Alwaght- Ethiopian Prime Minister Abiy Ahmed rejected an offer by Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed to build an Islamic centre in the East African country , telling him they had "lost" his religion.
Ahmed recalled the conversation with bin Zayed, who is considered the de facto ruler of the United Arab Emirates, in a speech to members of the American-Ethiopian Muslim community in the US state of Virginia on Friday, The Middle East Eye news portal reported.
In response to Emirati Prince who said "We will help you with many things. We will teach you,” the Ethiopian Primer replied “We don’t need to learn the religion from you. You’ve lost the religion. What we need is to learn Arabic quickly, so we could better understand the religion and teach it to you, and return you to it."
When Bin Zayed asked him why, Ahmed said that Islam is about peace, unlike what is happening in the West Asia.
"You have lost the religion,” Ahmed said he told the crown prince.
"The Islam that does not look like true Islam has begun spreading amongst you, and you have forgotten peace and how to forgive."
Ahmed did not say when the conversation took place. Ahmed met Bin Zayed last Tuesday during a visit to Abu Dhabi with Eritrean President Isaias Afwerki, following the agreement of a peace deal between the former antagonists.
According to the UAE's foreign ministry website, the pair were presented with the Order of Zayed medal "in recognition of their efforts to end the conflict between their countries and open new horizons for cooperation and coordination, and in appreciation for their role in strengthening cooperation with the UAE".
In his speech, Ahmed said that Ethiopian Muslims alone, who represent 40 percent of the population, outnumber the Muslims of the United Arab Emirates and its Persian Gulf neighbors Qatar, Saudi Arabia and Kuwait combined. Ethiopia is Africa's second most populous country, with nearly 108 million people.
Ahmed, 41, was born to a Muslim father and Christian mother. He has been credited for instituting a number of immediate political reforms following his accession to power, such as releasing political prisoners and signing a peace deal with Eritrea, Ethiopia’s northern neighbor, after two decades of conflict.
Ahmed's speech was translated into Arabic by an Ethiopian Arabic-language Twitter account and Al Jazeera. Middle East Eye has not independently verified the translation.
