The outstanding Sunni leader, Shaikh Abdol-Hameed Isma’eelzahi, urged on avoiding from useless dogmatism calling it the sign of ‘calamity and uncivilizing’ of fanatic elements.
He was addressing tens of thousands citizens of Konarak city, south of the Iranian Baluchistan, on Wednesday, Feb. 20, 2013.
Shaikh Isma’eelzahi added more, “It is a sort of uncivilizing to show bigotry towards Sunnis or Shias. It is a calamity to ban Sunnis or Shias from building own mosques. Some people demand obstacles on Sunni Muslims’ gathering for prayers in Tehran and Esfahan; such elements are uncivilized and fanatic.”
To whom belong Tehran, Esfahan and Tabriz? Are they only for Shias? If any Shia can not bear Sunnis’ Eid and Friday prayers, he is an uncivilized person. If we, Iranians, claim that we have a brilliant past and proud history with ancient civilization, we must not be biased. I denounce Sunnis if they ban Shias’ prayers. Even I advise Sunni authorities to be fair with all; there must not be any discrimination between Shia and Sunni communities, he further said.
Khateeb of Ahl-us-Sunnah alluded to religious liberties of minorities in some other Muslim countries, saying, “Shias and other religious minorities in Turkey enjoy full freedom. When I visited Tajikistan, I asked the president of Tajikistan about liberties of minorities; he informed me that minorities have no any problem. He said the entire nation including Sunnis, Shias and Jews who live in Tajikistan enjoy equal behavior.”
Last week, Shaikh Abdol-Hameed Isma’eelzahi, chairman of the Coordination Council of Sunni Seminaries in Sistan-Baluchistan, visited some central and southern regions of Baluchistan of Iran.