Lebanese religious leader calls for Saudi-Iran dialogue

By Sobhi Mujahid

CAIRO (AA) - Ahmed Qablan, a spokesman for Lebanon’s Supreme Islamic Shia Council, has called for initiating dialogue between Riyadh and Tehran, saying the region’s Sunni-Shia rift only served the interests of Israel.

“Everything that is now happening in our countries -- in Iraq, Syria and Bahrain -- serves Israel,” Qablan said Tuesday at a conference in Cairo organized by Egypt’s Al-Azhar University.

“We should all be on the same page so we might confront the terrorist gangs that are distorting the image of our religion,” he asserted.

“We must bear in mind that we are being targeted, as Palestine was targeted,” Qablan added.

He went on to extend “an open invitation to Middle Eastern leaders -- led by Tehran and Riyadh -- with a view to opening a new page of dialogue, transcending our differences, and uniting the Muslim nation”.

Held under the banner “Freedom, Citizenship, Diversity and Integration”, Tuesday’s conference in the Egyptian capital was attended by participants from over 50 countries.