Alwaght | News & Analysis Website

Alwaght-Iran's President Hassan Rouhani has called on Muslims across the world to combat financial and cultural poverty in order to eradicate extremism.
Addressing the 29th International Islamic Unity Conference in Tehran on Sunday, President Rouhani pointed out that, “If a small group like ISIS can recruit soldiers, that is chiefly because of financial and cultural poverty; so let’s join hands and eradicate this kind of poverty."
He continued: “Terrorism cannot be eradicated by bombs; rather we should change the course of discourse towards eradicating terrorism”. Iran's President stressed on the need to engage the youths of the Islamic World through proper dialogue, as well as the need to propagate pure Islam.
President also said: “Today, responding to the great Prophet of Islam’s call depends on unity, abstinence from violence, and expansion of Islamic amity”.
While conveying his felicitation on the advent of the birthday of the great Prophet of Islam SAW and Imam Ja’far al-Sadiq AS, president Rouhani pointed out: “If some day our concern was that foreign powers were killing and plundering Muslims and their lands, today we are facing a situation in which a country with an Islamic flag pours bombs and missiles over the heads of innocent Muslims or some groups tarnish Islam and Muslims under the disguise of religion, Islam, and Jihad”.
“Maybe we would never think that one day in the Islamic World, the Zionist Regime would be forgotten as the main aggressor and even put aside from the news, and instead, the media focus on news about the killing of Muslims by pretenders to Islam who have the glorious name of Allah and the great Prophet of Islam SAW on their flag” added Rouhani.
The Iranian President added that: “So far, the enemies have described Islam as the religion of violence and bloodshed, and currently, some inside the Muslim community are introducing Islam as the religion of carnage, bloodshed, and tyranny in the name of Jihad”.
On the responsibility of all Islamic nations, he said: “Two years ago when the government of the Islamic Republic of Iran proposed WAVE underlining extremism and violence as the biggest threat faced by the world, although it was apparently approved by all Islamic and non-Islamic countries, but practically, nothing was seen out of good will in fulfilling the proposal”.
“Without a doubt, intellectual violence is the source of practical violence started with wrong understanding of the texts” he added when speaking about the roots of violence.
He also deplored running schools in the name of religion but teaching violence and said: “Why shouldn’t our societies, schools, and lessons be based on monotheism and resurrection; isn’t Islam based on merits such as “There is No God but Allah” and “Mohammad is Allah’s Messenger?”
“The idea that people have opposing views on interpretation of religion is the nature of humans and, basically, the differences are acceptable on this issue but conflict is not acceptable at all” said Rouhani, adding that nobody should forget unity as the base in the Islamic World.
We all believe in Allah’s book and agree on many words and Prophet Mohammad’s lifestyle but the problem arises when other dogmatic texts become the base of defining identities and as a result, instead of the contrast between religion and blasphemy, it puts Islamic factions against each other, added Rouhani.
Terming claims of ‘Shiite Crescent’ by some people as baseless, he said: “We neither have Shiite Crescent, nor Sunni Crescent; rather we have Islamic full moon”.
He further stressed the need for unity among the Muslims of the world and posed questions: “To whose benefit is destruction in Syria and looting the Syrian nation’s oil? Who is benefitting in undermining a country which has resisted the Zionist Regime for years?”
Saying that 84 percent of the ongoing violence, acts of terror and massacre are taking place in the Muslim World, North Africa, and West Asia, he demanded an end to the “intellectual and discourse-based violence.”
President also called for correction of the negative image of Islam in cyberspace.
“In the current situation there is no option other than Muslims joining hands in unity. I also call on those Islamic countries inside and outside the region, and even those who have so far poured bombs and missiles over their neighbors' heads to choose the right and correct path” he added.
Directing his speech at certain countries that bombard their neighbors, President Rouhani said: “If you gave the money you have been spending buying bombs and missiles from the U.S. to the hungry, today the Islamic World would not be struggling with poverty”.