Egypt's Al-Azhar University, considered the highest seat of learning in Sunni Islam, on Thursday condemned a group of imams who visited Israel to deliver a so-called "message of peace" amid its war on the Gaza Strip.
In a statement on Facebook, the organisation denounced the visit by the "European imams and Muslim community leaders", who came from countries including France, the United Kingdom, and Italy.
"These individuals claimed, under dubious and deceitful pretenses, that their visit aimed to promote ‘interfaith dialogue and coexistence,’ while blatantly ignoring the ongoing genocide, unprecedented aggression, massacres, and continuous killing of innocent people that the Palestinian people have endured for over twenty months," Al-Azhar said in a statement.
"They do not represent Islam or Muslims," al-Azhar said, warning against individuals who are "morally compromised and who betray their religious and ethical values for personal or political gain".
The university said that the "misguided group" does not represent Islam, which "stands in solidarity with the oppressed and downtrodden".
The European Council of Imams had also denounced the “so-called imams” for their visit, claiming the members of the delegation have no connection with reputable institutions or trusted Islamic organisations known among European Muslims.
"We were shocked by media outbursts of a visit by so-called imams to the occupying Israeli state and their meeting with its criminal figures," the European Council of Imams said in its statement.
"This act is in stark contradiction to any human or moral sensibility and stands in opposition to the most basic Islamic principles that call for standing with the oppressed, rejecting injustice, and showing loyalty to the vulnerable Muslims."
The organisation added that the visit "clearly reveal[ed] its provocative and showy nature, aimed at serving suspicious agendas" and does not reflect the stance of European Muslims who are in solidarity with the people of Gaza.
Having met Israeli President Isaac Herzog on Monday, the delegation will be spending a week in Israel, touring the country and meeting military, political and religious authorities and Israeli victims of the 7 October attacks. The group also visited the Al-Aqsa Mosque compound in occupied Jerusalem.
The delegation was organised by ELNET, an NGO that promotes ties between Europe and Israel.