Saudi Crown Prince to visit Azhar, St.Mark Cath., Opera House

CAIRO - 4 March 2018: To stress the importance of peaceful coexistence and humanitarian respect for the development of a country, Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman is scheduled to visit Al Azhar, Cairo Opera House and the Cathedral of St.Mark in Abbasiya.

As a part of his three-day visit, bin Salman will attend the play “Salem Nafsak” (Surrender) at the Cairo Opera House upon President Abdel Fatah al- Sisi’s invitation, highlighting Egypt's encouragement to youth in different fields, steering them away from terrorism and extremism.

The play presents the struggle between two brothers in their quest for the cause of existence and mystery of the universe. It examines the conflict between tolerance and love on one hand, and hatred on the other hand.

The play is written by Mahmoud Gamal and directed by Tamer Karam; it stars Alaa Quqa, Yasser Sadek, Hamada Shousha, Tarek Sabri, Mohamed Nasser and Hind Abdel Halim.

Also, Al-Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed el-Tayib will receive the Saudi crown prince at Al Azhar Mosque on Monday.

As a part of its initiative to protect Egypt’s historic buildings, the Ministry of Antiquities has participated in restoring Al-Azhar Mosque and developing the area surrounding it, the restoration process started in February 2015 and is due to end on Monday.

In April 2016, the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Salman bin Abdulaziz paid Al-Azhar Mosque a visit, and put the foundation stones of its new city where Al Azhar University’s students from all over the world reside.

Additionally, bin Salman will visit the Cathedral of St.Mark in Abbasiya where he will meet with Pope Tawadros II. It is worth mentioning that he is the first Saudi official to visit the cathedral.

Previously, bin Salman met with Pope Tawadros II in 2016 in a hotel during his last visit to Cairo.

The Saudi Crown Prince arrived in Cairo on Sunday in his first official foreign trip since he was inaugurated as a Crown Prince to the Saudi Kingdom in June 2017. President Sisi received the Crown Prince in Cairo for a three-day visit.

In December, Sisi received a phone call from Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, where they discussed bilateral ties and mutual cooperation between both states.

Sisi and Salman met on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Hangzhou, China, in September 2016, following a historic visit to Cairo by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz in April. Both leaders discussed stepping up cooperation between Egypt and Saudi Arabia across all fields, and continued consultation and coordination on various regional and international issues to enhance joint Arab action.

The Crown Prince’s second foreign trip will be paid to the United Kingdom on March 7 to meet with British Prime Minister Theresa May, prior to his visit to the United States on March 19 to meet with U.S. President Donald Trump.

The arrangement of the first three foreign trips by the Saudi Crown Prince reflects the priority of Saudi foreign diplomacy in the next phase. Bin Salman is scheduled to meet with Sisi to discuss issues of mutual interest, the latest developments in the Arab region and the enhancement of bilateral relations in different fields.