During the October 1973 war, the Rector of Egypt's al-Azhar University, Abd al-Halim Mahmud broadened the call of jihad by saying it was a duty for Christians as well as Muslims:
"Jihad is an obligation for all, without distinction between Muslims and Christians. It is the first duty of all who live under the sky of Egypt, the fatherland of all...Being killed (istisshad) for the sake of the fatherland gives access to Paradise. This is confirmed by all divine laws (shara’i samawiyya) that have been revealed to the People of the Book."
Quoted by Rudolph Peters, Jihad in Classical and Modern Islam ( Princeton: Marcus Wiener, 1996), 132.