Bartamaha (Mogadishu):-The Somali Islamist official on Friday condemned plans by U.S pastor, Terry Jones, to burn copies of the Muslim holy book, the Quran, calling for Muslims everywhere to rise up against the U.S..

Earlier on Friday, Jones announced he would put on hold his plan to burn hundreds of Quran copies Saturday to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks in 2001.

Moalin Hashi, a senior Islamist official from Hezbul Islam radical group which is fighting Somali government, called on Muslims particularly those in the U.S. “to act against the pastor”.

“These days senior infidels have been threatening to burn the holy Quran to mark the anniversary of the 9/11 incident, so we call on all Muslims in particular Americans Muslims to act against the pastor, to take tough action against pastor,” the Islamist official told crowds of people after Eid prayers which marks the end of Muslims holy month of Ramadan.

World leaders and government officials have also condemned the Quran-burning plan of U.S. pastor Terry Jones and raised concerns that the move may spark Muslim outrage around the globe and endanger U.S. interests.

The U.S. President Barack Obama warned the planed action by the pastor would create a “recruitment bonanza” for Al Qaeda and their allies around world.

Islamist groups in Somalia fighting against the weak but UN-backed government use problems in the Middle East and other Muslim countries such as Iraq and Afghanistan to show the west as being “anti-Islam.” “The wars going on in the world today are religious in nature but some think it is political but we can say it is religious considering what the pastors are saying and that they want to burn the Quran and that those before then used to insult our Prophet, so we want Muslims everywhere to rise up,” Hashi told reporters after the Eid prayers .

Islamist groups, which control much of south and centre of Somalia, wage deadly insurgency against Somali government and are considered terrorist entities with links to Al Qaeda.

The group has been launching attacks against Somali government forces and AU peacekeepers based in Mogadishu following their announcement of an all-out war to topple the weak government and drive out the African peacekeeping force from the country.

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Source:-xinhua.

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