Al-Azhar sheikh defines terrorism

CAIRO, 20 June — The sheikh of Al-Azhar, Dr. Muhammad Tantawi, has ruled that a person blowing himself up against an aggressor to defend himself, his land, wealth, honor and freedom in the absence of any other means is a martyr. At a news conference here yesterday, Tantawi said that the religious ban applies only in the event of a person blowing himself up to harm innocent people who have nothing do with war or aggression. The sheikh also clarified the difference between jihad and terror. While jihad is the means to defend life, land, honor and other rights, terrorism is the means through which someone usurps the rights of others, he said.