RIYADH: Deputy Minister of Islamic Affairs, Call and Guidance Dr. Tawfiq Al-Sudairi warned all preachers about the use of Friday sermons to spread political messages, noting that the responsibility of preachers is to ensure that political issues do not find their way into sermons.
He said the role and responsibility of the Friday preacher is to ensure that the sermon promotes religious guidance and awareness, and remind people of the pillars of Islam.
Any preacher that violates this responsibility will be held accountable, he said, because the ministry does not side with anyone who uses his religious position to sow dissension between members of the community.
Al-Sudairi stressed that the ministry follows up closely on these issues and monitors mosque officials and Friday sermons through assigned monitors, as well as investigates all complaints and alerts received from citizens and residents. He reminded members of the community that the ministry’s door is open and that it receives all comments or feedback.
“If the ministry proves that a preacher violated these roles, it will take appropriate measures, according to the case, which may include signing a pledge, issuing a warning, or temporarily or permanently stopping the preacher from giving sermons,” he said.
“The ministry trusts its preachers because they are capable of shouldering their responsibility and are qualified.” He said preachers are selected in accordance with specific conditions and requirements stipulated in the regulations, which include passing a personal interview with the advisory committee at the ministry’s branches to identfy the applicants’ abilities to give Friday sermons.
He added that there is no human work without errors, but any such errors and violations will be dealt with accordingly.
Al-Sudairi: Friday sermon should be free of politics
Al-Sudairi: Friday sermon should be free of politics
SDAIA president says Saudi Arabia is building an integrated AI ecosystem
RIYADH: Saudi Data and Artificial Intelligence Authority President Abdullah Al-Ghamdi says that Saudi Arabia is moving steadily to establish artificial intelligence as a trusted national capability, the Saudi Press Agency reported.
Guided by the objectives of Saudi Vision 2030, Al-Ghamdi said the goal is to use AI to help develop government services, enhance competitiveness, build human capacity and improve quality of life through a comprehensive strategy based on three main pillars that unlock the potential of this technology and achieve sustainable developmental impact.
“The first pillar focuses on building human capacity and enhancing readiness to engage with AI technologies,” he said.
The second pillar is building an integrated national AI ecosystem that drives expansion and innovation by developing advanced digital infrastructure that enables various sectors to adopt AI applications efficiently, consistently and with effective governance, Al-Ghamdi said.
The third pillar, he said, is governance that ensures responsible and measurable AI through a national framework aligned with international standards.
This came during Al-Ghamdi’s speech at a high-level ministerial session held on Thursday on the sidelines of the AI Impact Summit 2026 in New Delhi.
He is heading the Saudi delegation, and the session saw broad participation from heads of state, decision-makers and technology leaders from around the world.
Al-Ghamdi also had a meeting with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Thursday evening, discussed AI cooperation and expressed his gratitude for hosting the summit and for the hospitality extended to the participants.
