Vatican & Al-Azhar mosque agree to fight extremism together on Pope’s historic Arab visit

The Vatican and Egypt’s Al-Azhar mosque and university have reached an agreement to jointly fight extremism, Al Arabiya reported. The signing took place in the UAE’s capital, Abu Dhabi, as Pope Francis became the first pontiff to arrive the Arab Peninsula. The head of the Catholic Church denounced the “logic of armed power” in Yemen, Syria and other conflicts in the Middle East, saying that they bring nothing but misery and death. Sheikh Ahmed al-Tayeb, the Grand Imam of the Al-Azhar mosque, for his part, called on Muslims in the Middle East to “embrace” Christians, whom he described as “citizens with full rights and responsibilities.” The Pope faced criticism in the West ahead of his trip due to the role played by the UAE in the Saudi-led military campaign in Yemen.