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Washington:
US President Barack Obama Thursday condemned the plans by a
Florida church to burn copies of the Quran on the anniversary of
the 9/11 terror attack, saying it could endanger the lives of US
military personnel serving in Pakistan and Afghanistan.
Terry Jones, the pastor at the Dove World Outreach Center in
Gainesville, Florida, is planning to conduct an "International
Burn a Quran Day" Saturday.
If the church went ahead with its plans, the burning could
endanger US military personnel serving in Pakistan and
Afghanistan, Omaba said.
"Look, this is a recruitment bonanza for Al Qaeda. You could have
serious violence in places like Pakistan and Afghanistan. This
could increase the recruitment of individuals who'd be willing to
blow themselves up in American cities, or European cities," Obama
said in an interview to ABC television.
Obama said he hoped Jones "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".
"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," the
president said.
Secretary of State Hillary Clinton has already condemned the
pastor's plan, and dmanded that he abandon it.
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