Egypt’s Al-Azhar calls upon Arab and Muslim nations to boycott Dutch, Swedish products

CAIRO – 26 January 2023: Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif called on the Arab and Muslim peoples to boycott all Dutch and Swedish products and to take a strong and unified stance in support of our Noble Qur’an, Sacred Scripture of the Muslims, and as a proper reaction to the governments of these two countries, who have offended the Muslims 1.5 billion Muslims, Al Azhar said in a statement on Wednesday.

They have gone to excess in guarding the mean and barbaric crimes perpetrated under the specious inhumane and immoral banner or their so-called “freedom of expression,”  the statement read.

They should better call it the dictatorship of chaos and evil manners and highhandedness against civilized nations clinging to Allah and the guidance of heaven.

Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif also stresses the necessity for all Arab and Muslim peoples to adhere to this boycott, and to educate children, youth and women about it. They should know that any disinclination to participate (in this boycott) is a failure to support the religion chosen for them by Allah. Besides, these deviants will never appreciate the value of the religion – about which they know nothing and which they provoke its Muslim followers through mocking it – or be deterred unless they face the challenging material, monetary and economic necessities. That is the only language they know.

They venerate nothing but the laws of abundance, production and consumption. True is the Qur’anic words that read, “They know what is apparent of the worldly life, but they, of the Hereafter, are unaware.”

On 21 January 2023, Egypt expressed its strong condemnation of an extremist's burning of a copy of the Holy Quran in the Swedish capital, Stockholm, in a disgraceful act that provokes the feelings of hundreds of millions of Muslims around the world, said the Egyptian Ministry in a statement.

“Egypt warned of the dangers of spreading such acts that offend religions and fuel hate speech and violence, calling for upholding the values of tolerance and peaceful coexistence, and preventing offense to all religions and their sanctities through such extremist practices that are inconsistent with the values of respect for others, freedom of belief, human rights and fundamental freedoms,” the statement read.

Egypt also condemned tearing up a copy of the Holy Qur’an by a Dutch extremist outside the Dutch Parliament headquarters in The Hague, in a blatant act that goes beyond the limits of freedom of expression, violates the sanctities of Muslims, and fuels hate speech between religions. and peoples, threatening the security and stability of societies.

“Egypt expressed its deep concern about the recurrence of incidents of blasphemy and the escalation of Islamophobia in a number of European countries recently, stressing the responsibility of those countries to prevent the recurrence of such practices that are inconsistent with the system of human rights and fundamental freedoms,” he statement added.