Tuesday, June 05, 2007
Muslim scholars establish Islamic Union in Iraq to stop violence
Politics
(Voices of Iraq) - Muslim scholars announced on Monday the establishment of an Islamic union aims at stopping bloodshed and sectarian violence in Iraq. The founding conference for the Union of Muslim Scholars in Iraq, which was held in Baghdad under the title "Muslim scholars unity symbol for Iraqi people unity" and attended by more than 130 religious characters, including Sunnis, Shiites and Kurdish leaders, agreed to leave the union membership open for all Iraqi scholars.
The conference urged in a statement "all Iraqi religious scholars inside and outside the country to join the new union during a conference due to be held in Sulaimaniya in Kurdistan region within the upcoming days." They considered "Mecca Pledge Document", a document signed by Iraqi scholars of all sects in last September in Mecca of Saudi Arabia, as the ground for Sunnis and Shiites to preserve holy places and stop murders and sectarian violence, underlining "the necessity to maintain Iraq's unity."
Several Iraqi religious leaders signed in Mecca last year "the Mecca Document" calling for "banning the slaughtering of Iraqis regardless of their religious and sectarian affiliation." The document also called for bridging the gap between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims and underlined the gravity of the sectarian crimes that were being committed.
The statement strongly denounced the "terrorist attacks and the administrative corruption in the country."It also criticized "the bombing attack that took place in Shiite holy shrines in Samarra." The participants called upon all political blocs to solve their political disputes and to find ways to end the foreign presence in Iraq. They urged religious leaders in Najaf, Azhar in Egypt and the Organization of Islamic Conference to support the new union's efforts to end the Iraqi crisis.
The conference urged in a statement "all Iraqi religious scholars inside and outside the country to join the new union during a conference due to be held in Sulaimaniya in Kurdistan region within the upcoming days." They considered "Mecca Pledge Document", a document signed by Iraqi scholars of all sects in last September in Mecca of Saudi Arabia, as the ground for Sunnis and Shiites to preserve holy places and stop murders and sectarian violence, underlining "the necessity to maintain Iraq's unity."
Several Iraqi religious leaders signed in Mecca last year "the Mecca Document" calling for "banning the slaughtering of Iraqis regardless of their religious and sectarian affiliation." The document also called for bridging the gap between the Sunni and Shiite Muslims and underlined the gravity of the sectarian crimes that were being committed.
The statement strongly denounced the "terrorist attacks and the administrative corruption in the country."It also criticized "the bombing attack that took place in Shiite holy shrines in Samarra." The participants called upon all political blocs to solve their political disputes and to find ways to end the foreign presence in Iraq. They urged religious leaders in Najaf, Azhar in Egypt and the Organization of Islamic Conference to support the new union's efforts to end the Iraqi crisis.
Labels: Islamic union, Mecca Pledge Document, Union of Muslim Scholars in Iraq
