Islamic Awqaf ministers meet in Mecca on countering extremism

CAIRO – 12 May 2018: Islamic countries’ Awqaf (religious endowments) ministers and members of the Executive Council of the Conference of Ministers of Awqaf and Islamic Affairs will get together in Mecca for the council's 11th session, due to start on Sunday.

The Awqaf ministers of Egypt, Kuwait, Jordan, Morocco, Pakistan and Indonesia will be in attendance.

Fighting radicalization and extremism prevailing in Islamic countries will expectedly top the agenda of the meeting. The participants will also discuss possible means to promote moderation and lay the foundation of a comprehensive strategy to immunize young people against radical thought and train scholars to fight extremism.

Prior to the meeting, Egyptian Minister of Endowments Mokhtar Gomaa is slated to meet up with his Saudi counterpart on Saturday to discuss aspects of possible joint cooperation between the two countries on the related issues.

President Abdel Fatah al-Sisi has consistently reiterated in his speeches the significance of revolutionizing religious discourse following a spate of deadly attacks that hit Egypt in the past few years.

Since the ousting of ex-Muslim Brotherhood-affiliated President Mohamed Morsi, Egypt has seen growing waves of extremism washing over the society and spawning numerous deadly attacks. Among these attacks was the terrorist attack that hit Al-Rawdah Mosque and left more than 302 Friday prayer congregates dead in late November.

A month earlier, the Interior Ministry announced that 16 security officers were killed during clashes with militants in Wahat in the Western Desert; the clashes also led to the killing of 15 militants.