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Egypt’s Grand Mufti Warns Regress in Fiqh Is a Sign of Extremism

Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam (Egypt’s Dar Al Ifta)
Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam (Egypt’s Dar Al Ifta)
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Egypt’s Grand Mufti Warns Regress in Fiqh Is a Sign of Extremism

Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam (Egypt’s Dar Al Ifta)
Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam (Egypt’s Dar Al Ifta)

Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam stressed the need to adapt traditional texts in Fiqh (Islamic jurisprudence) to context and changes over time. He considered solely abiding by their literal interpretations a deviation from the right track.

“Using stagnation when interpreting traditional jurisprudential texts and commitment to them literally without taking into account changes in reality and norms is a manifestation of extremism and a departure from the purposes of the honorable Sharia,” said Allam on Wednesday, blaming terrorist groups for the practice.

“Jurisprudential conditioning is a process intended to attach the emerging reality - after good conception and realization of its dimensions - with a jurisprudential origin that has its descriptions and rulings,” explained the Grand Mufti.

In a step taken to better train Imams in Egypt, the Awqaf Ministry launched its first-ever program of the kind, entitled “Thinking Imam,” to prepare and instruct modern-day Imams.

According to the ministry, the program aims “to form a new generation of imams, distinguished scholars, and thinkers, not only in religious sciences but in all modern sciences.”

Interviews and tests will be held for program candidates, revealed the ministry. The vetting process will help select those best qualified to carry the banner of wisdom and good preaching.

Between 50-100 imams will be selected for the program, which will train its enlisters in various fields, including political sciences.

The program aims to promote a correct understanding of religion.

In early 2019, the ministry launched an academy to train and qualify imams and prepare trainers inside and outside Egypt.

For the ministry's part, imams should be familiar with modern technologies to benefit from them and adequately warn against their dangers.

For his part, Awqaf Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa underlined that the ministry has focused on renewing religious discourse and spreading moderate thought.

He added that the ministry is also applying for several high-level training programs under national partnerships, intending to have a generation of imams who can explain the upright teachings of Islam.

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EU Preparing to Appoint Envoy to Syria to Address Migration Crisis

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni hold a joint press conference in Beirut. (Reuters)
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni hold a joint press conference in Beirut. (Reuters)
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EU Preparing to Appoint Envoy to Syria to Address Migration Crisis

Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni hold a joint press conference in Beirut. (Reuters)
Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati and his Italian counterpart Giorgia Meloni hold a joint press conference in Beirut. (Reuters)

The European Union is preparing to appoint a special envoy to Syria, with officials from the Commission and the External Relations Department emphasizing that this move is not intended to “normalize relations with the regime” but rather to address the escalating migration crisis, which is expected to become increasingly complex after recent developments in Lebanon.

Lebanon has seen nearly a quarter of its population displaced, with many of their homes destroyed in border villages and parts of Beirut due to Israeli attacks.

Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, in coordination with her Austrian counterpart, has been active in recent months, pushing the EU toward normalizing relations with Syria to facilitate the return of refugees.

However, some member states, led by France, have strongly opposed this approach, ultimately agreeing—after extensive negotiations within the European Council—to appoint a special envoy whose mandate is limited to addressing the refugee crisis.

The issue of refugees and displaced persons was central to Meloni’s recent discussions during her regional visit, with Beirut as her final stop. There, Lebanese caretaker Prime Minister Najib Mikati urged her to intervene to help resolve the crisis, which poses significant challenges as winter approaches.

In July, Italy, currently holding the G7 presidency, decided to appoint an envoy to Damascus to “shed light” on Syria, as Italian Foreign Minister Antonio Tajani put it.

Italy had withdrawn all its diplomatic staff from Damascus in 2012 and suspended its diplomatic activities in Syria in protest against the “unacceptable violence” by Bashar al-Assad’s regime against its citizens, who were holding peaceful rallies against his rule.

Earlier this summer, Italy and seven other EU countries sent a letter to EU High Representative for Foreign Affairs Josep Borrell, urging a more active European role in Syria to help return a number of Syrian refugees from EU countries, particularly Austria, Slovenia, and Croatia.

The signatories called for an end to the EU’s “three no’s” policy: no lifting of sanctions, no normalization, and no reconstruction under the current regime, emphasizing that peace in Syria is impossible as long as the current government remains in power.

Reports from the EU Migration Department indicate that Syrians continue to leave their country in significant numbers due to worsening economic conditions. Many Syrian refugees in Lebanon are also joining irregular migration routes to Europe, as living conditions have deteriorated in Lebanon in recent years. Italy, Austria, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Greece, Croatia, Slovenia, and Slovakia signed the letter.

Most of these countries have recently reopened their embassies in Damascus, with Italy the only G7 nation, to resume diplomatic activities in the Syrian capital.

Italian sources have expressed concerns that Israel’s war on Lebanon could spill over into Syria or expand regionally, potentially triggering another large-scale migration crisis that the EU may not be prepared to handle under current conditions.

However, the new European policy, spearheaded by Italy amid the ongoing regional shifts, aims for a broader objective: enhancing the EU’s presence in Syria to compete with Russia, contain the Iranian regime, which has recently faced significant setbacks, and counter Türkiye's expanding influence.

Syria has been under sanctions from the United States, the EU, and several other countries since 2011.