At the kind invitation of Al Maktoum College of Higher Education in Dundee, Scotland, His Excellency Professor Dr. Koutoub Moustapha Sano delivered a public lecture entitled: Promoting Peaceful Coexistence and Combating Extremist Ideology on Thursday, the 26th of the month of Dhul Qi’dah for the year 1444 AH corresponding to the 15th of the month of June of the year 2023 AD.

He began his lecture by expressing his thanks to the college for the invitation, and to the participants for attending. He expressed his overwhelming happiness for the qualitative shift that the college witnessed during this period under the conscious and wise leadership of its Director, His Excellency Dr. Abu Bakr Jaber. Then he touched on the contents of his lecture, which he summarized in three questions, the first of which is: Why the interest in this topic in this era, what are the causes of extremism and intolerance, what are the effective ways to eliminate extremism?

With regard to the first question, he explained: “Indeed, we are talking about this subject because of our deep sense that religions complain about the attacks of those with extremist ideology, represented in their outrageous behavior and wrong practices that are rejected in the name of Religions. Islam, for example, is a great religion that calls on its followers to adhere to and spread the values ​​of love, mercy, and kindness, respect, and justice and respect between people of different religions, colors and languages. It also requires avoiding all forms of violence and aggression against a person because of a religion, belief or way of life. It also necessitates the importance of spreading harmony and concord among people, being kind to the weak and infirm, and being kind to children, women and the elderly, and a commitment to justice in dealing with others. And with these clear teachings of Islam and other religions, rather their assault on it during the day openly is which prompts us to talk about this subject, hoping that the whole world will realize that Islam, with its origins and values, its purposes and teachings are based on promoting coexistence, and rejecting extremism and terrorism. Those who transgressed against the sanctity of this religion by shedding blood, violating honors, and wasting money, we must continue to defend the values ​​and teachings of Islam until the extremism disappears and terroris ends.” Then, he explained that extremism has multiple causes. Some are psychological, some are educational and social, and some are also economic and political. He focused on educational reasons, saying: « Reflection on the causes of the emergence and spread of extremist ideology finds them to be multiple, overlapping and intertwined, the most important of which are: ignorance of the values ​​of Religion and its teachings, the corrupt and false interpretation of legal texts, and the spread of fabricated hadiths that are false about the Messenger of God, may God bless him and grant him peace. As for ignorance, it is well known that it is a clear basis for extremist ideology, since most of its victims are ignorant. They have a few shallow information about the principles of Islam, and they are ignorant of applying its values as they are ignorant of the purposes and wisdom of the Sharia. They are, as Messenger, may God bless him, described them: Teeth cuttings, fools of dreams, they recite the Qur’an, but it does not go beyond their collarbones,’ and they pass away from Islam as the arrow passes through the prey..” With regard to the corrupt and false interpretation, it is also considered one of the reasons for the emergence of extremist ideology is that “because most of those with extremist ideology do not differentiate between general and special, and not between the absolute and restricted, and strike the texts with each other. They also attack the sanctity of the provisions of the texts and overlooked the historical events in a blatant manner“. Consequently they commit all kinds of wrong practices and deeds. As for fabricated hadiths and their impact on the emergence and spread of extremist thought, his is clear in their thought, as “many of the ideas and opinions that they spread are based on false hadiths about the Messenger of God, may God’s prayers and peace be upon him and his family, and one finds a presence of this in all the hadiths they rely on to prevent women from education, and work to exclude them from participating in the efforts of construction and renaissance and the progress and development of the homelands, as well as the case in a number of false hadiths that make the origin in the relationship between Al-Muslim and others“. In general, there are other reasons that are not sufficient to list them. With regard to the last question, H.E. explained that the best, most effective and lasting treatment lies in the provision of quality education, the correct, comprehensive course whose courses include enabling young people to acquire values ​​that illuminate their path and enhance coexistence, peaceful thought, behavior and practice, as well as making them renounce all forms of violence, aggression, exclusion, injustice and hatred because of religion, or belief, color or language, it is the education that is based on consolidating belief in human dignity and freedom and his right to choose his belief with all freedom and guidance, and believes that people are of two types, your brother in religion or your brother in humanity, he has what you have, and he has what you owe.”

His Excellency concluded his lecture by emphasizing the saying: “Muslims are required more than ever to stand out through their words, deeds, and behavior, that Islam is a religion of peace, love, mercy, justice, kindness, benevolence, and respect. In order to achieve this, it is incumbent on all of them, at all times and places, to fight every thought that calls for violence and hatred and exclusion. They must promote and respect diversity, difference and pluralism, which were enumerated as the signs of the greatness and mighty of the Lord, the HolyQuran narrated: “And among His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the differences in your languages ​​and colors. Indeed, in that are signs for the worlds..».

At the end of the lecture, His Excellency answered a number of questions posed by the participants, stressing that the magnitude of the challenge that it is formed as an incubator of exclusionary extremist thought. It must be confronted with an enlightened, conscious and assimilated renewal discourse that is aware of the dire effects. The consequences of the future of security, safety, stability and prosperity for peoples and societies, and therefore «the exceptional circumstances that pass humanity today because of the emergence and spread of this thought among many followers of religions and beliefs, both Muslims and Christians, Jews and others require concerted intellectual efforts and the integration of studied scientific steps to combat it, refute it, and defeat it in order to save the world and humanity from his scourge and tragedies ».