File Photo: Al-Azhar Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed El-Tayeb. Photo courtesy of Al-Azhar website.
In a post on his official accounts on Facebook and X, Sheikh El-Tayyeb said the attack "exposes the occupation’s intentions and schemes to spread chaos, destabilize the region, violate Arab lands and exploit the resources of its peoples, turning the Middle East into a battlefield of conflicts and wars."
The grand imam of Al-Azhar, the world's leading Sunni Islamic institution, stressed that this dangerous assault on Qatar’s sovereignty requires the Arab and Islamic worlds to unite in order to put an end to the arrogance of the occupying entity and its criminal behaviour.
Grand mufti condemns
In tandem, Egypt’s Grand Mufti, Sheikh Nazir Mohamed Ayad, strongly condemned also what he described as the “brutal Zionist aggression” against the State of Qatar, calling it a blatant violation of the sovereignty of an independent Arab state and a direct challenge to international law and UN charters.
In a statement released on Tuesday evening, the grand mufti, who is tasked with issuing religious edicts, said the Israeli occupation, through this act of aggression, “adds another page of bloodshed and destruction to its long record of crimes and violations,” describing it as a form of organized terrorism carried out by the “Zionist killing machine” against the entire Arab and Islamic nation.
He stressed that attempts by Israel to justify its assault with “false pretences and flimsy excuses” only serve to expose the ugliness of the crime and the bankruptcy of its claims. “The world now sees the picture clearly, without distortion.
"Lies can no longer hide the blood or obscure the facts,” he said, adding that the attack is in reality "an assault on Arab and Islamic unity and an attempt to destabilize regional security."
The grand mufti urged the international community, with all its institutions and organizations, to “rise above silence” and act decisively to stop what he called Israeli “arrogance and lawlessness.”
He emphasized that such aggression will only strengthen the unity and resilience of the Arab nation in confronting the occupation, declaring that “the Arab right will never be broken, no matter the brutality of the assault.”
He concluded by praying for the protection of Egypt and the Arab and Islamic nations, asking God to grant strength and steadfastness to the people of Gaza and Palestine and to bring them swift relief and ultimate victory.
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