JEDDAH, 14 April 2007 — Sheikh Abdul Rahman Al-Sudais, imam of the Grand Mosque in Makkah, yesterday urged Iraq’s Shiites and Sunnis to stop their fratricidal fighting and stand united in the face of their common enemy. The sheikh also called on Arab leaders to exert greater effort to end the fighting that has claimed thousands of lives.
“Many Muslims have forgotten an important principle of Islam, the principle of unity. The Holy Qur’an has said: Hold fast, all together, the rope of Allah and be not divided among yourselves,” the imam said while delivering his Friday sermon to thousands of faithful who thronged the Grand Mosque.
Al-Sudais described the sectarian infighting in the Islamic world as a time bomb, adding that enemies were trying to intensify such rivalries to weaken Muslims. He also urged Muslims not to be disappointed by their present condition and to continue trying to change the situation.
In this respect, the imam lauded the efforts of Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah to stop the bloody infighting among Palestinian factions by inviting their leaders for talks in Makkah. The Makkah accord reached by Palestinian leaders led to the formation of the new national unity government.
Al-Sudais also called for a similar move to stop the killings in Iraq, warning that the failure of Arab leaders to stop the fratricidal fighting, based on religious schools of thought and sectarianism, would lead to “a huge human catastrophe.”
He also warned about Iraq-type violence in Lebanon if a quick solution was not found. The Makkah imam called for dialogue and tolerance to promote unity among Muslim groups. He said: “Muslim intellectuals and politicians must work to stop bloodshed in the community and the killing of Muslims by Muslims.”
He also hoped that King Abdullah would take further initiatives to bring about peace and stability in Lebanon, Sudan and Somalia.
Meanwhile, Abdullah Omar Naseef, former deputy chairman of the Shoura Council, emphasized the need for dialogue to end the bloodbath between Shiites and Sunnis in Iraq.
“Both sides should sit together to find a solution with good intentions. Armed conflicts will not bring any solution. They will bring only death and destruction. Dialogue is the only solution. Those who are engaged in bloody fighting now will realize later that they were wrong,” Naseef told Arab News.
