Sheikh Abdullah bin Bayyah, Vice-Chairman of the International Union of Muslim Scholars, described the current situation in Lebanon as “very bad.” He warned that this may hinder the Lebanese from dealing with their critical challenges, whether from the Zionist enemy or domestic issues.

In an exclusive to IslamOnline.net, the prominent scholar rejected the viewpoint that Lebanon is undergoing a sectarian conflict between Sunnis and Shiites. “It is pseudo-sectarian,” he explained, “the conflict has nothing to do with sectarianism, but it is twisted to seem sectarian, which makes things even worse.”

Earlier, Bin Bayyah had supported sending a delegation of scholars to Lebanon to mediate an end to the clash, seeing high prospects of a “possible solution.” However, Bin Bayyah stated that: “Now, the region is set on fire and there seems to be a faint chance for such endeavor to go anywhere.”