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Indian Muslim Leader Visiting Israel: "Time to End Violence"

[Ynet News] Yaakov Lappin - The time for violence has come to an end, and the era of peace and dialogue between Muslims and Jews has begun, says Maulana Jameel Ahmed Ilyasi, secretary-general of the All-India Association of Imams and Mosques, representing half a million imams who are the main religious leaders of India's 200 million Muslims. He also said the time had come for Pakistan to establish official relations with Israel. "My impression was initially that the Israelis are certainly dominating Muslims out here. Once I came here, that impression completely changed," Ilaysi said. "I saw the reality on the ground, the mutual respect Israeli Arabs and Israeli Jews have for each other. Constant conflict is not the reality here." In Jerusalem "I saw that Muslims, Christians and Jews lived side by side happily, not at each other's throat." "I was pleasantly surprised to know that the Sharia (Islamic law) code is being supported by the Israeli government, whereas in India only local Muslims implement it. That is unique," he said. "The Jews I have met here say that we are all children of Abraham, part of the same family. This is something I didn't hear in India. The Muslims in India should come and see things for themselves," Ilaysi said.
2007-08-20 01:00:00
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