Fla. Pastor Says He Won’t Burn Qur’ans If He Gets Meeting With NY Imam
Posted September 10, 2010 2:30 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The pastor of a small church in Gainsville, Fla. who’s gained the world’s attention over his plan to burn the Qur’an to mark the anniversary of the Sept. 11 attacks said he won’t follow through if he can get a meeting with the imam in charge of the development of an Islamic center at ground zero in New York.
Terry Jones, who heads up the Dove World Outreach Center – a church with 30 or so members, called off the burning of the Qur’ans. The pastor claimed he’d struck a deal with a Florida imam that involved moving the site of a mosque to be erected near ground zero.
On Friday, Jones said he wouldn’t follow through on his burning of the Muslim holy book if he gets a meeting with the leader of the Islamic center project in New York, Feisal Abdul Rauf.
Jones claims he’s heading to New York to speak with Rauf Saturday. Rauf, however, claims he has no planned meeting with the Florida man.
The meeting was planned by a Florida imam, Mohammad Musri. Jones claims Musri promised him the New York mosque site would be moved. Musri says he only stepped up as a mediator and said he has no say in where the Islamic centre will be built and made no promises.
Jones’s plan to burn the Muslim holy book sparked worldwide reaction and condemnation from the White House, the Canadian government, the Vatican, military and other leaders.
