Top Saudi clerics urge calm after Shi'ite mosque attack
| Publisher | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty |
| Publication Date | 23 May 2015 |
| Cite as | Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty, Top Saudi clerics urge calm after Shi'ite mosque attack, 23 May 2015, available at: https://www.refworld.org/docid/558bc4bb15.html [accessed 31 May 2023] |
| Disclaimer | This is not a UNHCR publication. UNHCR is not responsible for, nor does it necessarily endorse, its content. Any views expressed are solely those of the author or publisher and do not necessarily reflect those of UNHCR, the United Nations or its Member States. |
May 23, 2015
Saudi Arabia's highest-ranking Sunni cleric has branded a deadly attack on Shi'ite Muslims a "criminal act" aimed at "driving a wedge among the sons of the nation."
"God be praised, it will not find a way," Grand Mufti Abdel-Aziz al-Sheikh told state television on May 23. "The nation and society are united and under a wise leadership."
Sheikh Mohammed Obeidan, a top local Shi'ite cleric, told worshippers, "Mass prayer in a calm, orderly way with self-restraint is the right way to respond to this corrupt force and hateful darkness."
Thousands of protesters took to the streets of the village of Al-Qadeeh late on May 22, hours after a suicide bomber killed at least 21 worshippers in a packed Shi'ite mosque.
Demonstrators said security forces had left their communities unprotected.
The Islamic State extremist group claimed responsibility for the attack.
Based on reporting by AFP, AP, and Reuters
Link to original story on RFE/RL website
