Saudi National Day

March of non-stop achievements, initiatives in all fields

Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques the most prominent advocate of peace, dialogue, history maker

King Abdullah founded global dialogue among followers of religions, cultures, civilizations in Madrid conference

The Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud has registered his name from the light in the contemporary history as one of the most prominent advocates of peace, dialogue and makers of history, calling for dialogue among the followers of religions; cultures and civilizations embodied in the World Conference on Dialogue which was held in Madrid, Spain during July 2008.

King's efforts in this regard were culminated by holding the General Assembly of the United Nations a high level meeting of the dialogue among the followers of all religions in the period from 12 to 13 of November at the invitation of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques.

This meeting came to reflect the hopes and aspirations of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his noble and pioneering quest for the realization of understanding and cooperation among nations which meet on major principles and participate in great values.

On the occasion of the 79th Anniversary of the Kingdom's National Day, Saudi Press Agency reviews in a report the efforts made by the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud to promote also the dialogue among Muslims to maintain their unity and solidarity towards the dangers surrounding them, and to establish a dialogue with other parties, bringing peace and security all over the world.

The King sought and still seeks to promote the awareness of non-Muslims of the tolerance and justice of Islam, since the dialogue among the followers of religions and civilizations has become a necessity of life among different peoples and a means for the convergence and acquaintance among nations.

Thus, the promotion of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques for the dialogue among civilizations has opened the window wide for Islamic organizations to defend the Nation of Islam and its great principles.

And in a culmination of the Saudi Monarch's efforts to enhance communication and dialogue among civilizations, cultures and common concepts, an international award on translation called "Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz International Award for Translation" was launched, believing that the scientific, intellectual and cultural renaissance is based on the movement of mutual translation among languages as an honest carrier to the science and experience of nations, peoples and civilizations.

Editor-in-chief of Cairo-based al-Ahram newspaper Osama Sarai has praised the efforts of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz for preserving the Arab interests, and said King Abdullah is a farsighted and wise leader.

In a statement to SPA on the occasion of the Kingdom’s national day, he said the Saudi and Egyptian Leaderships are keen on the service of the Arab interests.

He noted that Saudi-Egyptian coordination will have a positive impact on the Palestinian problem.

Sarai highlighted the importance of King Abdullah’s initiative to conduct dialogue among followers of religions, and said King Abdullah is the best Arab leader for explaining the proper principles of Islam.

Saudi newspapers commented in their editorials on a number of issues at local, regional and international arenas, particularly the Kingdom's National Strategy.

In an editorial entitled "Kingdom's National Strategy", Al-Madinah newspaper said that the great leader - the late King Abdulaziz bin Abdulrahman Al Saud had established the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia on the firm bases of the Holy Quran and Prophet's Sunnah (Tradition).

The paper noted that when the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud received on Wednesday the annual report of King Abdulaziz Center for National Dialogue, the King stressed the agreement between the Saudi people and their leadership on rejection of extremism and intolerance, and their adherence to moderation.

The paper pointed out that this stand necessitates concerted efforts to promote a national strategy that enables young people to identify the right track for development and work and to enlighten their minds on the values of tolerance and brotherhood advocated by Islam to protect them from directing towards deviant intellectual trends.

Commenting on the same topic, Al-Riyadh newspaper said that the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques, King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud and Prince Naif bin Abdulaziz, the Second Deputy Premier and Minister of Interior, have simultaneously affirmed that confrontation with terrorism has been the cornerstone of the Kingdom's national and international policy and that dialogue with foreign parties has taken the same importance.

The paper considered the call for moderation as an effective weapon against extremism.

On its part, Al-Yaum newspaper said that as moderation is a rational human behavior, and it is prevalent in the Muslim community, particularly Saudi Arabia which treats it as a religious duty.

In this regard, it pointed to the King's affirmation that this country has been applying the approach of moderation in word and action, noting that this stand emanates from the commitment of the Saudi leadership to the religious duty calling for the application of moderation.

The Head of Turkish Religious Affairs Department Dr. Ali Birdaq Oglu commended the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia for its defense of the issues of Islam and Muslims all over the world as well as its works for unifying their ranks.

In a press statement, he praised the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for calling for the previous Conference of Dialogue Between Followers of Religions, noting that the Conference pointed to the King's farsightedness about the issues of the Islamic nation.

Oglu appreciated great services provided by the Kingdom to pilgrims and Umrah performers and praised gigantic projects executed in the holy places.

He commended the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call and Guidance for inviting a number of Muslim scholars to visit the Kingdom and perform Umrah rituals during the blessed month of Ramadan.

Meanwhile, Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Abdullah bin Abdulaziz received the annual report of King Abdulaziz Center for National Dialogue.

The report was delivered to the king by the head of the presidential committee of King Abdulaziz Center for National Dialogue Sheikh Salih bin Abdulrahman Alhosain; members of the presidential committee, Dr. Rashid Alrajih Alshireef, Dr. Abdullah Omar Naseef, Dr. Abdullah bin Salih Alobaid; Deputy Minister of Education and Secretary General of the center Faisal bin Abdulrahman bin Moa'ammar and Deputy Secretary General of the center Dr. Fahd bin Sultan Alsultan during an audience.

During the audience, the king stressed the great importance attached by the society to the center in boosting national unity and spreading the values of love and fraternity among all groups of the society and in discussing the national issues in which citizens contribute responsible views and constructive proposals on the issues that concern all people of the country.

The king said the center is a channel for responsible expression and aims at fighting fanaticism and extremism through spreading the enlightened views and wise stands which can effectively contribute to achieving the desired results of discussing national issues introduced by the center between the citizens and officials.

The king stressed that this homeland and the loyal Saudi people do not accept other than moderation which rejects extremism as well as decadence.

The king said that the current period requires unified efforts to create a national strategy that enables the youth to recognize the right path toward work and development, enlightens their minds with the values of moderation, tolerance and fraternity preached by our religion, Islam, and protects them from following misleading intellectual trends which do not want good or stability for this homeland and try to control the minds of some youths to prevent them from carrying out the role hoped from them in the field of building and development.

During the audience, the king was briefed on the results of the preparation meetings held by the center for 8th national gathering. The king ordered holding the main gathering of the 8th national gathering under the title "The Health Services: a Dialogue between the Society and Health Institutions" in Najran.

The king also was briefed on the draft of the intellectual gathering which will be organized by the center soon on the "reality of the Saudi cultural discourse and its prospects."

The king praised the center's efforts in the field of dialogue training and propagation of dialogue culture.

The king was briefed on evaluation field study on the center prepared in cooperation with a group of researchers. The king praised the results of the study hoping they will boost the work of the center.

The king was also briefed on the documentary book prepared by the center on the imitative by the king on the dialogue among the followers of the divine religions and philosophies.

The king was also briefed on the new engineering designs of the new headquarters of the center. The king ordered the speedy completion of the new headquarters of the center.

Alhosain delivered a speech in which he praised the king's efforts for the benefit of the homeland and citizens.