PRISHTINA: Celebrating 600 years of Islam among Albanians, the Islamic Community of Kosova (ICK) and the Faculty of Islamic Studies in Prishtina (FIS) will co-organize on September 16-17 an international symposium.

"The main goal of the symposium is to shed light on how Islam spread in these territories based on undisputed historic facts," professor Qemajl Morina, one of the organizers, told.

Debates about this issue and the role of Islam among Albanians have never been addressed independently but were always colored with negative and ideological considerations.

Organizers hope the symposium will show the true image of Islam and its role among Albanians, which have hitherto been misconcepted.

Morina said it will also address the challenges facing Muslims in this part of the world.

Some of the main themes are Albanians' pre- Ottoman contacts with Islam, religious tolerance, the role of Albanian scholars in Islamic civilization during the time of the Ottoman Empire as well as Albanians and Islamic identity.

Albanians are an ethnic group generally associated with Albania, Kosovo, Macedonia and Montenegro.

About half of today's Albanians live in the Republic of Albania, with the second largest group living in Kosovo.

"This symposium is being held at the very delicate moment whereby the relationship between East and West is getting tense," said Morina.