A leading Saudi cleric ruled Muslims may pray in churches, synagogues and in mosques belonging to the rival Shiite sect, a rare position in ultraconservative Saudi Arabia.

The fatwa [religious ruling] was issued by Abdullah bin Sulaiman Al-Manea, a member of the Council of Senior Scholars. He cited as justification the example of the founder of Islam, Mohammed, when he allowed a delegation of Christians to pray in his mosques.

The fatwa follows an unusual statement from Abdul Aziz Al-Sheikh, the Grand Mufti of Saudi Arabia, slamming the Palestinian Muslim Brotherhood affiliate Hamas.

“Hamas is a terrorist organization that hurts the Palestinians and the al-Aksa Mosque protests are a form of demagoguery,” the Grand Mufti reportedly said in a recent television program.

Hamas has long engaged in terrorist attacks against Israeli civilians. However, Saudi leaders have never referred to it as a terrorist group before. Israel’s Communications Minister Ayoub Kara invited the mufti to visit Israel via Twitter following the shock pronouncement.

In the past the grand mufti made hardline statements. In 2012 he called for all churches in the Arabian Peninsula to be destroyed.

Saudi Arabia has been moving in a more moderate direction of late. It recently announced women will be allowed to drive and the government is considering opening movie theaters.

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