Thursday, March 20, 2008 at 1:01am
Saudi Arabia to retrain its imams
Saudi Arabia will retrain its 40,000 imams in an effort to counter militant Islam. The influential Saudi newspaper Al- Sharq al-Awsat revealed details of the plan, BBC News online reported Thursday.
It is part of a wider program launched by the Saudi monarch a few years ago to encourage moderation and tolerance in Saudi society. The ministry of religious affairs and new center for national dialogue will carry out the training, the paper said.
The center was created five years ago to disseminate a moderate interpretation of Islam. Saudis are becoming increasingly aware that security measures alone are not enough to counter Islamic militancy.
Saudi clerics have long been accused of encouraging Saudi youth to join global jihad and of inciting hatred of non-Muslims. Nearly 1,000 imams have already been sacked over the past few years.
The Saudi royal family has come under increasing pressure - mainly from Washington - to change religious textbooks and to rein in militant clerics. Critics, however, are sceptical of such initiatives as long as the ultraconservative religious establishment exerts such enormous influence.
It is part of a wider program launched by the Saudi monarch a few years ago to encourage moderation and tolerance in Saudi society. The ministry of religious affairs and new center for national dialogue will carry out the training, the paper said.
The center was created five years ago to disseminate a moderate interpretation of Islam. Saudis are becoming increasingly aware that security measures alone are not enough to counter Islamic militancy.
Saudi clerics have long been accused of encouraging Saudi youth to join global jihad and of inciting hatred of non-Muslims. Nearly 1,000 imams have already been sacked over the past few years.
The Saudi royal family has come under increasing pressure - mainly from Washington - to change religious textbooks and to rein in militant clerics. Critics, however, are sceptical of such initiatives as long as the ultraconservative religious establishment exerts such enormous influence.