kingdom in coordination with Hajj affairs offices in their respective countries, or via the Nusuk Hajj platform for those countries that do not have an official Hajj office.
The source said that the Ministry of Hajj and Umrah is monitoring advertisements from companies and campaigns, as well as identifying fake accounts on social networks allegedly offering Hajj packages at enticing prices.
The ministry made it clear that visas for Umrah, tourism, work, family visits, transit, and other categories do not grant eligibility to perform Hajj. It urged pilgrims to be careful not to fall victim to companies and others claiming to offer commercial Hajj campaigns or other misleading initiatives.
“Regulations must be followed and legally documented permits, as represented by the official Hajj visa, must be issued, so a safe, secure, well-managed Hajj program and fair representation to all nationalities is provided,” Mohsen Tutla, head of the World Hajj and Umrah Convention, told Arab News.
“Hajj is a mega event with more than 2 million worshippers. Can one imagine, if order was not imposed and (the event) not regulated, chaos would ensue,” he added.
In the statement, the ministry calls for everyone’s cooperation to help combat and report fraudulent companies and campaigns, and to seek information only by visiting its official website and engaging with its channels on social networks.


World’s largest Arabic opera opens in Riyadh

Updated 26 April 2024
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World’s largest Arabic opera opens in Riyadh

  • The opera was produced by the Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission

RIYADH: “Zarqa Al-Yamama,” the world’s first and largest grand opera in Arabic, made its debut at the King Fahad Cultural Center in Riyadh, taking the audience on a lyrical journey through one of the best-known folkloric tales in the Arabian Peninsula.
The opera was produced by the Saudi Theater and Performing Arts Commission, and will run until May 4, telling the story of the central character’s attempts to warn her Jadis tribe of an imminent invasion.


Saudi chemistry duo add to KSA medal haul

Updated 26 April 2024
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Saudi chemistry duo add to KSA medal haul

  • Team members were selected by Mawhiba

RIYADH: Two Saudi students have added to the Kingdom’s medal haul at the 2024 Mendeleev International Chemistry Olympiad being held in China from April 20-27.
Hassan Abdul Jalil Al-Khalifa, a third-grade secondary student from the Provincial Department of Education, Eastern Province, and fellow student Ali Salah Al-Moussa claimed bronze medals at the competition, lifting the Kingdom’s overall tally to three silver and 20 bronze.
More than 150 students from 27 countries are competing at the 58th session of the Olympiad.
Saudi Arabia is represented by a team of six students from several educational institutions.
Team members were selected by the King Abdulaziz and his Companions Foundation for Giftedness and Creativity, also known as Mawhiba.
Students were chosen after attending a series of forums over the course of two years, and were trained by Mawhiba, in partnership with the King Abdullah University of Science and Technology.