Egypt’s Religious Institutions Call for Fighting 'Hate Speech'https://english.aawsat.com/home/article/2571506/egypt%E2%80%99s-religious-institutions-call-fighting-hate-speech
Egypt’s Religious Institutions Call for Fighting 'Hate Speech'
People gather in front of the Bois d'Aulne college after the attack in the Paris suburb of Conflans St Honorine, France, October 17, 2020. (Reuters)
Egypt’s Religious Institutions Call for Fighting 'Hate Speech'
People gather in front of the Bois d'Aulne college after the attack in the Paris suburb of Conflans St Honorine, France, October 17, 2020. (Reuters)
Egyptian religious institutions stressed the need to confront hate speech which would ensure the safety of societies and strengthen relations between peoples.
The country's top religious authority, al-Azhar called for the enactment of international laws to criminalize insulting religions and their sacred symbols.
In a statement, al-Azhar described the incident of the beheading of a teacher by an extremist in Bois d'Aulne college in the Paris suburb of Conflans St. Honorine, as a “heinous crime”, stressung that murder is a crime that cannot be justified in any way.
The statement also urged everyone to “respect the beliefs of others, and reject hate speech and violence, regardless of its form, source, or cause."
Dar al-Iftaa also called for the need to adhere to the morals and teachings of religion that affirm respect for the beliefs of others, emphasizing the necessity of activating the laws against hate speech.
For his part, Egypt’s Grand Mufti Shawki Allam condemned the recent attack in Paris, saying it is a crime categorically rejected by Islam and cannot be justified, because Islam has called for the protection of human life.
Allam called on the French government not to hold Islam and Muslims responsible for this crime.
“It would be wise to deal with this issue as an individual crime in order not to spread hatred against Muslims,” he noted.
Meanwhile, the Observatory of Islamophobia, affiliated with Dar al-Ifta, warned of a wave of attacks against Muslims and their places of worship in France.
It cautioned that recent events would lead to a wave of violence and counter-violence, unless intervention is made to stop extremism and hatred rhetoric.
The Observatory confirmed, in a statement, that attacking Islam is an extremist act that must be criminalized, and confronted as a first step to prevent terrorist operations.
There is no point in fighting ISIS and terrorist organizations unless extremism and terrorism of the Western-right are fought equally.
According to the Observatory, the world is at stake and extremism is a grave danger to all societies, calling on advocates of peace and coexistence to play their important and vital role in preserving the security of society.
Zaidi Urges Sharaa to Boost Baghdad-Damascus Coordinationhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5282998-zaidi-urges-sharaa-boost-baghdad-damascus-coordination
Zaidi Urges Sharaa to Boost Baghdad-Damascus Coordination
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi (Iraqi Prime Minister’s Office)
Iraqi Prime Minister Ali al-Zaidi has sent a message to Syrian President Ahmed al-Sharaa calling for stronger ties and closer security and economic coordination.
The move reflects Baghdad’s push to rebuild regional relations while, at home, working to bring weapons under state control and prepare for a planned visit to the United States.
The message was delivered by Hamid al-Shatri, head of Iraq’s National Intelligence Service.
The Iraqi prime minister’s media office said late Wednesday that Zaidi’s message stressed the need to develop relations between Baghdad and Damascus and step up coordination to confront regional challenges and crises, particularly in security and economic affairs, in line with the two countries’ shared interests.
The statement said Sharaa thanked Zaidi and the Iraqi government, and affirmed Syria’s commitment to working with Iraq to address common challenges arising from recent regional developments.
He also stressed the importance of strengthening bilateral cooperation, especially on security and the economy.
The message comes as Iraq seeks to repair ties with its Arab neighbors under a broader approach built around three tracks: asserting state authority by “confining weapons to the hands of the state,” expanding regional outreach, and diversifying the economy by drawing foreign investment.
Zaidi to Washington
Baghdad has yet to set a date for Zaidi’s visit to the United States, which follows an invitation from US President Donald Trump. Iraqi officials say the visit is tied to a set of files the government has begun pursuing under fixed timelines, led by the effort to bring weapons under state control.
Government spokesman Haider al-Aboudi told a news conference that the deadline for carrying out the weapons-control plan expires next September, coinciding with the scheduled withdrawal of international coalition forces from Iraq.
The timing is significant. It would complete arrangements agreed by the previous government, including ending the mission of the coalition formed to fight ISIS, moving Baghdad’s relationship with Washington into a bilateral framework based on the 2009 Strategic Framework Agreement, and ending the work of the United Nations Assistance Mission for Iraq, known as UNAMI.
The Iraqi government hopes to make tangible progress on the weapons file before the Washington visit. But positions taken by some Iran-backed armed factions have added pressure.
Kataib Hezbollah and Harakat al-Nujaba, two of Iraq’s most prominent armed factions, have issued statements that raised questions over the future of the government’s weapons-control measures.
The Shiite Coordination Framework had granted the prime minister a mandate over the mechanisms and procedures for confining weapons to the state. The move was seen as a withdrawal of the political cover long enjoyed by some armed factions, potentially putting them on a direct collision course with the government.
At the same time, influential forces within the Coordination Framework, which holds about 80 parliamentary seats, are seeking to expand their presence in government and secure ministerial posts after earlier US reservations about their participation eased.
The government says its handling of these files is based on a “national vision” backed by parliament. Aboudi said the government remains fully committed to confining weapons to the state according to the timelines set in its program.
Gas flares burn at the Rumaila oil field during an armed patrol by Iraqi Energy Police in Basra, Iraq, June 8, 2026. REUTERS/Essam Al-Sudani
Regional outreach for development
On the economic front, Baghdad is betting on major investment projects to reinforce long-term stability.
Aboudi said the “Development Fund” is an investment vehicle separate from the state budget, funded by international contributions from friendly countries, with guarantees ranging from $100 billion to $150 billion, to support development and sustainable stability.
Observers say the three files, security, regional outreach, and economic development, form the broad framework for Iraq’s current domestic and foreign moves.
Political science professor Talib Mohammed Karim told Asharq Al-Awsat that Zaidi’s expected visit to Washington cannot be separated from the changes underway in Iraq and the wider region.
He said Baghdad is working on three parallel tracks: strengthening state authority by confining weapons to the state, opening up regionally, including through improved ties with Syria, and diversifying the economy by reducing dependence on oil and attracting investment.
Karim said the visit matters because of its timing, as the balance of power in the Middle East is being reshaped after years of conflict. Iraq, he said, has a chance to move from being shaped by regional developments to helping shape stability, drawing on its geography and balanced relations with different sides.
Relations with Washington
Former prime minister Adil Abdul Mahdi also called for stronger Iraqi-US ties while preserving the agreements signed between the two countries.
Abdul Mahdi said he hoped Zaidi would succeed in his mission, adding that it was too early to judge the current government, which remains at the start of its four-year term.
He said Iraq needs friendly relations with the US and other countries while honoring existing agreements between Baghdad and Washington. He said the end of next September would mark a decisive point with the completion of the international coalition’s withdrawal from Iraqi territory.
Abdul Mahdi said stronger political and economic ties between Iraq and the US would serve mutual interests, citing the importance of Washington’s international role and Baghdad’s regional standing, as well as the shared benefits that closer relations could bring.
Israel Releases Hamas Co-founder After 2 Years of Detentionhttps://english.aawsat.com/arab-world/5282996-israel-releases-hamas-co-founder-after-2-years-detention
This picture taken from a position on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip, shows the sun setting behind destroyed buildings in the besieged Palestinian territory on June 10, 2026. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
Israel Releases Hamas Co-founder After 2 Years of Detention
This picture taken from a position on the Israeli border with the Gaza Strip, shows the sun setting behind destroyed buildings in the besieged Palestinian territory on June 10, 2026. (Photo by Jack GUEZ / AFP)
The son of a Hamas co-founder said that Israeli authorities released his father in the occupied West Bank on Thursday after holding him without trial for more than two years.
Hassan Yousef, 71, was "freed near the southern West Bank city of Hebron" and taken to a hospital in Ramallah where he resides, his son Owais Yousef said.
Yousef is a senior leader of Hamas in the West Bank, having co-founded the group in the 1980s along with Sheikh Ahmad Yassine and other Palestinian members of the Muslim Brotherhood.
Israeli police did not immediately respond to an AFP request for confirmation.
Yousef had been held in Israeli administrative detention since October 2023, shortly after the Hamas attack on Israel that sparked the war in Gaza.
Israel has increased its use of administrative detention against Palestinians since the war. The system allows it to detain individuals for renewable six-month periods without charge.
Israel says the procedure allows authorities to hold suspects and prevent attacks while continuing to gather evidence, but critics and rights groups say the system is abused.
Israel has arrested Yousef several times over the years. He was last released in July 2020 from 16 months of administrative detention.
A member of the now-defunct Palestinian parliament, Yousef is estranged from his eldest son Mosab Hassan Yousef, who for 10 years spied against his father's movement.
From 1997 to 2007, Mosab Hassan Yousef worked for Israel's internal security agency Shin Bet, before relocating to the United States, where he lives under a new identity and wrote the book "Son of Hamas".
Lebanon’s Ambassador to Asharq Al-Awsat: Saudi Decision on Exports Came after Beirut Met Standardshttps://english.aawsat.com/gulf/5282994-lebanon%E2%80%99s-ambassador-asharq-al-awsat-saudi-decision-exports-came-after-beirut-met
Lebanon’s Ambassador to Asharq Al-Awsat: Saudi Decision on Exports Came after Beirut Met Standards
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Lebanese President Joseph Aoun at Al-Yamamah Palace in Riyadh, Nov. 3, 2025 (SPA)
Lebanon’s ambassador to Riyadh said Saudi Arabia’s decision to resume imports from Lebanon came after Beirut met the required standards to ensure the goods posed no risk.
The diplomat said the fight against drugs had involved intensive work and high-level security and political coordination between the two countries.
Saudi Crown Prince and Prime Minister Mohammed bin Salman on Wednesday ordered the resumption of Lebanese exports to the Kingdom at the request of Lebanese President Joseph Aoun and Prime Minister Nawaf Salam.
The move followed what were described as positive steps by Lebanon’s government to rebuild state institutions, work by specialist teams over the past year, Beirut’s cooperation and the required pledges it had made.
In a phone interview with Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday, Ambassador Ali Karanouh welcomed the Crown Prince’s decision, saying it reflected “the depth of the brotherly and historic relations between the two countries, and the Saudi leadership’s keenness to support Lebanon, its institutions, economy, and people, especially in these difficult circumstances.”
‘A lifeline’
Karanouh said Lebanon was going through a period in which it needed “a lifeline,” adding that the step “is not surprising from Saudi Arabia, which has always stood by Lebanon.”
He cited Riyadh’s role in the Taif Agreement that ended Lebanon’s civil war, as well as its support during reconstruction and recovery.
The ambassador said Lebanese people were grateful for the decision, which he said would benefit agriculture, industry, trade, and services, and help Lebanon regain access to one of the most important Arab and Gulf markets at a time when it badly needs support.
He said the decision was the result of efforts that began with Aoun’s election and the formation of Salam’s government.
Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and Lebanese Prime Minister Nawaf Salam in Makkah on March 30, 2025. SPA
Intensive security coordination on drugs
Karanouh said the new Lebanese government “showed from the first day its determination to return Lebanon to its natural place among its Arab brothers, after a period of distance caused by political choices that were not in its interest.”
He said the government had repaired relations with Arab states, especially Gulf countries, on the basis that Lebanon is an integral part of its Arab surroundings.
He said Beirut was determined from the start not to allow Lebanon to be used as a platform to harm Arab countries. The anti-drug file, he added, had seen intensive work and security and political coordination at the highest levels between Lebanese and Saudi authorities.
Karanouh said Saudi authorities had appreciated Lebanon’s efforts, including tighter controls at border crossings, airports and ports.
Those efforts, he said, continued for about 18 months and helped restore confidence in Lebanon and its institutions, turning the page on a period that had damaged the country’s reputation and foreign relations.
Lebanon, he said, was now on the right path.
Karanouh said the decision to resume Lebanese exports to Saudi Arabia was a major step that would benefit Lebanon’s economy and economic cooperation between the two countries. He said it came after Lebanon met the required standards, ensuring Lebanese exports posed no danger to brotherly countries.
The ambassador said Lebanese exporters were ready to enter the Saudi market and that the remaining technical and procedural issues were minor and could be resolved easily.
He said the Saudi decision would push bilateral ties into a broader phase, whether through the signing and activation of partnership agreements or through the Saudi-Lebanese Business Council, whose formation was completed months ago.
He expressed hope that the move would be followed by the return of Saudi flights and Saudi tourism to Lebanon when conditions allow.
Broad welcome in Lebanon
The Crown Prince’s decision was widely welcomed across Lebanon, nearly five years after Saudi Arabia halted all Lebanese imports, citing at the time “the importance of taking all necessary measures to protect the security of the Kingdom and its people.”
Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Faisal bin Farhan conveyed the Drown Prince’s directive in a phone call with Salam on Wednesday. He affirmed Saudi Arabia’s support for Lebanon’s stability, sovereignty over all its territory and the well-being of its people, as well as Riyadh’s confidence that Lebanon would take all necessary measures to ensure it is not used as a platform to harm its brothers.
Aoun expressed deep gratitude to Prince Mohammed bin Salman, saying the decision was “a sincere expression of the depth of Arab brotherhood that binds the two brotherly countries, and an embodiment of the wise Saudi leadership’s keenness to support Lebanon and its people during the phase of recovery and revival it is undergoing.”
Aoun said: “This kind step will make a tangible contribution to reviving the national economy and supporting broad segments of Lebanese producers and exporters.”
He added that the entire Lebanese people appreciates the decision, and “views it as a gesture that strengthens the path of Lebanese-Saudi relations rooted in the bonds of history and shared destiny.”
Salam said the decision to lift the ban on Lebanese exports reflected the depth of the brotherly and historic ties between the two countries. He said it embodied Saudi confidence in Lebanon and a shared desire to strengthen economic and trade cooperation.
Salam said the move was an important step that would support Lebanon’s economy, open new opportunities for Lebanese producers and exporters, and help promote growth and stability.
He said Lebanon looked forward to continued work and coordination with Saudi Arabia to strengthen cooperation and partnership in various fields for the benefit and prosperity of both countries.
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