French Prime Minister Manuel Valls met Sunday with Al-Azhar's Grand Imam Ahmed Al-Tayeb during his visit to Cairo that started Saturday.
The two discussed relations between Al-Azhar and France, among other issues.
Al-Tayeb expressed his gratitude to France for its support of Egypt and its role in the war against terrorism which, he said, has become a threat to the whole world.
The Grand Imam also explained Al-Azhar’s efforts to carry out educational reforms through different stages of its curricula, to create a new generation that is able to cope with modern developments throughout the world.
Al-Tayeb also said that the Islamic institution is developing campaigns through social media and international conferences in different languages to raise awareness about the false ideas and delusions terrorist groups such as the Islamic State group spread about Islam.
The Grand Imam said Al-Azhar is communicating with countries all over the world through convoys of peace and in cooperation with Islamic leaders in these countries to promote peace and warn the youth of the dangers of terrorist organisation recruitment techniques.
Egyptian President Abdel-Fattah El-Sisi called in March during conference at Al-Azhar's Cairo headquarters for a "revolution in religious views," saying that religious values of toleration in Islam must be promoted, warning that "extremists and terrorists" use religion for goals that are unrelated to the faith.
Valls is on a visit to the Middle East for five days, starting in Cairo where he met with President El-Sisi and Egyptian Prime Minister Sherif Ismail to discuss economic projects and sign a number of cooperation deals.
Valls is expected to also visit Jordan and Saudi Arabia.
