(Communicated by the MFA Spokesperson's Bureau)
Imams and other Muslim religious leaders from a number of central African states arrived in Israel today for a four-day visit (13-17 March 2016). The visit was arranged by the Africa Division and the World Jewish and Interreligious Affairs Bureau of the Israel Foreign Ministry, in conjunction with the American Jewish Committee. The visit aims to familiarize the visitors with socio-political aspects of Israel; to generate an interreligious, intercultural dialogue; and to explore possibilities for economic and agricultural development cooperation.
The delegation is comprised of senior religious leaders and imams from six African states spread throughout the continent, which gives the visit high strategic importance with regional implications and media impact beyond the states represented by the delegates. In most cases, the Muslim religious leaders serve also as community leaders and have broad political influence; their visit will contribute to strengthening the diplomatic ties between Israel and Africa.
The agenda for the visit includes meetings with senior officials; diplomatic and strategic briefings at the Ministry of Foreign Affairs; meetings at the Knesset; meetings between the imams and the chief rabbis on the subject of coexistence; a visit to the holy sites of the three religions, including Muslim holy sites in Jerusalem; and tours of Tel Aviv-Jaffa, Haifa and Acre - cities that serve as models for interreligious coexistence in Israel.
At the present time, when African states are
confronting threats from Islamic jihadist terrorism, we attach prime
importance to meetings with moderate Muslim religious leaders. These
meetings could serve as a stabilizing factor and boost Israel's
connection to these sectors of African society.
MFA DG Dore Gold meets with delegation
Foreign Ministry Director General Dr. Dore Gold, met this on Monday morning (March 14, 2016) with a delegation of religious leaders and imams from Africa, guests of the Foreign Ministry. Dr. Gold welcomed the delegation to Israel and noted that "Prime Minister Netanyahu plans to visit Africa this year, saying, "Israel is coming back to Africa; Africa is coming back to Israel."
He added, "I am pleased that you will have the opportunity to see the situation in Israel first-hand. I have just returned from a
visit to South Africa, where apartheid existed in the past, with separate hospitals for whites and blacks. I invite you to visit Hadassah Hospital, where you can see the staff and patients, Jews and Arabs side by side. We also established a field hospital in the Golan Heights to treat wounded Syrians. They are by definition of our enemies, but we treat them as a humanitarian mission of the first order."
Knesset Speaker Edelstein meets with the delegation
Copyright: Itzik HarariKnesset Speaker Yuli-Yoel Edelstein met in his office on Monday with a group of imams and other senior Muslim religious leaders from South Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Rwanda and Zambia.
"You will see with your own eyes the lives of minorities in this country, including the lives of religious minorities," the Knesset Speaker told the African religious leaders. "We have a heavy burden on our shoulders, because, as you know, this land is holy to Jews, Muslims and Christians, and we have people coming to Israel who want to visit the different sites, some because of their religious affiliation, and some because of the natural curiosity of tourists, and it is our duty to keep the holy places open and reachable to all those who visit the country."
Edelstein said Israel was "heavily involved" in humanitarian initiatives in Africa, noting that the Foreign Ministry "invests a lot in cooperation [with Africa], particularly in the fields of agriculture and technology, in order to promote Israeli know-how in different countries."
In this regard, the Speaker told the African Muslim religious leaders that one of the principles of Judaism is Tikkun Olam ("repairing the world"). "This is something that we are always trying to promote, because we cannot really claim that we are good Jews and that we are carrying out our task if we do not get involved in making the world better," he said. "If, in this country, we have been blessed with knowledge in the fields of innovation, agriculture, science and medicine, then we have to share it with countries around the world."
Background
The delegation numbers nine leading Muslim religious figures from the Republic of South Sudan, Zambia, Cameroon, Kenya, Rwanda and Ethiopia. Interreligious dialogue holds a central place on Israel's diplomatic agenda in Africa. Israel's ambassadors to Africa are involved in activities to strengthen ties with the Muslim community, such as donating sheep for the Eid al-Adha holiday, engaging in interreligious dialogues, and more.
Delegations of Senegalese imams and senior clergy visited Israel several years ago (2013 and 2014). The visits were very successful, showing the visitors different aspects of Israeli life and Jewish-Arab coexistence. The visitors returned to their country with high motivation to strengthen diplomatic ties with Israel and improve Israel's public image through the media and academia. Long after the delegation returned, the media continued to portray Israel as a multifaceted and open society.
The delegation of imams from Senegal with President Rivlin in Jerusalem, 2014Copyright: GPO/Mark Neiman