Jews to join Doha religious talks

A Jewish delegation from Israel will take part in an international conference on religious dialogue despite opposition from some quarters, organisers said on Sunday.

It will be the first time that Jewish scholars will attend the International Conference on Religious Dialogue held every year in Qatar, Aisha Al Mannai, dean of faculty of Sharia, Law and Islamic Studies at the University of Qatar and chair of the organising committee, told Gulf News.

"At least three representatives of the Jewish religion from Israel and other Jewish scholars from across the world will be taking part for the first time in the event," said Aisha.

The conference at its third edition is to be held on Wednesday and Thursday in Doha.

However, the participation of the Jewish delegation in a conference which had been so far restricted to Muslims and Christians annoyed some leading Islamic figures, who have turned down the invitation, Aisha said.

Representatives of the Islamic institution of Al Azhar in Egypt, renowned scholar Shaikh Yousuf Al Qaradawi and prominent Iranian religious personalities refused to attend the conference, she said, without giving details.

However, addressing a press conference on Saturday, Aisha said Al Qaradawi and the other religious figures have "a right to express their views and opposition" to the Jewish participants.

In a statement to the press last May, Qatar-based Al Qaradawi dampened publicly the country's plans to start a religious dialogue with Jewish religious leaders, saying "there can be no dialogue with Jews, who are hounding Palestinians from their land and their houses, using violence and spilling blood".

But Aisha said, referring to a verse from the Quran, "however we are committed to religious dialogue … Judaism is one of the three monotheistic religions and the precursor of Christianity and Islam. The Jews are 'People of the Book' like the Christians and the Muslims."

Aisha said the involvement of the Jewish religious leaders in the conference came under the directives of the Qatari Emir, His Highness Shaikh Hamad Bin Khalifa Al Thani.

Addressing the conference in May last year, the Emir had said he expected Jewish representatives to attend the event. "It would be useful to widen the dialogue to become an Islamic-Christian-Jewish dialogue," he said.

About 90 participants, including representatives from different churches, the Council for Inter-religious Dialogue and the Pontifical Commission for Religious Relations with the Muslims from the Vatican will attend the event. A wide-range of topics related to inter-religious dialogue, freedoms and human rights will be discussed. A final list of the participants is still to be issued.

The conference is organised by the Qatar University in cooperation with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.