Rabbi Israel Zinger (Archive photo)
Photo: AP
Moscow: Jewish delegation meets Muslim leader
Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, head of the Council of Muftis of Russia, stresses importance of dialogue with Jews
A delegation of the World Jewish Congress and the Euro-Asian Jewish Congress met Thursday with Sheikh Ravil Gainutdin, head of the Council of Muftis of Russia.
The meeting was aimed at promoting the WJC's initiative to integrate senior Muslim leaders as part of the inter-religious dialogue held by the WJC with the Catholic Church in a bid to create a triple dialogue between the three religions.
The meeting was held in Sheikh Gainutdin's official residence in Moscow. The sheikh welcomed the initiative "to boost a feeling of mutual respect and peaceful relations and understanding between members of the different religions in Russia and worldwide."
Rabbi Israel Zinger, chairman of the political council in the WJC, told the sheikh that both Muslims and Jews in Russia were minorities being pursued because of their religion, and therefore the two religions in Russia must cooperate in a war against racism and religious discrimination.
In the meeting, the two parties supported holding a dialogue as a way to prevent believers of different religions from hurting each other.
There are about 20 million Muslims and about one million Jews living in Russia. The two communities have suffered from religiously-motivated harassments in recent years.
