Isesco appeals to world congress of imams and rabbis to condemn religious extremism

Director general of the Islamic Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO-based in Rabat) has called the ongoing world congress of "imams and rabbis for peace" to condemn all forms of extremism within the Jewish, Christian and Muslim Communities.

Abdulaziz Othman Altwaijri, in an address to the congress held in Brussels under the patronage of King Mohammed VI of Morocco and King Albert II of Belgium, deplored the upsurge of "ideologies and trends that revive past enmities and kindle hatred and divergences between civilizations."

The director general of ISESCO, an offshoot of the Organization of the Islamic Conference (OIS) also called the elite, particularly religious scholars, to re-launch dialogue, arguing that the world needs, more than ever before, to promote a culture of peace and justice on the basis of the values of dialogue and mutual respect.

"This conference should confirm that peace, a joint responsibility, should be built on foundations of co-existence, respect and knowledge," he stressed insisting that Islam preaches dialogue on the basis of wisdom, good counsel and decency and upholds politeness in language.

Held by the Swiss foundation "Men of word," the four-day conference brings together over a hundred imams and rabbis who are discussing a myriad of issues related to co-existence between Islam and Judaism in the world.

The Moroccan monarch hoped in a message to the congress opening that Imams and Rabbis would curb intolerance and exclusion. The conference, he said, "inaugurates a new course marked by the beginning of a serious and constructive dialogue between Islam and Judaism, for the sake of the advancement of humanity."