Dr. Abdelillah Benarafa, Deputy Director-General of the Islamic World Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (ICESCO), received, on Thursday, 25 June 2026, at the Organization’s headquarters in Rabat, Dr. Reham Abdullah Salamah, Director of the Al-Azhar Observatory for Combating Extremism (AOCE), to explore prospects for cooperation in civilizational dialogue, dismantling hate and extremism discourse, and countering media disinformation.

At the outset of the meeting, Dr. Benarafa reviewed ICESCO’s key initiatives in civilizational dialogue, education, culture, and communication, highlighting the Organization’s programs and international conferences that have contributed to launching pioneering projects aimed at enhancing intercultural understanding, consolidating the values of moderation and coexistence, and confronting extremist thought.

The Deputy Director-General affirmed that ICESCO’s work is guided by a civilizational mission grounded in universal values and that it seeks to develop new approaches, including the concept of “civilizational rights,” which raises a fundamental question about ways to safeguard the contributions of different civilizations to humanity. Dr. Benarafa invited AOCE to participate in the international scientific conference titled “Al-Jami’ Al-Musnad As-Sahih by Imam Al-Bukhari: The Book of an Ummah,” scheduled for early next July in Uzbekistan, and the Wisdom Heritage Forum on Addressing Extremism Issues, set to be held in Azerbaijan later this year.

For her part, Dr. Reham Salamah presented AOCE’s initiatives in raising awareness and protecting youth from extremist ideologies through in-field and digital programs that analyze and deconstruct hate and extremism discourse in more than 12 foreign languages, expressing the Observatory’s aspiration to cooperate with ICESCO in this regard.

In the same context, Osama Heikal, Head of the Media and Communication Sector at ICESCO, underscored the importance of strengthening cooperation between the Organization and Al-Azhar Al-Sharif, particularly in countering media disinformation and falsification, and called for the Observatory’s reports to be made available in both print and digital formats at the Sultan Qaboos Library at ICESCO headquarters for the benefit of researchers and readers.

Dr. Sally Mabrouk, Head of the Office of the Director-General and Supervisor of the Strategy and Institutional Excellence Sector, highlighted the importance of promoting civilizational awareness through education and building a value-based identity, while Ambassador Khaled Fatahalrahman, Head of the Civilizational Dialogue Center at ICESCO, reviewed the Center’s programs, particularly its civilizational diplomacy and civilizational education initiatives.