Muslim World League leader to make historic visit to Auschwitz

The Secretary-General of the Muslim World League (MWL) Dr. Mohammad al-Issa is due to visit to the Auschwitz camp in Poland in January 2020, as per an agreement signed in New York with the Executive Chairman of the American Jewish Committee (AJC).

Al-Issa, who leads the largest Islamic non-governmental organization, also announced that a delegation of Jewish community leaders will visit Saudi Arabia.

The MWL, largely funded by Saudi Arabia, supports Islamic causes and promotes interfaith dialogue.

Al-Issa will be the highest-ranking Muslim leader to visit the Nazi death camp, according to the organization.

The Secretary-General said that “Islamic values” prompted him to make the trip, adding that he “would oppose anyone who denies” the Holocaust.

Al-Issa signed a historic memorandum of understanding with AJC CEO David Harris. The memorandum codifies the commitment of the two global institutions to further Muslim-Jewish understanding.

It also emphasizes the importance of cooperating against all forms of extremism, according to MWL’s Twitter account.

During his visit to New York, al-Issa also expressed his condolences to the victims of a terrorist attack on a synagogue in California in April.

The New York meeting included Islamic, Christian, and Jewish leaders, as well as Sri Lanka and New Zealand’s envoys to the United Nations.

He agreed with Rabbi Arthur Schneier, head of interfaith organization the Appeal of Conscience Foundation, on “working together to prevent threats or violence against religious sites and worshippers.”

He announced a one million dollar contribution from the MWL to the UNHCR, supporting refugee communities around the world.

Al-Issa was honored Wednesday at the inaugural UN Responsible Leaders Summit in New York with an award for “courageous efforts toward peace and interreligious dialogue and understanding,” according to a statement issued by the organization.