Scholars in Tehran to discuss world peace, counter-terrorism http://tehrantimes.com/index_View.asp?code=240697

The International Conference on Global Alliance against Terrorism for a Just Peace opened in Tehran on Saturday and closes tomorrow.The conference opened at the Summit Conference Hall and the closing ceremony will be held at Vahdat Hall.Over 100 scholars from about 60 countries are attending the conference.  On Friday, a number of posters and cartoons on the theme of just peace as well as photos of the families of the victims of terrorism in Iran and the Middle East were put on display at exhibitions held at the Summit Conference Hall in one of the preliminary programs of the conference. 

On Saturday, an encyclopedia of the victims of terrorism in Iran was unveiled during a ceremony held on the sidelines of the conference.Mansoureh Karami, the widow of Martyr Masoud Ali-Mohammadi, the particle physicist who was assassinated in a terrorist bomb attack in Tehran in January 2010, attended the ceremony. Talking to reporters after the ceremony, she said that the United Nations should set up a committee to combat terrorism.The so-called advocates of human rights should take serious measures to deal with terrorist groups, she added. 

In addition, four expert panels, entitled “Identifying Concept of Terrorism and Theoretical Fundamentals of Terrorism”, “Terrorism, Players, Tools, and Damages”, “Terrorism, Culture, and Media”, and “Just Peace a Means of Countering Terrorism”, were held at the Espinas International Hotel in Tehran on Saturday. On the same day, the foreign participants of the conference paid a visit to the mausoleum of the late Imam Khomeini, the Founder of the Islamic Republic. 

Definition of terrorism being distorted for political purposes World Forum for Proximity of Islamic Schools of Thought Secretary General Ayatollah Mohammad Ali Taskhiri delivered the opening speech of the conference.In his address, Ayatollah Taskhiri stated that any aggressive action that poses a threat to the security of the people is an instance of terrorism.“Many definitions of terrorism have been offered, and it is very clear that certain people are making efforts to distort the definition of terrorism for political purposes,” he stated. 

“We regard using weapons of mass destruction, hijacking, carjacking, and piracy as anti-human actions which are instances of terrorism,” Ayatollah Taskhiri added. U.S. promoting terrorism throughout the world Kamal al-Halbawi, a senior member of Egypt’s Muslim Brotherhood, also delivered a speech at the conference.The United States has never earnestly worked for world peace, but, quite the contrary, it has always made every effort to promote terrorism throughout the world, al-Halbawi stated. He added, “The U.S. is also exerting pressure on Iran to prevent this country from achieving the goals of its campaign against terrorism.”