The heads of Islamic centers, societies and institutes across Europe and the United States have appreciated the conference on inter-faith dialogue being organized by Makkah-based Muslim World League this week. They all appreciated the initiative taken by King Abdullah, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, in this regard and sounded optimism that the conference promotes peaceful coexistence, Al-Jazira reported on Friday. Over 500 Islamic scholars are expected to attend the three-day conference starting Wednesday. The heads of Islamic centers stressed on the importance of the inter-faith dialogue conforming with the Shariah laws. Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi, head of Orange County Islamic Center in Los Angeles, USA, said a dialogue between Muslims and followers of other faiths is the need of the hour because of the critical times being witnessed across the world. Dr. Siddiqi hoped that the MWL conference will resolve many of the problems facing the Muslim Ummah at this juncture. He also hoped that the Muslim World League would succeed in drawing up an integrated methodology to be adopted by Islamic institutions as part of a larger effort in similar dialogues across the globe. Ibrahim Al-Zaid, Director of the Islamic Cultural Center in Madrid, Spain, lauded King Abdullah's initiative. He said the Monarch's efforts come from his keenness to remove the deep mistrust of other faiths towards Islam and Muslims. He added Islamic institutions and societies in Europe are eagerly awaiting the outcome of the dialogue conference and will implement its recommendations. Al-Zaid hoped that the Muslim World League's conference would promote understanding with others through common denominators including a joint action and cooperation to enhance the opportunities of coexistence among peoples of different faiths, countries, ethnicities and languages. The Director General of the Islamic Institution in Latin America and the Caribbean, Engineer Mohammad Yousef Hajer, praised the policies of the Kingdom in this regard. "The Kingdom has become a role model in openness and dialogue," he said. Dr. Mohammad Abdulatif Al-Barq, Director of the Islamic Cultural Center in Perugia, Italy, stressed that dialogue brings people together and reinforces relations among the countries of the world. Al-Barq indicated that Islamic centers in Italy desire to cooperate with the Muslim World League to organize dialogue seminars in Italy and other European countries. He said the Muslim World League has drawn the attention of Italians to the Muslim faith through dialogue seminars and Islamic conferences held in Italy including the International Islamic Conference on Islam and Human Rights held by the League at the cultural center in Rome. __
