Address by the Grand Mufti Dr. Husein Kavazović at the Iftar with Ambassadors

Address by the Grand Mufti Dr. Husein Kavazović at the Iftar with Ambassadors

Ramadan 1447/2026

Your Excellencies, dear friends,
Esselamu alejkum and good evening.

Allow me to express my deep respect to you all.

This is a time when we reflect on the power of God’s Word and His guidance.

In these days, the strength of our faith is revealed, and so is our resolve to resist our bodily desires. Fasting uncovers our weaknesses and our limits, but also the unexpected strength of our will. We are truly glad to share this joy with you. In our tradition, the moment of iftar is shared with family, neighbors, and friends. Our joy is even greater this year, as within just a few days began our Ramadan fast, Lent among our Catholic neighbors, the Great Fast among our Orthodox neighbors, and the Fast of Esther among our Jewish neighbors.

This draws us together in our shared faith in One, Merciful and Almighty God, and of the path toward Him, marked by fasting, prayer, and sincere inner renewal.

Your Excellencies,

We are all deeply disturbed by the latest news of the escalation of violence in the Middle East, violence that cannot be justified under any circumstances. As a community of Muslims, we have appealed and called for the conflicts to stop and for misunderstandings to be resolved through dialogue.

We are a small Muslim community, yet we feel a moral responsibility. Our experience of war and genocide compels us to raise our voice and call for an end to the spiral of violence that has overshadowed the world and has already affected many friendly nations and states.

In these blessed moments of Ramadan, we pray for peace and for the innocent victims in Iran, Palestine and Israel, as well as in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia, Qatar, Kuwait, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Oman, and other countries.

Dear friends,

As you can see for yourselves, we too live here with growing concern for the security and peace of our country. Sadly, among us there are individuals who are a source of ongoing unrest and unease. Their insults, their threats, and the hatred they spread toward Muslims cannot shake our faith in God and in people, yet they keep us vigilant.

We remain committed to coexistence and peace with our neighbors, and we continue to count on the support of our friends, on your support.

Peace, stability, and prosperity in our country and in the countries of our region are in the interest not only of our peoples, but of all the peoples of Europe and the world. Peace and stability in Bosnia and Herzegovina are especially important for the very idea of a united Europe. Without Bosnia and Herzegovina, Europe is not complete. And Bosnia is Europe in miniature. It has always been a place of richness in diversity. Here, throughout history, worlds have met and coexisted far longer than they have clashed.

We, Bosnian Muslims, Bosniaks, sincerely believe that the idea of unity in diversity is the only path forward.

This shared table of ours tonight is the best example that our differences can only enrich us, and that we are united around the same values.

I pray to Almighty God to bless us and help us be bearers of the spirit of faith, peace, love, and serenity; to protect us from the evil within ourselves, from the evil of war, hatred, and division.

Let us pray for peace among people and among nations.

May our thoughts be with the murdered children and the elderly.

May the weapons fall silent and be silenced forever.

I thank each and every one of you for choosing to join us and share this iftar time with us.

Your presence here is a great honor for us.

May faith in goodness always bind our hearts together…

Let us enjoy the rest of the evening in sincere and friendly conversation.

I wish you all every blessing and the very best.