UAE- Nahyan bin Mubarak receives Iraq s Christian religious leaders

ABU DHABI 16th March 2016 (WAM) -- H.H. Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development received today at his palace a delegation of Iraq's Christian religious leaders.

The delegation includes the heads of the dioceses of Mosul and Kurdistan the Bishops of the diocese of Mosul and the Kurdish Syriac Catholics as well as the Archbishops of Erbil Chaldeans.

Sheikh Nahyan said the religious policy of tolerance love and peace pursued by the UAE which was established by the late Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan "is based on the values of deep understanding of principles of Islam and sticking to the moderation approach and working to make religions the basis for reconciliation and intimacy as well as renouncing violence."

The minister stressed that the UAE led by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan "is one of the first countries to have adopted the rhetoric based on dialogue and tolerance" citing the international status of the UAE to continue promoting a dialogue among religions and cultures with emphasis on tolerance and bringing views closer removing misunderstandings manifestation of discord enmity and hatred among the followers of different religions and cultures."

Sheikh Nahyan referred to the Anti-Discriminationory Law issued by President His Highness Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan which establishes a legislative and legal culture in the region and the world and helps promote co-existence among different cultures and civilisations. He added that the law aims at preserving human dignity and preventing abuse of any religion and calls for the preservation of the tolerant teachings of Islam regarding respect for others good treatment and eschewing hate alienation and extremism speech.

The minister said "We as Arabs Muslim countries and the UAE deeply pay respect to values of peace tolerance and a strong desire to understand the world surrounding us. Our primary goal is to support a culture of dialogue among religions promote peaceful coexistence among followers of religions and activate the common religious values to address serious problems facing the humanity."

On their part the Bishops Nicodemus Dawood Yohanna Butrus and Bashar Matta praised the uniqueness of the UAE experience in terms of tolerance and co-existence which have been the basis of economic development social stability and happiness being experienced by the UAE. They stressed the spirit of tolerance that prevails throughout the UAE which "is a model of religious tolerance not found anywhere worldwide."

At the conclusion of the meeting the delegation presented to Sheikh Nahyan a model of the Citadel of Erbil which is located in the centre of the Erbil city in Kurdistan region of Iraq. It dates back to the era of the Assyrians about 1000 years BC. The citadel was built for defensive purposes. It was an important fortress for the city of Erbil at that time. Erbil city hosts Muslims Jews and Christians.

The meeting was also attended by Juma Al Majid Chairman of the Juma Al Majid Centre for Culture and Heritage and Ali Al Hashimi Religious Adviser at the Ministry of Presidential Affairs and a number of senior officials.