TEHRAN -- The Dar ul-Quran ul-Karim Organization, which is affiliated with Iran’s Islamic Ideology Dissemination Organization, has criticized Egypt’s decision to impose a ban on its top two Quran reciters over their recent visit to Iran.

In a letter sent to the Ministry of Awqaf of Egypt and Al-Azhar, the most prestigious institute of learning in Sunni Islam, the organization said, “This action is against the human and religious rights of Muslims.”

The Ministry of Awqaf of Egypt banned Mahmood Shahat Anwar and Muhammad Yahya Sharqawi after they travelled to Iran early November to attend a ceremony held in commemoration of the Iranian Quran reciters who died in the Mina disaster.

In a previously published statement, Iran’s State Endowment and Charity Affairs Organization also condemned the ban on the Quran reciters and asked the Ministry of Awqaf of Egypt to revise its decision.

The spokesman of the organization, Hassan Rabiei, called the ban “a political decision that is in harmony with the aims of takfiri groups.”

MMS/YAW
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