President receives participating delegations in first conference for

SANA’A, June 21 (Saba)- President Ali Abdullah Saleh received here on Monday participating delegations in the first conference for guidance being held in Sana’a.In the meeting, President Saleh expressed hope that the conference would come out with positive decisions serve Islamic interests and protect Islamic youths from extremism.He added that the foreign interference in the affairs of Islam resulted from the wrong education by people who learned Islam teachings wrongly.”Islam is the religion of tolerance, mercy and truth not the religion of extremism and terror,” he said.He pointed out that the reasons of the foreign interference in the Islamic peoples’ affairs resulted from those schools of extremism that not only harm foreigners but also basically harm the Arab and Islamic nations.”Support offered for those schools in pervious time was for combating communism in Asia, Africa and Middle East and to fight Marxist extremism, but now the nations are paying the prices as they witness disordering security and stability, he said.”We do not blame our scholars or preachers when they raise the platforms, they should know what they want, whether they want to incite extremism and fabricate truths on youths or should be careful for reactions, and whether they want security and stability in their countries or not,” he added.He pointed out that the policy is acceptable, but it should not employ the religion for political purposes.”We should hold real principles of the Islam and protect people particularly youths,” he said. ” ruler will thank and respect the scholar when he says the word of truth.”He added: “We in Yemen have asked religious scholars to dialogue with the misled youth who returned from Afghanistan.We asked them to re-educate the youth. A number of scholars made good results of their theological dialogue with the militants, whilst others refrained to go and re-educate them since they were the once who incited their extremism. When we asked them why they didn’t participate in the re-education of the militants, they said that they were the once who established their thoughts and can’t go to preach the contrary to them.” He added that even the extremist youth said they were the victims of the extremist tutors. “You can take power peacefully. Do you want an Islamic caliphate? You can have it, but you should take your moves orderly. You should convince the ruler and the ruled, you should be moderate.” AH/AA SABA