The Grand Mufti of Egypt, Dr Shawky Allam, met with Katalin Bogyay, head of the UNESCO General Assembly, and Dr Peter Kveck, the Hungarian ambassador, in Egypt.
Dr Allam stressed the importance of maintaining a dialogue between different religions and cultures. He explained that communication should stem from the admission of identity and cultural singularity, and not follow one dominant culture.
He invited UNESCO to exert more effort in rectifying the negative image of Islam and its culture in Western education curriculums. He expressed the willingness of Dar Al-Ifta to cooperate in any way possible with UNESCO to make this happen.
Ms Bogyay expressed her admiration of Dar Al-Ifta’s efforts to spread the message of Islam and forgiveness in the world and its willingness to stand against fanatic ideas locally and internationally. She invited Dr Allam to attend the UNESCO conference in May 2013.