A growing number of eminent British Muslims have paid tribute to the King Fahd Cultural Assembly to be held in Brussels, Belgium, on August 27, 1999, it was reported here today. In remarks to the Saudi Press Agency (SPA), Sheikh Mohammed Abdul-Hadi, the Chairman of the Society of Ahlul-Hadith (followers of Prophet Mohammed's sayings) in Birmingham (Britain's second biggest city) said the assembly is undoubtedly a beneficial initiative from the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd bin Abdul Aziz, aiming, as it does, to provide a vital service to the sons and daughters of Muslims living in the West. The issues to be discussed were very important to the Islamic community abroad. He said similar meetings held in other cities in Britain were providing rare opportunities for Muslims living there to meet each other, introduce their religion to the west and exchange views on important matters which concerned them all. He also pointed to the interest of King Fahd in promoting mosques, Islamic schools, centers, institutes, colleges and universities in the service of Islam and Muslims abroad.

For his part, the Secretary General of the Society of Ahlul Hadith in Britain, Sheikh Shu'aib Ahmed, praised the interest of the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques and his prudent Government in dealing with issues of great importance to Muslims, citing the cultural assembly in Brussels as the clearest evidence of this concern. Sheikh Shu'aib also lauded the financial and moral support provided by the Government of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia to Islamic institutions abroad, citing the building of Islamic Centers, institutes and colleges, the establishing of scientific and educational professorial chairs at renowned universities and distributing Islamic call cassettes, books and videotapes, particularly the Holy Quran or its translations and interpretations in different languages of the world.

He said the issues to be discussed at the assembly in Brussels were equally important to Muslims living outside Belgium because Muslims living abroad, particularly in the West, faced similar problems. He expressed the hope that the conference in Brussels would provide a sound basis for overcoming the problems facing Islamic communities abroad.

Source: SPA