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Shiite leaders forbid insults against Sunnis

Najaf's Shiite authorities in Iran and Iraq issue fatwas against insults to Sunni figures and their sanctities.
Shi'ite Muslims listen to Sheikh Abdul Mehdi Al-Karbala'i speak as he delivers the text of a sermon by Iraq's top Shi'ite cleric Grand Ayatollah Ali Sistani, during Friday prayers at the Imam Hussein shrine in the holy city of Kerbala July 11, 2014. Sistani urged fighters on Friday to respect the rights of all Iraqis, regardless of sect or politics, after an escalation in apparent sectarian killings in recent weeks. REUTERS/Mushtaq Muhammed (IRAQ - Tags: CIVIL UNREST POLITICS RELIGION) - RTR3Y5N8

During the last week of 2014, Al-Azhar’s Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb demanded that Shiite authorities in Iran and Iraq issue clear fatwas strictly forbidding the insulting of Sunni figures and their sanctities. This happened during the visit of Mahmoud Mahmoudian, the new head of Iran’s Interest Desk in Egypt.

Tayeb called on Muslim scholars to “avoid strife between Sunnis and Shiites, as it is tearing the Islamic nation apart and preventing consensus and dialogue between both sects.”

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