Muslim clerics shun interfaith forum in Qatar after Israeli scholars invited

DOHA, Qatar - Two prominent Muslim clerics are boycotting an interfaith forum in Qatar after Israeli Jewish scholars were asked to take part, organizers said yesterday.

This is the first time Jews have been invited to take part in what was previously an Islamic-Christian conference held for the past two years in the Gulf Arab state.

Organizers said Egypt's Sheikh Mohammed Sayed Tantawi, one of the Sunni Muslim world's most respected clerics, and Sheikh Youssef al-Qaradawi, an outspoken Egyptian Sunni cleric, were boycotting the forum, which starts tomorrow in Doha.

"They said they would not attend the conference due to political reasons. ... Opposition is not to Judaism, it is a protest against Israeli aggression against the Palestinians," said Aisha al-Manai, head of the organizing committee.

"Israel has not told us who they will be sending, but we sent them three invitations. We should be hearing from them within the next day or two," she added.

At last year's interfaith meeting, Qatar's Emir Sheikh Hamad bin Khalifa al-Thani said the forum to promote Muslim-Christian dialogue should be widened to include Jews.

Though Qatar has no diplomatic relations with Israel, it has angered other Arab states by maintaining low-level ties with the Jewish state.

It was not clear if the clerics would attend if Israel chose not to send anyone.