Friday

29th Mar 2024

Pope's apology fails to calm Muslim protests

Pope Benedict XVI has said he is sorry for the reactions by Muslims to a speech last week at a German university suggesting there was a link between Islam and violence - but the wording of his apology has meant that only some of the protestors have been appeased.

In his weekly Angelus prayer on Sunday (17 September), the pope said: "I am deeply sorry for the reactions in some countries to a few passages in my address at the University of Regensburg, which were considered offensive to the sensibility of Muslims."

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"These in fact were a quotation from a medieval text, which do not in any way express my personal thought," he explained - referring to the quote in his speech by a 14th century Byzantine emperor who claimed the prophet Muhammed's teaching had brought along "evil and inhuman" ideas, "such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached."

Following a heated debate and rallies in some Islamic countries, with calls for a personal apology by the head of Catholic Church, the pope insisted on Sunday his true intention had been "an invitation to frank and sincere dialogue, with mutual respect."

Some religious groups have welcomed the statement, including the Council of Muslims in Germany, where he made the controversial speech, as well as the most senior Muslim religious figure in Turkey, Ali Bardakoglu.

But while Turkey's government has confirmed Benedict XVI is still expected for a planned visit in November, state minister Mehmet Aydin remarked that the pontiff seemed to be sorry for the outrage but perhaps not for the actual remarks.

"You either have to say this 'I'm sorry' in a proper way or not say it at all - are you sorry for saying such a thing or because of its consequences?" he asked, according to BBC.

Some Muslim leaders in Egypt, Palestinean territories, Iran and Indonesia went further in their rejection of the statement, with catholic churches being attacked in some countries by protesters.

There are fears that a murder of an Italian missionary nun by gunmen in Somalia's capital of Mogadishu was also in retaliation for the comments.

Some commentators have compared the current outrage in parts of the Islamic world to the protests and violence in February following the publication in a Danish newspaper of cartoons satirising the Prophet Muhammed.

At the time, the EU was split about whether to apologize for offending Islamic countries with the pictures then published in several European media. Those saying that there should be no apology argued that freedom of expression is one of the milestones of western civilisation.

Brussels defends Pope's freedom of expression

The European Commission has said it was wrong to pick out quotes from the pope's controversial speech in which a link between Islam and violence was suggested and deliberately taking them out of context.

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