His Highness Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi and Deputy Supreme Commander of the UAE Armed Forces, and President of Gabon Ali Bongo Ondimba, attended on Monday evening, the lecture titled: 'Muslims in Europe, Citizenry Challenges' hosted by Al Bateen Majlis, and delivered by Dr. Mohamed Bechari, Secretary-General of Islamic European Conference.

Bechari praised the prominent role played by the UAE in the face of extremist ideology, and noted that the country led the countries that dealt with the concepts of hatred and exclusion through the issuance of the anti-discriminatory and anti-hate law. He also referred to the UAE's response to the cybercrime in accordance with the global principles.

He underlined that the terrorist groups and all deviant intellectual streams emerged from the same womb and stem from the same misguided rules that call for trans-border chaos, murder and terrorism under false slogans of "Islamisation of Societies".

Dr. Bachari stressed that groups such as the Muslim Brotherhood, the followers of the Guardian, Hezbul-Tahrir as well as Daesh and al-Qaeda, are the two faces of one coin; terrorism and murder. He called on countries that support these organisations to stop immediately.

He noted the minorities are 50 percent of the Daesh army, and added that 12,000 Europeans joined the terrorist organisations in Syria and Iraq, with female recruits constituting 20 percent. Recent studies show that most of recruits in the terrorist groups are newly converts to Islam, Dr. Becahri said.

"We have to confront the terrorists who seek to cause clash with the other and try to convince the Muslim youth that the relationship between us and the world must be war, killing and captivity," he said.

Dr. Bechari said, "Nearly one-third of Muslims live in non-Muslim countries. The number of Muslims living in non-Muslim countries ranges from 450 to 500 million. More than 200 million Muslims live in India, more than 100 million live in China, while about 50 million live in Europe, 20 million in Russia, and 12 million live in America. "

He underlined that international conventions do not neglect to guarantee the religious, cultural, linguistic and social rights of minorities. Therefore, the term minority or community is justified if it is about legislative, legal rights and the practice of rites.

Among others present were H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Rashid Al Mualla, Deputy Ruler of Umm Al Qaiwain; Dr. Amal Abdullah Al Qubaisi, Speaker of the Federal National Council; H.H. Sheikh Hazza bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Chairman of the Executive Council of Abu Dhabi; H.H. Sheikh Nahyan bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Zayed bin Sultan Al Nahyan Charitable and Humanitarian Foundation; H.H. Sheikh Saif bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Interior; H.H. Sheikh Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Deputy Prime Minister and Minister of Presidential Affairs; H.H. Sheikh Hamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Chief of Abu Dhabi Crown Prince's Court; H.H. Sheikh Dhyiab bin Zayed Al Nahyan; H.H. Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Minister of Foreign Affairs and International Cooperation; H.H. Sheikh Khalid bin Zayed Al Nahyan Chairman of the Board of Zayed Higher Organisation for Humanitarian Care & Special Needs; and Sheikh Nahyan bin Mubarak Al Nahyan, Minister of Culture and Knowledge Development.