Azhar imam urges Libyans to disobey Gaddafi

The Grand Imam of al-Azhar, the world’s leading institution of Sunni Islam, issued a statement Saturday calling upon all Libyans to disobey their leader Muammar Gaddafi.

Sheikh Mohamed al-Tayeb condemned in a strongly-worded statement the extreme violence with which Libyan leader Muammar Gaddafi has been dealing with his people since the protests that demand the ouster of his regime started on February 17.

“Gaddafi has now become a tyrannical ruler who wages war on his own people,” said the statement. “That is why I ask the Libyan army and officials to refrain from obeying his orders or else they will be accomplices in shedding the blood of Libyans.”

In the statement circulated by several Egyptian and Arab media outlets, Tayeb added that he has been following the latest events in Libya with “a heart laden with pain.”

Tayeb also called upon the relevant Egyptian authorities to offer humanitarian aid to the Libyans and to exert their utmost effort to evacuate Egyptians from Libya and ensure their safety.

Tayeb addressed Western countries in his statement and demanded that they support the people who fight for their freedom.

“The West should care about democracy and freedom more than they care about oil and protecting their interests.”

Tayeb also called upon Arabs and Muslims to offer all kinds of support to the Libyan people.

“I ask all the honorable Arabs and Muslims from all over the world to support our Libyan brothers and offer them humanitarian and medical aid as well as anything else that helps them in their struggle for freedom.”



(Translated from the Arabic by Sonia Farid)

The West should care about democracy and freedom more than they care about oil and protecting their interests

Azhar Grand Imam Ahmed al-Tayeb