JEDDAH: Dr. Shawki Allam, the grand mufti of Egypt, received the Saudi minister of Islamic affairs, Dr. Abdullatif bin Abdul Aziz Al-Asheikh. Allam hailed the Kingdom’s participation in the 29th International Conference of the Supreme Council for Islamic Affairs, which was organized by the Egyptian Ministry of Awqaf (religious endowments) and ended on Sunday. He praised the Kingdom, under the leadership of King Salman and Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman, for serving Muslims around the world. He said that Egypt and Saudi Arabia would continue to work together to maintain stability in the Middle East. Allam also highlighted Saudi Arabia’s supervision of the Hajj and said the country’s organization of the pilgrimage was “getting better and better” every year. Al-Asheikh said he was delighted to meet Allam. The Saudi minister highlighted the strong relations between the two countries. He said that the Kingdom was steadily moving forward through its program of reforms. The meeting was also attended by deputy minister of Islamic affairs, Dr. Yousef bin Mohammed bin Abdul Aziz bin Saeed; Undersecretary of the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Dr. Abdullah bin Mohammed Al-Samil; the director of religious affiliations at the Ministry of Islamic Affairs, Sheikh Mohammed bin Abdulwahid Al-Arifi; adviser to the grand mufti of Egypt, Dr. Magdy Ashour; the fatwa secretary of Dar al-Ifta, Dr. Ahmed Mamdouh; and Dr. Mustafa Thabet, who is in charge of blasphemy refutation. Festival The Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC)’s first festival will start on Feb. 5 in Cairo and allow Muslims around the world to become closer, the body’s secretary-general said on Monday. Dr. Yousef bin Ahmed Al-Othaimeen said the aim of the festival was to bring people from member and non-member states together so they could engage with each other intellectually, politically and socially, as well as share stories about their traditions. The festival aims to promote solidarity on the basis of a shared religion, he said, and position the OIC as the world’s second-biggest international humanitarian organization after the UN. The regular event would also highlight the economic opportunities, humanitarian work, and political development successes in member states, in addition to reviewing the situation of Muslim minorities in non-Muslim countries. The Cairo festival will feature crafts, traditional costume, fine arts, seminars, poetry sessions, guided tours and even a marathon. It ends Feb. 9.