Crown Prince of Saudi Arabia Mohammed bin Salman has vowed to restore “moderate Islam” and to “end extremism very soon”.
The statement was made at an economic forum in Riyadh
“We are returning to what we were before – a country of moderate Islam that is open to all religions and to the world,” AFP quoted the Saudi prince. “We will not spend the next 30 years of our lives dealing with destructive ideas. We will destroy them today.”
He also promised that Saudi Arabia “will end extremism very soon.”
Saudi Arabia is known for promoting the ultraconservative Wahhabi religious movement within Sunni Islam and strict segregation of men and women.
According to exeprts, the Saudi leadership has been for a long time supporting radical Sunni terrorists groups around the world. The country was one of the main backers of Jabhat al-Nusra, the Syrian branch of al-Qaeda, in the Syrian conflict. Riyadh was hoping to use the group to overthrow the Assad government.
Despite this, Saudi Arabia constantly accuses Iran of supporting “extremism” in the Middle East and blames it for terrorist activities.