Russian
President Vladimir Putin has delivered a speech at the opening of the country's
largest mosque. He sought to promote the positive values of Islam, but also to
codemn extremist violence.
Deutsche Welle, 23 Sep 2015
Putin oversees opening of new mosque |
Vladimir
Putin, concerned about the growing number of Russian-speaking citizens joining
the ranks of the self-styled "Islamic State" (IS) terrorist group
fighting in Syria and Iraq, on Wednesday painted jihadism as a distortion of
Islamic values and the opening of the new mosque as a positive outlet for
Russian Muslims.
"We
see what is happening in the Middle East where terrorists from the so-called
Islamic State group are compromising a great world religion, compromising
Islam, in order to sow hate," he said at the site of the newly reopened
Moscow Cathedral Mosque.
The speech,
which was delivered just a day before the Muslim holiday of Eid al-Adha, also
emphasized the mosque's role as a spiritual center for Russians. "It will
be a source for education, spreading humanist ideas and the true values of
Islam," Putin said.
Among those
in attendance were Palestinian President Mahmoud Abbas and Turkish President
Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who was set to meet with Putin later that day to discuss
the conflict in the Middle East and specifically in Syria. Concern has grown
among world leaders regarding Russia's role in war-torn Syria, with the United
States recently accusing Putin of sending troops and military equipment to his
embattled ally, President Bashar al-Assad. Turkey, meanwhile, has been highly
critical Assad during the country's civil war.
In addition
to the estimated 2,000 Russian speakers who have traveled to the Middle East to
fight alongside IS, Moscow has also been fighting an Islamic insurgency in the
restless Caucusus region in the south.
The Moscow
mosque was originally built in the early 1900s, and then demolished in 2011.
The reconstruction, which cost $170 million (152 million euros), drew
controversy after another mosque was demolished in order to make room for it.
One of the largest mosques in Europe, it will be able to accomodate an estimated
10,000 people.
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