Cairo | WTNS | October 22:The grand imam of Egypt’s Al-Azhar Islamic Center, Sheikh Ahmed el-Tayyeb, has blasted individuals who link terrorism to Islam, following Islamophobic remarks by French President Emmanuel Macron and the recent murder of a French teacher.

According to Wilayat Times on Wednesday, Tayyeb tweeted that linking terrorism to Islam was a sign of ignorance.

Tayyeb ’s statement comes following the beheading of French school teacher Samuel Paty on Friday after he showed his students blasphemous cartoon images of the Prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

The grand imam of Al-Azhar also condemned the incident in a joint statement read out to an interfaith gathering of Muslims, Christians, and other religions in Rome’s Capitol Square attended by the leader of the Catholic Christians, Pope Francis, on Tuesday.

In the statement, Tayyeb emphasized that the religion of Islam was opposed to criminal activities and was innocent of terrorist crimes. He also emphasized that insults against religions in the name of free speech were not condoned, as they provoked hatred.

“I emphasize that insulting religions and attacking their sacred symbols under the banner of freedom of expression is… an open invitation to hatred,” the grand imam of Al-Azhar said.