Al-Azhar Grand Imam, Prof. Ahmad At-Tayyeb, received the Chief Minister of Johor State in Malaysia, Mr. Sahruddin Jamal, and the delegation accompanying him, during their visit to Cairo to discuss Al-Azhar's leading role in consolidating moderation, and to strengthen relations between Al-Azhar and the Malaysian state of Johor.

At the beginning of the meeting, His Eminence the Grand Imam welcomed the Chief Minister and the delegation accompanying him at Al-Azhar headquarters. He stressed the depth of relations between Al-Azhar and religious institutions in Malaysia, showing that Al-Azhar is keen to continue cooperation with Malaysia in all cultural, scientific and religious fields. In addition, Al-Azhar is ready to support Malaysia through providing scholarships to Malaysian students and training imams to deal with contemporary issues and problems, especially issues of extremism and terrorism.

Mr. Sahruddin Jamal, for his part, expressed his country's pride in the strong relations between Al-Azhar and Islamic institutions in Malaysia. He added that Al-Azhar is the top religious reference for Muslims in the world, pioneer of correct Islam in disseminating Islamic culture around the world and combating extremism and terrorism. He noted that senior officials of Johor State, including the first Chief Minister of the state, received their education at Al-Azhar, the case which reflects the great position enjoyed by Al-Azhar among the Malaysian people.