At his residence in the German capital, Berlin, His Eminence the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Ash-Sharif, Prof. Ahmad At-Tayyeb, received Chief of the Federal President's Office, Secretary of State Stephan Steinlein. At the beginning of the meeting, the Grand Imam affirmed Al-Azhar’s determination to confront extremist thought. He pointed out that Al-Azhar is now preparing a draft bill to criminalize incitement to hatred and violence and will present it to the Egyptian Parliament soon. He also noted that Al-Azhar is leading unremitting efforts to confine extremist thought and radical fatwas through a clear strategy on various tracks. The Grand Imam added that Al-Azhar is ready to cooperate with Germany in training imams and preachers, explaining that this would contribute to the qualification of German imams in a way that helps them confront extremist thought.

For his part, Mr. Steinlein welcomed the Grand Imam, offering sincere condolences to him and to Egypt's leadership, government and people for the victims of the Minya terrorist attack. He also praised the speech delivered by the Grand Imam at the German Religious Reform Movement’s celebration of the Protestant Church’s 500th anniversary. He also explained that the speech has left a great impact and motivated positive reactions among all segments of the German society, especially the youth, as manifested through social media.

Mr. Steinlein stressed that Al-Azhar enjoys a good reputation and a prestigious status in Germany and all over the world as a hub of moderation. He then indicated that Berlin is very pleased with the existing cooperation between Al-Azhar University and a number of German universities, looking forward to intensifying this cooperation, especially in the fight against extremist thought. The meeting was attended by the Egyptian Ambassador to Germany, Ambassador Badr Abdel-Aty, and the delegation accompanying the Grand Imam.