Gulf | Bahrain
Bahrain's religious leaders move to halt sectarianism
In a rare public display of common efforts to confront mounting sectarianism in Bahrain, Sunni and Shiite leaders have called for a series of activities to bolster unity and regain religious harmony.
- By Habib Toumi, Bureau Chief
- Published: 00:02 October 1, 2008
Manama: In a rare public display of common efforts to confront mounting sectarianism in Bahrain, Sunni and Shiite leaders have called for a series of activities to bolster unity and regain religious harmony.
"The agreeable co-existence of all groups and sects helps deepen social cohesion and defeat the scheming to weaken our society and target Islam as a religion of peace," Shaikh Rashid Al Muraikhi, a Sunni scholar and judge, said.
"We have never had any sectarian tendencies in Bahrain where people lived together regardless of their backgrounds. Now, we must work together to ensure that what is happening now is well contained and is terminated," he said at the gathering he organised in his majlis in Muharraq.
Enemies
Shaikh Abdullah Al Guraifi, one of the most venerated Shiite leaders in Bahrain, warned that "the enemies of Islam were sowing the seeds of discord and that Muslims had a duty to face them."
"The growth of sectarianism in Bahrain means that the whole country would be burned," he said, without naming any country or party. "We do have to be careful about what the enemies of our religion are trying to do here."
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