CAIRO — Egypt’s Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, has been facing, since the end of January, a fierce campaign spearheaded by Egyptian media outlets owned by and close to the state.

This follows a verbal duel that stirred nationwide controversy between Tayeb and Cairo University President Mohamed Othman Elkhosht, who is close to President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi, during the second day of a conference at Al-Azhar, titled “Al-Azhar International Conference on Renovation of Islamic Thought.” The conference, held on Jan. 27-28, focused on renewing the religious discourse. The conference was attended by delegates and scholars from 46 countries of the Islamic world.

The media attacks climaxed with the publication Feb. 3 of an article by Dandarawy al-Hawary, writer for Al-Youm Al-Sabeh newspaper, titled, “Religious men in Egypt proclaimed themselves prophets and formed a special class above the people.”

Meanwhile, anger is mounting between the Egyptian state and Al-Azhar. The two disagree over the mechanism of renewing the religious discourse. Also, Tayeb’s positions differ from those of the state on many issues.