Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia and Chairman of the Senior Ulema (Religious Scholars) Sheikh Abdulaziz Al-Ashaikh has warned Saudi youths against traveling abroad with the intention of engaging in jihad.

Situations abroad are ambiguous, and youths do not have the knowledge necessary to distinguish between right and wrong, he said in a speech yesterday. The youths are also putting themselves at risk of being misused by deviant elements to achieve their own political and military gains, he added.

Moreover, by going abroad to engage in jihad they are violating a number of Islamic teachings, including loyalty to a ruler, he said. In April 2007, the Grand Mufti clarified that Islam prohibits swearing an oath of allegiance to another leader while the ruler of the nation remains in office.

In the past, the Grand Mufti has also condemned suicide bombings as well as criminal acts perpetrated by militants, and described Al-Qaeda as enemies of Islam, the nation and its economy.

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