AHMED el-Tayyeb, the newly appointed, moderate Grand Sheikh of Cairo's Al-Azhar, the pre-eminent theological institute of Sunni Islam, is expected to run into a number of disputes with conservatives over many thorny political and religious topics, observers say. El-Tayyeb, who has taken over from sheikh Mohamed Sayyed Tantawi, will clash with conservative leaders over controversial and difficult challenges he has inherited from his predecessor, who died of a heart attack in Saudi Arabia two weeks ago, they add. The first difficult challenge facing el- Tayyeb, who was President of Al-Azhar University, is how to revive the interfaith dialogue which has nearly collapsed because of the serious intolerance, discrimination, hatred and harassment from which the Muslim minorities have suffered in the West. These instances included a Swiss ban on the construction of minarets Egyptian woman in Germany and the reprinting of a cartoon deemed offensive to the Prophet Mohamed by several Danish newspapers. The conservatives are not sure how el-Tayyeb will deal with these obstacles either now or in the future, so that the inter-faith dialogue, which has been on hold for a while, can be resumed. The Islamist opposition groups, who regard Al-Azhar as a branch of the Government, are also waiting to see how el-Tayyeb will deal with Israeli officials and religious figures, when he participates in international gatherings. The late sheikh Tantawi, who headed Al-Azhar for nearly 14 years, was pressured to resign by opposition groups for shaking the hand of Israeli President Shimon Peres, whom he had met on the sidelines of a UN-sponsored inter-faith conference in New York last year. At the time, Tantawi insisted that he hadn't recognised the Israeli President. The Islamists say that el-Tayyeb should refrain from any sort of normalising of relations with Israel, while at the same time associating himself closely with Al-Azhar. On the local level, the observers expect a difficult time between el-Tayyeb and young members of the banned Muslim Brotherhood group over how to reform the education system at Egypt's best-known religious institution. The students at Al-Azhar University and its pre-university institutions claim that el-Tayyeb did nothing to reform the educational system in these religious facilities after becoming President of Al-Azhar in 2003, the observers say. Mohamed Abdul-Karim, an Azharite student and a Brotherhood member, alleges that el-Tayyeb ignored the students' demands and opened the university's doors wide for the security apparatus to come in and deal with Islamist students. The observers also believe that el- Tayyeb, a French-educated scholar, will clash with the nation's intellectuals and writers, who always oppose Al-Azhar's continual banning of their literary works on the grounds that they are offensive to the faith and shallow. The intellectuals see such interference as an infringement on thefreedom of expression. The observers agree that el-Tayyeb, who had previously served as Egypt's Grand Mufti and is now a member of the powerfulPolicies' Committee of the ruling National Democratic Party (NDP),will have a difficult task in asserting his independence from the Government. El-Tayyeb, a moderate Sufi sheikh who has no radical tendencies in policy or teaching, is best known for his relatively liberal views on many social issues such as women's rights. However, he defended a controversial decree issued by the late sheikh Tantawi, who banned niqab-wearing students from entering Al-Azhar University and its affiliated pre-university institutes and schools. The Islamists claim that el-Tayyeb will come under political pressure whenever he is required to give a religious opinion on any given topic ranging from donning the niqab (full-face veil) to the forthcoming parliamentary and presidential elections. "Al-Azhar is quite often accused of being a Government tool. This isnot the truth," el-Tayyeb told a TV talk show earlier in the week, insisting that he rejects the politicisation of his religious opinions or views. El-Tayyeb, also known for his firm stance against the Muslim Brotherhood, will probably have to fight a fierce battle on several fronts to give a new face to Al-Azhar as a religious force in Egypt during tough economic, political and cultural times, the observes stress.
