http://www.reuters.com/news_article.jhtml;jsessionid=HDYCL41RR1ODCCRBAELCFEY ?type=topnews&StoryID=1570530
Officials from Muslim countries welcomed on Sunday an apology from conservative U.S. preacher Jerry Falwell for calling the Prophet Mohammad a "terrorist," and they urged that debate on Islam be more informed. Falwell, a leading voice for the Christian right in America, had angered Muslims across the world with his comments, triggering Hindu-Muslim clashes in western India that left at least nine people dead. But on Saturday, he said he meant no disrespect to "any sincere, law abiding Muslim." "It's good and fitting that he should apologize for remarks which hurt so many Muslims' feelings around the world. But people should really think before they speak, and make sure they really know about Islam before commenting on it," an Egyptian official told Reuters. "There has been a trend since September 11 to criticize Islam unfairly. Many of the people who comment on Islam don't have any idea what the faith is really about. There is also a trend to use criticism of Islam for political advantage." Falwell's apology came after top Iranian and British officials condemned the remarks, which he made last week in an interview on the CBS news show "60 Minutes." "I think Mohammad was a terrorist," he said in the interview. "I read enough of the history of his life written by both Muslims and -- non-Muslims, (to know) that he was a -- a violent man, a man of war." CONCILIATORY After attacking the comments last week as encouraging violence, Iran sounded a more conciliatory note on Sunday. "Because he said he did not want to deliberately offend Muslims and he apologized, that is a positive statement and we hope he won't repeat that mistake again," foreign affairs ministry spokesman Hamid Reza Asefi told Reuters. "At this time nobody should encourage hatred between different civilizations and different religious groups." Falwell's remarks enraged clerics in Iran with some calling for his death, according to local media. In a prepared statement on Saturday, conservative Baptist Falwell said he was sorry for the hurt feelings caused by his comments. "I sincerely apologize that certain statements of mine made during an interview for (the October 6 edition of) CBS's '60 Minutes' were hurtful to the feelings of many Muslims," he said. Falwell said his error came from answering a "controversial and loaded question" at the end of an hour-long interview. A spokesman for Egypt's most influential fundamentalist group, the banned Muslim Brotherhood, said it was unacceptable for anyone to insult Mohammad and welcomed the apology as a "good step." "We encourage him to hold a polite debate on Islam. We have the duty of arguing against anyone whose views we consider wrong," the spokesman Mamoun Hudaibi said. xponent Falwell Sucks Maru rob _______________________________________________ http://www.mccmedia.com/mailman/listinfo/brin-l
