President Hassan Rouhani made the remark in a meeting with leaders of Muslim community in the US on Tuesday evening, New York time (Wednesday morning, Tehran time), adding “if today, some Muslim youth in various countries have started to feel that they should distance themselves from Islamic teachings in order to feel emotionally and intellectually secure, it is all because of the wrong readings of Islam and religious teachings by terrorist and Takfiri groups.”
“Introducing the true face of Islam to the world is a great responsibility of Islamic intellectuals,” Rouhani stressed.
President Rouhani maintained that Islam is not against scientific advancement and new technologies, adding, “social networks, although potentially able to create cultural problems for the youth, can also be used as a means to advance valuable goals.”
Rouhani highlighted Iran’s support for every Islamic country or government that asks for help in combating terrorism, adding “Iran deems its duty to help out countries against terrorism because we consider terror a great threat to the lives and properties of Muslims, as well as the reputation of Islam.”
“There is no other way to fight terrorism than joint consultations and cooperation,” he added.
The President further noted that the Islamic Republic has always sought to unite Shias and Sunnis, adding “today, if we truly wish for the realization of interests of all the Islamic world, we need to focus on our religious commonalities and strengthen them.”
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