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Sheikh-al-Islam Haji Allahshukur Pashazadeh: â€œWe, religious figures, advocate for peaceful solution to Nagorno Karabakh conflictâ€

18 June 2009 16:15 (UTC +04:00)

Moscow. R. Metleboglu â€“APA. â€œThe Nagorno Karabakh conflict is an important and vital issue for Azerbaijani people. The Nagorno Karabakh conflict is a painful issue for us. We, religious figures, advocate for peaceful solution of the Karabakh problem because millions of Azerbaijanis were forcibly displaced from their homes in Karabakh and nearby regions and 20 percent of Azerbaijani lands is under the Armenian occupationâ€, Chairman of the Caucasian Muslims Office Sheikh-al-Islam Haji Allahshukur Pashazadeh told APA correspondent at a press conference in Moscow on the eve of the international conference â€œCIS Muslims for inter-confessional and international reconciliationâ€.

Chairman of the Caucasian Muslims Office said they were working and hoping that not only Nagorno Karabakh, but also other conflicts within CIS wouldnâ€™t get a religious character and wouldnâ€™t create confrontation between Islam and Christianity. â€œWe consider it as our first duty and are making all efforts for that. The governments create opportunity for the meeting of the leaders of different confessions, including Armenian Catholic leader. My position is coinciding with the position of Armenian Cathalicos that the Nagorno Karabakh conflict must be settled peacefully. Our statements confirm it. If the statesmen need in the assistance of the religious figures, we are always ready to help them, but the religious figures never wish to join the political processes because the politics are within the authorities of the governmentsâ€.

Allahshukur Pashazadeh said the conference of CIS Muslim leaders in Moscow was first meeting of the Muslim leaders of post-soviet space in the past 18 years. He said the conference opened new phase in the history of CIS Muslim confessions and nearly 200 delegates from 17 countries joined the conference. The Muslim leaders of the CIS countries, religious figures from the different confessions, representatives of the diplomatic missions, well-known public figures were among the participants. The Chairman of the Caucasian Muslims Office called the establishing of the Advising Council one of the important results of the conference.