Today, Muslims across the world face serious problems such as sectarian discrimination, extremism, religious radicalism and terrorism, said a message from Azerbaijani President Ilham Aliyev to the participants of the conference “Turkish-Azerbaijani friendship as an example of Islamic solidarity” which is being held in Istanbul.
The president’s message was read out by Mubariz Gurbanli, Chairman of the Azerbaijani State Committee for Work with Religious Organizations, an APA correspondent reported from Istanbul.
“Terrorist attacks committed by those who have nothing to do with Islam and who hide under the guise of Islam are the biggest injustice towards Muslims,” said the president’s message. “Most of the victims of today's terrorist attacks worldwide are just Muslims. Islamic solidarity is a call and a demand of the time to prevent sectarian discrimination that leads to wars and conflicts in the Islamic world, religious extremism and terrorism, gradually intensifying Islamophobia, the massacres of Muslims in different countries as well as to achieve the development and prosperity of the Islamic world.”
President Aliyev noted in his message that representatives of different religions and cultures have historically lived in peace and tranquility in Azerbaijan located at the junctions of East and West.
“The declaration of 2016 the ‘Year of multiculturalism’ and 2017 the ‘Year of Islamic solidarity’ in Azerbaijan is a call for and contribution to peace, friendship, mutual respect and coexistence throughout the world, especially in the Islamic world,” said the message.
President Aliyev in message described friendly and fraternal relations between Azerbaijan and Turkey are one of the brightest examples of the Islamic solidarity, expressing confidence that the Istanbul conference will play an important role in strengthening solidarity among Muslim countries.