Al-Azhar delays visit to Rohingya camps in Bangladesh

CAIRO – 24 November 2017: Al-Azhar Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb has delayed his visit to the Rohingya camps in Bangladesh, which was scheduled for Saturday, after an attack on a mosque in Arish, North Sinai, killed 235 worshipers earlier Friday.

A relief delegation from Al-Azhar arrived in Bangladesh Nov. 21 to distribute food, blankets, and medical and shelter aid. Al-Azhar, the world’s most prestigious Islamic institution, has rejected the establishment of permanent refugee camps in Cox’s Bazar city in Bangladesh.

The city hosts an increased community of refugee camps, as there are tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees living in unstable climate conditions.

More than 600,000 Rohingya have fled to Bangladesh since late August, driven out by a military operation clearing them from the Buddhist majority Myanmar’s Rakhine state.