Minister of Interior Prince Nayef bin Abdulaziz has refuted media allegations of improper influencing of voters during the recent municipal elections in Riyadh Province, pointing out that candidates ran as individuals, not as representatives of any group or religious trend, and commenting “We are all Muslims”. The elections, he added, were held in a satisfactory manner, and had not entailed any problems.

Prince Nayef was speaking at a press conference to announce the winners of the Prince Nayef Prize for sunnah (teachings of the Prophet) and contemporary Islamic studies. In the sunnah category, the winners were Fatima bint Salih Al-Jarid from Saudi Arabia; Dr Hikmat bin Basheer Yasmeen, an Iraqi, and Dr Rukeyya bint Taha Jaber Al-Alwani, a Bahraini; and in contemporary Islamic studies, Dr Rawya bint Ahmad Abdel-Karim Al-Dhahhar from Saudi Arabia, and Sheikh Adnan bin Mohammed Al-Ar'our, a Syrian.

Next year’s topics for the prize will be ‘cooperation with non-Muslims’; ‘sources for the Prophet’s biography’; ‘the concept of revival of religion’; and ‘the importance of, restrictions to, and impact of fatwa (religious judgment)’.

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