General of the Board of Senior Ulema, the Kingdom's highest religious authority, has described King Abdullah University for Science and Technology (KAUST) as a “beacon of science and welfare for the entire world”. Sheikh Fahd Bin Sa'ad Al-Majed, speaking to Okaz on Wednesday, said that King Abdullah had brought in “huge advances” evident in the doubling of the number of universities in the Kingdom and the encouragement of healthy competition between them, with KAUST the most notable of all. “KAUST will serve to end the stereotypical propaganda and incorrect misconceptions about Islam by presenting the true image of Islam as a religion of knowledge and civilization,” Al-Majed said. Al-Majed continued by describing the Islamic World as “suffering from cultural resistance in education, health and welfare, as well as different visions and motives”. “Those following the efforts of the King can clearly see what he is doing to tackle these faults,” Al-Majed said. “He has brought in moves to address the situation of Muslims in political, intellectual and social areas, as seen in his continued efforts to reform the judiciary and education, as well as the personal interest he takes in improving scientific research to serve Islam and Muslims.” Sheikh Al-Majed's remarks follow praise for KAUST from several prominent scholars in the Kingdom, most recently Sheikh Abdullah Suleiman Al-Mane'e, a member of the Board of Senior Ulema, who at the beginning of the month commended the facility as a step toward “the Islamic World recovering its leading role in science” and spoke of King Abdullah as a “pioneer and great leader not only in the Islamic World but in the entire world”. The scholars have been keen to respond to their former colleague Sheikh Sa'ad Bin Nasser Al-Shithri who was dismissed from his post after comments made live on television concerning coeducation at KAUST which led in turn to widespread criticism from commentators in the press. On the subject of coeducation, Sheikh Al-Majed told Okaz that “throughout Islamic history women had always been man's other half”. “KAUST will set an example for the entire world, but particularly the Islamic World, in enabling women to engage in their social and scientific functions in a safe and conservative atmosphere,” Al
