Al-Azhar to sue France over prophet cartoons

During a visit to Cairo by French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian, Al-Azhar’s Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb rejected any form of insults to the Prophet Muhammad and vowed to sue France over the publication of controversial cartoons.
Pope Francis (R) pose with Egypt's Azhar Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb (C) and United Arab Emirates's Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (R) during a private audience on November 15, 2019 at the Vatican. (Photo by Alberto PIZZOLI / AFP) (Photo by ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images)
Pope Francis (R) poses with Egypt's Azhar Grand Imam Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb (C) and the United Arab Emirates' Deputy Prime Minister Sheikh Saif Bin Zayed Al Nahyan (R) during a private audience on Nov. 15, 2019, at the Vatican. - ALBERTO PIZZOLI/AFP via Getty Images
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Mohamed Sabry
@MohamedSabry079

CAIRO — Egypt’s Grand Imam of Al-Azhar, Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayeb, met Nov. 8 with French Foreign Minister Jean-Yves Le Drian at Al-Azhar amid a dispute between France and the Muslim world over the publication of derogatory cartoons of the Prophet Muhammad by French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo.

Tayeb said Al-Azhar, the highest seat of learning in the Sunni Muslim world, rejects freedom of expression if it protects insults to the prophets.

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