Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, Oct 26, 2017 / 16:00 pm
Saudi Arabia's crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has suggested a turn towards moderate Islam, especially among younger Saudis who want to "destroy" extremist thoughts, but one expert suggests religious freedom is the best path for Saudi Arabia.
"As a general matter, no government can 'destroy extremist thoughts,' including the government of Saudi Arabia," Georgetown University professor Thomas F. Farr told CNA. "Even when U.S. forces 'destroy' ISIS militarily, the problem of extremist interpretations of Islam will remain."
Farr, who directs the Religious Freedom Research Project at Georgetown's Berkley Center for Religion, Peace & World Affairs, advocated religious freedom as the best approach in Saudi Arabia.
His remarks follow comments from Prince Mohammed, the new heir apparent to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, who recently spoke to the U.K. newspaper The Guardian.