Prince Charles and his wife Camilla, the Duchess of Cornwall, visited Cairo on Thursday (November 18th), for the first time in 15 years, with the intention of promoting tolerance and strengthening bilateral ties. The royal couple’s visit is part of their first trip since the start of the coronavirus pandemic. After arriving in Cairo, the royal couple were formally welcomed at the presidential palace by President Abdel Fattah el-Sisi and his wife, Intissar el-Sisi, before meeting with prominent Muslim and Christian officials. It is also their first trip to Egypt since the country was rocked by the 2011 uprising, which was followed by years of political instability.
According to a statement released by el-Sisi’s office, Charles and el-Sisi discussed measures to counter terrorism and extremism, as well as bilateral collaboration in areas such as health and education. superior. The royal couple then met the highest religious authority in the Sunni Muslim world, the Grand Imam of Al-Azhar Mosque Ahmed al-Tayeb, as well as the Archbishop of the Anglican province of Alexandria Samy Fawzy. Next, Charles attended an ecumenical reception at Al-Azhar Mosque, the oldest Sunni institution in the Muslim world. He also had to meet students.
Egypt to host UN COP27 next year
The Prince of Wales was instrumental in creating a UK college scholarship program that allows Al Azhar scholars to earn degrees in Islamic studies at UK universities before returning to Al-Azhar as teacher members. The program, which started in 2015, aims to develop mutual understanding between Muslims and non-Muslims. Their Highnesses will address cooperation between the UK and Egypt on climate change, religious tolerance and bilateral relations, according to British Ambassador Gareth Bayley’s tweet last week. Egypt has been chosen to host the United Nations COP27 climate change conference next year.
Egypt has gained some stability under al-Sisi, a former military man, but the government has also led the most severe crackdown on political opposition in decades. The Egyptian first lady posted on her Facebook page after a separate meeting with Camilla that the two spoke of the Egyptian government’s efforts to empower women. The Duchess of Cornwall visited a low-income village in Cairo, Ezbet Kheirallah, where the British Council has been implementing social development activities since 2017. Members of the royal family were also to visit some of the most ancient sites famous in Egypt, such as the Pyramids of Giza. Charles and Camilla have just returned from a three-day visit to Jordan, where they met King Abdullah II and Queen Rania of Jordan and visited a number of religious and historical sites.