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The minister of a Florida church said he has cancelled plans to burn copies of the Qur'an because the person behind the effort to build an Islamic centre near Ground Zero has agreed to move its location.
The agreement couldn't be immediately confirmed.
Pastor Terry Jones, who made the announcement at a press conference late Thursday in Gainesville, Fla., said he decided to call off the event after praying on the issue.
Jones said Americans oppose the mosque being built at Ground Zero in New York and Muslims do not want the Qur'an burned. Instead of burning the books on Saturday to mark the ninth anniversary of the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks, he will instead be flying to New York to speak to Imam Feisal Abdul Rauf about moving the mosque.
“We are, of course, now against any other group burning Qur'ans,” Jones said. “We would right now ask no one to burn Qur'ans. We are absolutely strong on that. It is not the time to do it.”
Jones said Imam Muhammad Musri of the Islamic Society of Central Florida told him that officials would guarantee that the mosque would be moved.
“I asked him three times, and I have witnesses,” Jones said. “If it's not moved, then I think Islam is a very poor example of religion. I think that would be very pitiful. I do not expect that.”
However, CNN reached the developers of the mosque, who said it is definitely not being moved.
Musri thanked Jones and his church members “for making the decision today to defuse the situation and bring to a positive end what has become the world over a spectacle that no one would benefit from except extremists and terrorists” who would use it to recruit future radicals.
International outcry
Jones's plans to burn Islam's holiest text had sparked an international outcry.
U.S. President Barack Obama, the top U.S. general in Afghanistan and several Christian leaders had urged Jones to reconsider his plans to burn the Qur'an, Islam's holiest text that Muslims consider sacred.
They said his actions would endanger U.S. soldiers and provide a strong recruitment tool for Islamic extremists. Jones's protest also drew criticism from religious and political leaders from across the Muslim world.
Earlier Thursday, Obama condemned Jones's plans to burn the Qur'an, calling it “a recruitment bonanza for al-Qaeda.”Speaking on ABC's Good Morning America, Obama called on Jones to “listen to those better angels” and reverse his plan, calling it a “stunt.”
“If he's listening, I hope he understands that what he's proposing to do is completely contrary to our values as Americans, that this country has been built on the notion of freedom and religious tolerance,” Obama said. “And as a very practical matter, I just want him to understand that this stunt that he is talking about pulling could greatly endanger our young men and women who are in uniform.”
Former Republican candidate for vice-president Sarah Palin said in a Facebook post that although people have the constitutional right to burn the Qur'an, doing so would be an “insensitive and an unnecessary provocation — much like building a mosque at Ground Zero.”
It appears Jones was having internal problems because of his stance. It seems his internet provider has revoked service to him. Jones said this is a violation of his freedom of speech and religion.
Moreover, about 15 members of his 50-strong congregation have decided to leave as a result of this controversy.
Jones is no stranger to scandal. In the past when he was affiliated with a church in Germany, there were some financial irregularities and he left.
Pressure on Jones grew as many religious groups denounced the planned burning.
The Muslim Canadian Congress (MCC) sent an urgent appeal Thursday to Jones, imploring him to reconsider his decision to burn the Muslim holy book.
“The only people who will relish the image of a burning Qur'an is Bin Laden and his boys. Certainly, Pastor Jones would not like to contribute to the glee of that mass murderer,” MCC president Sohail Raza said in a statement.
Meanwhile, tension also grew around the world in response to Jones's plan.
One church in India even received a bomb threat. The pastor of that church received a letter threatening to blow up churches in the area if they burn the Qur'ans.
He immediately relayed the message to police and the pastor said the church had no plans to observe Jones's so-called International Burn a Qur'an Day, and he says that Christians in India are united in their mission to spread the message of universal brotherhood.
Protests in Pakistan were getting more radical. Hundreds of people marched down the street chanting “Death to America,” and then set fire to a U.S. flag.Protesters say if Jones follows through with his plans there will be a reaction against the Christian church across the world and that a new war will begin between Muslims and Christians.
Tension was also starting to bubble over in the United States. A mosque under construction in Arizona was vandalized overnight. The attackers broke windows and threw paint.
CBC News
