Islamophobia Day: Al Azhar grand imam urges extending understanding bridges on ruins of arrogance, hate

CAIRO – 16 March 2025: On the International Day to Combat Islamophobia, Al Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed El Tayyeb emphasized the necessity of “unifying efforts to build bridges of understanding on the ruins of ignorance, arrogance, and hatred.”

“Dialogue between religions and cultures is no longer a luxury,” Egypt's Permanent Representative to the United Nations Osama Abdel Khalek said in a speech that he delivered on behalf of Tayyeb at the UN General Assembly's session to mark the day.

Tayyeb stressed that interreligious and intercultural dialogue has become “an existential necessity to save humanity from the clutches of ignorance and misinterpretation.”

The statement added that the phenomenon of pathological fear of Islam is “merely a result of ignorance about the true nature of this great religion and its tolerance.”

Tayeb highlighted deliberate attempts to distort Islam’s principles, which are based on peace and coexistence, stressing that these attempts are “the largest lie in contemporary history.”

The statement highlighted that this fear is “rooted in erroneous interpretations and the malicious exploitation of horrific military operations carried out by groups that are far removed from Islam.”

Tayeb referenced the launch of the historic Document on Human Fraternity for World Peace and Living Together, which he signed alongside Pope Francis in Abu Dhabi in 2019.

The statement called for combating hate speech that infiltrates daily discourse on media and social media platforms, while promoting concepts of dialogue, tolerance, and coexistence.

Tayeb also urged enacting binding legislation and launching awareness campaigns to sow the seeds of tolerance and enhance a culture of mutual respect.

The world observes the International Day to Combat Islamophobia annually on 15 March, based on a resolution sponsored by 60 member states of the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) and adopted by the United Nations General Assembly in 2022.

The resolution stresses the need to refrain from linking terrorism and extremism to any religion, civilization or ethnic group and calls for global dialogue to promote peace.