CAIRO: Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak on Friday appointed a new head of Al-Azhar, Sunni Islam s most prestigious institution, after the death of its top cleric last week, the official MENA agency reported.
Mubarak, who is recovering from surgery in Germany, has issued a presidential decree appointing Sheikh Ahmed Mohammed Ahmed Al-Tayeb to head Al-Azhar, MENA reported.
Tayeb, the president of Al-Azhar University since 2003, succeeds Grand Imam Mohammed Sayed Tantawi, who died of a heart attack in Saudi Arabia on March 10.
Al-Azhar institution – which groups a 10th century mosque, a university and several affiliated schools – is Sunni Islam s highest seat of learning. Its role is to propagate Islamic teachings and culture around the world.
French-educated Tayeb also held the post of Grand Mufti, the country s most senior Islamic scholar, until September 2003.
Since 1961, the grand imam of Al-Azhar has been appointed by presidential decree, opening up the post to criticism of being too close to the government. -AFP
