KABUL - The Saudi Arabian Ambassador to Afghanistan, Mesfer bin Abdul Rahman Al-Ghaseb, used the announcement of plans to construct the largest Islamic center in the country as an opportunity to assure Saudi's commitment to working with both Afghanistan and Pakistan to build peace in the region.
"Our position is strong on restoring peace in Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia enjoys close and frank ties with Afghanistan and Pakistan and we are trying to improve security in Afghanistan," Saudi Ambassador Mesfer bin Abdul Rahman Al-Ghaseb said on Friday.
On behalf of his government, the Ambassador has also signed a contract with a construction company to build the biggest Islamic center in Afghanistan to promote Islamic education. He has said lessons geared toward countering the extremist message will be emphasized at the center.
The announcement comes soon after President Mohammad Ashraf Ghani's visit to Saudi Arabia, during which officials from Kabul and Riyadh committed themselves to enhancing bilateral cooperation between their countries. Kabul hopes to harness Saudi's political and cultural clout as the center of the Muslim world and one of the most power Muslim countries to pressure Islamabad into being more honest in its dealings with the Afghan government over peace talks with the Taliban.
But while the Saudi Ambassador spoke at lengths about the need to establish long term peace in Afghanistan, he did not go into any detail about how they will get the Taliban to the negotiating table.
The Islamic center being funded by the Saudi government is expected to be built on Maranjan Hill in Kabul. Officials haven't revealed the overall financial plan for the project, but it has been said that the center will be constructed over 18,000 square meters and should be open in two years.
Given Saudi Arabia's close ties to Pakistan, and its alleged involvement in stoking fires of Islamic extremism in certain places around the world, some have expressed concerns about the center being co-opted by radical preachers and turned into a Jihadist factory like the Madrasas run by the Taliban in certain parts of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
"We hope that establishment of the center by Saudi Arabia will not amplify all those Madrasas in Afghanistan, Pakistan and some other countries that are known for spreading extremism, terrorism and fundamentalism," Afghan religious scholar Hedayat told TOLOnews. "If it becomes like this, then it will further add to the pains of the Afghan nation, rather than heal it."
Government officials, however, have assured that the center's education programs will be overseen by the Ministry of Hajj and Islamic Affairs. "Education curricula for the center will be monitored by the The Ministry of Hajj and Islamic Affairs and this will help all those who want to get an Islamic education inside the country," Acting Minister of Hajj and Islamic Affairs Yousaf Niazi said. (Tolonews)