Top Saudi Leader Vows to Fight Anti-Semitism ‘Shoulder to Shoulder’ With Jews

JERUSALEM, Israel - A Mecca-based Islamic NGO funded by the Saudi Arabian government said it is ready to stand “shoulder to shoulder” with Jews and Christians to fight anti-Semitism around the world.

Sheikh Dr. Mohammed al-Issa, Secretary-General of the Muslim World League said Tuesday that the organization is actively seeking unity between Muslims, Jews, and Christians.

“We will fight Islamophobia and anti-Semitism and all sorts of hatred and we are armed with the truth. The Muslim World League is ready for this fight,” al-Issa said while speaking at a virtual conference hosted by the Combat Anti-Semitism Movement and the American Sephardi Federation.

“We in the Muslim World League are proud to stand shoulder to shoulder with our Jewish and Christian brothers and sisters to build understanding, respect, love and inter-religious harmony,” the sheikh said.

During the ceremony, al-Issa was honored with the first-ever Combat Anti-Semitism award for his fight against anti-Semitism.

Two days ago, on behalf of @CombatASemitism
and @AmericanSephard, I was honored to give the first-ever Combat Anti-Semitism Award to Sheikh Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa, Secretary-General @MWLOrg_en. pic.twitter.com/xGSByX1mHk

— Sacha Roytman Dratwa (@SachaDratwa) June 11, 2020

In January, al-Issa led a delegation of interfaith leaders through the Auschwitz-Birkenau Memorial in Poland to commemorate the 75^th anniversary of the liberation of the camp.

Al-Issa strongly condemned people who deny that the Holocaust ever happened. 

“There are those who still try to falsify history, who claim the Holocaust, the most despicable crime in human history, is fiction," he said. "We stand against these liars, no matter who they are or where they come from. True Islam deems any attempt to deny or underplay the brutal horrors of the Holocaust as the ultimate insult to the dignity of all those who perished.”

Combat Anti-Semitism Director Sacha Roytman Dratwa praised al-Issa for is work.

“At a time when Iran’s spiritual leader calls for the destruction of the Jewish state, the Sheikh’s statements condemning the hatred of Jews are of particular importance, especially given the scrutiny he often faces,” said Roytman Dratwa.