The World Association for Al-Azhar Graduates joins with Al-Azhar University, Egypt’s Prime Minister, Egypt’s Catholic Church and other political and religious figures in condemnation of the insulting comments of Turkish Prime Minister Recep Tayyip Erdogan.
The Turkish Prime Minister, Recep Tayyip Erdogan, made a speech at the University Development Foundation on Sunday 25 August 2013 in the Rize province, where he stated that he was “disappointed” to see the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb Shaykh al-Azhar, side with the present leaders of Egypt. The insulting comments of the Turkish Prime Minister that “history will curse men like him as it cursed scholars and intellectuals of that kind in Turkey in the past” have been met with widespread rejection and condemnation from within Egypt and internationally.
On Tuesday, the Interim Prime Minister of Egypt, Hazem El Beblawi, rejected the Turkish Prime Minister’s criticism of the Grand Imam. El Beblawi, in a statement, affirmed that Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb holds great value for Egypt, the Islamic and Arab world, along with being the head of “one of the largest Islamic institutions in the world, which works to spread Islam’s accurate tolerant teachings.” Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb, according to El Beblawi, has carried out a “national role in his efforts for Egypt and the Muslim nation’s greater good, hence the call for reason, wisdom and the avoidance of division and partisanship.”
Also on Tuesday, head of Egypt’s Coptic Orthodox Church, Pope Tawadros II, telephoned the Grand Imam, Dr Ahmed al-Tayyeb, denouncing the insult hurled towards him. Secretary to the Pope, Father Angelos Issac, said that the pope has expressed his strong disapproval of the Turkish Prime Minister’s insults of the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, which is one of the oldest Sunni global authorities.
The Grand Mufti of Egypt, Shaykh Dr Shawqi Allam, called on the Egyptian state, represented by the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, to address all those who insult Al-Azhar and its Grand Imam. “Any insult to the esteemed institution of Al-Azhar in all its tributaries represents a threat to Egyptian national security,” he said.
In an official statement issued by Al-Azhar University, the institution expressed confidence that the Turkish people will not accept this kind of insult and called for the Turkish Prime Minister to take back his words. The Al-Azhar statement read, “The position of Al-Azhar and its Grand Imam since the revolution of 25th January 2011 has always been for the benefit of the general Egyptian people keen on union. It represents a subtle force, inside Egypt and outside, in bringing people together and removing difference.”
On Wednesday, the World Association for Al-Azhar Graduates (WAAG) and its branches around the world denounced the attack of Recep Erdogan on the Grand Imam, Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb Shaykh al-Azhar. The statement read, “The attack of the Turkish Prime Minister on the Grand Imam is an attack on a prominent symbol of the Islamic nation and on one of its grand intellectuals. The positions taken by Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb reflect Al-Azhar’s national conviction and intellectual stance and come in response to the demands of the Egyptian people.” The statement added that the Grand Imam did not lag behind in taking up his position in the face of invitations from all of the national forces of Egypt as well as political and religious representations, for not doing as such would have been a disavowal of the national interest demonstrated by the Egyptian masses on the 30th of June.
The UK Branch of the World Association for Al-Azhar Graduates (WAAG UK) supports the statements issued by Al-Azhar University and rejects the blatant insulting attack of the Turkish Prime Minister on the integrity of the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Dr Ahmad al-Tayyeb. The Grand Imam has led the institution of Al-Azhar over the difficult period of the past years and the institution and the Grand Imam have emerged as a symbol of Egyptian unity playing a most significant role in the present Egyptian society as well as representing an Islamic intellectual authority with growing global stature.
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