Al-Azhar calls for Shia-Sunni gathering

The Grand Imam of the al-Azhar mosque, Egypt’s top Muslim authority, has called for a meeting of leading Sunni and Shia scholars in the capital, Cairo.

The call by Sheikh Ahmed Al Tayeb aired on Egypt’s state TV on Wednesday evening came at the close of a series of programs about Ramadan.

Al Tayeb called on Sunni scholars to issue a Fatwa (Religious edict) prohibiting the killing of Shia Muslims.

He also called on Shia scholars to issue a similar fatwa prohibiting the killing of Sunni Muslims.

Al Tayeb said his call was aimed at “burying sectarian strife” and halting the “bloodbath” that is gripping the region.

The sheikh of al-Azhar further stressed the necessity of endorsing the culture of “coexistence and peace,” and of saving the Islamic nation from “conspirators and plotters.”

Al Tayeb has repeatedly accused what he described as a “Zionist plan” for wreaking havoc on Islamic countries, and creating rifts and strife among Muslims.