Muslim and Jewish leaders unite for peace[fr][de] 

Adding their voice to the fight against terrorist violence, leaders of the jewish and muslim communities, together with Christian clergy from all over the world, met on 3 January at the Egmont Palace in Brussels for the first world congress of Imams and Rabbis for peace. The conference was convened under the auspices of 'Hommes de Parole', a Paris-based peace organisation, as a platform from which religious leaders could express their condemnation of violence perpetrated in the name of religion. The participants also pledged to speak out against violent acts and not to allow their silence to be seen as legitimising such actions. 

The objectives of the congress, backed by peace organisations, religious bodies and the European Union, are to create a dialogue between Islam and Judaism and to work for peaceful solutions to conflict through a series of specific actions. The congress was also supported by Romano Prodi, who, when he was President of the European Commission, called for EU action against anti-semitism in Europe (see EurActiv 20 Feb 2004).

At the end of the three day conference a declaration was signed affirming the commitment of the congress "to strive to end all bloodshed and attacks against innocent human beings that offend the right to life and dignity given by the Almighty to all human beings".