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Muslim Rage at Pope Benedict XVI Continues
20:48 Sep 25, '06 / 3 Tishrei 5767
by Hana Levi Julian

Muslim outrage continues to spill out with political cartoons and televised speeches over remarks by Pope Benedict XVI which included a medieval reference to Islamic teachings as "evil and inhuman".

The pope was quoting a Byzantine emperor on the topic of jihad (holy war) during his speech. "He said, I quote, ‘Show me just what Muhammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached,’” the pope stated.

Demands for a formal apology were interwoven with Muslim rage and in some cases, outright violence. Five churches of several different Christian sects were attacked by Palestinian Authority Arabs in Judea, Samaria and Gaza. Muslim clerics and political cartoonists also slammed the pope for his remarks.

According to the Palestinian Media Watch (PMW) bulletin, Dr. Osama al-Mazini vilified the pope in a sermon broadcast on Palestinian Authority TV last Friday as “ignorant and stupid”, and “criminal and arrogant.” In the Hamas weekly “al-Risala” a cartoon depicted the pope wearing a scarf with the Danish and U.S. flags, holding a swastika – also shown on the PMW website.

Al-Mazini warned that Allah would punish the “criminal Benedict the 16th, the Vatican Pope,” and threatened heavenly retribution. “This message is from Allah the Elevated and the Exalted,” proclaimed the Muslim cleric, saying that Allah “but gives them [the wicked] a respite until a day when eyes will stare [in terror].”

The pope expressed his regret over the incident through the Vatican secretary of state, Cardinal Tarcisio Bertone, but did not offer a specific apology. Bertone issued a statement saying the pope “sincerely regrets that certain passages of his address have sounded offensive to the sensitivities of the Muslim faithful and should have been interpreted in a manner that in no way corresponds to his intentions.”

The statement was not deemed sufficient, however; a senior member of the Egyptian Muslim Brotherhood said the statement by Bertone was “a pretext that the pope was quoting someone else as saying so and so.” Muhammed Bishr added, “We need the pope to admit the big mistake he has committed and then agree on apologizing, because we will not accept others to apologize on his behalf.”

The pope met Monday with some 20 Islamic ambassadors in the hope of calming the situation and told the Muslim leaders that he has “total and profound respect” for Islam.

Muslim Rage at Pope Benedict XVI Continues (http://www.israelnn.com/news.php3?id=112618)