London, Oct 26, IRNA, The fourth international festival on Global Peace and Unity opened in London on Saturday.
Tens of thousand Muslims and non-Muslims are taking part in the event.
The two-day event, organized by Islam Channel in cooperation with several other Muslim and non-Muslim institutions such as the Muslim Council of Britain and the Islamic Bank of England, aims to forge unity among Muslims and non-Muslims.
Various cultural, artistic and educational programs and exhibitions were held on the sidelines of the festival.
Mohamed Ali, the chairman of the Global Peace and Unity Festival 2008, said in the opening ceremony of the multi-cultural event that “the voice of Islam is being heard by the whole world” through this event known as Europe’s largest festival bringing Muslims and non-Muslims together.
“We, Muslims all want peace and unity across the world. However, some westerners are falsely accusing us of violence and extremism,” he said.
Hundreds of Muslims and non-Muslims took part in the opening ceremony which included various programs such as Quran recitation, music performance, charity coalition and educational award-giving.
Muslim and non-Muslim scholars from different countries such as Pakistan, France, USA, Britain and Canada are also participating in the event.
More than 60,000 people have attended the two-day festival, being held until Monday in Excel-London’s largest venue for exhibitions.