Khaleej Times from Dubai carries this Reuters story about a conference planned to gather senior Muslim clerics from around the world to condemn extremism. I wonder if their voices will be heard by those who claim that the ‘moderate Muslims keep quiet’? The critics can’t seem to find stories like these in their local media so they assume that the vast majority of Muslims just don’t care about the issue, if they don’t actually support extremism. Perhaps those critics need to expand the range of media they view.

Saudi plans Islamic forum against extremism

RIYADH (Reuters) – Saudi Arabia plans to hold a conference of senior Muslim clerics from around the world this year to promote moderation in Islam and fight extremism, a newspaper reported on its Web site on Thursday.

It was not clear if the event is linked to a call by King Abdullah last week for dialogue of Muslims, Jews and Christians.

Such a meeting will be a milestone for the kingdom where a hardline school of Sunni Islam holds sway and has influenced al Qaeda and its Saudi-born leader Osama bin Laden.

Liberal reformers in Saudi Arabia are engaged in a battle with religious hardliners over the direction of the country, a key U.S. ally and the world’s biggest oil exporter.

The paper said the plans to organise a conference of Islamic scholars would be pursued in April and May with an eye to holding the event later this year.

The plans were made public at a seminar in King Saud University where the Grand Mufti, the government’s official spokesman on religious affairs, talked of the need for “the middle way” in Islam and appeared to attack radical preachers.

“The extremism of fanatics cannot be considered part of religion, even if they are falsely wearing religious robes,” Sheikh Abdel-Aziz Al al-Sheikh said, according to the paper.
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