Saudi TV host Tariq Habib was blasted by critics for thanking Jewish and Christian well-wishers. Photo: Twitter

A Saudi television host who tweeted his thanks to Jewish and Christian viewers after they wished him well following a kidney transplant operation has been widely vilified as a result.

Blogger Elder of Ziyon reported that Professor Tariq Habib, a psychologist and TV host whose Twitter account has over 5 million followers, “has been justifying his decision to issue that tweet, saying that a simple expression of thanks does not mean that he believes that Judaism or Christianity are superior to Islam.”

In an article responding to his detractors, Habib was careful not to alienate them entirely, opining that a “good word or phrases of thanksgiving, or even giving gifts to the Jews and the Christians, does not bless their faith or promotes a culture of loyalty to non-Muslims, but it is my job to the principles of Islam, which are based on justice, to appreciate the actions of others, to demonstrate Islam’s moral pillars.”