Shias, Sunnis Form a Unified Ummah: Al-Azhar Sheikh
Al-Tayyeb made the remark in his daily Ramadan address broadcast on al-Misriyah TV, adding that Shia and Sunni Muslims are both followers of one religion and are in one boat.
He added that Al-Azhar seeks the unity of the Muslim Ummah, stressing that it is no time now for discord and disunity.
Al-Tayyeb also dismissed the idea that Sunni countries are under threat by other Islamic schools of thought.
His comments come as there has been anti-Shia propaganda spreading in Egypt by Wahabi Salafist groups in recent years.
The Salafists provoke sectarian strife in Egypt to advance their divisive agenda.
The rising anti-Shia sentiments have sometimes led to tragic events.
In June 2013, an angry mob led by the Egypt’s Saudi-backed Salafist sheikhs torched Shia residences in the small village of Zawyat Abu Musalam in Giza governorate, killing four citizens, including prominent Shia cleric Sheikh Hassan Shehata.
