Minister of Islamic Affairs, Endowments, Call, and Guidance Shaikh Salih bin Abdulaziz Al AsShaikh issued a statement yesterday condemning as a grave sin the explosion that rocked Al-Muhaya residential complex in Riyadh early Sunday morning, noting that it took place during the Holy Month of Ramadan. Citing verses from the Holy Qur'an and the sayings of the Prophet Muhammad, he declared that the act incorporates a number of serious offenses. These include committing suicide; killing innocent people, whether Muslim or non-Muslim; terrifying people; causing damage to property; and deviating from the faith. He cautioned all the Kingdom's residents, both citizens and expatriates, not to listen to what these deviant groups are saying, and not to distribute what they are writing. In particular, he urged the religious speakers giving sermons in the country's 50,000 mosques to clarify the falseness of these ideologies; to follow the official religious opinions (fatwa); and to refrain from making personal statements on serious matters that affect not only the very existence of others and their property, but also the stability and peace of society.

Meanwhile, on Sunday's 'Meeting Today' broadcast on Holy Qur'an Radio, the Kingdom's Grand Mufti and Chairman of the Senior ulema [religious scholars] Shaikh Abdulaziz bin Abdullah Al AsShaikh described the recent criminal incidents in Riyadh and Makkah as contrary to Islam and its teachings, especially the occurrence of those acts during the Holy Month of Ramadan. He pointed out that both promoting unbelief and intimidating peaceful people are forbidden by Islam, especially in Makkah, where everyone should be safe and out of harm's way, since it is Islam's most holy place. Anyone who intends harm to others in the Holy Mosque, he said, is corrupt; and further, anyone who kills a believer will reside in Hell forever, as is stated in the Holy Qur'an. Shaikh Al AsShaikh went on to urge young people to distance themselves from deviant ideologies, and, observing that Islam requires obedience to those in charge, called for unifying ranks and rejecting dissention.

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