Under-Secretary General of the United Nations Counter-Terrorism Office Vladimir Voronkov lauded on Wednesday the Egyptian experiment in fighting terrorism and extremism. During a meeting with Egyptian Awqaf Minister Mohamed Mokhtar Gomaa, the UN official underlined the importance of the Egyptian role in fighting terrorism. Gomaa said the Egyptian state is serious in its anti-terror efforts and is ready to share its pioneering experiment in this domain with international organizations concerned with fighting terrorism. The anti-terror Egyptian experiment is based on three dimensions; a humanitarian dimension, national interest and a religious dimension, he added. Gomaa said previous experiments proved that military and security confrontation is not enough to eradicate terrorism but that the world needs a rational discourse. He expounded the ministry's efforts to fight terrorism and extremism through training and rehabilitating imams and scholars to be able to protect society from extremist doctrine, renewing religious discourse and empowering women to be able to practice religious discourse. The Awqaf minister is currently visiting Vienna to attend a celebration marking Egypt's handover of a replica statue of King Tutankhamun to the UN building in the Austrian capital. The statue will be placed at the entrance of the building.
