 | Os this a case of public words, private meaning, of which PLO head Yasser Arafat was a master, or is this really what Egypt is working toward? |
[AlAhram] Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayyeb, the grand imam of Egypt's al-Azhar, the world's leading Moslem Sunni institution, called on Monday on Moslems in the Middle East to "embrace" local Christian communities.
El-Tayyeb's comments came in a televised speech in Abu Dhabi during a ceremony at the Human Fraternity Meeting, which is being organized by the Emirates.
The meeting is attended by the Vaticn's Pope Francis, who is on his first ever visit to the Arabian Peninsule, the birthplace of Islam.
The Pontiff had arrived in Abu-Dhabi on Sunday night on a three-day trip to promote interfaith dialogue and visit the Catholic peripheries.
El-Tayyeb flew on Sunday to Abu-Dhabi to meet with Pope Francis and attend the event.
The grand imam, who stressed in his speech 'that religion must never be used to justify violence,' and the pope signed a document that al-Azhar and the Vatican will work together to fight extremism.
Addressing communities of the Christian faith, El-Tayyeb stressed "You are part of this nation... You are not minorities."
He also called on Moslems in the west to integrate in their host nations and respect local laws. 
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