MAKKAH: Imam-e-Kaaba Al-Shaikh Shuraim, with a group of other Imams of Masjid Al Haram called on Prime Minister Imran Khan.
The other members of the group included Shaikh Shuraib, Shaikh Sa’ad Shatri and Shaikh Saleh Humaid. The prime minister paid rich tribute to the Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud for providing excellent and state-of-the-art facilities to the pilgrims.
The prime minister lauded the arrangements for continuation of pilgrimage with proper SoPs during the global pandemic. Highlighting the reverence accorded by Pakistanis to the Holy Mosques in Saudi Arabia, the prime minister hoped for the early return of normalcy, enabling all Muslims to benefit from the blessings of the Masjid Al-Haram.
The prime minister requested the Imam for special prayers for Pakistan’s progress and development and the well-being of the Pakistani people.
The Imam of Kaaba praised the prime minister’s initiatives on combating Islamophobia and promoting interfaith harmony.
He highlighted the significance of prime minister’s leadership beyond Pakistan in view of Urdu being spoken and understood by large number of Muslims across the world.
The Imam also congratulated the prime minister on his highly successful visit to Saudi Arabia and stated that Imams and Saudi scholars supported the comprehensive joint statement issued at the conclusion of the visit.
The prime minister extended an invitation to the Imams to visit Pakistan, noting that the people of Pakistan held them in high esteem and looked forward to welcoming them. The Imams conveyed their readiness to visit Pakistan at an early date.
The meeting was also attended by Foreign Minister Makhdoom Shah Mahmood Qureshi, Special Representative on Religious Harmony Tahir Ashrafi, and Foreign Secretary Sohail Mahmood.
Earlier Prime Minister Imran Khan has performed Umrah along with the first lady in Makkah. The doors of Holy Kaaba were opened for the prime minister who was bestowed with the opportunity of going inside Holy Kaabah. He prayed for the Muslim world there.
Interior Minister Sheikh Rashid Ahmed, who is also part of the delegation, tweeted that the door of the Ka’aba was specially opened for PM Imran and the delegation.
He said that the premier and the delegation offered Nawafil prayers inside the Ka’aba. In the video shared by the minister, PM Imran and his wife can be seen embracing the Hajr-e-Aswad.
