President Obama’s Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC) Visits Cairo

August 8, 2012

Special Envoy Hussain (3rd from R) with Grand Shaykh of Al Azhar

Special Envoy Hussain (R) Speaks at Tarawih Prayers

Rashad Hussain, U.S. President Barack Obama’s Special Envoy to the Organization of Islamic Cooperation (OIC), visited Egypt August 4-8 to meet with government, political, civil society, and religious leaders and discuss a wide range of issues.

He traveled with an interfaith delegation of a senior American Coptic priest and a senior American imam to highlight the U.S. commitment to religious freedom for people of all faiths. The delegation met with the Locum Tenens His Eminence Metropolitan Bakhomious of the Coptic Church and the Grand Shaykh of Al Azhar Ahmed Al Tayyeb.

Special Envoy Hussain also addressed worshipers at the historic Sultan Hasan mosque during Ramadan tarawih prayers.

“I'm honored to be back in Cairo and enjoyed meeting Egyptians from all walks of life at this pivotal moment in the country’s history. I look forward to building on the ideas we discussed as we further develop partnerships in the mutual interest of our countries,” said Special Envoy Hussain on his trip.

As Special Envoy, Rashad Hussain serves as the U.S. representative to the OIC and seeks to deepen and expand partnerships between the United States and Muslim communities around the world.