The grisly murder on Tuesday (July 26th) of a French priest by two men linked to the "Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant" (ISIL) has been condemned across the Middle East, AFP reported.
Egypt's top Muslim cleric Ahmed al-Tayeb, who heads the Al-Azhar institute, denounced on Wednesday (July 27th) the "barbaric" murder, and said the two attackers who stormed a Catholic church in Normandy, France, "were stripped of humanity and Islamic values".
Tayeb "renewed his call for united efforts in confronting the cancer of terrorism that threatens the entire world", said a statement from Al-Azhar, a leading centre of Islamic learning.
Two attackers stormed the church in the northern town of Saint-Etienne-du-Rouvray during morning mass on Tuesday, slitting the throat of an 86-year-old priest and leaving a worshiper with serious injuries.
ISIL said the attack was carried out by its "soldiers".
Saudi Arabia, via a statement published on the official SPA news agency, also condemned the attack, saying that the "cowardly terrorist act is rejected by Islam which necessitates protecting places of worship and prohibits violating their sacredness".
The United Arab Emirates also condemned the attack which it said only aims to "spread sedition and fuel hatred".
"This shocking crime reveals the lowness of its perpetrators and those behind them," the UAE said, urging world countries to "work decisively and without hesitation to confront terrorism in all its forms".
Qatar's foreign ministry said the attack was "contrary to all human values and principles".
Neighbouring Gulf states Bahrain and Kuwait also issued similar statements.
