Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa, head of the Muslim World League.

:: Dr. Mohammed Al-Issa, head of the Muslim World League (MWL), told Reuters during a European tour that his organization will no longer sit by and let Islam be taken hostage by extremists.

The push for a more moderate Islam underscores Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman’s efforts to modernize the Kingdom.

“We must wipe out… extremist thinking through the work we do,” Al-Issa said. “We need to annihilate religious severity and extremism which is the entry point to terrorism. That is the mission of the Muslim World League.”

He said the MWL will be much more hands-on now, and aims to tackle any sign of extremism wherever it is found, including schools, centers and mosques.

He added that part of his work is to address the difficulties Muslims may have in adapting their religion to non-Muslim nations.

“We want to offer the real interpretation of the sacred texts that have been taken hostage and interpreted in a wrong way,” Al-Issa said.

“We have a common objective to end hatred. The Muslim World League really believes that we can accomplish that, and religions are very influential in doing that.”