Sheikh Qaradawi arrives in Libya

A delegation from the International Union of Muslim Scholars, headed by Dr. Yusuf Al-Qaradawi, arrived Thursday at Benghazi's International Benina Airport on a special visit to Libya. The visit, organised by Libya's National Transitional Council (NTC) is to last four days. Dr. Yusuf al-Qaradawi, leader of the Union of Muslim Scholars, is to deliver a  Gomaa prayer speech in Tahrir (Liberation) Square in Benghazi. Qaradawi and the delegation accompanying him will meet with the most prominent officials of the NTC in Benghazi, as well as some of the sheikhs and other prominent citizens. The visit comes within the framework of the Union’s keenness to reunify and achieve reconciliation between the Libyan people, and contribute in rebuilding the state after the revolution and advising those in charge of government. Sheikh Qaradawi was accompanied by elite  members of the Union of Scholars, including Dr. Ali Mohiey Addin Al-Qaradagi, Dr. Ali Al-Mohamadi, Sheikh Abdel Rahman Aal Mahmoud from Qatar, Dr. Khalid al-Mazour from Kuwait, Dr. Essam Al-Bashir from Sudan, Dr. Abdel Ghafar Aziz from Pakistant, Sheikh Abdel Salam Bassiouni and Dr. Akram Kassab from Egypt. In addition to visiting Benghazi, the delegation plans to visit Tripoli to attend the reconciliation conference which the NTC will hold on Saturday. The delegation is expected to meet the head of the NTC, Judge Mostafa Abdel Jalil, and prime minister Abdel Rahim El-Keeb, on the sidelines of the conference. Sources in the union said that Rachid Ghannouchi, leader of the Ennahda Islamic Party in Tunisia, and Dr. Abdel Majid Naggar, a member of the union who recently attained membership in the new Tunisian parliament, may meet with the delegation in Tripoli. The visit is a response to an invitation received from an NTC delegation who had recently visited Qaradawi in Doha. Qaradawi was one of the most prominent supporters of the Libyan Revolution since it launched in February 17, which was evident through his speeches, statements, and interviews in news channel Al Jazeera and other media.