Saudi FM attacks Iran at opening of interfaith centre скачать в хорошем качестве

Saudi FM attacks Iran at opening of interfaith centre

(13 Oct 2011) SHOTLIST 1. Saudi Foreign Minister Prince Saud al-Faisal shaking hands with Austrian Foreign Minister Michael Spindelegger and Spanish Foreign Minister Trinidad Jimenez 2. Close up of al-Faisal 3. Foreign ministers shaking hands with church official 4. Wide of news conference 5. SOUNDBITE (English) Prince Saud al-Faisal, Saudi Foreign Minister: "They think by murder and mayhem they will influence the actions of this country. We will not bow to such pressures. We will hold them accountable for any action they take against us. And any action they take against us will have a measured response." 6. Tilt down of news conference 7. Side view of foreign ministers 8. SOUNDBITE (English) Prince Saud al-Faisal, Saudi Foreign Minister: "We all need to work together in an earnest manner in order to create an environment conducive to promotion of the values of dialogue, tolerance, moderation and the furthering of relations of cooperation and peace." 9. Close up of seal on declaration 10. Close up of document and ink blotter 11. Medium of Himenez signing declaration 12. Close up of al-Faisal 13. Protester outside venue pretending to decapitate puppet 14. Wide of protesters with puppets and signs 15. Female mannequin dressed in black head-scarf and bound with rope 16. Bound mannequin holding steering wheel STORYLINE Saudi Arabia's foreign minister warned on Thursday that his government would make a "measured response" to any threatening actions from Iran. Relations between the two countries reached a new low this week after US allegations that Iran was behind a plot to assassinate the Saudi ambassador to Washington. "They think by murder and mayhem they will influence the actions of this country. We will not bow to such pressures," Prince Saud al-Faisal said during a news conference in Vienna to mark the launch of a new interfaith centre. He said Saudi Arabia would hold Iran "accountable for any action they take against us, and any action they take against us will have a measured response." Al-Faisal did not say what such a response might be. Most of his comments, however, focused on the "King Abdullah Bin Abdulaziz International Centre for Interreligious and Intercultural Dialogue", which he inaugurated along with his Austrian and Spanish counterparts. Al-Faisal seemed keen to dispel scepticism about his country's commitment to make it a focal point of interfaith dialogue and tolerance. He called for participants to "create an environment conducive to promotion of the values of dialogue, tolerance, moderation and the furthering of relations of cooperation and peace." The centre's board will consist of three Christians, three Muslims, a Jew, a Buddhist and a Hindu. Backers hope the centre will promote increased tolerance in Saudi Arabia, a kingdom that now prohibits any religion outside of Islam. Detractors say the Saudis are the last people who should be hosting initiatives on religious coexistence. Wahhabism - the strain of Sunni Islam that is practiced in Saudi Arabia - is considered one of the religion's most conservative. Strict interpretations of the faith have left Saudi women without the right to drive or to go out without permission from a male relative. They have also have damaged ties with Islam's other major branch, Shiism, that have exposed deep rivalries between Saudi Arabia and predominantly Shiite Iran. King Abdullah, who is regarded as a reformer by Saudi standards, is slowly moving to lift some restrictions dictated by conservative Saudi society. Find out more about AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/HowWeWork Twitter:   / ap_archive   Facebook:   / aparchives   ​​ Instagram:   / apnews   You can license this story through AP Archive: http://www.aparchive.com/metadata/you...