Saudi Arabia: Organisation of Islamic Cooperation slams Paris teacher beheading
Al Azhar calls attack ‘heinous crime’, urges respect for religions
Cairo: The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) has condemned the beheading of a French teacher, who had reportedly shown controversial cartoons of the Prophet Mohammed (peace be upon him) to his pupils.
The Jeddah-based OIC, the largest Islamic grouping, expressed rejection of ”all forms of fanaticism, extremism and terrorism for whatever reasons and motives”.
The organisation also extended condolences to the family of the victim, the Saudi news agency SPA reported.
The teacher was fatally attacked Friday outside a school in a Paris suburb.
Shot dead
The police shot dead the assailant shortly afterwards. The 18-year-old attacker was of Chechen origin, French prosecutors said.
Egypt’s influential Islamic institution Al Azhar also decried the teacher’s murder, calling it a “heinous crime”.
The prestigious institution renewed its call for discarding hate speech and violence, urging respect for sanctities and holy figures.
“Killing is a crime that cannot be justified,” Al Azhar said. It underlined the necessity of adopting global legislation incriminating insult to religions.