By Xinhua,
Riyadh : Religious scholars and delegates from more than 50 Muslim countries on Wednesday began an international conference to address the challenges facing the Islamic world.
The Islamic world is faced with various severe challenges including tensions between Islamic sects and extremism of some Muslims, Saudi King Abdullah said at the three-day conference held in the holy city of Mecca.
A conference of the Islamic world is needed to address problems and to present to the world the good message of Islam, he told some 500 delegates.
The conference is to tell the world that the Islamic world is “a voice of justice and values and humanity” and “a voice of coexistence and a just and rational dialogue,” King Abdullah said.
He also appealed to all Muslims in the world to strengthen themselves and solve differences of opinion through dialogue.
The conference is also the first move in response to the initiative put forward by King Abdullah to hold a conference among different religions and civilizations in the world, said Abdullah bin Abdulmohsen Al-Turki, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League.
Different standpoints within the Islamic world will be coordinated at first if such a conference takes place, he said.